Paul F

Where and when is this fly fishing show?

I tied up a bunch of hopper patterns last spring and I had alot of luck with them. I was up in the UP labor day weekend fishing for trout and hoppers were the ticket, I fished all kinds of general attractor patterns to no avail but they couldn't stay away from the foam hoppers. They are much easier to fish than tiny dry flies, which I had a very hard time fishing.

Thanks Rich, I look forward to hopefully writing another in the future.

I like to wear a nice cotton long sleeve underneath a nice fleece. Keeps me plenty warm and it is not bulky like a coat is.

I took three days off work this week with intentions of going steelheading... I should went yesterday since today is miserable and tomorrow won't be much better.

Sure, I drive past it daily. Where do you want me to send them?

John, I am significantly younger than you but I begged my dad to drag me and a buddy of mine out to the vermillion every other weekend when I was growing up in the 90s. We averaged atleast one trip per month, I recall days of catching so many whites and smallies my thumbs were raw. When I became of driving age in the early 2000s and bought a car we were out there all the time and we were still experiencing the same productive fishing until just a few years back. I spent 2 weekends in a row fishing the river hard last year and I think i had only brought a dozen smallmouth to hand and probably a few dozen whites. I got into a whole bunch of sauger on one outing too. I only paid one visit to the river this year and it was a total bust, I caught only a few small fish. Its not just you.

I fished the typical egg sucking leech and caught a few after many months of hard fishing. I bought a centerpin setup and never looked back, infact I caught 2 cohos and a nice steelie this morning on the pin. Flyfishing for chrome is hard work, but very rewarding. I enjoy flyfishing for steelies but I enjoy catching more fish with the centerpin. When you do catch one you'll be hooked for life.

What do you mean by "support the dark side?"

Hey all, looking to sell a fly rod setup that just doesn't get much use. It is a 9 foot 2pc 6wt St.Croix Rio Santo rod, paired with a lamson konic reel that is spooled with WF7F Scientific anglers mastery series bass bug fly line. This is actually a very solid setup for casting large flies, which is exactly what I wanted when I got this setup together. Its not an expensive setup but it performs very well, I have only used it 3 times this season. Spent about 300 bucks on this setup, asking 250... Located in naperville, willing to meet within reason. If interested send me a private message and we can exchange numbersm

What breed of chickens does she raise? I have 7 plymouth rock chickens, but they are only white... Which means unless I intend to start dying feathers I am limited on colors. Also, most feathers that the birds drop are pretty difficult to work with. I wouldn't deem them unusable though

I also fished a very clear section of the duper this past monday with a good friend.... I saw plenty of beds but no sight of nearby fish, maybe they have already spawned in my neck of the woods? On a side note, there is a poor smallie crusin around the west branch with a custom white/chartreuse swim jig stuck in its mouth. If anyone should end up catching it, its all yours.

Thanks for all the advice guys, Are the solar gaurds from wally world polarized?

Hey all, I am in the market for some prescription sunglasses... Particularly polarized sunglasses. I have never bought or owned a pair of sunglasses in my life (if you can believe that) and I have no idea what I am doing. I have done some minimal reading about them but I dont know what particular shades are best for fishing and whatnot. I have worn other peoples sunglasses before and I am not a big fan of heavily tinted lenses, I just want something that can cut the glare off of the water so that I can spot things beneath the surface and save my eyes from being cooked by the sun's relections off the water. I am due for a trip to the optometrist anyhow so when I am in there I will request a copy of my prescription and see what they have to offer but I was wondering is anyone could provide me with some insight on this subject. Thanks in advance!

You mean you guys dont sample your flies after you tie them?

Apple river is good fishing, lake galena is also excellent largemouth bass fishing. There is a river that flows out of lake galena that always seems to produce some good bass fishing too.

I really don't need these and I am looking to get rid of these ASAP, I found a really good deal on another setup that I want but I feel bad buying more rods and reels when I still have some sitting around... These Daiwa rods are cheap, And thats why I bought them. I was using them for catching carp and bullheads a while back in a pond that was right by my house and at the time I had no other med action casting rods.I have two of them, I am only asking 15 per rod. It is a 6' Med action rod, rated for 8-17 lb test, "Crossfire" model. They would be good rods to put a Zebco on for your kids. I also have a very nice Falcon rod that has only been used on ONE trip. I paid 130 for this rod last year (actually bought two)... I would like a $100 but I am open to reasonable offers. It is a "low rider choke canyon special," model number LFC-7-166, It is a 6'-6'' Heavy action, Fuji guides and a Fuji TPS 16 reel seat. This is an unbelievably comfortable rod to fish, It was highly recommended on many other fishing forums for fishing larger jigs. I bought it for fishing 1/2 and 3/4oz jis and I have been extremely very pleased with it. I have many different brands of casting rods and I can honestly say that Falcons are probably my favorite. I have another one of these rods (this exact model) and I fish it 60-100 times a year probably. Did I mention that it is made here in the US? Attached are a couple of pictures. Please Call, text or PM me if interested. If I cannot answer your phone call then please leave a voicemail and I will call back as soon as possible, My cell number is 630-596-7375. I live and work in naperville, But I am willing to meet someone halfway if needed (within reason)

I fished Franklin creek about 10 years back and I only recall catching some small fish... As illustrated in Don's pictures it really is a nice place from what I remember. If nothing else, Its a reason to get out of the house and explore somewhere new.

I am also very interested in this, Keep us posted please!

Also on that list are Brook and Brown trout... Interesting read, Thanks for sharing that.

I was thinking about this topic today while I was putting some new backing and fly line onto my new 6wt setup.... I feel that a decent ammount other fly fisherman and people who work in fly shops are completely unfriendly, I went to bass pro when I was looking to get started fly fishing... I told them I did not know much about it, but I had done some reading and I wasnt completely clueless. They talked to me like I was an idiot and seemed like they did not want to help me at all. I eventually went to two other stores and got the same sort of attitudes there. I spent a bunch of time reading online and eventually purchased a mid priced St.Croix rod and ordered an Orvis reel online, I went back to bass pro for fly line simply due to the fact that it was so close to home. The guys remembered me and could not believe that I purchased a rod from a different store, Which considering the fact that they laughed in my face when I asked them for a less expensive rod is mind boggling. If someone told you that they wanted to get started spin fishing would you tell them to go out and buy a loomis rod and an expensive reel to hang on that rod? NO, So why would the guys over at BPS hand me 3 to 5 hundred dollar rods? A good friend of mine fished with me a bunch of times this past summer and he seemed very intrigued by the idea of fly fishing, I caught him a few times just standing there watching me cast... He asked me this winter if I could provide him with some good advice in picking out a fly fishing setup. I gave him all the best advice I could and he eventually picked up a setup but when he called me on the ride home from Cabelas he asked me "Are all fly fisherman jerks?" I really didnt know how to respond but I asked him why he would ask that, And he told me that everyone he talked to in the fly shop made him want to just forget about ever trying fly fishing and spend his money on a new baitcaster setup instead. And sadly, I have to agree with him... I would think that these guys at these stores would absolutely love to see young guys like myself and my friend interested in fly fishing, but it certainly does not appear to be that way. More than half the people I have ran into on the river that were toting fly gear were the same way... We are all fisherman, Cant we all just get along? Thats the end of my rant....

Correction, spin fishing

Fly gear is expensive, and catching fish on the fly is more difficult. It seems most people (myself included) turn to fly fishing for a change of pace... But if you tie all your own flies its really not a whole lot more expensive than fly fishing.

How can you tell a male smallie from a female smallie?

The dam in naperville on the west branch is missing a sign.. I will keep my eyes open for other signs that are damaged or need to be replaced.