Bart Durham

Those look like some killer flies Jonn!

Tom, I think the ticker will work well for the "No Name Dad"

Jonn, Is it really going to warm up soon?

I hope Tim's interpretation is correct. It makes a lot more sense. Plus, I found my registration stickers kept getting torn off.

Wow! Thanks alot Tom! This should be a winner. I'm heading to the store now to get my materials. Have to give some thought for name.

Ok, maybe it wasn't a beautiful fish but it still was an exhilarating experience

Rob, those are some beautiful flies. John, I had an incident occur while fishing on Saturday I thought you and others might appreciate. I was fly fishing in the rising water using an autumn splendor fly when my fly rod doubled over and I knew I had a fish on. I fought the fish intensely as it tried to swim out to the main channel. Problem was it was a 30 lb carp and I had it hooked by the tail! It was a beautiful fish. I should have brought the fish to shore but tried to grab the fish mid stream and it broke off the fly. I had thoughts of showing photographs here of a fish that might compare with some of yours but to no avail. I guess thats fishing.

Nice looking Coosa Tim. I also like the pedestal. Im anxious to see pic of Terrys. The Coosa should serve you guys well on the Kish and the Rock.

Very impressive looking fly, thanks for recipie.

I went to the Schaumburg show on Sunday and really enjoyed the Kayak and Paddle and Trail exhibit. Gained some valuable insight from my discussions with Drew Gregory of Jackson Kayak and the Paddle and Trail crew. Enjoyed seeing the other kayak options and new technology. Stopped by the WFN booth next to the Kayak exhibit and was given a shirt that reads "Live to Fish, Forced to Work".

Thank you very much Tom for teaching us how to tie the foxy crawdad. Thanks John for being the host and Steve and Mike for your assistance and patience sitting next to me. I'm looking forward to trying out my fly on the Fox/Dupe this spring.

Don't discount the Coosa. May not be the best tracking boat but pretty versatile for our local streams and durable.

Excellent job again Eric. Found Jeff Little article very informative and look forward to seeing him at the blowout.

Check out this new fishing boat, I found interesting, called "the frog boat": www.onefrogtwo.com I think it would work well for fly casting on a pond but question whether it would hold up on our local streams, perhaps in low water.

Mackerel?

"Fracking" is a controversial issue in Pennsylvania. I wonder is there is a correlation betweeen it and the recent Sesquahana smallmouth problem in the Pennsylvania waterway?

Jonn, Wan't the Susquehanna on your bucket list of smallmouth fisheries to fish? I know its on mine. This is a shame and can hopefully be remedied. Makes me thankful to have seen all the healthy infant smallmouth in our local rivers this past summer and how fortunate we are to have thriving local smallmouth fisheries.

Beautiful scenery. Hard to believe its in Illinois but southern Illinois has some of the most picturesque scenery I've seen anywhere. Reminds me a bit of Apple River canyon. With rocky bottom and stone cliffs you would think smallmouth would thrive in the stream.

I've had nothing but positive experiences with the customer service at the Orvis Lombard store where I purchased my first fly rod and reel this past summer. Ron, may have to add the casting video to my christmas list.

Awesome looking fly Tom, could mimic a dying shad or crayfish, will be anxious to hear how it works!

Thanks Rob. Great article.

An article in Sun Times yesterday mentioned removal of Hoffman Dam on Des Plaines river last year has already improved fishing conditions on Des Plaines river. Also, a number of mature tagged smallmouth were released into the river, similar to release in Dupage River last year, in attempt to give kick start to smallie population regeneration in the river. Here is link to article written by Dale Bowman. http://www.suntimes.com/sports/outdoors/15660410-452/fishing-outdoors-removal-of-dam-has-transformed-des-plaines-river.html

Like Mike, I found the fishing tough during my kayak float between the two parks. Did manage to catch two smallies, 14" and 15" on Honey Buzzbait. As others warned the river is very low and had to drag kayak a few times through shallow water. The weather was great and the leaves are starting to change color which made up for the conditions.

Tom's newly named fly, "foxy crawdad" has to be included in top local crayfish flies.

Thanks guys, just ordered my first assortment of flies. Always wondered what a meat whistle looked liked, now I know.