ronk

Anytime you'd care to see it let me know,o ye of little faith.

Heads up to anyone needing a fly reel. Gander Mtn in Joliet has Loomis Venture fly reels selliing for $100 in catalogs for only $70. Good looking gold reels and with the GLoomis name are likely of good quality.

Waterproof cases are available for some Fuji cameras such as Finepix a400 or a500 good to a 10' depth. I purchased the 4m.p. a400 on sale for about $90 and got the $70 case gratis! Am pleased with the picture quality etc. and the case has already saved the camera a cupl times when I flopped in the river. I usually fish alone and take pix holding fish with the timer by putting the camera either flat on the ground or propped at a 45 degree angle against a rock. Bending at the waist makes it look pretty much as if the pic were taken by another.

From what Tim says regarding the Dupage R. in his fine article in the newsletter on phopsphates its days as a quality stream for big smallmouths at least if not all smallmouths in general are sadly ending due to the excessive weed growth and augmented for the first time this year with massive algae growth as well.It's inevitable that this year's kill of big smallmouths will be a regular occurance if phosphates are not reduced.The main source seems to be the wastewater trreatment plants in Plainfield most of which presumably came on liine in recent years with P's explosive growth.What is puzzling is about 2 years ago at an ISA neeting at Gander Mtn in Elgin a speaker,who I believe was with the DNR, said that older wastewater treatment plants were not equipped to treat for phosphates leading one of course to conclude that newer ones,which seemingly would include those recent ones, should be.Why than does the situation get worse every year with the coup de gras this year being delivered by the algae? Was the speaker wrong? Or was it decided not to equip those new plants with that technology to save a buck? If the bottom line sobs running Plainfield had any say, the latter is the likely answer.

I pinch a splitshot on at the hookeye which allows the same fly to be fished deep with the shot or shallow when removed.A good caster can cast the shotted fly nicely with a rod as light as a fast action 4wt. The shad pattern should be especially affective on the Kankakee where this past summer I saw big smallies targeting shad.

In the coldwater periods of Spring and Fall it makes sense to pursue fish that are happiest in cold water. I belong to a club near Braidwood that stocks Rainbows in a couple of strip pits. Although stockers, they're as beautiful and as hard fighting as their wild bretheren often cartwheeling out of the water repeatedly. I fish 'em from a floatube with a 4wt flyrod and forget all about smallmouths for awhile.

Kevin, You underestimate the effectiveness of flyfishing by your last sentence's blanket statsment.While generally speaking spinfishing is more effective in terms of fish count fly fishing is also effective and there certainly are times and circumstances when a good flyfisherman can compete with a good spinfisherman and even outfish him.This is true of warmwater species and especially so of coldwater ones.In one of his posts that phenomal spinfisherman Eric stated the way to become a better fisherman is to set aside the computer etc.and go fish.Since it's more difficult this is especially good advice when it comes to flyfishing.

While it's important to retie often with any knot it's especially important using an open loop for streamering or bassbugging as the sliding of the hookeye along it weakens the loop.I've lost several nice fish when it broke not at the knot but at the loop itself.

The best approach would be nymph fishing using the high sticking method. Basically it's J.G.'s float n' fly approach with fly gear.

Tim Am I correct in concluding from what you say that phosphates produce different negative results in different rivers,i.e.the suspended phytoplankton in the Fox vs. the weeds and algae matts in the Dupage and now becoming more evident in the Kank and that the one type cancels out the other?If so and if we must live with phosphate pollution's negative results, as a fishermen I certainly prefer its results on the Fox to those on the Dupage/Kank.My reasoning that phosphates at least in the Dupage can actually lead to clearer water is that the weeds and algae matts they foster filter out and hold whatever washes in with rain.We've all experienced kicking up clouds of muck while wading thru the weeds/algae.The clearer water in turn allows for more sunlight penetration which causes still more plant growth.Nothing scientific just seat of the pants reasoning.If Oregon succeeds in banning phosphates altogether perhaps it will shame other states into doing more.

Mark The primary sourc of both the eel grass and algae is the increase in phosphate pollution caused by urban sprawl.Although banned from laundry detergent since the 70's,it's use continues in fertilizers and dishwashing detergent and winds up in our rivers.Just as it fosters plant growth on land in fertilizers it does so in water as well. As the weeds increase and the water becomes clearer more sunlight reaches the riverbed causing still more weed/algae growth.The algae thrives in coldwater and largely disappears when it warms only to be replaced by the eelgrass at that time.While this condition is increasing on the Kank it's already an epidemic on the Dupage which as I've said before is becoming a 20 mile long salad bowl.In our area only the Fox has been spared perhaps because it's murky water allows little sunlight penetration.If so and if the murkiness is because of the dams than those advocating their removal should be reminded of that old addage"be careful what you wish for".

[quote name='Mark P' date='Oct 22 2007, 11:59 AM' post='15124 Also remember that you have the option to over line the rod to make casting easier if you are going with the larger flies or when fishing in very windy conditions like Argentina is known for. If you are a good to great caster, you should be able to throw at least 70' of line even with the lighter rods (3/4 wt.). Of course, you should choose the optimal setup for rod length, weight, etc... for your needs but working on your casting is far more important than anything thing else. Mark P, I completely agree with you re.casting ability being by far the most important.A good caster will cast better with a poor rod than a mediocre caster will with a good rod.i.e."it's not the arrow,it's the indian".It's disappointing how many long time flyfishers are little better casters now than they were in the beginning.In order to cast heavy and/or wind resistant flies well one should concentrate more on learning to dubl haul than what style of rod to use.I'm sorry if this offends anyone but it's the truth of the matter.I also concur with overlining the rod being beneficial casting large flies.The development of lengthening the belly in recently developed flylines seems to me to be a tacit recognition of this.It may be that such lines need not be overlined.While I have not as yet tried these lines I'm sure they're very good. Another line worth considering that I do use is the Triangle Taper designed many years ago by Lee Wulff.It's an excellent rollcasting and mending line and with a thin running line it casts for distance excellently as well

I mispoke. Meant to say'loop knots and knots other than the improved clinch or trilene knots" Was so advised by Feathercraft Fly Shop who sells fluorocarbon under the shop's name.They said if you must use a clinch use it unimproved as it's less likely to slip apart with fluoro but that's a pretty weak knot and I lost a big smallie last qweek when it did slip.

Loop knots are the knots of choice for fluorcarbon when tying fly to tippet.The improved clinch or trilene will slip apart and even the unimproved will if not tyed very carefully.l

I don't understand the rational behind your statement re bag limits.Please clarify. Also I'm sure a study of bluegills(a member of the same sunfish family as the smallmouth) would conclude that none could possibly be alive after being out of water for 45 minutes but this spring I personally experienced that it is possible.In this hypothetical situation the choice of who to believe for me would also be rather obvious.Too often a study with one conclusion is contadicted by another study whatever the subject(fish,human health etc.) .Therefore I think they should be taken with a grain of salt and rejected if they do in fact conflict with our own personal experience.

In addition to the usual subsurface patterns (clousers, bunnies,etc.)try pounding bassbugs against rocky shorelines especially for bigger fish.Use flies in the larger sizes due to the murky water.

Tim, You defend the researcher by surmising that re other species he was just speaking in a general sense.It should be evident that I was speaking of rough fish in general and in general most are significantly more tolerant. I agree we should not dump science for barstool assumptions but that we should reject classroom conclusions(which as Jonn G. points out are often rejected by other classroom conclusions)when they fly in the face of our own hands on in the field experience.While Mark is right in stating that it should not take 4 minutes to land and photo a smallie there are other species were it takes longer such as steelhead trout,salmon,various saltwater species perhaps even including bonefish themselves given those runs they make.If we accept this study why bother with c+r if they're likely doomed to die anyway?

Other than using brighter colors in dirty water and quieter colors in clear water I don't think color matters much.When it comes to surface fishing Lefty Kreh subscribes to the Henry Ford approach,i.e. you can use any color as long as it's black perhaps because it shows up best against the lighter sky it's silhoutted against from below. I prefer white or chartreuse because it's easier to see when cast amid shoreline cover.The past few years I've mostly fished the Dupage. Since it's shallow and clear I've mostly fished the surface at least after the water gets int the mid 50's and above.It's more involving and exciting. I seem to catch a high % of big smallies on the surface. Also the obscene increase in weeds just below the surface makes a nuisance out of subsurface fishing.Those weeds do give the flyfisherman one big advantage as he can pick up the fly to avoid them and snap them off with a strong backcast.On the Kank I fish mostly subsurface and both on Sugar Creek in Indiana. I haven't fished the Fox much but plan to fish it more now that the Dupage has become a 20 mile long salad bowl.

Well said, Jonn.I hope that our belief in catch and release doesn't lead us to unsupported extremes.Any study that states that what's true of one species of fish is true of others should be rejected on it's face since it's common knowledge that different species have different limits in handling stress from trout with the lowest to so called rough fish with the highest.Different fish also typically face different levels of stress during a fight. A fly caught wild trout faces a higher level than a smallmouth due to the longer fight necessitated by the lighter tackle.Yet the more stress vunerable trout when fought and handled properly lives to fight another day as witness the success of catch and release on trout waters.A bonefish presumably expends a tremendous amount of energy during a fight making searingly fast runs of as much as 200 yards sometimes 2 or 3 times before succumbing.

For 25 years I did both sometimes spinfishing to locate fish and than switching until I gave all my spin gear to my brother 15 years ago hoping his 2 boys would take up the sport as they became older which alas didn't happen as like so many kids today they developed no connection to the outdoors.While I know that in general spinning gear will most often catch more fish at least for warmwater species I also know that those who put forth the time and effort to become good flyfishermen[and make no mistake it does take more time and effort than spinfishing demands]will most often find that they would rather catch 2 flyfishing than twice that spinning not because they've become flyfishing snobs but because they find flyfishing more challenging and more importantly more FUN.Even you might,Eric.By the way if you'd ever watched the little league playoffs you'd know that a fastball at 75mph reaches the hitter as fast as a 90+mph in the majors due to the mound's being closer. All I've said so far applies to fishing for warmwater species.When it comes to trout/salmon fishing spinning is definitely minor league compared to the challenge and intricacies of flyfishing which can require using gossamer leaders and casting flies the size of mosquitoes.

Most flyrod makers provide free repair/replacement against breakage.Rather than praising yours I would question the quality of any rod so susceptible to breakage leaving me up s...s creek sans paddle 4 times.