Mike G

http://addins.wrex.com/blogs/weather/2013/04/aerial-view-of-the-april-2013-floods You can now fish downtown Rockford literally. No need for GPS as street address will do.

I thank the god of winter, Old Nick, for hanging around longer this year so I had a chance to complete a long overdue sort of my lures. They all fell into these groups which include small to large in size and surface to bottom in depth: Spoons In-Line Spinners Long Thin Hardbaits Short Round Hardbaits Traps Chatterbaits/Spinnerbaits Jigs Soft baits A working collection of every type except softbaits went into a NuWave Bag for boat fishing. A soft bait selection went into a separate bag. If you are with me and the boat tips over, save those bags before me. I do not want to live without those bags. I bagged up spares by the same groups for storage. Flies are next; but that is enough cold weather for now, Nick. I want to go fishing without ice in the guides.

They're still there and in good supply at the Walmart I was at on Tuesday.

Great product. Normally I am not a fan of gadgets since most of the things they do can be done with a pocket knife. That is not true in this case. I have been picking up a lot of line lately as Lake Summerset sheds its winter coat (gobs of stuff left behind by thoughtless anglers). Are these sold locally, or do I have to buy on the net?

Good tip. The ad seems to have changed. I found it in the sports & outdoor/fishing rods & reels tab, still $30. http://www.walmart.com/browse/fishing-marine/fishing-rods-reels/4125_111667_1080424/?_refineresult=true&ic=32_0&path=0%3A4125&povid=cat111667-env296908-moduleB030213-lLinkFC1Rods_Reels

It is now snowing in the Driftless Area. That is not the only puzzle. The Mysterious Driftless Area Besides the rare flora and fauna of the area, there's the Schullsburg Mystery Spot. "Approximately two miles out of town, Highway U plunges down a steep hill, across a low area, and curves back up a steeper hill. Stop your car about three-quarters of the way down the first hill, just short of the 25 mph sign that announced the curve back up the other side. From here, U appears to drop considerably to the valley floor before rising again. Place the car in neutral and you will be rolling backward up the hill, slowly at first then faster and faster!!!" The popular name for County U is Judgement Street. The truth is out there.

Ouch But there's lemonade here since I can hope to make it on the new date.

I think I live in this area since on some maps the far NW Corner of Winnebago Co is in there. So I am miffed that they didn't give me a chance to make an ignorant comment in the video. So here it is,"What do you mean driftless? Last winter we had drifts over my head on Best road you hippy tree hugger." Jonn thanks for the link. Driftless=Trout is the equation I relate to. But Now I see there may be more to it like the Cheese Festival in Monroe and the great bar crawl in New Glarus.

If you liked the sparkle fur Distinctive now has it available in 1/3 and 1/2 yards. Since the fabric is 65'' wide, the 1/3 is equal to 46 5 X 3.5 inch swatches. http://www.etsy.com/shop/LuxuryFauxFur/search?search_query=Sparkle&order=date_desc&view_type=gallery&ref=shop_search

Make lemonade. At the Kish outing, you won't have to go far from the shelter to fish. You might be able to fish in the shelter. Terry's next 20 incher will be under the picnic bench.

Just when I thought I had seen everything... Has anyone tried Rapalas new way to take our dollars?

Terry I should not be on the list because I cannot make it. Now except for yourself and Jude, it looks like an all star cast or a bunch of all star casters.

Oh yeah! Spit curls. To see a master in action watch this classic from 5:15 to the end. If you are not in a hurry the whole thing, bears rewatching. A real Deceiver has Lefty's DNA on it.

But wait there's more tips from the hair salon. See how nicely shaped Bob Clouser's Clouser is on the cover of his book. But yours come out looking like shaving brushes like this one. No shame since your fly will catch fish for you every bit as well as the more shapely version. It just won't sell as well as the Pro's. If you want the professional look, give it a salon styling. After the glue dries, shampoo it in warm water. Rinse well. Shape it into that classic minnow taper like the one on the cover of the book. Set it on a dry cloth or paper towel to dry overnight. In the morning you will have a photo ready fly. This works well on natural bucktail, fake fur, neck hackle, and saddle hackle and probably on other materials too. BTW to keep the cost down, I use the shampoos they give out at motels and hotels and save our good stuff for the little hair that I have left.

Show us some when you get a chance.

I will repeat that I cannot make it.

Or make one fly with a "Ringer" that lets you change out dumbell eyes according to conditions.

Tim, The fly looks great and is just the right length. Best sources for those 60 deg hooks are on the web. Barlow's and JannsNetcraft have the best selection I have found so far. There are alos some interesting 30 deg hooks out there.

My Sally Hansen's clear is getting low; so next time I am in the cosmetics aisle at Walmart I will pick some up along with some hair spray, and one of the personal grooming devices that Jonn mentioned. Where would men be without women? We wouldn't be able to tie flies.

Thanks. That's the name. They look good on their site. It is hard to beat those hand poured colors. I have been wondering about these: Z-man Elaztech http://zmanfishing.com/store/categories/elaztech/minnowz The material is very flexible and unbelievably durable. I will be trying some of them when Swim Jig season comes.

Please refresh my memory on the name of that swim bait that goes with these jigs so well. Like the one in the third picture.

Does that include the jig?

What were you smokin'? Maybe I could use some

Regretfully, I have to bow out due to a family event. Thanks to Jim I don't feel so bad.

For being good customers, Time sent us a flashlight. Since it looked like the small cure lights that sell for $10 or so, I bought a small tube of UV glue to try it out. Worse case, I could use good old Sol to do the job if the light failed. It didn't. The glue cured producing an ugly smell that I assume is typical. After curing I noticed a sticky residue on my test glue blobs that does not want to dry up. Coating it with Sally Hanson's seems to work. But what do you expert readers say. Aren't there UV Glues that won't have this problem? BTW so far I am impressed. UV seems to beat mixing and waiting for Epoxy if one can deal with the smell which the vinegar smell of RTV seem like perfume.