Mike G

I think it is about 3 weeks for a single spawner though it can be up to 3 months from the first spawner to the last spawner.

The magic man's magic lure is on Cabela's site: Terminator Super Stainless Dirty Water Spinnerbait Item:2UG-119676 $4.99 Colors 061 and 062 are single bladed. "Super, Guide Model, Hudson Bay, 5 Star, Delux, Must Have, Already Outlawed in Some States, Going Fast..."

Thanks.

Rather than hijacking the Swim Jig color thread, I thought I would comment here. The thread was evolving away from the color topic anyway. How much time do we spend looking for the magic lure? I have spent a lot, buying something new every year often buying a several of the season's new creations. In their turn, Lazy Ikes, Mepps Spinners, Rapalas, Spinnerbaits, Power Worms, Sluggos, Jig and Pigs, Senkos, Crank Baits, 3 X Lizards, Swim Frogs, Chatter Baits, and Swim Baits have held this magic position in my tackle box. I have a similar list for flies. Did I mention Spoon Plugs? I write this knowing full well that there is no magic lure though I keep slipping back to that childish way of thinking when I walk into a tackle shop. A more adult way of thinking about lures is to follow a well thought out theory like the one that Buck Perry came up with 50 years ago. Lures are tools. They are good if they achieve the goals of controling depth, speed, size, color and action. These controls are listed in descending order of importance. Of course, first you have to know the habits and location of the fish you are after. That is another pattern. A $20 lure cannot do that for you. In other words I cannot replace homework with a fancy bait. In fishing I have to reduce the number of baits I carry and increase the thought I put into the process. This is not to say that a White Thumper and a Black Hula Grub is all one ever needs though it may be more in the right direction. So right now I probably have all the lures I will ever need in all the colors I will ever need. What do you think.

Buck sez,"If you have a favorite color, use it." Otherwise, dark water, dark lure; light water, light lure.

Great idea! Before moving to Winnebago Co., we lived in DuPage Co. ISA had great rapport with the FPD there, so I am sure this will work out well.

That was a great article that put together a lot of things we were thinking. Besides, it gives us some great talking points when we have a bad day. If one draws a blank, blame it on evolution. "The LV fish that dominate lake X are almost impossible to catch." If one catches only dinks, blame harvesting patterns and evolution. "The strains that grow larger have been fished out leaving only genetically small fish in the lake." On a more serious note, closed seasons and immediate release are practices that states like WI have had in place for a long time. The policies have tangible results. I like the idea of spawning preserves if waters cannot be closed for the spawning season.

Bucktails, in-line and spinnerbait, have always been hot Musky baits. We ought to be using them more for bass. With their subtle action they are said to perform best in colder water conditions, while the more active rubber and silicone skirts are better when the water get warm in summer. You should be using them now. When you get your order, let us know how they work. Head to head comparisons with standard rubber or silicone skirt baits would be interesting. Don't let Eric know. Thumper Bucktail?

"a canoe of equal value that would be easy to stand and bowfish out of" That's a tough bill to fill. Some would say,"Easy to stand = not a canoe." The OT or Grumman sportboat is what you want.

Or should I say seasonal. But the weatherman says seasonable... For fly tyers, now is a good time to get chartreuse craft foam and other chartreuse craft materials. Places like Wally's and craft stores will stock materials in Easter colors this time of year, and chartreuse is one. Or pink, yellow or lavender? If you have been thinking about getting into fly fishing or know someone who is, Cabela's has a clearance sale till May 31. Items include complete fly outfits-Wind River, Scientific Angler's, and Cahill. The SA outfit at $59.99-$40 off-looks good. I recommend the 6 weight no matter which one you pick.

BucK sez,"If you have a favorite color, use it."

This is a trip. In one forum Mike Cliffford is covering "anti-lead" legislation aimed specifically at lead jigs and weights. In another one Jon Graham is rolling out his new swim jig models which are probably made of lead. I guess we have freedom of speech at work. Jon, may your new jigs swim long and prosper. Mike, I agree that our DNR, which is already overextended, has many more important issues to deal with.

This is a trip. In one forum Mike Cliffford is covering "anti-lead" legislation aimed at jigs and weights. In another one Jon Graham is rolling out his new swim jig models. I guess we have freedom of speech at work. Jon, may your new jigs swim long and prosper. Mike, I agree that our DNR, which is already overextended, has many more important issues to deal with.

Use an old ski pole. Scott is a good brand. I think the one I use is Sears.

“The ease of removal is the primary reason that I am an advocate of the use of barbless hooks. Since I fish for sport and not for food the object of my pursuit is sport, and since I intend to release everything that I catch barbless hooks enable to me to do this quickly and effortlessly.” Since I do not want anyone to thinks that fly fishermen are lead slinging brutes with no redeeming qualities, I thought I would put up a link to another article from Fly Anglers on Line. To be sure, on this issue, fly fishermen are spread across the spectrum from never barbs to always barbs. Here is one fly fisherman’s take on the question. http://www.flyanglersonline.com/features/journal/part112.php Barbless hooks are a great tool for C&R angling. Probably commercial fishermen, tournament anglers, and guides have other needs not well served by barbs. Anyway, if my livelihood depended on getting fish in the boat, I would give it some more thought befor going barbless.

Any pictures of the fly tying contest entries and winners would be appreciated.

"1. Nothing has changed for the public. We are simply announcing the NPS goal of eliminating lead from NPS activities to protect human and wildlife health." Now it is clear to me.

Mark, Your number 1 is a slick restatement of the argument from ignorance-a standard logical fallacy. We argue from ignorance to knowledge-normally quite impossible. We don't know where the lead goes so it must go in the water, right? Wrong! We still don't know where it goes. To clear up the mystery I looked in my tackle collection and found sinkers and jigs that I bought 40 years ago. A lot of guys like me just carry it along from season to season. Or do you dump your unused lead in the lake at the end of the fishing season. Your number 2 is another gross overgeneralization. Lead is very easy to buy from Umqua, Cabelas, Fly Shops and plumbing suppliers to name a few. It is not highly regulated because, unless you eat it as children might, the dangers are very low. We keep it out of paint and toys. The computer you sit at now depends on lead solder to keep information flowing. The tires on your car are balanced with lead weights. Why are these things not hazardous to ducks? They are not the size and shape that ducks ingest. Remember it is tiny bird shot that is the problem. Our fishing weights and jigs are not that size and freuently not that shape. That may be why there is no definitive study linking lead fishing gear to waterfowl deaths. This too is the key point of the article. Where is the evidence-habeas corpus? PS I have no problem if you want to take a no-lead pledge. Give all your clousers and Jigs a decent burial.

Don't overgeneralize, Mike. That would make it hard to explain this article that ran on Fly Anglers on Line February 9, 2009. They are reputable spokesmen for the Fly Fishing community. http://www.flyanglersonline.com/features/bobboese/020909.php Everyone should read the whole article. But I can give you the gist of it. Well intentioned folks are confusing hunting with fishing. When a hunter fires a shotgun the whole charge goes into the environment and cannot be retrieved. This is not the case with lead used by fishermen. Since it is attached to a line, we retrieve it. At the end of the day we go home with it. Also the size and shape of a lead sinker is frequently different from the tiny bird shot that waterfowl ingest. As a result there are no conclusive studies about the effects of fishing lead. Actually there are darn few studies. Well intentioned folks are piggybacking their argument against fishing lead on the studies about lead shot used for hunting. It is a poor fit as you can see. We might as well object to floridated toothpaste because Flourine is a toxic substance. Fact is that in toothpaste it is very beneficial. Then too, other folks used to say, "The only good indian is a dead indian." So while one may object to the lack of democratic decision making displayed in the proposed sinker ban, I object to the faulty logic displayed therein. But, just read the article.

Any more pictures?

Mark, I smell politics here. Some do-gooders want to open public parks for public use with local governments footing the bill. At the club all the fellows agree that this is a shameless waste of our tax dollars.

Now that we are getting really scientific, I will add this bit of quantum physics. Lefty and Tapp both knew the law of the inverse proportion. "The length of time in metric hours between tying the fly on on the end of the leader and the snagging of the fly one meter beyond reach in a tree is inversely proportional to the market value of the fly expressed in 1948 pounds sterling." (The market value is directly proportional to the number of bells and whistles on the fly.) You can tell from the pounds in the formula that the Brits developed the formula originally for Salmon Flies-notorious for bells and whistles. So far it is the most plausible explanation why only the nobility use Salmon Flies. They can afford the heavy losses.

I would want more information via a longer and better survey before reaching that conclusion. Are out of stater's always later than in state? Well, Craig in GA was one of the first to get his a few months ago. I personally think it depends mostly on the load at your local PO. Like, when they get to it. We are not going to see a pattern where IL is faster. A blanket solution with blanket cost to everyone will not help a lot. I would say we just add an option where members pay extra to get first class delivery if they want it.

Andy, Those are great. They remind me of the bluegill poppers I tied 50 years ago. They were just painted cork bodies with a little bucktail tied on at the tail-no hackle skirts, no legs, no eyes... I eliminated the frills to make an easy casting bug. The bluegills ate them up. But you are in better company than mine. Lefty Kreh's bug is a classic. And so is Tapp's. PS the black wedges show how to slant the face or trim the bottom for better performance.

Give Craig a line of credit! Since I have been watching Rainy's site for when Craig's flys would show up there, I was pleasantly surprised to find him listed as an Innovator. What's more, Craig's designs total 2938. That's almost 80 times more than Lefty Kreh's 37. This deserves a special award at the Blowout.