Difference between revisions of "User:Air Force Guy"

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'''How I Got Into Fly Fishing'''
 
  
Wow...it was a long road for me. As a kid growing up in Northern Wisconsin, my parents loved to fish for sunnies and an occasional northern or bass at the Gordon Flowage.  They usually fished the lakeside of the dam.  Of course we used worms and night crawlers we dug and plucked from the grass ourselves the night before.  We almost always supplemented our table with the fish we caught.  Anyway, after a couple of years during which I used first cane poles, then old casting equipment relatives gave me, and finally with money I earned from my paper route (at the age of 10 or 11 I think) I bought a Zebco 606 spin cast outfit.  I was into serious big time fishing then...at least in my own mind.  I used this equipment for years then one day as a teen, an uncle gave me what he called a salmon rod.  It was a 9-foot steel rod that was fitted for a fly reel.  The only thing I really remember about it was that it was heavy as heck.  I bought a cheap reel for it and started carrying it stuffed down the back of my waders (I was wading and fishing the river/spillway side of the dam by then) for use in those instances when I saw a fish take something off the surface.  I only used poppers for sunfish and maybe an occasional bass but this outfit did introduce me to the idea of fly casting.  That was the extent of my fly-fishing experience as a young kid/teen though.  I did catch some large bluegill on poppers and even a few bass, but for the most part I pretty much stayed with my Zebco using worms, minnows, and lures chasing mostly northern and an occasional bass or walleye.  After all, I was into the big fish by then.
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== '''How I Got Into Fly Fishing''' ==
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Wow...it was a long road for me!  
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As a kid growing up in Northern Wisconsin, my parents loved to fish for sunnies and an occasional northern or bass at the Gordon Flowage.  They usually fished the lakeside of the dam.  Of course we used worms and night crawlers we dug and plucked from the grass ourselves the night before.  We almost always supplemented our table with the fish we caught.  Anyway, after a couple of years during which I used first cane poles, then old casting equipment relatives gave me, and finally with money I earned from my paper route (at the age of 10 or 11 I think) I bought a Zebco 606 spin cast outfit.  I was into serious big time fishing then...at least in my own mind.  I used this equipment for years then one day as a teen, an uncle gave me what he called a salmon rod.  It was a 9-foot steel rod that was fitted for a fly reel.  The only thing I really remember about it was that it was heavy as heck.  I bought a cheap reel for it and started carrying it stuffed down the back of my waders (I was wading and fishing the river/spillway side of the dam by then) for use in those instances when I saw a fish take something off the surface.  I only used poppers for sunfish and maybe an occasional bass but this outfit did introduce me to the idea of fly casting.  That was the extent of my fly-fishing experience as a young kid/teen though.  I did catch some large bluegill on poppers and even a few bass, but for the most part I pretty much stayed with my Zebco using worms, minnows, and lures chasing mostly northern and an occasional bass or walleye.  After all, I was into the big fish by then.
  
 
The beginnings of my fly fishing experience pretty much took a hiatus for several years as a young adult.  Most of my fishing friends back in those days were into sitting in a rented boat parked over a prospective honey hole, usually under the hot sun and with a cooler of beer for hydration purposes always nearby.  In my mid 30's I moved to Georgia to learn that lakes down south are really reservoirs mostly surrounded by private property and almost impossible to find a place to rent a boat.  Fishing from shore was almost impossible if even available.  As a result, I made the second strategic fishing equipment purchase in my life and bought an open face ultra-light spinning outfit with the idea that I'd start fishing for trout in the hundreds of miles of North Georgia Mountain streams.  Some good old boys I served in the Georgia Air National Guards with told me about corn, cheese, and even marsh mellows for bait so I thought I'd give that technique a shot.  I pretty much stuck to worms and pretty much tried this method for about a year catching very few trout I might add.   
 
The beginnings of my fly fishing experience pretty much took a hiatus for several years as a young adult.  Most of my fishing friends back in those days were into sitting in a rented boat parked over a prospective honey hole, usually under the hot sun and with a cooler of beer for hydration purposes always nearby.  In my mid 30's I moved to Georgia to learn that lakes down south are really reservoirs mostly surrounded by private property and almost impossible to find a place to rent a boat.  Fishing from shore was almost impossible if even available.  As a result, I made the second strategic fishing equipment purchase in my life and bought an open face ultra-light spinning outfit with the idea that I'd start fishing for trout in the hundreds of miles of North Georgia Mountain streams.  Some good old boys I served in the Georgia Air National Guards with told me about corn, cheese, and even marsh mellows for bait so I thought I'd give that technique a shot.  I pretty much stuck to worms and pretty much tried this method for about a year catching very few trout I might add.   

Revision as of 22:13, 22 January 2007

How I Got Into Fly Fishing

Wow...it was a long road for me!

As a kid growing up in Northern Wisconsin, my parents loved to fish for sunnies and an occasional northern or bass at the Gordon Flowage. They usually fished the lakeside of the dam. Of course we used worms and night crawlers we dug and plucked from the grass ourselves the night before. We almost always supplemented our table with the fish we caught. Anyway, after a couple of years during which I used first cane poles, then old casting equipment relatives gave me, and finally with money I earned from my paper route (at the age of 10 or 11 I think) I bought a Zebco 606 spin cast outfit. I was into serious big time fishing then...at least in my own mind. I used this equipment for years then one day as a teen, an uncle gave me what he called a salmon rod. It was a 9-foot steel rod that was fitted for a fly reel. The only thing I really remember about it was that it was heavy as heck. I bought a cheap reel for it and started carrying it stuffed down the back of my waders (I was wading and fishing the river/spillway side of the dam by then) for use in those instances when I saw a fish take something off the surface. I only used poppers for sunfish and maybe an occasional bass but this outfit did introduce me to the idea of fly casting. That was the extent of my fly-fishing experience as a young kid/teen though. I did catch some large bluegill on poppers and even a few bass, but for the most part I pretty much stayed with my Zebco using worms, minnows, and lures chasing mostly northern and an occasional bass or walleye. After all, I was into the big fish by then.

The beginnings of my fly fishing experience pretty much took a hiatus for several years as a young adult. Most of my fishing friends back in those days were into sitting in a rented boat parked over a prospective honey hole, usually under the hot sun and with a cooler of beer for hydration purposes always nearby. In my mid 30's I moved to Georgia to learn that lakes down south are really reservoirs mostly surrounded by private property and almost impossible to find a place to rent a boat. Fishing from shore was almost impossible if even available. As a result, I made the second strategic fishing equipment purchase in my life and bought an open face ultra-light spinning outfit with the idea that I'd start fishing for trout in the hundreds of miles of North Georgia Mountain streams. Some good old boys I served in the Georgia Air National Guards with told me about corn, cheese, and even marsh mellows for bait so I thought I'd give that technique a shot. I pretty much stuck to worms and pretty much tried this method for about a year catching very few trout I might add.

One cold winter day, while standing almost waist deep in a north Georgia stream during a snow storm and freezing my backside off, it occurred to me that if I was going to wade streams, I should really be casting flies toward the trout I pursued. That very day during my evening trip back home to Athens, I made the decision to buy my first fly rod and reel. This was 1988 and as a new mostly lurking member of @FF, I queried the list for information as to the appropriate weight rod and line for the type/size streams I would be fishing. I ended up buying an 8 ft 5/6 weight South Bend rod from Cabella's. With the reel I think I paid $125 for the entire outfit including line and backing. At the time, I thought this was a lot for a rod and reel and as a newly single parent of 2 teens; it certainly represented the top end of what I could afford. It turned out to be the best fishing related decision I had ever made. I loved that rod but more importantly, it was the rod I used to fuel my desire to become a fly fisherman. Unfortunately, about 4 years ago, I broke the top 5 inches or so off and while I had it fixed, it also lost a lot of its action and casting ability. I still have the rod but do not use it anymore. Instead, I now use it's replacement, a 4 weight, 8' 6" Cortland II, or one of the other two I've since purchased, a 3 piece GLoomis 6wt and an Orvis Pro Guide 4 piece 4 wt.

Two years ago I decided when not on the stream, I could still experience fly fishing by learning how to tie my own flies. Today I can tie an acceptable EHC and Adams. I've done some worms and inch worms too but I still have way to go in the tying arena. I pretty much still buy many of the flies I still fish but earlier this year I did catch my first trout on one of my EHC.

Occasionally, I take off to Falls Lake, about 10 minutes from my home and fly fish from shore for bluegills. I grew up catching sunnies and doing so is in my blood I guess. Heck, I just love getting out and practicing my casting.