jburge

Ha, Murray, I was in the same boat. Missed a day stuck in meetings at work and next thing I see is full swap! Wow, there are some anxious and great tyers in this group. Should be loads of fun! John

So this morning I just around to checking what came in yesterday's mail... a fabulous set of flies. Great job everyone, and thanks gpd4 for hosting. Really fun swap.

gpd4, thanks for all the *great* communication and updates. Looking forward to seeing all the flies.

I ordered some jackdaw from northcountryflies.com (based in the UK) awhile back and had no problems.

Chironomid's have left the building and should be "emerging" in St.Louis in a few days :-) Thanks for hosting gpd4!

I'm one of the guys fishingbob mentioned in Sacto. Always up for hoppers and brookies!

And I'll second Rockworm's advice. You can also blend the hair with other dubbing materials to come up with your blend.

Gosh, I see some of these guys are already done :-) If the swap's not closed, I'm in with a chironomid...

cencal, I think you just described the perfect day :-) And it's always good to hear the fishies liked the fly. BTW, I spent my opening day on a fork of the Tuolumne and had a blast. John

Had the pleasure of picking up a great set of flies in person yesterday. One of the benefits of living just down the road from the SM. Great job by all! These flies are definitely getting wet this weekend. Thanks, Bob for being such a great host. John

Got an amazing set of flies in yesterday's mail! Thanks to all the tiers, and especially troutguy and djgunter for hosting.

Glad you're online Alan. I was just up in your neck of the woods fishing the lower Sac at the beginning of the month. Did a drift starting at Posse Grounds and had a ball. Being a bit south of you (Sacto) you're much closer to some of the finest waters I like to fish--Lower Sac, Upper Sac, and the McCloud. You'll learn a lot here, and find some outstanding teachers, swappers, and fly tiers. John

As has been mentioned, you'll want to investigate the Golden Trout Wilderness, in both the Sequoia and Inyo National Forests. I've backpacked hundreds of miles and fished plenty in there primarily because it's the "motherland" for goldens in CA. They are considered "heritage" trout in that they are both wild and native fish in their historic drainage. I specifically fished what used to be called "Volcano Creek" and is now named "Golden Trout Creek" entering the wilderness from the eastern side of the Sierra at Cottonwood Pass. About an 8 mile hike (you're in elevations around 9,000 to near 11,000 ft) and you'll find plenty of fish. I've also fished Mulkey Creek (SE of Golden Trout Creek) and it too, holds plenty of goldens. I had great luck with an assortment of dries -- elk hair caddis, royal wulff, adams, EC caddis, etc. My general take was the fish have so little time to stock up for the winter, they honestly didn't seem too particular. They aren't big, but sure are pretty. It's well worth the effort to get to them. I've heard it said, and believe to be true... "trout don't live in ugly places." John

I'm game to help Ben. I always have a few extras sitting around. That said, I picked up the mail today and found a super cool set of flies in the box delivered yesterday. Great job by all and thanks Dezod for hosting. John

Kev, I'd be in for this one, but... I have some out-of-state traveling to do, so my time over the next few weeks is extremely limited. Keep me in mind for the next one, eh? Hey, you paid my postage, the least I can do is join your swaps John

Woohoo! Got my flies in the mail yesterday and a fine job by everyone indeed. Thanks Kevin for hosting. BTW, there was $.15 postage due (I think stamp prices changed). Did you pay it? If so, I owe you buddy. John

Bob, I'm gonna go with one of my favorite searching/attractor patterns -- a Royal Wulff. John

Got it, thanks!

And they are outta here today! Thanks! John

Bob, You know I can't resist. I'm in... John

What can I say? I got my timing down right, had some really good sushi with Bob, paid zero postage, and will put some of these flies on the water next week. Tell you what, you make a trip to NorCal and I'll be glad to buy you lunch too. Shoot, you don't even have to host a swap. You shouldn't be deprived as SM John

I'm still here, just a little behind the speedy tiers in this group. Should have 'em done this weekend. That blasted thing called "work" keeps getting in the way. John

Woohoo! I'm the lucky guy that gets the first set. Sure helps when the SM lives just up the road A fine set of ties by all. Thanks Bob for hosting! John

Well, I'm accepting my invite but have to say, this is quite a group. I'll put my best foot forward to hang with some of the folks I respect the most. John

Congrats Bob! I'm counting the days 'til my little granddaughter will be doing the same thing. Looks like she's also using that bench you made for her. What a joy John