FlyPilot

A Pheasant-tail Nymph tied onto the bend of a Bead-head Caddis.

I'm curious, since I'm basically a salt-water fish eater myself, but can you Trout-eaters tell the difference between the taste of a stocked trout vs. a wild trout? Which taste do you prefer? And which tastes the best--Brookie, Brown, Rainbow, etc?

Just bought a new pair at Cabela's which uses their version of Goretex for US$220. I haven't gotten them wet yet so I am unable to give you a real testamonial at this time, but they fit good and are comfortable on dry land. I bought the boot-foot version because they had one of the best boots attached that I've seen. It's a sturdy lace up boot (felt sole) that gives good ankle support unlike most of the slip-on type boot-foots that they sell now. The stocking-foot version is US$189-199 depending on size group--Regular, Stout, or Tall. Cabelas Guide Tech Dry-Plus Waders Disclaimer: My only relationship to Cabela's is that I give them money and they give me merchandise in return.

Welcome from NE PA's Wonderful Wayne County.

Thanks D.Waterflogger, I'm headed there now...and thanks for the words of encouragment.

Greetings from another wannabe fly-tyer-fisherman. Been a salt-water fisherman for most of my almost 60 years with very little fresh-water experience despite living in the Poconos for the last 22 years. Twelve or so years ago I saw a fly fishing show on TV and thought it was something I wanted to try. I went out and bought a cheap fly-tying kit and an inexpensive Shakespeare 8 ft 7 wt fiberglass rod with an even less expensive reel. Well, I tied some flies (still have them!) and caught some panfish with them. For various reasons, I laid my fishing gear down and haven't gotten a line wet in over 10 years. A few weeks ago, I had to move the fly rod to get something that was behind it. I picked up the rod and was about to put it aside when a little voice whispered out of the depths of my subconscious "hey dummy! Where'd you put the fly tying stuff?" A few eternal seconds later, I regained lucidity and found myself just standing there staring at the old Shakespeare and realized immediately that the Fly-bug had struck again! Without putting down the rod, I went in search of the box in which was stored a conglomeration of feathers, hooks, spools of thread, yarn, tinsel, bobbins, hackel pliers and various other tools of the trade including a rock-hard bottle of head cement. The search didn't take long and I took the box of goodies and the fly rod and set them next to my desk with all the intentions of tying some flies that evening. It was several days later that I actually got around to sitting down ready to tie a fly or two. When I finally opened the box, the little $2 vice was among the missing. A quick search of the likely places it might be turned up nothing. I decided then and there that this time I was going to do it right. The next day a quick trip to the fly shop near work rewarded me with a brand new Renzetti Traveler and a couple of Bob Henley's Tie-A-Fly Kits. After a couple of weeks of tying flies on the Traveler, I decided they were much too elegant to tie onto the end of a lowly Shakespeare fiberglass rod, so tonight I am off the my local fly shop for some individual pointers on casting with my brand new Sage VPS 9 ft 5 wt from the guy who sold me the last one in his shop earlier this week. Oh yeah, we'll probably drink some beer, too. So there you have it, a rather long introduction of myself to the group. In reality, however, I must confess that my flies are not really all that elegant--in fact, they are downright newby-ish in spite of Al Beatty's wonderful video, but I've resigned myself to the fact that I can't get any worse and can only improve with practice. Additionally, the real reason I'm going for a casting lesson is that I was whip-snapping flies into the bushes and got my stripped line totally tangled up in the weeds the other day. Fortunately, no one was around to witness the fiasco--and if the story ever gets back around to me, I will disavow any knowledge of it! FlyPilot (Ron, in the Poconos)