Grunt

If you tie some patterns with weight and the same pattern without weight be sure to find some way of identifying your weighted flys. I use a couple of wraps of red thread on the heads of my weighted flys. I also use a blk or brown sharpie to color in the bottom of the thread head so the red is only visable from the top. Weighted flys sure are better than crimping on a split shot and making a bolo out of your tippet.

Eric, how do you deal with the officer, enlisted men issue? When I was in the Crotch we didn't enteract except officially. Tying flys could cross the existing boundarys.

J.Stockard has a special thing going right now. If you buy a gift cert to send to a deployed service member Stockard will match it dollar for dollar. Great folks at Stockards and true patriots.

When I ordered the boxes and gift cert from Stockard I told J what I was doing. When I got the order there was an extra gift cert in it and a nice note. J Stockard kicked in a gift cert for me to send along with mine. Great folks at Stockard.

I sent a couple of large fly boxes and a gift cert from Stockard. The gift cert will allow Eric to fill in the blank spaces in his bench.

Eric, you still out there? Send us a sitrep on what you are doing. Got any images of the flys you have been making? Semper Fi, Grunt

Ditto on the Borax and keeping the feathers out of the reach of the dogs.

Just found out that the trout hatchery in Morganton NC along the Catawba River lost all their trout to low water and high temps. My brother-in-law told me it was 100 thousand fish.

We have a serious lack of rain here in the NC mountains. As a result the wildlife folks have suspended stocking trout in the Linville River, the Watauga River and the N Toe. To make matters worst Lake James, the first lake in the Catawba river chain is down 14 ft as of last week. Lake James is fed by the Catawba River and the North fork of the Catawba on the west side and the Linville on the east side. Our wild trout population is also threatened. The old timers around here have never seen it so dry. I keep doing rain dances but no luck yet.

When I tie beetles, ladybugs etc. I go out in the world and catch a few live ones. I take them, in a jar, to my bench and study awhile before I tie. It really helps with porportion, color, and size.

I think it is significant to consider the origins of both the canoe and the kayak. Both were used for hunting and for fishing by Native Americans for centurys until they were "discovered" by europeans. The kayak was usually a solo hunting and fishing boat while the canoe was more of a work horse used for transporting goods. The materials used to build a kayak were scarce as wood was hard to come by in the Arctic so most kayaks were small solo craft. The materials to build a canoe were easier to come by and resulted in a larger and more versatile craft manned by a greater number of people. Needless to say both have evolved. I have a SOT Hobie Quest that looks nothing like a it's predecessors but preforms one it's perdecessors main functions, its a fishing machine. I also have two solo sea SIK that can carry 75-80 lbs of camp gear easily. I fly cast and float rivers and streams with the Hobie and I spin cast on big water and camp from my Current Designs Gullfstream. If you want a solo boat for fishing it is easier to rig a kayak with rudder, anchor system, rod holders, and even electronics. One the other hand I think canoes are more versatile, especially if you need a multi purpose boat that can haul more than one person.

The basic difference between fishing solo from a canoe or a kayak is controling the boats drift. Most kayaks can have a foot controled rudder system that allows hands free boat control while casting to or fighting a fish.

Eric, glad to see you are using the fly boxes I sent. I hope you have away of listening to the "music to tie by." If you end up carrying a rifle here is a MC grunt trick. When you are loading your mags dump two rounds in and get a tracer from the SAW man and load it third then put the rest in [ two less than max ]. When your tracer is outgoing it is time to change mags. It worked with my m-14. Semper Fi

Eric, I will be posting a care pkg tomorrow Oct 8. While I was getting the items together something pretty nice happened. I called J Stockard and ordered some stuff to send and I also got a gift cert. figuring you will soon know if you need to order anything that gets left out. I also told the folks at Stockard what I was doing and how you wanted to start tying. When I recieved Stockard's package I found that they included an extra gift cert for me to send you. Good Stuff. In your care pkg is also some music to tie by, I hope you like rock and roll. Included is Dereck and the Dominos Live at the Fillmore East, 1970 and John Mayhall Back to the Roots 1990, Clapton plays on both. Semper Fi, Grunt 1st Plt Alpha Co 1st Bn 9th Marines The Walking Dead Vietnam 1967

Eric, forty years ago I recieved seven packages the day before we left the wire for an search and destroy that was going to last 30 days. I gave away what I couldn't hump and everyone in my platoon ate pretty good for a few days. I buried a bottle of vodka. After 45 days we came back in and for the life of me I could not find where I buried that booze. I must have dug a dozen holes looking for it. It is probably still there. Tying flys will help keep you connected with the " world" I will put together a care package for you. Semper Fi,

I was having trouble making my ants,beetles,etc look natural also. What I did was go out and catch some ants, ladybugs, beetles etc so I had "real" examples to copy. Got the sizes down, got the colors down, and they catch fish. I'm living my childhood over again cause when I was a kid I always had a jar of bugs.

Thanks for the reply. I'm taking my kayak to a stocked lake on the Blue Ridge Parkway tomorrow evening and I will try a egg indicator with a little wooly bugger dropper.

I have seen egg patterns for sale at fly fishing shops. I have a friend who uses one for a indicator with a nymph on a dropper. I thought egg patterns were used for salmon fishing and in the fall during the Brown spawn out west.. I live in the NC mountains and fish the streams around here. What value are egg patterns for me? Any particular pattern?

I have been tying some 18,20, and 22's. Keeping the hook eye clear of waterproofing or head cement was a bit of a problem. Seems like all the bodkin needles were to fat to stick through the eyes. I found a fix and thought I'd share it with you all. Beading needles. Beading needles for seed beads # 11-#14 are the ticket. I got mine from a Native American supply house called Crazy Crow but I bet that any place that sells bead has them. I now have a frog hair bodkin and clear hook eyes.

I made a couple of fancy broach flies for a friend and used hair from from her dog. The dog is a Mini Spitz and she did not like sissors. After the third patch both my friend and her dog were growling. Ties great though. Historically all the pottery studios in Japan kept dogs to make their glaze brushes. Brush dogs have been around for a thousand years, no reason we can't have fly dogs.

Go from sparse on the hackle at the tail and abdomen to full [ two close wraps] behind the eye. Maybe four wraps or five wraps total. If the head becomes crowded you can sometimes use a metal tweezer hair packer to slide the fly back on the shank just a little and still get a good head. Take the fly fishing.

I wanted to post this poem I wrote some years ago. As a combat vet this is my attempt to share the way I feel on this day. I'm going fishing this afternoon. The Best Are Washed Away The young march into the killing field one step in their fate is sealed fiercely fighting to the fray and the best are washed away. Virgin to the breech oh God what do old men teach honor, glory, with death young men pay and the best are washed away. Bouncing Betty, RPG, tomato can one misstep will kill a man, sail the sea of fate each day and the best are washed away. Ignore the death surround the fight, the fight abound, give no quarter night or day and the best are washed away. Some survive with body rent on the field their spirit spent, death was the price of life they say and the best are washed away. Some returned unscathed home behind the mask routefoot roam, anguish, anguish, feet of clay and the best are washed away. Those who play know no game, life of rage, nothing is the same for when the war tide recedes to day all the best are washed away. Rodger Jacobs A Co. 1st Bn 9th Marines The Walking Dead Vietnam 1966- 1967 May 1st 2001

Thanks for all the input on this subject. I have been doing it right all along. Here in the NC mountains we have small rivers that are a series of riffles and pools, riffles and pools. When you are moving the water depth varies from 18 inches to 4 or 5 feet. Fishing nymphs requires a strike indicator that can be easily moved. I will take my kayak and my double fly rig to a stocked lake off the Blue Ridge Parkway and try a unweighted Muddler on top and 3ft below a weighted black stonefly for starters. Thanks again for your help.

I third or fourth the Peak. It is also nice to look at.

I have been using a dry with a nymph underneath for a few years. The way I rig it is with the end tippet tied to the hook of the dry seems to take a lot of time to rig [ 3 knots] and if I'm not careful I have a tangled up mess. Any suggestions on making my time on the water more productive?