wschmitt3

Its kinda hard to colonize with out women isn't it? I'm betting there was women on board for long voyages more often than you imagine.

Especially when you consider the fact that every one moving from the old world to the new had to come by boat until some thing like 60 years ago when the first commercial flights crossed the Atlantic.

I have done that a few times Adam I am like a two minute walk to the river I go fish for bass for a few minutes a few times a week with only a rod and bugger and a pair of hemostats.

Its nice to keep it simple some times.

Thanks ihang10, I will.

Were you listening to Wait Wait or something on NPR?

Haha vic thats funny. Patience is something I have an excess of, and for some one who is not really a people person or all that social I am actually quite good at friendly socializing and interacting with all kinds of people in many different settings. I have professional customer service experience that I am sure will help with setting expectations correctly and dealing with unhappy clients peacefully.

Also as an Army Corporal and Sergeant (had to spell check both those words...Hahaha) i did lots of teaching young soldiers who couldn't shoot but thought they could to actually hit the target. It was funny because I was a Nuclear, Biological and Chemical guy (not the most respected job) in an infantry unit and the younger soldiers that I did remedial marksmanship training with were almost always infantrymen that thought it was beneath them to take instruction from a Person Other than Grunt (POG) but the ones who listened always drastically improved some times became experts, I actually caught one kid teaching stuff I taught him to one of the other guys in his fire team. I think this experience may help with clients and casting, the main difference being I was a really really good marksman and I am, on my best days, an average caster. I hit my targets but I don't have any fancy skills.

Thanks for the encouragement BCT.

Brown beadhead Wooly bugger and olive and black circus peanut.

Also caught one on a moorish mouse a few weeks ago, that was fun.

Both, but I am going to try to start a guiding career. Until recently I didn't think it was something that was in the realm possibility of in terms of my know how or experience but after some encouragement from a few people in the industry I changed my mind and decided to give it a try.

Why do you ask?

I'm flying in to Billings and they pick me up at the airport. But that's good advise thanks.

I saw the they have the ray charles on the list of flies to bring. I am going to put in an order for some in about 2 minutes

Edit - an order for some ostrich in grey and tan.

So I am going to be going to Sweetwater Guide School 3 July on the Big Horn River and I am so nervous and excited I can hardly sleep.

Any body been? Any one think about going? Any one fished the Big Horn River have any tips or stories to share.

Check out the casting videos on the Orvis how to site (the orvis site@ http://howtoflyfish.orvis.com/video-lessons/chapter-one-the-basics-of-fly-fishing is much easier to navigate than their youtube videos). I watch the casting videos and then practice things I am deficient in a few times a month and I get better all the time. Its really hard to diagnose a fault in your casting stroke or equipment with out seeing it but with some time and effort you can figure it out and correct it on your own.

My kit.

Sort of. I was a participant in a Project Healing Waters (PHW) chapter for a little while a few years back but time and distance issues prevented me from participating after a few months. A little while ago I got involved in a Veterans Outdoor Rec-Therapy group that has since evolved into a PHW chapter that met up once a week in may for fly fishing lessons and river trips out of an awesome fly shop in Stowe, Vt (Fly Rod Shop VT). They haven't had their first official Project Healing Waters meeting yet but they were offered some spots on a trip put on by the Augusta, Maine chapter and I was put in for a spot. Unfortunately the new chapter is going to be meeting too far away (fly shop was an hour and fifteen minutes and the meetings will take place about 2 hours away) for me to participate. However, the chapter that I was involved in several years ago (which I had thought shut down along with the fly shop that hosted it) is still meeting and I am going to get involved with them again soon. I hope to be a volunteer for the chapter not a veteran participant because I am (not to sound full of my self here) at the point where I think I have enough to offer in tying ability and fishing ability to be an asset to the group.

Where are you located now and what kind of fish is that? A Pike or a baby Muskie?

Spent Thursday through Sunday on a Project Healing Waters trip to the Rapid River while staying at Lakewood Camps in Maine. Had really really good fishing, I caught quite a lot of fish, not a lot of big ones but a really good number. I caught my first Landlock Salmon and a few brookies, I was hoping for one of the big brook trout the area is known for, I hooked and lost a really huge brookie but didn't get it to the net. I really regret not taking more pictures and many of the photos I took were really blurry for some reason but here are the good ones.

That looks like a killer bass pattern.

I have a small collection of insect photos I've taken I figured I would share them toady. Most have already been posted in some place or another on this forum but here they all are in one place. I'm not going to take the time to identify each them because I don't want to start an entomology discussion, I just think its good to have bug pictures to look at.

I thought I had so many more that were worth looking at than this. Maybe there will be more to come. I'll have to dig through the dozens of picture folders on my computer and memorycard from my old phone.

The picture below is what I wear every time I go fishing.

I am of the mindset that subdued colors, grey especially, are the way to go also. I typically avoid bright colors and black because black stands out against a natural background more than most bright colors. I am mindful of bright tools as well (the forceps are my back ups I forgot my black ones at home when I last went fishing). If its cool I wear a grey Capilene 3 pull over grey nano puff jacket. I am a big believer in grey as a good all around color for blending into the back ground in my area, it works.

But to get back to the o.p's topic. Spray paint is a good way to mute the tones of gear if you are re purposing it for fly fishing use or if you want to customize the gear to better blend into certain environments. I did a bit of spray painting green tactical gear tan and brown when I was over seas and it worked very well. I used a paint that was intended for spray painting fabrics though.

Very nice fly thanks for the steps. I like how the CDC is tied in.

Welcome to the forum.

Some hydropsychidae caddis larva nymphs. I found a dog toy in the river that had a bunch on it and I decided to tie up a few patterns.

The first one I tied I did a peacock herl body and didn't like it so I went to a olive green slf dubbing.

I am kinda retarded. I forgot I own a 4 weight Lefty Kreh Signature rod. It is total crap with a 5 weight line on it.

I have a 4 weight Scientific Angler Mastery trout line on it and it is pretty great for dries and small nymphs with that line. The five weight line I tried on it didn't make it cast large flies any better and it totally threw off the accuracy for dries by causing the rod tip to violently shake when you make the cast. Sorry I kinda spaced out when I replied before.

Some fast action/ tip flex rods cast better with a heavier weight line on them. The salesman may have known this rod and thought it would perform better with a heavier line on it.

Don't stay in the shadows. Participation, contribution and asking questions will net amazing results in your fly tying learning curve.

Sweet flies. Ive been tying some articulated flies lately also.

""Stolen Valor" stuff that is going on from young GI's going around and calling Vietnam Vets fake and phoney."

This is kinda a strange thing to bring up and I have never heard of anything like this (and I'm an Iraq Vet involved in the veteran community) but you must understand on some level that a forum member who's first post is one that promotes a logo apparel brand is probably a spam ad but if its not the case that's great. Welcome to the forum, I look forward to seeing your flies and if you need advice or have questions about tying techniques, tools or materials you should not hesitate to post or join in on the conversation.

I really wouldn't feel bad. It was your fish, you made a choice that you though benefited one of your favorite fisheries and frankly you made a good choice and if it were me I would have rather seen that big fish you mentioned go back to spawn. I honestly never thought I would have given some one a fish I caught like that, and I doubt it will ever happen again.

I gave these kids these fish because I knew that the fish probably would have been harvested with in a few days. This place is a big time put and take fishery with lots of pressure right in the middle of a residential area, I've watched probably 50+ fish get harvested from a mile or so of river in four trips to this river over three weeks. If it was a wild fish or a fish that might reproduce or a fish in a place with less pressure and higher hold over rate I would have said no with out even thinking about it but those fish were dead either way and these kids were good little fishermen and really deserved the fish and I knew that they were going to put it too good use.

Haha, this is funny.

Just an FYI desertotter, there is almost no shitting on people's tying on here and most there is a little bit of friendly ribbing. This is actually probably one of the most civil forums on the internet.

My first thought was that this was an advertisement post also. If it isn't I hope you aren't too discouraged and I urge you to make an introduction post and share some of your flies.