Volume 11 • Issue 11 • November 2006

Experiencing a Special Journey

The road was full of curves combined with ups and downs in uncounted abundance. Doc and I were in the middle of the Ozarks driving along Highway 14 more or less paralleling the powerful White River. The road markers played hide and seek with us. We must have traveled an extra two or three hours before we reached out destination, Mountain Home, Arkansas, where we were to attend the Southern Council's FFF Conclave. The hours had not been wasted, for we were exposed to some of the most spectacular scenery one could imagine in a part of our country that reflects and age of past times and a culture only mountain natives could have preserved over past decades.

We arrived in Mountain Home in time to get settled in our motel room and walk across the parking lot to a Mexican restaurant for our well-earned evening meal. It was okay, but we from Texas immediately pick up the difference between Tex-Mex and False-Mex; nevertheless, we were happy to have reached our destination with enthusiastic anticipation of participating in the annual Southern Council Federation of Fly Fishers Conclave with all of its activities, but especially the honor of Doc's having been voted Conservationist of the Year by the Council's member clubs. The big banquet would be on Saturday evening. In the meantime, we would have time to pick our own schedule among the many sessions being offered at Mountain Home's Baxter County Fairgrounds.

Doc and I had pretty well decided that we would attend our own individual preferences so that we could absorb a wider span of the events taking place. We ended up several times in the same presentation rooms, but mostly he and I just followed our own instincts. You might suspect that my partner spent a good deal of his time visiting with contacts he has made by long distance and also finding his way to persons who would be of assistance in furthering some of our own club's major activities, mainly in the Guadalupe bass project and youth instruction.

The first time Doc and I ended up in the same group was in Sheryl Knight's "Conservation in the Southern Council" session. Ironically, Sheryl had been one of the nominees for the Conservationist of the Year Award, of which Doc was the winner. Perhaps the most important point she mentioned was that a significant amount of money is available for member clubs with worthy projects, but it often goes to FFF headquarters in Montana because no club has applied for the assistance. This has not been the case with our HCFF. We have received a significant amount in commitments from the Southern Council for the restoration of Guadalupe bass and will put in another request for more support during the upcoming year.

Another session Doc and I attended was entitled "Becoming a Fly Fishing Boy Scout Merit Badge Counselor," to be presented by Brandon Simmons, who was unable to make it to the meeting. Instead, an angler involved in the merit badge supervision was summoned from casting lessons to share his experiences in handling such a program with the Fort Worth Fly Fishers. His message, one that was supported by comments from others in the attending group, was that the requirements for the merit badge were all covered and the boys were encouraged to do their best, but that in the end, any boy who put forth his best effort was awarded with the badge. As might be expected, more knowledgeable Boy Scout leaders who know something about fly-fishing are badly needed.

One of the pleasures of my experience at the Conclave was crossing paths with fly-fishing friends I had known for years but had not seen for quite a while. Captain Billy Trimble spoke to our club this past year, but I enjoyed seeing him again along with his effervescent wife, Stacy, who is a noted woman angler in our area and on the coast. They shared instruction in a class for those interested in salt water fishing– "The Elements of Fly Fishing saltwater and Ready-Set-Go fly Casting for Shallow Water"–with Billy giving all sorts of tips on fishing techniques used in fishing mostly for red fish but also touching on other species. How to spot where the fish are and how to approach them were important aspects, but making accurate casts was noticeably underscored. Then Stacy took us to the casting area and demonstrated special techniques for casting from a boat in which the angler is standing on deck with a guide perched behind and poling the craft. Such basics as being barefooted and stacking line without it getting tangled were covered. She also showed how to make casts not needed in freshwater fishing but essential in saltwater, especially from a boat.

Another friend whom I had not seen for years had over that period made a name for himself within the Southern Council as an outstanding fly fisher and instructor in many aspects of our sport. Colby Sorrells had spent close to two years working with Bob Miller when Bob ran the Pico Outdoor Company and was putting on the Texas Fly Fishing Show. Since then, Colby has won several Southern Council FFF awards and now goes by the nickname of "Pop" Sorrells. "Pop" has written articles published in such publications as The Fly Tyer, Southwest Fly Fishing, and Warmwater Fly Fishing, and last year was voted Fly Tyer of the Yearin the Southern Council. We had a nice visit and crossed paths several times. I attended his session "What to Look for in a Bass Fly." He emphasized having a large gap between the hook's point and the body of the fly in addition to tying bass flies that floated at a downward slant with the hook end at a lower level. He preferred a white or yellow on bass bugs since they are more readily seen by the fish than darker colors. He further said that except for that pointer, colors didn't seem to make much difference above the waterline.[See "Bass Bug Basics" below by Colby Sorrells with tips for tying bass bugs. These are contained in the handout which he distributed at the session he conducted at the Conclave.]

All the while, Doc, except for the classes we had in common, seemed to be occupied in talking to acquaintances he knew from his past dealings with the Southern Council and also making new friends along the way. The new Council conservation chairman, Robert Bays, from the Little Rock club, was especially interested in our Guadalupe bass project and offered many ideas including additional monetary support from both his club and the Southern Council, plus a willingness to speak in one or more gatherings in our area that Doc might suggest.

The real high point for me occurred on Saturday evening at the Awards Presentation Banquet held in the Ramada Inn Convention Room. Kudos were in abundance for various officers who had served the Southern Council over the past year, but for myself and friends and acquaintances of our own Dr. Guy Harrison came when the awards were presented that had been voted on by all of the member clubs, and Doc was called to the front of the room to accept his honor of receiving the Conservationist of the Year Award. You would have been bursting with happiness had you been there as Doc walked to the front to receive a handsomely engraved fly box recording his accomplishment. He didn't think he would win this honor. Well, here was one instance when he miscalculated. As our HCFF members know, he fully deserved this distinguished tribute. Congratulations from all of us, Doc. Who could fail to recognize the many steps you have taken in finding and pursuing the necessary pathways to achieve noble goals in numerous areas of conservation? Three cheers for the good doctor!

 

–M.A.

 

November Meeting: Thursday, November 16, 2006; 7:00 P.M.; UGRA offices at 125 W. Lehmann Drive (Behind the Texas Dept. of Public Safety on South Sidney Baker) Program: Business: Committee reports and current affairs, nomination of officers. Activity: Accepting membership dues, Guadalupe bass contributions, and trout lease fees. Important: You must be a member of our club in order to qualify for enrollment in the trout lease. Previous members in good standing have first priority.

Bass Bug Basics
By Colby "Pops" Sorrells

Hook

Shank length – The shank of the hook should be long enough to get the hook point behind and below the back of the body.

Gap – The hook gap should be large. Keep the gap clear of anything that might interfere with the hook penetration capabilities.

Point direction – The hook point should be straight, not curved up towards the body. If you have a doubt about the hook point direction, try the screen door test. Any hook that will not catch on a screen will not catch fish!

Strength – Many "bass" hooks are made of light wire. A stronger hook is usually required for large bass. Buy good quality hooks.

Eye – Make sure the hook eye is clear after making your bass bug.

Kink shank or straight? Kink shank hooks are great. The problem with them is you can't find the hook you want with a kinked shank. Improve the shank of the hook by first lightly filing the shank area that will be covered. Then use criss-cross wraps of thread not solid wraps over the entire shank. Also add three or four bumps of thread along the shank. Any glue will now have several different surfaces to grip on to.

Sharp hooks – Sharp hooks catch more fish than anything else! Make sure the hook is very sharp before you go fishing. Always check the hook sharpness before fishing. Use a fingernail to test the hook. If the hook easily digs into the nail when running the hook over the nail, then it is sharp. If it does not easily dig in, sharpen it. Always take a hook sharpening file with you.

Weed guards

Use them! Weed guards are really necessary on most bugs. Very few fish are missed because of weed guards. You want to be able to throw in dense moss and cover. If the bug hangs up on a weed, you may ruin the spot for fishing for the rest of the day. Try several different weedguards until you find the one you like.

Body material

Balsa, deer hair, foam or cork all make good bug bodies. Experiment with each until you decide which you like best. Remember, if your goal is to catch fish, less time spent making a body is more time on the water!

Mouth or face

The mouth of the bug is best flat. A cupped face or mouth is not necessary and makes picking up the bug more difficult. The flat face will make all the pop you need.

The face or mouth needs to be slanted slightly forward when the bug is at rest in the water.

Tail

The tail needs to stay clear of the hook bend. By selecting a proper body shape, hook design and placing the hook near the bottom of the bug problems with tailing material fowling in the hook bend are kept to a minimum.

If you have problems with the bug landing upside down or acting like a helicopter, a longer tail may help.

Big, splayed feathers look good but deer tail, squirrel tail or Krystal Flash makes a better tailing material.

Belly

The hook shank should be right at the bottom of the bug, not in the middle of the body.

Wings

Wings or legs tend to make a bug helicopter. Stiff wings make the problem worse. If you use rubber legs, be sure the front legs are the shortest, with each leg longer until the longest leg is in the far back.

Don't make wings too long. Some of the helicopter motion can be corrected by using a longer tail.

Color

Who is the bug made for? If the fish looks up at a light colored sky, it may have difficulty seeing a light colored bug. If the fisher looks down at the bug he may have a hard time seeing a dark colored bug on dark water.

No matter what color you choose to make your bugs, a white or light colored face or mouth is easier for the fisher to see.

Dark colored bugs can be made more visible to the fisher by adding light colored spots on the bug back or by adding large white eyes.

Light colored bugs can be made more visible to the fish by adding an orange belly or dark colored spots on the belly.

Colby "Pops" Sorrell is a FFF Certified Casting Instructor living in Mansfield, Texas. He is also a writer and photographer regularly contributing to fishing magazines including Fly Tyer, Gulf Coast Fisherman, CCA Tide and others.

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From FFF ClubWire. . .

Either Hand Fly Casting

By Dan Lagrace–taken from
the Mangrove Coast Fly Fishers newsletter

Either-Hand fly casting offers numerous advantages, and not the least of them is a dramatic improvement in your strong-hand casting. It also doubles the range of fishing and presentation angles in open, windy conditions, and when you are casting into cover. In addition, Either-Hand fly casting lets you avoid most back cast obstacles, allowing you to fish with equal ease from "either side of the river." Further, it's an excellent way to teach yourself how to teach fly casting to others.

Try the following eight-step process to teach yourself how to cast with either hand. Be sure to wear eye protection and use a bare leader when you try this. It will take about 30 minutes.

1. Start with 45 feet of line. Grasp the rod with your left hand and pinch the line between the first finger of your left hand and the grip.

2. Envelope the outside of your left hand with your right hand: thumb-over-thumb, fingers-over-fingers.

3. Begin false casting with the rod on the right side; left arm comes across the chest. Let your right hand control the rod; your left hand becomes part of the grip, goes along for the ride. Most pressure is with the right hand.

4. Increase grip pressure of left hand so right and left hand pressure are equal. Both hands are in equal control to assimilate good left-handed casting from right hand experience.

5. While false casting, move your hands close to right side of your face, sensing equal control with both hands.

6. Lay the line down with a forward cast. Lift the line, still casting from the right side, make 6 false casts, lay the line down. Repeat until pickup back cast is as good as regular false casts.

7. Transfer control to the left hand. Lift the line to cast, but now to the left side of your face. Continue false casting while moving your hands incrementally between casts to the left hand casting position, with hands outside of your left shoulder, right arm comes across your chest. Transfer control to your left hand by gradually increasing the pressure of the left hand on the grip while diminishing pressure with the right hand with each false cast.

8. Separate your hands and manage the running line with your right hand. Cast left-handed!

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Casting Can Be Dangerous–wear protective clothing
By Stoney McFly – taken from the
McKenzie Flyfishers Club newsletter

Think of a sharp barb flying uncontrolled through the air at a speed faster than a humming bird. Accidents occur when trying to reach extended limits. Be conscious of safety and look behind before starting your cast. Anyone in the casting radius is in a hazardous area. Don't get a reputation of hooking your buddies more often than the fish. It's inexcusable. Fly-fishing just might become a contact sport for you, especially when you call your hooked buddy a "big sissy."

Around the campfire, funny stories were told of people getting hooked. The time Sammy the Spoon hooked himself under both nostrils spey casting or Big Benny finding a Woolly Bugger attached right between the eyes. Describing past accidents, the reactions of people and what was said can be hilarious, but only because there was not permanent injury. It is very hard to justify any excuses when an eye was taken out. Luckily, or unluckily, our club president got it square between the shoulder blades at Hosmer Lake. He said the strike of the bead head hurt more than the hook. I think he was being nice to a rookie.

Point being, always wear protective clothing when fishing. Ears have a way of getting hooked. A wide-brimmed hat covers your head to protect from the sun, but also from sailing barbs. Polarized glasses protect your eyes from the damaging reflection of the sun's glare off the water. They not only help you see fish, they help you see. . .period. Experienced anglers don't bet their retinas on chance.

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Tick Removal Information
By Lee Weil –taken from the
Housatonic Fly Fishermen's Association newsletter

Ya never know. . . . might come in handy. I don't know if this works but if I had a tick, I would try it first before trying plucking it out with tweezers.

I had a pediatrician tell me what she believes is the best way to remove a tick. This is great because it works in those places where it's sometime difficult to get to with tweezers: between toes, in the middle of a head full of dark hair, etc.

Apply a glob of liquid soap to a cotton ball. Cover the tick with the soap-soaked cotton ball and let it stay on the repulsive insect for a few seconds (15 to 20), after which the tick will come out on its own and be stuck to the cotton ball when you lift it away. This technique has worked every time I've used it (and that was frequently), and it's much less traumatic for the patient and easier for the doctor.

Unless someone is allergic to soap, I can't see that this would be damaging in any way. I even had my doctor's wife call me for advice because she had one stuck to her back and she couldn't reach it with tweezers. She used this method and immediately called me back to say, "It worked!" You might want to put it in the freezer after removal, just in case of illness, it could be tested for disease.

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