Underground Weather Porn For Fly Fishing’s BWO Fanatics:
By Tom Chandler on Nov 14, 2007 in Underground Entertainment
Today’s weather might be a little clear, but that’s OK; I’ve got work to catch up on and little post-Stream Access Battle relaxing to do.
Still, when Thursday rolls around, I’m grabbing a rod, running for the river like I stole something, and putting a little tug into the lives of a few trout. Could be cosmic BWO weather all weekend, and I’ve sure as hell paid my dues for now.
Local guide Steve Bertrand — who along with Chris Raine represented for the long rod crowd at the Board of Supervisors meeting — has also recently suffered the slings and arrows of outrageously picky trout, and we’ve talking over strategies for catching these picky, picky low-water fish.
We’ll field test a few, and let you know.
The Roy Palm Emerger — normally a killer — hasn’t been too effective
The general season closes tomorrow, but with more and more of the state’s rivers being opened to year-round C&R fishing, why not get out and stand in the rain?
Cheaper than therapy.
See you on the river, Tom Chandler.
C3C Raine | Nov 14, 2007 | Reply
Heh, the old man would have gone bonkers if those louts closed the river right when he’s getting all healed up and expecting the doc’s permission to fish! Congratulations and thanks as well Tom, you’ve done a lot of work to get to this point!
Tom Chandler | Nov 14, 2007 | Reply
C3C: Think the old man might be fishing today.
Alex Cerveniak | Nov 14, 2007 | Reply
I like that fly, A LOT! Got a recipe?
C3C Raine | Nov 14, 2007 | Reply
I don’t believe it, I talked to him like two days ago, and he didn’t even mention it…of course my mom had him on a ladder painting stuff at that point so he might have just been worrying about not falling of the ladder at that point.
Clay | Nov 14, 2007 | Reply
Tom, PLEASE try my BWO dryfly I sent you. I could almost promise it will catch trout. Also, you said you were going to post a picture here, what happened? If you do not recall, I sent you the assortment in the old rusty “altoids sour” container. Thanks in advance!!!
Tom Chandler | Nov 14, 2007 | Reply
Alex: It’s unbelievably simple; trailing shuck of your choice (I use mallard flank, but it’s not very durable), olive biot body, olive dubbed thorax, and dun hen hackle.
Modern hen hackle (the whiting stuff) is a lot like dry fly hackle; grease it a little, and the fly stays in the film.
Squeeze it wet, and the fly tends to sink just a little bit.
Clay: Gotcha! The bugs have been a little on smaller side, but as soon as they hit it right (oddly, the BWOs get bigger as the fall progresses) I’ll trot ‘em out.
C3C Raine | Nov 14, 2007 | Reply
Tom, just thought of something when I read “oddly, the BWOs get bigger as fall progresses.” My thought is thus: it is not odd at all, but rather expected. BWOs like crappy weather, as fall gets on towards winter the weather gets generally crappier. Along with this, there is probably a correlation between crappy weather and the health of the BWO population. Now, this being said, if the healthier BWOs do better in crappy weather, and crappy weather happens later in fall, these healthier and probably bigger therefore?! will reproduce and pass on their ‘hatch timing’ (if there is such a thing) to their offspring posthumously through their hereditary genes. Now the clincher is that the weather probably has an effect on the number of BWOs that make it to spawn and therefore pass these genes on. I think we can see where this is heading…just wanted to see what the TUers thought about this…
kbarton10 | Nov 14, 2007 | Reply
There’s rust on that fly, you aren’t fishing enough. Fishing go, now.
Don | Nov 15, 2007 | Reply
What’s up with that fly? Do you color the hook? Is it rust?
Tom Chandler | Nov 15, 2007 | Reply
It’s not rusty; been fished hard a couple times and the light I photographed it with is very warm compared to sunlight.