Was out fly fishing, and is now home, working. More on the former is coming soon (the less we talk about the latter, the better).
A shakycam pic of me standing in the rain like an idiot. But more on that later.
Underground Entertainment
Oops, Just Found This Mt. Shasta Sunrise On The Camera
It's hell living on the flank of a stratovolcano...
Sure, the photograph kinda sucks, but the clouds — and the sunrise — are stellar. Found this on the camera after shooting it a couple days ago and promptly forgetting it.
See you up early, Tom Chandler.
The Bamboo Underground, The Smartphone Edition
In the past I’ve populated this site with bamboo fly rods, bamboo cars, bamboo clock radios — even pants made from bamboo. Basically, all the bamboo gear you’d need if you wanted to prove to your fly fishing buddies that you’re better than they are.
Now we bring you the latest in high-tech gadgetry for the bamboo snob. The bamboo smartphone:
You can almost smell the varnish, eh?
It’s a shame I’m already equipped with a water-and-shock-resistant Casio smartphone. Because nothing says “effete bamboo fly rod snob” more completely than a bamboo smartphone (though it would be better if it were engraved with something like “Friends that Fish Anything But Paynes Are No Friends At All“).
Once again, it’s left to the Trout Underground to maintain the high standards of snobbishness and elitism this sport needs to succeed over the next several decades.
No need to thank me, though a new ascot would be nice.
See you pretending to be rich, Tom Chandler.
Hot Recipe For Those Hatchery Steelhead: Pan Seared, Pecan-Encrusted Trout
From that clearly questionable mind at the Chile Underground comes a Fish on Fridays recipe that might be just the ticket for that hatchery steelhead — Pan Seared, Pecan-Encrusted Trout.
Got a hatchery steelhead or stockie trout? Got Pecans?
Sounds almost good enough to get me out to Lake Siskiyou, where the trout are stocked…
We Do Carp Like Nobody Else Does Carp
And you thought we didn't do carp at the Underground...
(from the always-entertaining Neversealand blog)
The Underground’s “2011 Fly Fishing Year In Pictures” Post
Somewhere around the middle of December I lost steam on a “2011: The Year In Pictures” post, the problems being I didn’t have any time, and once I did, I realized I had damn few good pictures from 2011 (in the image department, it was nowhere near as good as 2009).
Still, perspective adds a layer of meaning to even mediocre photographs, so I plowed ahead, and this is what I got.
The Year’s Real Story
For us, 2011 revolved around the record snowpack, which topped out at 170% of normal, and was bolstered by a lot of late snow:
Late snows pushed the snowpack to record levels
The winter fly fishing wasn’t stellar, though it seemed to hang on far into spring; temperatures in “spring” were about 15 degrees cooler than normal, so despite all the snow, we never had a giant runoff event. Instead, the water was just… high. For a very long time. In fact, everything was a good month behind “normal.”
The snow -- and cold spring -- were the stories in 2011.
It's high, so instead of catching trout, we got all arty and pretentious...
Still, I found time in the fall to catch a few fish...
The Small Stream Thang
The last couple years have been all about small streams; I often found myself driving past closer, bigger trout in search of a more distant, smaller trout, and in truth I can’t wholly explain the attraction.
Neither am I ready to stop:
Wayne Eng on a high -- but fishable -- small stream.
A new stream for both me and Older Bro -- that was cold and over its banks. I'll be back...
The point of the whole exercise...
Wayne Eng (about to hook a brown trout)
Do I feel like a putz, or what?
To a fly fisherman, this suggests a good day ahead...
The beauty of Humpies is the more they're eaten, the better they get...
Older Bro on one of his favorite Brookie streams
Hey, that's me! (A rare Underground sighting)
The last small stream trout of the year...
Wayne Eng in the spring
Mosquitoes are not our friends...
Wally the Wonderdog on a hot day; he keeps wandering right into my fishable water.
They're so much prettier than they have to be...
A late fall trip to a new (to me) small stream.
The Maine Thang
We made it Maine again in the summer of 2011; the place has a solid, built-to-last permanence about I simply haven’t seen out west, and there are times you can catch a smallmouth bass every cast,
We pulled up on this island, and started catching a bass every cast...
We got over 1.5 inches of rain in just the morning...
The Grand Lake Canoes are still gorgeous.
A West Grand Lake sunset.
Industry People, Places & Gear
The Orvis folks proved they had a sense of humor after I made sport of them in a blog post:
Orvis poked fun at me after I made sport of their blog...
Later, I crafted a revolutionary new IFTD show format that would allow manufacturers to sell their gear via the power of interpretive dance, but the industry — inexplicably — failed to listen. They’re the poorer for it.
It was also The Year Of The Interview: I neatly questioned a couple writers and a photographer, including John Gierach, falconer Rebecca O’Connor, biologist Anders Halverson, and even uber-fly-fishing photographer Val Atkinson.
Falconer Rebecca O'Connor
I interviewed Val Atkinson for CalTrout.
I even revealed a Forbidden Love:
The Ultimate Fly Fishing Snack Food
And also dealt with a bear who tried to peel up my garage door (and was largely successful):
This guy was way too close to the house...
Let’s Hope For More in 2012
I admit to shooting far fewer pictures on my 2011 trips than in prior years — a symptom of someone who wasn’t fishing enough, and didn’t want to give up as much of his fishing time to taking pictures.
Of course, there’s a pretty good reason I didn’t fish as much:
“
”
2012 is going to be interesting; we’re making two round trips to Ethiopia, and once M2 (my clever code name for Little M’s little sister) comes home, I suspect fishing time will be hard to come by.
It’s what it is, though I have uncovered some interesting small streams not all that far from home, and there’s still hope for a quick escape to another state.
I think every new year comes with a healthy set of expectations, most of which are just waiting to be dashed by weather, sickness, work and other surprises.
Still, I hope to see you on the river in 2012, Tom Chandler.
You’re Not Crazy Until The LA Times Says You Are…
A half-dozen Alert Underground Readers forwarded this LA Times article about all the odd people living up here, and while I’m forced to point out we’re pretty accepting of crazy up here (witness the County Board of Supervisors), I have to admit the surge in Bigfoot sightings mentioned in the article is probably my fault.
The mothership is docking...
From the article:
The mountain has been touted as the site of an energy vortex that allows passage into the metaphysical dimension; the birthplace of a spiritual foundation whose adherents believe they can ascend to the eternal realm; and a hot spot for UFOs that hide in the clouds and enter the mountain’s core through mystery “portals.”
Newer to the repertoire are sightings of Bigfoot (the word serves as both singular and plural, like fish and sheep), believed by some to conceal themselves by passing into a fifth dimension.
“Mt. Shasta has always had a spiritual drawing, but it’s getting more and more popular,” said Karen Anderson, a supervisor in the town’s visitors bureau, who estimated that a fourth of the area’s tourists come for that reason.
To assist seekers from around the globe, the bureau’s website includes a list of energy healers. Shops carry crystals for the “spiritual pilgrim.” Drop-in channeling sessions are held each Sunday at a spiritual center. Guides lead soul-cleansing treks up the mountain in all seasons.
I can’t speak to the UFOs (locals believe the Lemurians’ giant space ships are docking with the mountain when the summit is obscured by lenticular clouds), but the recent Bigfoot frenzy can probably be blamed on… Singlebarbed.
I twice took Singlebarbed fly fishing on the east side of the mountain.
I should have expected someone would make the inevitable mistake. (Not that I’m suggesting he needs a shave or anything.)
See you on the mothership, Tom Chandler.
Another John Gierach Interview Floats To The Surface
Fly fishing uber-writer John Gierach has always given the appearance of a reclusive nature, but the last couple years have found interviews popping up like mushrooms (including mine).
It’s just possible we’ve learned almost as much about him via other people’s writing as we have his own.
This interview (found via Moldy Chum) was conducted by a Colorado writer, and it’s long and detailed and while the writer occasionally heads a little far afield into gonzo journalism territory, he does a nice job of profiling John Gierach’s conservation work, which we don’t read about much in Gierach’s own essays:
“I have no idea if anything I’ve done will make a difference in the long run, but you have to try. Every generation has to try. Because if you give up, the bastards win.”
There are other engagingly candid moments (he quit working with the New York Times because “they were all assholes”), and frankly, quotes like this make it worth the read:
“I wouldn’t over-analyze it too much,” Gierach said when I asked if his philosophy degree influenced his passion for the sport. “I think it’s trendy to link fly fishing with spirituality these days. There might be something like that involved, but most of it’s crap. In the end, it comes down to this: I like catching fish.”
(This dovetails nicely with one of the Underground’s Absolute Rules Of Fly Fishing Writing: the sport is special and all, but descriptions of fly fishing should not include the word “soul.”)
Keep writing, Tom Chandler.
Today’s Fake Fish Painting Post
These aren’t real goldfish — they’re handcrafted by a Japanese artist who painstakingly builds them up layer by layer.
I’d love to see what he could do with a small pod of Brookies.
(Click here to see more pictures and watch a pretty fascinating video.)
Save The Baby Electrons: The Underground’s Short Casts Go Weekly
I’ll admit I’m ready to be reversed if the Undergrounders form an Occupy The Underground movement, but I just transformed the daily Short Cast posts into a single, awe-inspiring digest post set to appear once a week (it’s set for Thursday).
It seemed like the daily Short Casts were starting to clutter up the place a little, and yes, when I see a string of them I’m reminded I haven’t written anything for days.
As it is in the House of Representatives, the victory here will go to those who make the most noise.
If you want to experience my Short Casts in realtime, just subscribe to my Twitter feed.
See you being all geeky and shit, Tom Chandler.
Runs On
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