Underground Entertainment

Underground Entertainment: The “Ho Down” Edition

September 19, 2006, by 2 comments

As Ass Hooked Whitey so concisely reminded me, I’ve been remiss in putting up a notice of the “Outdoor Blogger Ho Down” that’s being organized by GetOutdoors and Two-Heel Drive. (See huge, unwieldy logo below.)

Outdoor blogger ho-down

Outdoor bloggers of every stripe are invited to gather in Mt. Shasta on October 6-8. Camping site is Gumboot Lake, where float tubes are an excellent idea.

The fishing can be great, but the real gig is getting together, enjoying a shared Quality Outdoor Experience, and sharing ideas and experiences about blogging, probably so we Outdoor Bloggers can oneday rule the world.

Want more information? Contact the Underground.

Ian Rutter Watch

In the meantime, it’s Day 14 in the Ian Rutter “Lost in Montana” Vigil. He’s no doubt stripping streamers the size of jackrabbits in an attempt to catch monster trout, but we don’t know that for sure. Concern etches our brow. Worry interrupts our sleep. And the stress causes us to talk about ourselves in the third person, which frankly scares the hell out of us…

See you at the Ho Down, Tom Chandler.

[tags]outdoor bloggers, blogging, ho down, mt. shasta, gumboot lake, Ian Rutter[/tags]

New Fly Fishing Blog: A Step Apart…

September 18, 2006, by No comments yet

As if Yellowstone anglers weren’t spoiled enough by Fly Fishing In Yellowstone Park (a blog so enthusiastically updated that I want to move there just to take advantage of it), they’ve also got A Step Apart, which treads slightly different ground.

I’m not wholly on board with A Step Apart’s opinions focused on those who oppose snowmobile use in the park, but hell, here at the Underground, we embrace diversity of thought (as far as we do, that is).

Bookmark and visit them both sites. After a single season, you’ll know all there is to know about fishing the area – without ever actually fishing the area….

Scotland; It’s More Than Haggis and Bagpipes…

September 17, 2006, by 9 comments

Scotland never leaped to mind when I thought about quality fly fishing for trout, but Urban Angling on the Kelvin and now Tamanawis both are changing my mind.

Tamanawis just posted a nice review of a fishing trip on a beautiful loch, and threw in some excellent pictures too. Definitely worth a visit (and maybe someone could explain what Tamanawis means).

And for the record, I like bagpipes…

[tags]scotland, lochs, bagpipes[/tags]

The Underground Road to Fame & Fortune: Let’s Buy Field & Stream…

September 17, 2006, by 4 comments

Ever wonder why you should actually fish and hunt in the wet, uncomfortable outdoors when you can simply write about it instead?

Well, here’s your chance. Moldy Chum reports that the venerable Field & Stream magazine is on the auction block, and with retro-mania the rage among the aging boomer set, my proposal is simple:

Field and Stream coverThe Undergrounders pool their money (I know Sully’s pretty loaded, and Chris Raine owns a fly shop, so we know he’s got millions stuffed in his mattress), and we re-launch the magazine in retro-dress – like it was the 1950s and 1960s.

Viola! No controversial pollution or environmental stories, the equipment’s so cheap it’s almost free (I’m buying a truckload of Hardy reels for $35), and – best of all – we won’t waste precious advertising revenue buying new content.

We simply run all of the old stories under the old author bylines, thereby avoiding the modern – and inefficient – practice of running the old stories under new bylines.

It’s genuis like this that sets the Underground apart from the rest of the sniveling pack of fly fishing blogs. Arf!

p.s. – Click here to see Field & Stream’s entry into the bikini wars. Oy.

[tags]bikini, field and stream, magazine, Time[/tags]

Brookies Meet Fall With Bling.

September 15, 2006, by 4 comments

From MidCurrent (who has totally tanked in the Bikini Wars) comes a link to an excellent Ed Dentry article (Rocky Mountain News) about Fall fishing for Brookies (The Official Char of the Trout Underground).

They color up spectacularly, and I’m reminded that there’s still time to hit one or two of the local backcountry lakes in search of the little buggers. A couple years ago I caught a 14″ brookie that was so breathtaking that you’d accuse me of altering the photograph (if I’d taken one).

Chandler’s Back. Is Fly Fishing Really Ready?

September 15, 2006, by No comments yet

Yes Undergrounders, I’ve returned from my oh-so-torturous stay in Maine, where I was held captive in a gorgeous camp, forced to fly fish gorgeous waters from gorgeous wooden canoes for gorgeous fish (pickerel excepted), and – in direct violation of the Geneva Convention – forced to spend lots of stress-free time with the Gorgeous L&T Nancy.

I can see my readers getting all misty over the inhumanity of it, but I want to say this: Don’t cry for me, Undergrounders.

West Grand Lake island
Sadly, Tommy doesn’t fish here anymore….

Fortunately, I survived my cruel confinement, but am now back in Northern California, ready to call my fly fishing friends, pump them for everything they know about the current state of the Upper Sac, and then terrorize the local trout population.

Helpful Travel Hint: Don’t.

Of course, I didn’t get here by magic – I have to congratulate my close, personal friends at Continental Airlines who stranded us in Newark for several hours by pushing our flight to S.F. away from the gate two minutes early. Ha! Good one.

That’s because the L&T Nancy and I – after being made late by another Continental flight – arrived from our terminal-long sprint only one minute early.

Fortunately, we both always wanted to spend an evening in the Newark Airport.

I’m sure you can see the humor in it, and in hopefully nicer terms than the L&T Nancy did when “questioning” the Continental ticket agent. Look for more in an upcoming rant about travel, which will probably lead to getting my front door kicked in by TSA security agents brandishing rubber gloves and an attitude.

We’re Home. And Ready to Fish.

Still, it’s always nice to be home, especially when “home” is at the base of a 14,000′ mountain surrounded by great fly fishing.

There’s lots of catching up to do (and we wonder what’s happened to Ian Rutter, who hasn’t yet reported in from Montana), but I’m always happy to report events like the 17 pound North Umpqua steelhead caught by Trout Underground Redneck Coordinator Dave Roberts – all on a dry fly and a 9′ FE Thomas bamboo rod.

The October Caddis hatch looms on the horizon, and it looks like I’ll be taking a weekend backpacking trip to Lassen with Alert Underground Brother Scott Chandler, who recently circumnavigated Lassen using only his two feet and several thousand dollars of high-tech backpacking equipment.

As you can see below, I’ve also taken to posting some Underground Entertainment items in single posts. Let’s try that for a while.

More to come, and soon. I’ve got a few pieces in the hopper, including the very, very rare “Underground How-To” article. See you on the river, Tom Chandler

[tags]Maine, Grand Lake Stream, steelhead, North Umpqua[/tags]

Panoramic Fly Fishing Photos from Montana

September 15, 2006, by No comments yet

Montana Panoramic photoWhile I was gone, the bikini-exploiting Moldy Chum linked to a Montana photographer Craig Hergert – who is doing some very interesting panoramic work

Since the Underground appreciates good outdoor photography as much anyone, I wanted to spotlight his work.

Click here to see a larger version of the image to the left (which spans both air and water). Poke around his site and prepare to be impressed….

[tags]outdoor photography, craig hergert, Montana, panoramic[/tags]

Bikini Wars Revived (and won) by Moldy Chum.

September 15, 2006, by 4 comments

While I was off fishing (and photographing) Maine in a silly attempt to provide my readers with actual fly fishing related content, that future porn-meister Moldy Chum has quietly revived the fly fishing bikini wars, and done so in a way that suggests there’s no point in going further.

First, he gratuitously included this stunning, stunning photo in a post (click here for the full-sized image).

Bikini winner from Moldy Chum

The subject is not only eligible for pinup status, but she’s also apparently very patriotic and – if you wipe the steam off your glasses – is holding a pretty good sized bonefish too.

Then he quietly snuck in a YouTube Video headlined by a bikini clad fly fisher who is attractive, but clearly doesn’t know much about fighting fish on a fly rod. I’m betting no one cares…

[tags]bikini, pin-up [/tags]

Another Fly Fishing Gift You Don’t Need to Buy Dad…

September 14, 2006, by 2 comments

Depth Finder WatchWhile we’re not all wearing Dick Tracy radio watches (yet), Hammacher Schlemmer does sell a depth finder watch that tells you exactly how deep the fish are that you’re not catching.

Just the Xmas present for the fly fisher who already has everything (except common sense).

[tags]fly fishing, watch[/tags]

Underground Catch-up…

September 7, 2006, by No comments yet

Information has dribbled into the Underground drips and drabs, but because of my throughput-challenged dial-up connection and lack of time, I’ve fallen behind.

And since it’s September – start of the Fall fishing season – there’s a lot of catching up to do.

While I chase the wily smallmouth and landlocked Atlantic Salmon in Maine, the digitally challenged Ian Rutter is heading for Montana, where he and Charity will pretend to “host” two weeks worth of fly fishers while – in reality – they fish like mad people.

Down south, the Underground’s SoCal Saltwater Correspondent Jim Troyer has been hammering calico bass from a kayak, and he’s tying a lot of 2/0 streamers for his trip to Baja’s East Cape in October.

The East Cape fish are fearsome critters, so let’s hope he makes it back with his typing digits intact and sends us a report.

Back home, Dave Roberts is looming up the truck and heading for the North Umpqua, where he’ll chase steelies and even cutthroat on the upper reaches. And as soon as Chris Raine reads all this, I’m pretty sure he’s going to load up the Airstream and head for the Williamson. Or not.

West Grand Lake smallmouthI spent the morning chasing smallmouth from a kayak, and after bagging one here and there, finally found a concentration of the bronze battlers hanging on a boulder-strewn dropoff.

I have enough fishing options at hand – not including the lakes and ponds that are only a short drive away – that I catch myself getting a little frantic about getting it all in (forgetting that I’m on a vacation).

This afternoon I’ll either be back on the river, or headed uplake with the L&T Nancy. And if my urban readers aren’t already jealous enough, I’m sitting on the back porch of the cabin watching a pair of woodpeckers scouring trees for bugs.

My cup runneth over. See you wherever, Tom Chandler.

[tags]ian rutter, maine, grand lake, smallmouth, east cape[/tags]