TFM Mention

Always good to get some love from Cameron over at T.F.M.  Check it out http://thefiberglassmanifesto.blogspot.com/2013/01/tfm-spotting-popper-makin.html

'Gills rock!

Carp

I am thinking about targeting carp this year.  For those that already do, what size rod do you use?  Do you have a favorite one?  Line?  Reel?  If you use say a 5wt would it make a difference to learn that the carp is in the 30 pound range?  Just curious and looking for some guidance from those that have fished for them before.  I have only ever hooked one, once, for about 10 seconds.  That was it.  Period.  So please tell me what you use.  Thanks.

The Year of the Bluegill

Check out Cameron's post over at T.F.M.  Could this be the year of the 'gill?  Why not make it the year of the panfish?  I am down for it.  I love panfish.  For me the Long Ear may be my favorite.  Nothing against 'gills.  I have caught many of them myself.  For me though the water I fish, the Monocacy River, has a lot of Long Ears in it which it why they are my favorite.  Besides being abundant in numbers, they are a handsome fish as well.  What is not to love?  In reality though either one would work.  Who doesn't love a fish who is willing to suck down a fly?  Panfish in the Monocacy River just absolutely crush top water flies.  They really have no choice...they have to because the water is moving and shortly dinner may slip away.  Not to mention that they are some crazy fighters!  They will put a bend in your rod.  I always think I have a monster on the other end of the line only to be shocked when I reel it in and it's like 5 or so inches in length.  Panfish have the way about them when they are fighting, they turn on their sides in an effort to get away making them fight even harder.  Such an awesome fish on the fly rod.  So, who is with me, or shall I say Cameron.... make 2013 the Year of the Bluegill (Panfish)?

2012: A Year Of Not Fishing!

Well it is New Year's Eve folks.  Actually when you read this, it will be New Year's Day but you get where I am going with this.  I decided to take a short trip back through 2012 to see how I did fishing.  It was a little depressing if I do say so myself.  I only managed to get out on the water 21 days.  This was less than I did last year.  I managed to catch 9 different species of fish with a grand total of 582.  Working the math, that means I averaged 27.71 fish per outing which, surprisingly, is 3 more fish on average than last year.  Mother Nature played a huge part in my lack of fishing this past year.  On the plus side, sales at J&M Flies increased!  That meant more time at the vise and less time on the water as well.  We branched out a little, selling more and got more exposure which we needed and wanted.  For that, we would like to say thank you.

2012 Fish Caught:
Rainbows-2
Browns-2
Smallmouth-90
Fall Fish-15
Crappie-4
Red Eyed Rocks-13
Bluegill-52
Long Eared-398
Warmouth-6

Again, doing the math, it would seem that for every smallmouth caught, I caught 5.42 panfish.  Maybe I need to change my name to the Panfish Persuader or Panfish Whisperer.  I was kind of surprised at my lack of large numbers of trout in 2012.  I didn't even land a brookie.  Well actually I didn't even fish for a brookie.  So sad.  I also didn't land a single largemouth on the fly rod.  Again...so sad.  I am hoping that 2013 will be different.  While I am definitely a warm water fly fisherman, I really would like to catch more of those elusive trout.  I guess though that would mean I actually have to target them more than 3 times like I did in 2012 huh?


Thanks to our fans, followers, and customers who are helping to get us to where we want to be.  We hope you will follow us into the new year.  We have some great ideas in mind for some J&M Flies swag, a new website, and a big fish contest among other things.  We hope everyone has a safe and happy New Year.  We wish you all the best in 2013.

By the way, I may now own more T.F.M. stuff than anybody else.  One hoodie, one sun mask, and four T-shirts.  Can Cameron be an addiction?

Vote!

Last day to vote.  In case you forgot: Don't forget to vote for me in the T.F.M. spotting contest. Here is the link http://thefiberglassmanifesto.blogspot.com/2012/12/voteand-vote-again.html and the email address is tfmcontests@gmail.com
Thanks in advance!

Sigh.....

As I sit here and write this, the wind is howling outside.  The temperature is a crisp, down right cold, 23 degrees.  Snow fell yesterday for the second time this week.  Yet, despite the conditions, all I can think about is warm water fishing.  Not trout but bass and not just any bass but smallmouth bass.  I am having some serious withdrawal symptoms as of late.  All I can think about is smallmouth bass and top water, top water, top water.  I need to have an explosive strike.  I need to see it.  I need to feel it.  I need that tug on the end of my line like a crack addict needs another rock.  Too much?  Maybe.  Sorry about that but you get the idea.  I want to see the water boil as the smallie rips through it on the way to crush my popper.  Sadly, this is not to be.  I will not be throwing top water here in Maryland until at least May at the earliest.  That, of course, assumes a mild Winter and Spring.  Since I have only bad luck, I am going to say that that will be out of the question.  Now I know some of you are asking yourself why doesn't he just fish for trout?  Am I right?  Of course I am and I will believe me.  I do like fishing for trout.  Sometimes their unwillingness to eat a fly is just as endearing as a smallies willingness to eat a popper.  Each can and are special in their own right.  I am, however, a warm water fly fisherman at heart now and as such I want to do some warm water fishing.  I may need to move the family to a state that will allow me to fish for my beloved year round.

Since I can't fish for them, why not tie for them.  Great idea, right?  Yea I thought so.  However, last Sunday, my son got sick.  The tying area is in the spare bedroom since it has a television and the most room.  Well when he got sick, he stayed in there until yesterday.  Apparently in my advanced adult life I have become a germaphobe because I refuse to enter the room.  I just will not do it until Melissa cleans it from ceiling to floor, stem to stern.  So no tying either.

I do have some DVDs to watch and Youtube is also available.  For now I will have to live vicariously through movies until Mother Nature allows me the chance to throw poppers at my favorite fish.

Changes In The Fish Foolin' Frog Size 8

For the past two years or so, we have been tying the Fish Foolin' Frog in size 8 with Sili legs in Yellow/Gold/Black from Orvis.  The colors matched perfectly with the body, tail and hackle.  The problem is though that the Sili legs can be rather fragile.  It was also becoming a pain in the ass buying the legs since I couldn't always find them at my fly shop.  Sometimes we had to special order them from Orvis.  If they break, you can't replace them on the popper without taking everything apart.  Since, like I stated, they break easily, the poppers look a little sad over time with little stubs for legs.  As a result, we have decided to switch to the grizzly barred rubber legs for this popper.  These are the same legs we use on almost all of the poppers anyway.  They help with buoyancy and weight thus allowing the fly to float better.  So here is what it will look like in the future:

Still looking awesome!