Fishing – Page 4 – Sporting Road

Pat Dorsey Flies

My favorite things about Pat Dorsey flies are that they are generally very simple to tie and they work exceptionally well. I have incorporated those strategies into my fly tying over the past couple decades, after chasing the illusive, you got to have it, hot fly of the week syndrome promoted by many in the industry for much of my youth. Pat Dorsey is a Colorado fly fishing guide, commercial fly tyer, and author of quite a few fly fishing books. He is a long-time acquaintance and his flies include staple patterns of the South Platte River, usually featuring his signature "Mercury Bead head" added to the pattern, with other small improvements. These flies will catch fish and the Mercury Bead seems to improve the flies from their original versions. While Pat's flies are not something I tie or use regularly, you have to admire them. Or at least I do, as I was a commercial fly tyer in high school and the patterns are generally fast to tie and more effective than most. However, a lot of my friends do use these files regularly and Pat's improved versions of the black beauty, buckskin, brassie, and other South Platte favorites such as the Mercury RS2, and his version of Andy Kim's Yong Special, the Top Secret Midge, all catch a lot of fish and are flies that I have experimented with over the years. I post some pictures here from Pat's great books, which are educational in how simple flies can be to still be very successful. He has proven to be a guide who knows how to educate his clients both in fishing and fly tying, and is never one to hold back on

By Sporting Road|February 26th, 2019|Categories: Fishing, Fly Tying, RS2, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Mottram on Fly Fishing

Innovations of a Scientist-Angler This is a great book for the fly fisher. Writings from one of the most original and provocative fly-fishing theorists of the twentieth century. Important inquiries into the nature of trout and the challenges of catching them with flies. James Mottram wrote at the height of great intellectual turmoil in the world of British fly fishing, when advocates of dry-fly fishing quarreled with their nymph-fishing counterparts over which type of fishing was not only more effective but also more "appropriate" on England's famous chalkstreams. Mottram stepped into this bitter controversy with writings that calmly considered the strengths, weaknesses, and prospects of all fly-fishing methods. In his introduction to this first American edition of Mottram's writings, Paul Schullery praises Mottram's "enthusiastic voice, ceaseless curiosity, and intuitive sense of how things worked." Schullery concludes that Mottram, who was rare among early angling authorities in actually being scientifically trained, "applied a disciplined understanding of nature's subtlety and complexity to the study of the trout's world." That he was also a lively and inventive storyteller only adds to the value of his work today. About Schullery, Paul

By Sporting Road|February 26th, 2019|Categories: Fishing|Comments Off

Frank Sawyer’s Pheasant Tail Nymph and Grey Goose

https://youtu.be/416Os9V84n8 Frank Sawyer was a river keeper for The Fishing Association in Wiltshire, England. The river Avon was his home water. His grandson, Nick Sawyer, who was a special forces Captain in the Royal Services, when I met him and also moonlighted at times, offering his grandfather’s Sawyer Nymphs, has moved on to bigger and better things as Brigadier of their special forces. He was kind enough to send me some flies tied by his grandfather and the first thing that stands out, is how slim and natural they are compared to our American "pheasant tail" flies such as the Copper John. Nick wrote to me, ”Minimalism is probably a good way of describing the Sawyer approach to fishing. I spent a huge amount of money on taco that does not do the job as well as something out a fraction of the price.” before his grandmother retired she had three regular tires working for her as well and sold sawyer flies all around the World by mail. Nick Usually fist on the right hand it down to him from his father was one of the early fiber rods made in the 1960s by Hardy, the light master model. It is a fairly light rod and he like to fish with 1.5 pound cast tippet which equals American 7X. He commented that grade line on the test did not like the substitute wall as much as the Chadwick school, as perhaps it was a little bit on the purpleish side. However his father considered it a close enough match for it to work. As for the IRS to, he and his father’s consensus was that they are on the whole for faster water in the Chaulk streams

By Sporting Road|February 12th, 2019|Categories: Fishing, Fly Tying|Comments Off

Fly Fishing Secrets of the San Juan River’s Andy Kim
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Fly Fishing Secrets of the San Juan River’s Andy Kim

This is an old video instruction tape which I bought from Andy Yong Kim about 20 years ago, which he recently converted from VHS to digital and shared on YouTube, so now you get it for free (there are now four parts). His Yong Special flies and techniques are legendary on the San Juan River and it is worth booking him as your guide as you will learn a lot about fly fishing that you won't learn anywhere else. He used to camp and sell flies for the Green River and the Flaming Gorge fly shop is stocked with look alike Yong patterns, as a result of his success there with his patterns. https://youtu.be/Nu9cBlXnDwQ https://youtu.be/OLuBE001G28 https://youtu.be/h3VvChHxtLY https://youtu.be/i6eVCCdjrO4 And he did this new video for kids. https://youtu.be/vyc9HWYHwUI For more see Andy's YouTube channel or his site at http://www.yspecial.com/

By Sporting Road|July 16th, 2018|Categories: Fishing|Comments Off

Silk Fly Lines
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Silk Fly Lines

I was recently given a silk fly line by Laurent, which I am going to try out on the three bamboo rods which were gifted to me by Rim Chung and Gary Dewey. Ever since 2013, when Scientific Anglers was purchased from 3M by the Orvis Company, based in Manchester, Vermont, the first ownership change for Scientific Anglers in decades, their lines have gone downhill and Rio and others have come up in quality. This sale to Orvis, lead to a complete rebranding of the company, with a new color scheme, new logo, and new packaging. And probably completely different manufacturing facilities. Sometimes, in the face of change, we need to return to the old, so I am going way back—-to silk fly lines—one of the original fishing lines, just behind horse hair lines in chronology. One thing that I learned from the silk lines is that it is extremely difficult, if not impossible, to tie your leader to the line with a nail knot or similar connection, since the tip of the silk line is much finer and more flexible than the butt of your leader. So, I founds that superglue is often applied to assist in the holding of the knot. On the other hand, I have discovered that I can turn over even very long leaders using leaders with a butt diameter of only .015 or even .013. Many old fly fishing books have illustrations that contain directions for attaching leaders to silk lines. I have found that a tiny loop spliced in the end of the line, and a perfection loop in the butt section of the leader is one solution. This is not only convenient for attaching leaders, but

By Sporting Road|June 28th, 2018|Categories: Fishing|Comments Off

Tenkara

Tenkara has it s roots in the mountains of Japan, in the practical approach of the subsistence fisherman and the pared-down efficiency of the professional. It places a premium on accurate presentation. The original tenkara fisherman used silk lines and bare hooks. Flies become high fashion and by 1703 gold foil was even being used. Ayu hooks are now barbless and eyeless. The author discusses bamboo rods to the Tenkara Ayu and Diawa rods. Dr. Ichihashi or Ichigaki's bamboo rods are discussed and from the Internet posts on sites such as www.tenkarausa.com they look amazing. The book discusses level lines to tapered lines and furled lines to fluorocarbon lines. Spools and cast holders are detailed, as are knots from the traditional girth hitch to attach the furled line to the rod tip or simple overhand knots around the standing part of the line to form a o around the lilian through the loop twice and tighten.

By Sporting Road|June 22nd, 2012|Categories: Book Reviews, Fishing|Comments Off

The Frugal Fly Fisherman

The Frugal Fly Fisherman by Patrick Straub is a title that I would love just from the cover. But, in getting into the merits of the work, it is bit long on theory and short on content. It recommends saving money where possible with brands such as Redington, but at the same time recommending you invest as much as you can afford in a quality rod. This doesn't seem to help the newbie angler with actual recommendations. I understand the concept of not promoting brands over concepts, but it still leaves the angler with the dilemma of "what to buy?" I liked the quotes, particularly of Norman Maclean from A River Runs Through It, such as, "My father was very sure about certain matters pertaining to the universe. To him, all good things--trout as well as eternal salvation--come by grace and grace comes by art and art does not come easy." From mentions of silk lines and split cane to discussions of Gore-Tex and carbon-fibers, the book covers it all. There is certainly an art to getting the most for your dollar. The recommendation to avoid The 5-Weight Shootout, and the lists and focusing on disk drag versus click and prawl, among other discussions, are all well on point. As well as the fact that tying your own flies and making do it yourself trips will save money in the long run, but it doesn't overcome the standard advice of 5-weight rods for everything and what flies are most effective, which misses the mark of a died in the wool frugal fisherman who benefits from other's experiences.

By Sporting Road|June 22nd, 2012|Categories: Fishing, Uncategorized|Comments Off

Join Our Fishing Site for Rim Chung’s Method of Nymph Fishing

We hope you'll join us over at http://oneflyfisherman.com/ for a look into Rim Chung's world of nymph fishing. This will be the exclusive site for postings about his fishing methods and upcoming book. Tight lines... Latest Post The Best to Fish with a Fly “The best way to fish with a fly would be to drop the fly into the river and the fish would eat it. However, there are two problems with this technique—one theoretical, the other practical. The theoretical problem is how would we know when the fish ate it and how would we know which fish. The practical problem is that there is no way to retrieve the fish. Therefore, we must use line.” –Rim Chung Rim Chung’s RS2 fly is now or has been sold throughout the United States by most of the major commercial fly companies such as Orvis, Umpqua, L.L. Bean, Dan Bailey’s, and many others. Yet, Rim Chung remains largely an unknown. He has never promoted himself, his fly, or his method of fly fishing. Rim Chung has no commercial interest in fly fishing, he is not a guide, nor has ever sold his fly, nor has he ever sought or been offered compensation for the flattery of the copies of his flies, which are now widely distributed. The purpose of this site is not commercial and the upcoming book about him is simply a tribute to his legendary success in fly fishing with the nymph–simply ideas which I hope you might discover as useful as I have.

By Sporting Road|November 30th, 2011|Categories: Fishing, Rim Chung|Comments Off

The Sportsman’s Guide to Shopping

Once upon a time, in addition to having a gunmaker and fly tire, gentleman would have a boot maker, glove maker, hat maker, a shirt, maker, maker of walking sticks, and umbrellas, possibly even a coach builder, and naturally a tailor. In London: Farlows, fishing and shooting, www.farlows.co.uk Lock & Co. Hatters, bespoke hats and hunt caps, www.lockhatters.co.uk John Lobb, Country boots and riding boots, www.johnlobbltd.co.uk Henry Maxwell, hunting, polo and field boots www.henrymaxwell.com Bernard Weatherhill Ltd., coats, vests and breeches, www.bernardweatherill.com H. Huntsman & Sons, riding habits, scarlet coats, evening coats, suits www.h-huntsman.com Holland & Holland, shotguns and sporting arms, www.hollandandholland.com James Purdey & Sons, gunmaker, www.purdey.com Boss & Co Ltd., gunmaker, www.bossguns.co.uk

By Sporting Road|November 26th, 2011|Categories: Fishing, Foxhunting, Wingshooting|Comments Off

Light Weight Fly Fishing Rods

I have often been asked “What rod is Mr. Chung’s current favorite?,” on this blog. This will be the subject of a soon-to-be released article and a chapter in the book that I am in the works of publishing about his fishing methods. The short answers are that a Sage TZX 0710- #0 Line and the Sage LL 2-weight in 7’9”, are Rim Chung’s current all-time favorites, as of 2015, but he loves the newish Winston Pure. He also fancies several other Winston rods and depending on when you ask him, but he often responds that the Winston Boron IIX 8'6", 3 weight is his all time favorite rod. My all time favorite is a Winston WT 8', 3-piece, 3-weight rod, and I exclusively fish Rim Chung's methods of nymph fishing. Another student of his prefers the Winston Boron III LS ; 3 WT 8’6", but it may be whatever you get used to becomes your favorite. Asking Rim which is his favorite rod used to be an easy question for him to answer, but now the usual response is something along the lines of "Well, that is a lot like asking a man about his favorite woman, when he has the pleasure of so many to choose from in his lifetime. It becomes hard to compare one to the other. One might be in love with each one for what it represents and offers, without comparison to the others." I’ll attempt to let you in on an advance glimpse behind the invisible veil to catching more fish with his ultra-light weight fly fishing methods here. Mr. Chung has been fly fishing since the glass and bamboo rod era, when they were the only choices

By Sporting Road|November 24th, 2011|Categories: Fishing, Rim Chung, RS2|Comments Off