Fuck This

Dates: July 25, 2010
Location: Warwick
Air temp: 80s
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: fuck this

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:
 

Xan

 

 

Still way to hot, but I decided to get a trout tune up before Montana.  I got off to a late start, and didn't roll out till about 8am.  I decided to first head to Lunds to stock up on some flies.  After getting there and finding it didn't open for another hour and a half, I was stuck in a pickle.  The Curd would be packed by this time.  The Canyon would be swarming with kayaks.  Warwick Falls?  Forget about it.

So, I went to my go-to runs on the Warwick, above the park.  Nothing.  High temps = no feedy.  The slow water was absolutely futile.  I did have a few on in some faster water, but lost them all.  I tried a few other spots downstream, same shit.  Nonetheless, the trip did get me prepared to not catch shit as usual out west.

Bring it.

Bass On The 4th Of July

Dates: July 4, 2010
Location: iRiver
Air temp: 80s
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: 3 bass

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:
 

Quickdraw

Xan

 

 

Once again, the summer and hot weather turned our attention to bass.  QD and I decided to go to our usual haunt on the iRiver in search of smallies.  

It was revoltingly hot above and below the water.  The river felt like a bath tub, but seemed to have a decent flow.  We each caught a few small smallies, and also both landed a decent bass.  The fight was good, but unlike our trip last year, it just didn't satisfy my soul.

 

The raspberries were out and about, and we took full advantage.  There are few things in life as rewarding as eating things straight from the earth.  Once I master fire, I will be able to live off the land, and live well!  Or, die from a muskrat attack.  Regardless, eating wild shit is awesome.

Piece of Bass

Dates: June 20, 2010
Location: Warwick
Air temp: ?
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: a few trout and 1 smallie

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:
 

Xan

 

 

It had been a while since I'd gone fishing, and an even longer while since I'd been downstream of Warwick park, so it was time to remedy those things.  After driving around town, I finally figured out how to get to the access point I hadn't been to in years.  Since it's that kind of year, I started downstream (explore!).  I ran into a couple mouth-breathers as I was making my way along the river.  A bit downstream of them I caught a small trout.  I fished my way back to the car, then continued on briefly upstream.  By the bridge I landed a smallmouth bass.  Not able to find a decent trail, I made my way back to the car and went to the waterfall.

It was a nice sunny day, and the waterfall was a zoo.  People were crawling around every level of the falls.  Some mouth-breathers were fishing the main floor, while swimmers were jumping down into it.  I started at the second level and caught a few dinkers.  As I cast, I heard the unmistakable sound of bagpipes.  I looked across, and saw a small wedding ceremony being performed in the shallows on the edge of the falls. 

I think the other fisherman got tired of people jumping into the river, as they left not long after I got there.  So, I took some pokes in there before leaving.  I caught a lot of chubs and a few trout.  Nothing of size landed that day, but a unique day nonetheless.
 

War-wick's A Pimp

Dates: May 22, 2010
Location: Warwick
Air temp: ?
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: low double digits

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:
 

Xan

Scoot

I'll be honest, I thought today was going to suck.  The weather forcast didn't look so good.  Sunny, warm temps, shit.  Additionally, things had been slow.  Lots of new water, but few fish to show for it.  So Scoot, armed with cheap stogies, and I went to the Warwick. 

By the time we arrived, the weather was not conforming to the prognostications of the experts.  There was a layer of clouds, and it was a bit cool.  We started above the park, and found a fisherman in the first money run.  After heading a bit further down, it was on.  Rainbow trout.  Agressive?  Most definitely.  Stupid?  Perhaps.  Fun to catch?  You bet!  We couldn't lose.  Nearly every run we hit produced bows.  Nymphs, streamers, it all worked.  The hot spring day did not materialize, but a small storm did.  We smoked cigars under a light rain as the fishing slowed down.

We went back to the car and drove over to the waterfall.  Scooter caught a decent fish on level 3, while I landed a small guy on level 2.  The main floor was not very productive.  It didn't matter.  The weather and fishing forcasters had been proven wrong, and I didn't even have to use my AK.  Today was a good day.

 

A Noose

Dates: May 15, 2010
Location: Famous Original Ray's - downstream
Air temp: ?
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: a couple

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:

TAFKAY
Boot
Xan


Mission Explore 2010 continued.  We went to Famous Original Rays, not a new spot, but headed downstream instead.  Usually, the furthest down we've gone is the pool directly below the bridge, but today we forged onwards, into the great unknown.

Most of it was fairly nondescript, until we arrived at a huge, lazy pool.  Believing the pool to be too slow for love, I continued on downstream.  When I came back, I found my compatriots were KILLING it there.  A small pheasant tail, drifting slowly, ever so slowly, through the dark water was landing trout after trout (and suckers).  The current at this spot was about as fast as a three legged tortoise, but the water was deep and murky, perfect cover for fish.

The hole had another nice feature, a noose like rope, strung from a tree high above.  Looking for a diversion from my rock-stick-ball game, I grabbed the rope, put my foot in the noose and started swinging above the pool.  Great fun.  If I'm ever back there while wet wading, I will be sure to get the full effect of launching myself into the water.

After a while, Booter let me take a few casts, and with one of his non flashback PTs, I too got in on the trouty fun.  Things started to slow down not long after, and we called it a day.

Eastward Ho...

Dates: May 14, 2010
Location: Eau Galle
Air temp: ?
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: a couple

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:

Xan
Quickdraw

QD and I had Friday off, so it was time to keep this season's exploration theme going.  We drove out a bit further east to the Eau Galle.   

The day started ominously.  After we had set up, I jumped in my car to roll my windows down a crack.  Jumping out of the car and locking the doors, I left my keys in the ignition.  With the windows a bit open, QD was able to pull one of them down a bit further, enough to reach a stick in and hit the power lock switch, saving the day.

From there, it was time to explore, and as has been the case in most of the recent exploration, it was also time to not catch shit.  If you're wondering why the Eau Galle doesn't have a code name, it's because the river sucks my balls.  Shallow and generally small, we had a hard time finding any good water to cast in.  We did find a bunch of morels at the first spot.  My eagle eye spotted a large specimen, then QD found a treasure trove of smaller ones.

We drove up and down the river, trying out different areas, almost all of it shitty.  The only decent pool/run we found was in a small town the river flowed through.  We caught a few small trout there, but not much else.  After driving around a bit more, we gave up and returned with our fungal gold.

Whole Lotta Nothing Goin' On

Dates: May 9, 2010
Location: Club
Air temp: ?
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: 1 brown

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:

Boot
Xan

Booter and I went to the Club to get our fish and morel on.  Sadly, we came away with few fish and no morels.  Starting at the usual spot below the bridge, I landed an average brown right away.  It was a long and fruit/fungus-less day after that.  We hiked up to the big pool, fishing along the way, taking side trips into the woods, giggling like little girls about cute boys, the usual.  Booter caught a fish at some point, but who really cares?

#1 Cow

Dates: April 24, 2010
Location: New Curd spot
Air temp: ?
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: a few brookies

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:

QD
Xan


It was time to do our part.  Quickie and I went out to help clean up the Curd river.  We were assigned a short stretch downstream from the Club, where we picked the area clean of cigarette butts, cans, and the random car axle.  After a lovely lunch of chicken and dumpling soup, it was time to fish.

We decided to find some new water, away from the other cleaning hordes.  We found a spot between the Gallery and Methtell, and wandered around in a light rain.  As usual, I caught some dinky, but beautifully colored brook trout, and one of a somewhat respectable size.  Every decent trout I had on popped off.  The action was about the same for QD, who also landed a decent brookie.  The highlight of this area was our close encounter with some milk cows.  Here, you see the tail end of a cow urinating.  And that, my friends, is where curds come from.

Caddishack

Dates: April 17, 2010
Location: Eagle and Club
Air temp: ?
Water temp: ?
Hatches: Caddis
Fish landed: a few

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:

QD
TP
Xan


Having a hard time deciding where to fish, we wound up at Eagle.  After a quick jaunt upstream, we reversed course and fished our way downstream to the mousing pools.  It was a slow go, but a few fish were landed here and there by the group.  Caddis were out and about, with a few fish rising to them. 

We then headed out to the Club, where we hiked a ways downstream.  I almost caught two trout on a caddis dry, but my hook set timing was off, and dry fly fishing sucks balls anyways.  The day ended after we made it close to the upstream reaches of the Great Lawn.  TP landed a decent trout on a downstream caddis dry presentation.

Not All Who Wander Catch Fish

Dates: April 4, 2010
Location: Warwick
Air temp: ?
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: around 3

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:

Xan


Needing to feel the tug of an actual fish on my line , I went to the Warwick.  I went to a spot up from the park that I had fished once before, and hiked downstream to do some exploring.  As is usually the case with exploring, I didn't catch shit, nor did I find much good water.

Driving back toward the park, I went to one of my money runs.  Landing a few small bows, I decided to do some more exploring to finish the day.  I had never gone upstream from the bridge at this spot, and I was rewarded with the only decent fish of the day.  Casting my nymphs in a shallow riffle, I hooked into a bow that put up an acrobatic fight.  It wasn't huge, but after the dinky bows prior, it was nice to catch a fish.  The rest of the exploratory mission was the usual crap.

Skunk Ape

Dates: April 3, 2010
Location: V
Air temp: ?
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: 0

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:

Xan


It was time for a solid skunking, so I went to the V.  I went to my usual haunt, wandered pretty far upstream, and got skunked.  I saw some fish in clear, slow water, but they saw me, and wanted nothing to do with my nymphs.  Just another day on the V.

Open For Business

Dates: March 28, 2010
Location: Warwick
Air temp: 50s
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: maybe 10 (browns & bows)

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:

Xan


Aw shit.  It's on.  The Warwick was now finally free from the cruel grip of winter.  The ice was gone and the levels were right.  When I go fishing these days, I can be assured of two things.  1. My right foot will get wet.  2. The Warwick has some fat fish.

I first went to one of my favorite runs, a bit upstream from the park.  As I got to work, I realized I was in for a long day of brisk wind.  Casting in between gusts, I hooked into a solid fish and fighter.  The moment I'd been waiting for all winter was finally here... until the fish popped off.  I went up the run, lost some flies, then, not satisfied, fished the run again.  This proved to be a good idea, landing a few fish, including a decent piggy.  


Driving downstream to the next lot, I didn't find much success.  I pulled a brown out of the pool, but lost more flies.  It came to the point where I had to put on a new leader and ditch the 5x tippet that seemed to have gone bad. 


Next up:  Waterfall.  This is a pretty unique spot.  Not only is the scenery magnificent, and the fish large, it is also a bit of an exhibitionist endeavor.  On a nice day, you'll find numerous people milling about, enjoying the sights and breathing in the water vapor.  A couple of ladies were on the bridge, and after some time, I got the sense they were watching me.  I hooked into two fish, landing one.  They soon came over to me, and one of them told me her friend had taken some pictures of me fishing.  The photog came over, and showed me the snaps.  They asked for my email address to send me the pics.  I gave it to them, thanked them, and they went on their way.


Going up to level two of the falls, I found no fish.  Level three, nada.  Hiking upstream a ways proved just as futile.  I decided to end my day back at the falls to further indulge my exhibitionism.  I did not disappoint.  Soon into my return, my indicator twitched, I set, and a decent sized fish was on.  I could feel the eyes watching me as I fought the fish like a pro.  After an epic battle, a sucker, which I had hooked in the back, came out of the water.  It thrashed about and broke off my dropper, taking my pink squirrel back whence it came.  The crowd then threw stones and rotten vegetables at me, which was well deserved.  I continued on for a bit, landing proper fish, of the bow and brown variety.  The end of my day came just below the falls, where a chub grabbed my dropper, giving me a Warwick Grand Slam. 

Of Lazy Days and Death Stares

Dates: March 21, 2010
Location: Warwick, Canyon Area, Mr. F
Air temp: 40s
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: 2 (brown and brook)

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:

Xan


After a solid early season day, it was time to come back to Earth.  I went back to the Warwick, and visited the falls.  It was still blown out, so I headed over to Lunds to pick up some flies, then went to the smaller dam above the Canyon.  Standing on Dead Gosling Rock, my quest for a lunker at the head of the dam proved unsuccessful.  I went over to the little falls, and was able to land a small brown and an average brookie.  


Next, I went down to the main dam at the Canyon, and threw nymphs and streamers to no effect.  Getting hungry, I went into town and got some Chinese.  Not in much hurry to fish, I walked around the town, by the river, taking in the atmosphere.  Of all the Wisconsin towns I've been to, the Canyon's is my favorite.  Not just for the dollar flies and penny parking meters.  The place is a time warp back to the America of yesteryear, that only exists in the brains of Republicans (-N. Flanders).  On a Sunday, the town has a wonderful, lazy energy, one I was more than happy to enjoy.


I finally made my way to finish off the day at Mr. F.  I walked downstream to fish a reliable run.  I saw a few rises, but had no success with my nymphs.  I decided to give it another go with a dry, until a couple mouth-breathers came by.  One kept walking downstream, while the other started casting right into the run I was standing at.  That was enough of a sign to call it a day, and I gave the knuckle-dragger my best death stare as I walked past him to the lot. 

Are You Experienced?

Dates: March 20, 2010
Location: Warwick, Great Lawn
Air temp: 40s
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: 10ish (browns)

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:

Xan
Quickdraw


Sometimes the fishing gods offer you a sign.  Sometimes they offer you two signs.  Sometimes you ignore them anyway and find out for your damn self.  As Quick and I were setting up in the lot of the Warwick, a very nice lady was walking back to her car with her dog.  Seeing we were anglers of the highest order, she made some small talk.  After revealing that she was learning the ways of the long rod, she said very politely, "I'm not as experienced as you guys are, but I'd say the river is a bit high from what I can tell."  We thanked her for her input, but nevertheless strode off to the river.


As QD and I split off to fish the first run, a man approached me, and in a much less gentle fashion blathered out, "You'll have more luck catching a turd than a fish!"  Of course, I paid little heed and got into the river.  After realizing I couldn't cross safely, I stayed on that side and wasted some time casting into the flow.  After about 10 minutes, we relented and got the hell out of there.


So, we went to the Great Lawn.  The water was a tad low, and crystal clear, but fishable.  We walked up to the first bend/pool, and tried our luck nymphing.  A few hits, but no lands, kept us there a bit too long, before we relented once again and made our way upstream.  Our time fishing that area had allowed numerous anglers a chance to secure most of the best spots along the way, so further upstream we went.


Eventually, we reached the last fishable run for a long, long ways.  It was pretty small, you could stand in one place and get a drift through all the good water, but it was fast and a bit deep.  I decided to wet a line, and was rewarded with a fish.  Second cast, fish.  Not wanting to hog the run, I ceded the run to Quick.  

After a few fruitless casts, he got tangled up, so I jumped back in.  The fish just kept coming, a few being decent.

This went on for a bit until the run seemed to be dead.  We hiked back down, stopping to fish a pool.  With QD at the head, and myself manning the tail, this inequality of riches continued.  Clearly, QD had angered the fishing gods.  Some days they smile upon you, other days you shit the bed.  


The day concluded with more fish.  After we got back to town, we met up with Booter to watch the Fackin' Fly Fishing Film Tour (FFFFT).  There were many great flicks, a bounty of free swag, and a room full of "elitist fly fisherman" (I overheard a mouth-breather use the term outside the theater).  To him I say, damn right, ape fucker!

Rocks Off

Dates: March 14, 2010
Location: Famous Original Ray's
Air temp: 50s
Water temp: ?
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: 1 brown

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:

TAFKAY
Booter
Xan
Scoot
Quickdraw


A week's worth of thaw = brown. While the river wasn't completely blown to shit, there were no cars at the lot, which should have told us something.  We set about our Don Quixote-like quest, fighting windmills on the river.  

Things weren't all futile, however.  A new game was born.  A game that will stand by Rock-Stick-Ball and Ice Breaker.  I present to you: Displacement.  At a foamy area of the river, the Displacer throws a rock into the foam.  The rock creates a hole of clear water in the foam, whence the Contestants try to throw their own rocks into the clear water.  


Back to the story at hand.


Up and further upstream we went.  We eventually had a glimmer of hope.  Quick landed a trout in the (normally) slow water downstream of the gallery.  By the time we got to the gallery, Boot and Scoot had to go home.  TAFKAY was insistent to fish up to the first bend, and his instincts paid off.  Two fish came to his hand, one to mine, and another for Quick.


The fish were small, the fishing mostly fruitless, but it was a gorgeous day.  Now the excitement builds.  The nexus of perfect weather, good water, low vegetation and big fish is near.  The real March Madness is around the corner.  Get excited kids, game's gonna get good.

Wet n' Hard: Opener 2010

Dates: March 6, 2010
Location: EP Spot & Warwick
Air temp: 40s
Water temp: ?s
Hatches: ?
Fish landed: 0

Present members of the Fly Anglers Guild :|: Upper Midwest Chapter, for this outing were:

Quickdraw
Booter
Xan

Another year, another opener. As I get older, I find myself getting less excited for opener. Much like closer, I know the fishing will probably suck ass. Still, while I didn't feel like a kid on Christmas morning, on the ride out to the river, I felt whole again. I would probably get skunked, but much like "Xan Time," I need time wandering around nature.

No one was eager to take the lead and choose our inaugural spot, probably to avoid the blame when everyone got the skunk. We eventually wound up at the EP Spot and found the parking lot to be surprisingly quiet. We geared up and headed downstream. The water was low and somewhat clear, but mostly ice free.

First cast of the year

So we started the game. Cast, cast, cast, cast, cast some more, move downstream, cast, cast.... Deeper runs were hard to find, but Booter found one that produced a couple modest fish. The stank would remain on Quick and I.

Booter had to leave early, so Quick and I went to a new bar for some lunch. A more modern version of the EPB&G, it had low prices, no spicy curds (just regular), but accepted credit cards. Sated with decent burgers, we decided to check out the Warwick.

Nymphing a sweet run

Things weren't so hot over at the Warwick, but it was fun to walk on the river. Below the dam, the river was running, but the trout were still not biting. Ah, the joys of opener.