Posts from the “Reviews” Category

Chronic For Monic

Posted on March 16th, 2012

I believe in the clear. I’ve been intrigued by Monic fly lines since first reading about the clear, monofilament-cored floating lines on Midcurrent. An article there by Paul Bruun outlays its history. It’s been around since 1993, so I’m a little late to the game, but for the most part it seems to have a fanbase among anglers with a specific skill set–those casting to bonefish, tarpon and permit. I decided to give it a go, opting for the All Weather Clear Floating Line in a 6 weight. I’ve fished it five days so far this year–all in warm water Florida lakes with large littoral zones, shallow bowl canals or box cut canals with extremely clear water. In all cases it’s stillwater or with…

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BOOK REVIEW: Marquesa

Posted on January 19th, 2012

Marquesa is a book penned well before the existence of blogs, but it is the type of published work every fly fishing blogger wishes he’d written. Author Jeffrey Cardena’s  account of his solitary venture by houseboat in the Marquesas Keys, an atoll sitting 30 miles west of Key West, is as compelling a first person fishing narrative as you’ll read. Cardenas was, and still is, a well-regarded Keys fishing guide, but his words are not confined to that world. He writes without pretense, in a natural voice that perfectly reflects his sheer joy and wonderment from being immersed in this wilderness with tarpon, permit, sharks and even cassiopea.  He limits his descriptions of the actual fly fishing–a very good thing–and when he does talk about it…

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A Passion For Tarpon

Posted on March 25th, 2011

A Passion For Tarpon is dense. I received a review copy a long time ago, August I think. I wanted to read through it before commenting. Seven months later, here are my thoughts. This book surprised me. Hearing some pre-press buzz back in early 2010, I had expectations of this being an ego showcase for Andy Mill, regarded by many to be the best tarpon angler in the world. But it’s not that at all. It features lengthy, unfiltered interviews with pioneers and legends like Steve Huff, Bill Curtis, Stu Apte, Sandy Moret, Tom McGuane and others. Steve Kantner, (the “Land Captain” and the king of Florida ditch fishing) contributed an essay on the history of chasing tarpon. Interspersed in between the historical chapters,…

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Fly Fish Journal

Posted on October 31st, 2009

I wasn’t going to pay for it. I found the only copy in my local Barnes & Noble, barely visable in the “Sports” section of the news stand behind a misplaced rap magazine. I flipped open to an article called “Eden’s Tarpon” and couldn’t put the mag down after that. I read almost the whole thing just standing there. It has great photography, interesting writing, no top ten lists, no “look at me Ma, I’m fly fishing” articles, and even a solid Head reference. I was going to shelve it but then decided these guys need to get paid so they can keep doing it. $15. And thanks for the bluefish love.

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Ditch Fishing Paraphernalia: Shorties

Posted on July 30th, 2009

A man serious about the prospecting of ditches needs a shorty. As discovered researching  ”A Brief History of Ditch Fishing” a 7’6″ snub-nosed can be a deadly weapon at close range. My dad’s old Horrocks-Ibbotson is to me a ranking northeast small stream trout rod (bought in his time for $12). But for my ditch forays I wanted a 6w with extra mustard. I tried two less expensive commercial rods under eight feet: the Redington Predator and the Temple Fork TiCrx 6w. I’ve fished both of them in close quarters north and south since April, and used an anonymous 9′ 6w as the field test control. Here are my thoughts: REDINGTON PREDATOR 71064: 7’10″ six weight. The Redington Predator has backbone. It’s 4 inches…

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Fire One Up

Posted on May 29th, 2009

My buddy Ovi saw a guy from Atlantic Outfitters tying saltwater patterns at a Fishing Expo and curing the heads with a UV light. Ovi told me about it. All my flies have brown heads. This acrylic head gunk supposedly cures clear. I found a thread from 2006 started by Bob Popovics on Stripers Online, where the master tyer said this: As far as the cost goes, it probably is more expensive than epoxy but not that much. There is no waste since no mixing is involved. No excess on the mixing paper after the fly has been made. I apply the stuff directly from the syringe onto the fly, when I am satisfied with the shape and coverage, I light it up and…

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FLIES: The Hamilton Eat-Me

Posted on May 1st, 2009

The Hamilton Eat-Me is my favorite fly. The Florida guide Scott Hamilton introduced me to his pattern 10 years ago on a trip where we used the same fly to catch baby tarpon, dolphin (mahi), and false albacore. He gave me one and the next day I used it freshwater fishing and caught largemouth and peacock bass. Since then I’ve caught 21 different salt and freshwater species with an eat-me. Hamilton says the species count is well over 100. (Like Alex said today on 40 Rivers, a good streamer/baitfish pattern will work for just about anything.) It’s a simple, durable, deadly baitfish pattern. I like simple. I like durable. Deadly, too. When I started epoxying my fingers together tying a few years ago, I…

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BOOK REVIEW: The Alaska Chronicles

Posted on April 20th, 2009

A lot has already been said about this title, so I’ll just add this: The Alaska Chronicles is the best fly fishing book I’ve read in a long time. Miles Nolte’s efficiency of prose is top notch. He has a good story to tell and doesn’t let useless words, thoughts, exclamatory hyperbole, or cliche bog it down. The result is a book that’s hard to set aside, one of those reads that make chunks of time–like the morning train commute or the fly time between take-off and touchdown–disappear. If you don’t know the story, Nolte spent two-plus  seasons guiding at a remote lodge in Alaska, and documented his second on The Drake message board. His daily journal provided a gateway into the guiding life and…

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BOOK REVIEW: The Big One

Posted on April 17th, 2009

Score one for participatory journalism. In 2007 David Kinney, a career newspaperman, dove headfirst into the collective insanity that is the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby. The result is The Big One, an exhaustively researched window into the people and culture that fuel the derby, and the mania that fuels them. It would be tempting to think this was an easy book to write; go fishing and then type it all out. That would be incorrect. Kinney deserves credit for gaining access to a group so paranoid and insular that getting any of them to talk and take him fishing is remarkable. (In fact, reading some passages, you’re left to wonder if the source is on the level or passing along blatant…

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DVD REVIEW: Drift

Posted on September 30th, 2008

“I want ‘em to look in the eye of that fish.” The moment the first spey cast jumps from the screen in high definition, and the fly line falls over the currents of the Deschutes River, the viewer is hooked. The film’s vibrancy strikes an immediate chord, and it’s easy to settle in thinking Drift will progress as a collection of high quality destination pieces. Not exactly. The new fly fishing film from Confluence Films takes the viewer to intriguing places, sure, but Drift isn’t really about where to fish, it’s about people and why they fish. The destinations provide the backdrop. Drift is comprised of five segments that have the feel of magazine profiles brought to life. In Oregon, it focuses on John and Amy Hazel…

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