Batson Forecast RX6 9ft 7wt 4pc build....

My most recent build was a Batson Forecast RX6 9 foot 7wt. This was the second rod I have built on one of these RX6 blanks, and I have really come to like the quality that you get for the price tag. You can buy a completed custom built rod for half the price of one of the high end blanks alone. Plus they are locally made out in Sequim and come with a limited lifetime warranty (like the other high end blanks). This going to make a great rod for filling the smoker with some of those 6 million Pink Salmon that are expected back, or for chasing summer runs.

I used a stainless Pacifc Bay rod seat to make it more durable if being used in the salt. Blue snake guides, chrome and blue stripping guides, and a couple chrome and blue decorative wraps to finish it off. Overall, I am extremely happy with this build. Now on to the next one. Check out the rod the Etsy page (I know.... manly).  THE SNOHO FLYBOX

You got a spey rod? You must be a tremendous fisherman.....

Its an expensive leap jumping into the world of spey rods, and a lot of people are doing it. There is no doubt that a spey rod is a great way to catch fish, but you have to learn how to use it. I have been fly fishing with a single handed rod for some time, but when I first purchased my spey rod I thought I was going to walk out onto the river and cast all the away accross to the bushes on the other side. Little did I know I would end up with so many holes in my jackets and so few fish on the bank. In a perfect scenario a person could go to a fly shop and have someone help them pick out a setup that is perfect them and then take them outside for a casting lesson before they ever went to the river. But we cant all afford $1000 spey setups and $300 casting lessons. Lucky for us there is a wealth of knowledge on the internet, in books, and in DVDs. I watched Skagitmaster Vol. 1 multiple times in a week before going fishing, it provides many things to think about on the river. Look up any book Lefy Kreh has ever written, it may not be about spey casting, but for general fly fishing knowledge there is nothing better. Peruse the inernet, you can learn how to do anything on Youtube. Check it out:

 

 

 

 

Learning to use your gear properly makes being on the river much more enjoyable. There are always going to be those guys on the river that are there to put on their $900 waders and lean their $1200 spey rod up against their truck while they stand on the boat launch and take pictures of eachother. Dont get me wrong, I want the $900 waders and the $1200 spey rod too, but they dont do you any good if you dont take the time to learn. 

 

 

 

 

 

Why the change???

When I started "Trails & Scales" I did it with intentions of blogging about hiking, skiing, snowshoeing, fly fishing, and any other outdoor activities I was partaking in. However, as of late I have done very little hiking, skiing, snow shoeing, or other outdoor activities. I do enjoy these things, but if I am skiing, that means I did not go fly fishing that day. If I was snow shoeing, I was not wading in a river. Hello, my name is Charlie and I have a severe addiction to fly fishing.

I wanted to put all my blogging focus onto my fly fishing addiction (which it pretty much already was anyways). Changing the name solidified in my mind that I would write a fly fishing blog with some other fun outdoor adventure stuff, not a blog with fun outdoor adventure stuff and some fly fishing.

"Swinging in the Rain" is something I have been saying in my mind for a long time. I even found myself singing it while standing waste deep in the Skykomish while I was... swinging in the rain. If you ever fly fished in the Pacific Northwest, you have probably swung a fly in the rain. The name also reflects one my favorite things to do, I like fly fishing in the rain.

swinginpnw.blogspot.com

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<a href="http://www.hypersmash.com">HyperSmash.com</a>

Picnic Point SRC's

With no steel to chase within a four hour driving radius, and a boat trailer in multiple pieces in the front yard, I have had no choice but to mow the lawn, pull weeds, and kill sticker bushes in the back yard to pass the time on the weekends. I needed something to cast a fly at.

As a kid my dad and I would go set the crab pots and then troll around the Hood Canal in front of Scenic Beach State Park hooking sea run cutthroats as we waited for the Dungeness crabs to trap themselves. I took for granted the fact that on more than one occasion we would go out and hook one or two 20+ inchers. Now 20 inch sea runs are few and far between.

Attention Anglers

There are many beach access points north of Seattle that are great for fly fishing, but one of the easiest to get to is Picnic Point Park in the Lynnwood area. Picnic Point is a small point with a little creek draining out into the sound. It offers easy access and is pretty open with plenty of room for fly fisherman to spread out without hooking each other on every back cast. Believe it ot not, it would also be a great place for a picnic!

I hit the beach about 8:00 a.m. With high tide reaching its peak about 8:45. This way I could fish with an incoming tide, high tide, and as the tide began its quick decent. This time of year offers some pretty good tide swings, and the big tide changes is what stirs up the SRC food. There were two other fly fisherman there when I arrived also waiting to fish these tide changes. Prime time for these SRC's is early morning about and hour after high tide. With a negative tide on the way today, the water really started moving.


Pincnic Point Park

There were some signs of chum fry flopping around the surface so I tried four different color streamers with no hook ups except for some sloppy kelp chunks. With my right foot now freezing cold because my high quality waders are not exactly waterproof anymore, I was just about to head home to lay on the couch for the rest of the day. But first, I decided to take off my sink tip and tie on an orange shrimpy looking streamer deal I tied the day before. Finally, along the seam where the creek flows in about 8 feet of water I had a sea lice covered cutty nab my homemade fly.

I made a few more casts, but with hypothermia in my right foot and more growling coming from my belly than any of the sea lions swimming around, I decided to head out. But this will not be the last time I hit Picnic Point Park. Sea run cutties in the Puget Sound is a fishery that is very overlooked. The Puget sound may be one of the best places anywhere to catch a cutthroat in the salt water on the fly.

Pac Bay Quickline

               In the world of rod building there are the Sage’s, the St. Croix’s, and the Beulah’s that are available as some of the higher end blanks.  If you are and experienced rod builder and have an extra $300-$600 laying around, then these are some the best rods that money can buy. Many obsessed addicted to steelhead fly fisherman would give up their first born child and their job to have one of these rods. However, if you are like me, your bank account laughs at you when you go to buy one these rods.

 

                As a result I started looking for a more affordable option. Over the past few weeks I have been working on a 9’ 4pc 8wt fly rod, built on a Pac Bay Quickline blank. When I purchased this blank, I was familiar with Pac Bay, but not with their Quickline series. I knew Pacbay as an affordable blank that was still of decent quality, but would have never put it there with Sage, St. Croix, or Beulah. But when I got home and pulled the blank out to play with it and start gluing things together, I was extremely surprised and happy with how nice it was.

The blank is black with a gloss finish and was 25% of the cost of one of those other high end blanks running only about $77.00. Like the other high end rods, it comes with a limited lifetime warranty, it is a quick action, and has well built strong ferrules. Overall a very nice looking, well built blank. I purchased the rod from Gregs’ Custom Fishing Rods & Tackle in Lake Stevens, WA, and the gentleman working there (I assume it was Greg) was extremely helpful and he too had heard good reviews on these rod blanks. I finished it off with a green Pac Bay Rainforest reel seat, black guides, and green wraps.

So if rod building is a hobby of yours and you are looking for a blank that will not break the bank, check out the Pac Bay Quickline series, Here is what some of the guys at Rodbuilding.org are saying about them:

http://rodbuilding.org/read.php?2,389251,389295

                http://rodbuilding.org/read.php?2,383834,383835  

         

 

Occupy Skagit

                Northwest Washington has many rivers whose names are synonymous with steelhead. Rivers like the Skykomish, the Stilly, Deer creek, and the Snoqualmie are just a couple of rivers where for years crowds of people have flocked to in chase of a fish that can take years to catch. However, the most notable steelhead rivers in Washington would have to be the Skagit and its tributary the Sauk. The river is famous for its monstrous natives and the fishing styles developed there to catch them.

Winter on the Skagit near mouth of the Cascade

 

               Late February, March and into April, is a time when these infamous fish can be found returning to the system. In years past, there has been a catch and release season on the Skagit where fisherman could experience these fish. As of late, this season has been taken away with concerns that this C&R season was causing harm to native runs. Occupy Skagit is a movement of fisherman to revive this C&R season and to show the statistics of how a well managed C&R season would have little to no effect on this return and in some ways may help the river.

Summertime on the Skagit

 

                C&R fly fisherman are the Ninja Turtles of fishing world, and poachers, litterers, and those causing harm to the fish and their habitats are the evil Foot Clan. These fishermen are the silent protectors and the ones helping watch out for our rivers. There is data showing that in many ways the escapement goals provided for the Skagit river system may be skewed, and that the mortality rates of a C&R season would have no affect on the run. These are all things that will be covered by big wig officials, but the hope is that we will be able to enjoy these fish again soon. Occupy Skagit will be taking place in Rockport at the Steelhead park on April 6^th at 9:00 a.m. For more information see Occupy Skagit’s Facebook page. Here is an excerpt from the Occupy Skagit Facebook page:

What is Occupy Skagit?

• A gathering on the Skagit River, April 6th in support of restoring the C&R season. The activity will involve 'fishing' without hooks in as many visible places as possible on the Skagit and Sauk; from the bridge at Concrete upstream to Bacon Creek on the Skagit, and upstream on the Sauk to the bridge at Darrington.
• This is a 'Wade In' Our purpose is not to disrupt traffic, be violent, disrespectful, trespass, harass, or engage in illegal activity of any kind...you know, just like when you go fishing.
• This is a parallel action to mesh with attendance at the WDFW Comissioners Meeting the following week in Olympia.
Why is Occupy Skagit?
• At the time of the ESA listing of Puget Sound wild steelhead, it was generally acknowledged by NMFS that the most robust large basin population in the region was in the Skagit; in fact on its own it probably would not have been listed. After reviewing the evidence, it is our belief that a well managed, catch-and-release (C&R) season on the Skagit would not be inconsistent with the recovery of its wild winter steelhead.
• This will require a petition from WDFW to NMFS for a permit that establishes basin specific allowable impacts (as is currently being done with Puget Sound Chinook).
Who is Occupy Skagit?
• You are. If two people do it, no one will notice. If two hundred people do it, we hope to garner some attention. Sometimes you have to dump a little tea in the harbor to get noticed.