The Pitfalls of Buying Fur and Feather Online

Sep7

You’d think I would have learned by now. But no. I still make stupid mistakes when it comes to buying fly tying materials online. Latest failure: ordering a Hareline Premo Deer Hair strip sight unseen.

Wrong. The hair is short, stiff, and coarse, totally unsuited for my needs. If I’d seen this item in a shop I would have quickly rejected it. Oh sure, I’ll find a use for it some day, but for now it only serves as a reminder to never buy large fur patches sight unseen unless you have a reliable description and a trusted source.

This is not to say that Hareline products are lousy: I have dozens and dozens of great Hareline items in my bins, and the replacement deer hair patch I found — which is spectacular — is from Hareline.

Two deer hair patches from Hareline. The one on the left is gorgeous — beautiful, long hair fibers. The one on the right is garbage. When it comes to buying fur, saddles, feathers, and skins online, sight unseen, caveat emptor.

Steve Culton Fall 2019/Winter 2020 Speaking Engagements

Sep4

Fall means BTS — Back To School, and Back To Speaking. I’ve got four gigs lined up so far, one more potentially lined up for 2020, and of course the show circuit — details on that front when I get them. In the meantime, come one, come all, come say hello:

Tuesday, October 15, 7:00pm, “West Branch Farmington River,” Thames Valley TU, North Franklin Fire House, 5 Tyler Drive, North Franklin, CT. Here’s the TVTU website.

Wednesday, October 16, Capital District Fly Fishers, 140 VFW Road, Albany, NY. Presentation Subject TBD. The link to their Facebook page is here.

Thursday, October 17, “The Little Things 3.0,” Farmington Valley TU, Whinstone Tavern, Stanley Golf Course, New Britain, CT. You can find their website here.

Tuesday, November 19, Nutmeg TU, 7pm, Port 5, Bridgeport, CT. Presentation subject TBD. You can find their Facebook page here.

I’m working on “The Little Things 3.0” quite possibly as you read this.

FishMousePad

More events/appearances: the South Shore Fly Casters in Hull, MA, are looking to bring me in sometime in the winter.

It looks like I will once again be doing the Fly Fishing Show in 2020, in Marlborough, MA and Edison, NJ. We’ve discussed the possibility of me doing a class as well as talks. Stay tuned.

In the meantime, I really need to go fishing. You know?

Save Our Stripers: Public Hearings and eMail Comments on ASMFC Draft Addendum VI

Sep3

Now is your chance to make your voice heard on the future of striped bass. No, really! Public comments have been acknowledged by ASMFC commissioners as not only being read, but also helping to influence new policies that will shape the future of our striped bass fishery. Here’s what you need to know:

You can find the public hearing schedule for individual states, and the email/snail mail address to send comments to here. It is critical that you, at the minimum, send an email comment. If you can attend a public hearing, all the better. If you email, you must use the subject line Striped Bass Draft Addendum VI.

What to say? You, of course, will have your own opinion. It should be noted that in this situation, there exists the awesome power of similar numbers. The more of us that push for a similar opinion — and outcome — the better. You know I am a champion of the American Saltwater Guides Association (ASGA). They have carefully considered the options, and their position on Draft Addendum VI can be found here.

If you haven’t done so already, sign up for ASGA email updates, and, even better, make a contribution. They’re truly doing good work.

I didn’t get anything remotely close to her size this year. Together, we can change that.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA

Big Tailwater Brown on the Countermeasure

Sep2

The Countermeasure strikes again, this time on a fat tailwater truttasaurus. Look at the fins on that beast of a buck! Many thanks to currentseams follower Ken for sharing his success. You can read more about the Countermeasure pattern here.

CountermeasureBrown