UpCountry called today and said they still have some slots open for next Saturday’s (January 30) tying class, “Wet Flies and Fuzzy Nymphs for the Farmington.” Call the store to register at 860-379-1952.
Had a tremendous turnout at Marlborough today for “Wet Flies 101” — thanks to everyone who attended. More on the show later.
Space still available. Jump on it like this hefty Farmington rainbow did with a Squirrel and Ginger nymph.
Lots going on this winter, and I hope to see you during my travels. Also, thanks to everyone who joined the follow list over the holidays. I’m grateful for your support. If you’re new (or fairly new) please say hello in the comments section below. Tell me a little about yourself, what you like to fish for, how you like to fish, etc. I will of course be doing another fly package giveaway once we hit 400 followers. Onward and upward!
We kick off the 2016 appearances calendar in New Jersey. I’ll be presenting “The Little Things” to the Coastal Flyrodders on Tuesday, January 19, at Larkin House, 380 Godwin Ave, Wyckoff, NJ, at 7:30PM. Their mission statement says their primary goal is to have fun. My kind of group. For directions and details, visit coastalflyrodders.com.
Next up is the Fly Fishing Show in Marlborough, MA. I will be appearing at the Destination Theater on Friday, January 22 and Saturday, January 23 and presenting “Wet Flies 101.” This is one of my more popular presentations, and as the title suggests, it serves as a wet fly primer. Presentation times are as follows: Friday, January 22, 2:00pm, Destination Theater Room A. Saturday, January 23, 10:00am, Destination Theater Room A. The show takes place at the Royal Plaza Trade Center in Marlborough. For more information, visit http://flyfishingshow.com/marlborough-ma/
As Mister Sullivan might say, it’s a really big shew.
We close out the month with “Wet Flies and Fuzzy Nymphs for the Farmington” on Saturday 1/30 at UpCountry Sportfishing. This is a fly tying class, but you cannot sign up for it until they post it on their website. Last year’s class sold out in no time flat, so keep your eyes peeled on the UpCountry site.
More, more, more: I’ll be tying at the CFFA Show Saturday, February 6, at the Compleat Angler on Saturday, March 5, and at the CFFA Tyers’ Roundtable in April. Stay tuned to your favorite fly fishing magazines, as the word machine has been humming along. Plus fly tying videos, Currentseams Q&A (thanks for all the terrific suggestions) and of course, fishing reports.
The rains held off and we had a fine (if not humid) overcast day to swing some wets on the Farmington. BWOs, Sulphurs, and Isonychia joined in the party. Many thanks to UpCountry Sportfishing for hosting me. Many thanks to Dick, Matt, Mike, Rhonda, and Wayne for participating, and for asking so many good questions (as you learned, I love talking about fly fishing). You were a great group to spend the afternoon with, and a pleasure to teach. The trout were semi-cooperative, and we found several willing to jump on. Keep on keepin’ on, gang, and you’ll see the subsurface dividends start to roll in. Special thanks to fellow Farmington River guide Antoine Bissieux for so generously sharing the water.
We like bent rods at Wet Flies 101. That’s a seven-foot 3-weight fiberglass stick Mike is doing battle with.
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One of several trout brought to net. Good job, group!
Yours truly makes another appearance on the J. Stockard Fly Fishing site blog, Thoughts On The Fly. This month’s topic will be nothing new to my regular readers, but it is a worthy subject nonetheless: “Three Great Wet Flies For Summer.” You’ll pardon the highly unimaginative title.
Here’s the link to “Three Great Wet Flies For Summer”
This amazingly marked wild Farmington brookie took a late summer wet fly.
Speaking of wet flies and summer, my Saturday “Wet Flies 101” class at UpCountry Sportfishing is sold out. Maybe I’ll see some of you there.
And we are getting tantalizingly close to 300 followers…and a fly giveaway.
I will be teaching Wet Flies 101 on Saturday, July 18. This popular class is through UpCountry Sportfishing in New Hartford. Here is the course description from the UpCountry site:
Join outdoor writer and Farmington River guide Steve Culton Saturday, July 18, as we explore the wonders of wet fly fishing on the Farmington River. Whether searching, imitating drowned terrestrials, or fishing under the hatch, wet flies can be a highly productive summer tactic. Wet Flies 101 includes streamside and on-the-water instruction, and will cover basics like rigging, fly selection, and presentation. Flies will be included. Class begins at noon and will run approximately 4 hours, leaving plenty of time for you to enjoy the evening rise with your new skills. Tuition is $100, and space is limited to 4 people.
Please do not try to register for this class here. You need to do it through UpCountry: 860-379-1952.
I hope everyone had a safe, happy, celebratory 4th of July.
This gorgeous high-teens wild Farmington brown found a Drowned Ant soft-hackle to his liking on a hot mid-July afternoon.
Arrival, ten minutes before class. One of my students pulls into the space next to me and greets me with, “It’s the professor.” The first thing that goes through my head is, red tail, yellow floss body, gold tinsel rib, brown hackle, mallard wing. Yes. I am a fly pattern nerd.
Introductions are made, and name tags are filled out. I have a pathological flaw when it comes to remembering names. I don’t know who who thought of the concept of “Hello, my name is,” but whoever you are, I don’t think the word “genius” is an excessive blandishment.
I have seven students. They ask many questions. Some of my answers are too long, and stray down labyrinthine anecdotal paths. But everyone seems interested. Thank God for captive audiences.
All fly tiers are not created equal, and in any given class you have a broad range of skill levels. I look at some of the finished flies, and they will never grace the pages of a fly tying magazine. But, so what? To a trout, they will be beautiful. And that is all that matters. I also notice that some of the tiers are making significant improvements over the course of a couple hours. I would like to take credit for this, but I really can’t. I comes from within the tier. Still, it is gratifying to witness.
And then, we’re done. Seven flies (Partridge and Cahill, Drowned Ant, BWO Spider, Dark Hendrickson, Squirrel and Ginger, Ginger Caddis Larva, Pale Water Wingless) in a little over four-and-a-half hours. Thank you, gentlemen, for letting me be your instructor (and well done, all of you!). Thank you, UpCountry, for letting me teach. And thank you, Mother Nature, for saving the snow until Monday.
It’s officially fly tying season, and we kicked off the festivities with a wet flies and fuzzy nymphs class at UpCountry on Sunday. A good group who came armed with many questions and even more enthusiasm. We managed to get through eight patterns covering soft-hackles, wingless wets, winged wets, and fuzzy nymphs. We’ll have an encore performance on Sunday the 8th, weather permitting. Thanks so much to everyone — you truly made the class an easy one to lead.
If you’ve signed up for the February 8th class, dress warmly. The tying room is a wee bit chilly.
All in a half-day’s work. Clockwise from far left: Beadhead SHPT, Dark Hendrickson, Partridge and Cahill, Drowned Ant, PWW wet (Magic Fly), Squirrel and Ginger, Ginger Caddis Larva, GRHE Fuzzy Nymph
Hope to see you this Saturday, February 7, at the CFFA show at Maneeley’s in South Windsor, CT.
Wow. My 2/8/15 class filled up in two days. So we found time for a second, at UpCountry Sportfishing in New Hartford, CT, Saturday, January 24. Same blurb as the other class:
“Join outdoor writer and Farmington River guide Steve Culton as we explore tying buggy, impressionistic wets and nymphs geared toward fishing the Farmington. The class will place an emphasis on using natural materials to create flies for specific hatches, as well as attractor patterns. From classic North-Country spiders to some of Steve’s own creations, you’ll learn to tie high-confidence patterns that have been battle-tested and proven on the Farmington. Steve will also discuss wet fly methods for each pattern. Participants will need a vise, thread and tools. All other materials will be provided, including a pattern recipe sheet. The class starts at 9am and will run between four and five hours. Space is limited to six people. Tuition is $75.”
Please do not contact me to register for this class. You must enroll by calling UpCountry at 860-379-1952. Hope to see some of you there.
I think we should tie up some Dark Hendricksons. This is a classic American winged wet pattern, and one that I’ve done exceptionally well with during an emergence.
So I pulled up to the pavilion at Mathies Grove around 9am and no one’s there. Except the lone sentinel in her sand chair who informed me that she was saving it for the softball players. Say what? I looked northward, and there was the Spey Clave in the field. I hadn’t planned on tying in the sun — I was wearing a long sleeve rugby shirt — but as the father of a Marine, I know that you adapt, overcome, and improvise. A few volunteers later, we were lugging a picnic table 150 yards across a field, and there I was, all set up and ready to tie.
Several thank yous are in order. Thanks to everyone who stopped by to chat, watch, and ask questions. The old faces were comforting, and the new ones a pleasure to meet. Thanks to Ben Bilello for tying such beautiful salmon flies. Thanks to Mother Nature for making the sun warm and the air cool. Thanks to Scott from the Compleat Angler for grilling up a storm (that burger hit the spot). And thanks to Fred and Jerry from Spey Casting North East for hosting me. (I’ll give them a from-the-heart — and head — plug: if you are interested in two-handed casting, you will not meet a nicer, welcoming, experienced team of instructors. Brilliant, both of them.)
You get a day like today and it’s easy to think that finally, winter is over. But last week when Grady Allen — owner of UpCountry Sportfishing — and I ventured over the hills and far away, there were constant reminders that winter’s grip can be tenacious.
We fished River X in the Berkshires. I had never been before, and the first thing I noticed on the drive up was that there was still white stuff on the ground. The banks of the river were a patchwork of earth, snow, and ice. Frozen shelves still extended from the shore, and while clear, the water was high from runoff. Even more telling, its temperature was a bracing 34 degrees. In April. Not so good for the fishing. Grady took one lonely brookie on an ICU Sculpin, and your humble scribe wore the collar. Here are a few photos from our adventure.
“I’ll have a block of ice with my boulder, please.” Must have been some winter up here.
Grady working an upstream seam. We only managed one cigar each this morning; we cut the trip short for lack of a bite. (I always like to fish with people I consider to be better anglers than me. That way, if we both blank, I don’t feel like such a loser.)
Amidst the hoary streamscape, a green totem of spring.
currentseams.com 