June & July ‘10′ Trip Photos

John — Thu, 05 Aug 2010 19:31:19 +0000

Here are a few photos from our June & July dry fly and streamer trips. Water levels were incredible consistent for the duration and we landed some great fish on dries, mice and streamers. June and July weeks are nearly full for next summer already so call or email today for 2011 availability. More to come………………….

Fay Rogers, John & a nice Bristol Bay rainbow

Streamer caught 'bow'

Jeff 'Bear' Andrews and a dry fly caught Alaskan rainbow

Gary 'AK Waterboarder' Leone's solstice trout

Sight caught trout on a caddis

Doc Rupprecht's beautiful rainbow trout

Alaskan rainbow which hammered a 'Loco mouse'

Don Sawyer with the IAFFV and a Leopard Rainbow

"Who says Alaska doesn't have terrestrial fishing"

Well the 2010 season is upon us

John — Fri, 11 Jun 2010 04:19:53 +0000

With the start of a new angling season my posts will be more on a weekly basis with fishing reports and hopefully some images from each group’s trip. It looks to be a good year with normal water levels and average temperatures and weather. The sockeye salmon run in the Bristol Bay region is just starting to trickle in and the run estimate looks for a good year. This should in turn provide an ample food source for the overwintering trout and char this coming winter. More to come…………….

AFA Pic of the Day- 5/31

John — Mon, 31 May 2010 21:57:06 +0000

Jawing Brown Bears on Sedge Grass Flats

Flesh M.O.A.L.

John — Sat, 22 May 2010 16:46:29 +0000

Here is a great fall flesh pattern tied in M.O.A.L. (Mother Of All Leeches) fashion. Fished on a dead drift swing or even stripped this pattern will work outside of the September flesh “hatch” elicting strikes from the trout opener through October. For step by step instructions check out this web page Strung Out MOAL Leech Tutorial. I make one variation from the norm. In place of cross cut rabbit strip I recommend straight cut rabbit strips to give the pattern more movement when dead drifted.

Flesh M.O.A.L.

Front Hook: Cheap streamer or nymph hook clipped

Back Hook: Gamakatsu C14S sz. 2-4

Thread: 6/0 White

Front Bead: Spirt River 1/4″ Hot Orange painted with 3 coats of white nail polish

Back Bead: 6mm Trout Bead

Platform: 30Lb Dacron

Body: Straight cut flesh rabbit strip

Becca Schlaff Paintings

John — Mon, 17 May 2010 04:48:05 +0000

Arctic Char

The painting above is of a Bristol Bay Arctic char’s brilliant fall spawning color by artist Becca Schlaff. The painting was based on a photo I took a few seasons ago of one of our angler’s trophies. In lieu of taxidermy many anglers are now preserving their piscatorial memories on canvas. Becca will commission original paintings in a variety of paint mediums to preserve that memory for generations to come. Check out more of her work at becca-schlaff.com

Original Photo

July Dry Fly Trout Trip

John — Wed, 12 May 2010 17:39:46 +0000

AFA Angler of the Day- Gary Youree

John — Fri, 07 May 2010 18:32:08 +0000

Gary Youree with two Bristol Bay trophies; a big bull moose and a fine silver salmon called in to striking distance by Gary's boss, Elaine Youree.

The Way It Was………….

John — Wed, 05 May 2010 17:24:53 +0000

Here is some highlights from a newspaper article back in June 1936.

Fisherman in the Egegik district (Just south of Katmai) of the Alaska Peninsula are reported to have made good pay at catching Dolly Varden trout and turning these predatory fish in for the bounty during the past winter. Some made as much as $2,000 at the rate of 2 1/2 cents for each tail turned in. The results, it is believed, will mean an eventual increase in the red salmon run in this area.

$2000, that’s 80,000 char taken in one winter. What history has told us now is that many of the tails turned in were found to be from salmon, the species they were intending to protect. Also depleting trout and char populations in effort to increase salmon populations in actuality has a detrimental effect on the salmon.

Dave Gaw's big char (known as a Dolly Varden trout in times past) taken last summer near where 70 years ago this fish would bring a 2 1/2 cent bounty

BIG conehead tying tip

John — Sat, 01 May 2010 17:42:55 +0000

Unless securely affixed to the hook, a big conehead can begin to spin and twist during the course of fishing and begin to destroy your fly. We’ve all seen it. Big coneheads, 7/16’s or larger, really magnify this problem. The simply solution I’ve found is this.

1) Put the conehead on the hook

2) Behind it slide the biggest bead you can fit

3) Use the thickest diameter thread you have, (I prefer Uni-Stretch for this as you can really get the thread stretched tight), and build up a thread base tight behind the bead until the cone is secure and will not spin.

4) If done properly you can hold the cone, hook eye down, and superglue the bead to the cone without any glue making its way to the hook eye. The bead and cone should make a tight seal due to the thread base behind the bead.

This method will insure the pattern lasts for cast after cast and fish after fish without that cone spinning out and ruining your fly.

Rio’s Lake Deep 6 Fly Line- get those streamers deep

John — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 19:17:03 +0000

Linda Demmer and Levi with a big char caught with a streamer on a full sinking line.

Whether fishing from a raft in fast water or stripping streamers deep in lake outlets you need a fly line that gets your fly where you need it. Rio’s full sinking lines are the best I’ve yet found and I’m convinced; increase your hookups when you need that fly to get DEEP. Real DEEP.

A series of sinking lines that feature an increase in density at the front to ensure the line sinks tip first – aiding in bite detection and in setting the hook. These lines are made on a supple core for memory free performance and have a super smooth, tungsten impregnated coating that makes distance casting easy. An essential line for the serious lake fly fisher.
Deep 6: WF4S to WF9S ~ 6-7 inches per second