Good Friday Fishing - Arrivaca

Wanted to make a quick return to Arrivaca, I was bit worried it would be too tough to launch if the water was any lower.  Luckily a channel had been cut by regular boats.  It was a very pleasant day and the period around sunset was gorgeous, no wind (which may have hurt fishing a bit since my finning and casts created the only ripples) but I didn't get the twilight bite from last year.  Still a very good day with a couple of bluegills thrown in.  Root-beer and Olive crystal buggers were the only producers, the fish were fatter than the previous trip.  Hope we get some rain soon.

 

Southern Arizona Bass on the Move

It is just starting at Arrivaca, but it is starting.  The water is a bit higher, but float tubers may need to launch from the shore instead of the ramp.  The lake picture is near the north shore close to the spillway area.  I didn't arrive until 2:30, but didn't catch my first bass until 5.  Just like last year, a root-beer colored crystal bugger was THE fly.  I was using a six-weight with an intermediate line (I have to confess, I used a plastic vs. a bamboo rod - it feels good to get that off my chest) casting tight to the banks and retrieving.  They are hugging the rocks and shade, but if you see one swirl, cast there as quickly as you can.  This one was a touch over 20", work them in fast once hooked, they love to jump off.

Beating the Groundhog Day Crowds

 The lake near my house is only a 30 minute drive but I wanted to see my little stream during our stretch of warm weather.  Just the perfect flow and I wanted to use my 7 1/2' Rapidan with my newly acquired Heddon Daisy 310.  The rod could so use a couple of more guides, but with Triangle Taper 5 it is perfect here.

 The snowmelt must make the water too cold to bring the fish into the usual pools, and nymphing the deeper runs produced nothing and didn't see a fish until I got to "Big Mel's" place.

This trout is easily spooked and I thought I had done it again when I kicked a rock after spending minutes easing my way down the bank.  The only saving grace was that Mel had risen to eat something at the same time.  I patiently waited about 5 minutes and saw him/her cruising again.  I flipped my Shop Vac in while Mel was facing downstream and lifted slowly.  Just as I wondering if the fly was in the right lane I had a take.  Luckily it was a good hookset and I was able to her in after a few runs under branches & rocks.  Of course my camera ran out of batteries just after this shot, but it's just as well (but I still regret that one butterfly picture).  Easily the largest hybrid I've ever taken here.  



A Winter Visit to Rose Canyon Lake

A beautiful sunny day in Tucson so I was hoping the road and path would be open to the lake. There was snow on the ground and the melt had water flowing in. Browns were stacked up at the inlet, but the shallow water made them very skittish. I wanted to try the 9 foot Granger with the DT6 Sylk line - a bit much of a rod for the small browns, but it came in handy when I moved to the small shoreline on the southwest side. Trout were rising but I caught them all on soft hackles and Zug Bugs. My 8 1/2 foot Heddon #13 just loves a Triangle Taper 5 wt. It's so nice to be able to slip away for some nearby fishing, but I have a hankering for smoked trout so I may try for the Rainbow stockers next.

Montague Fishkill in Progress

An elegant 9.5' rod that was part of a bundled buy. I wasn't able to cast it in its original state, but it is a light rod and I am thinking it will have power and delicacy with a 6 wt. line. The varnish was totally shot and I still have some polishing left to do on the fittings, but I really like the color of the cane. The yellow silk thread should pop when complete. I am about to give the butt a final clean with 0000 steel wool, then the alcohol wipe before I tackle those intermediate wraps.

Granger Favorite 9050

Okay, time to return to the confessional. This is one of the first rods I ever received in trade for a restoration job. I was living in Corpus Christi, TX at the time. It was 18-19 years ago (before my youngest was born. I restored a JC Higgins rod (it had heavy sentimental value) and got to keep the Granger. I was just starting out and didn't keep any notes or photos as I do now. I think it was in rough shape and I don't think the name stamp had survived. I used a (now) hideous combination of brown with tan trimming and I couldn't pull off the thin intermediates so they were twice the size. I used the hand-rubbed tung oil (the last time). I now know it is a 9050 by using a caliper on the ferrules, I also know it was made between 1935 and 1938 because the reel seat is marked "Pat. Pend". Luckily I more or less followed the intermediate pattern and I was able to use Michael Sinclair's marvelous book as a guide. The grip is new and I to trim a bit more, but wanted a slightly larger diameter, if I ever sell the rod, I will turn down to original specs. I totally respect these classic rods now and will change wrap colors only on the most generic rods or if I am replicating a sentimental repair job. I implore any of you just starting out, if you have to refinish/restore, stay true to original colors, save the decals/stamps even if only a trace remains. I took the rod to Yellowstone last year and appreciated the power while fishing the Lamar & Soda Butte on windy days. It was blind luck I stumbled into this rod - Grangers and Phillipsons have become my favorites, bar none.

Chubb Montague

I am not sure how close the placement of these wraps are to original, but I had to cover notches that someone had actually carved into the bamboo to mark wrap placements.
I guess I should be grateful that they had not varnished those red and blue wraps so cleanup was not bad. I took a bit of a leap on the red and black combination, but I really like the way it looked on this light bamboo - I am assuming Calcutta Cane. Those intermediate wraps were a bitch, I fully understand why many charge a dollar a wrap for each one. Luckily the vintage Champion thread I used wrapped wonderfully and I was pretty proficient after the first section. It is fortuitous because my next project is to finish a vintage 9 1/2 foot Montague Fishkill. If no other paying jobs show up, look for those pictures next.

Flies instead of Fising

I was going to get a late start and it is a 2 hour drive to fish for trout so I decided to finish a rod repair and tie some flies for my next Arrivaca trip (but only if it rains and brings up the water level). The brown Crystal Bugger on the left is what worked and has worked all year on the lake. The red foam fly is for the red dragonflies the bass were lunging for last week and in years past. The blue foam is for the damsel flies that have drawn up bluegills in the past. You gotta love the foam you can buy at Michael's for 89 cents, you get a ton of flies for less than the specialized foam bodies you buy at fly supply houses (sorry Eric). I hope the wings work and are easy to cast. If it doesn't rain this week, I will go to Grant's Creek next week.