I just received a note from my friends at Hardy regarding the live tour of their factor that was scheduled to happen on May 6th and didn’t:

Chuck Furimsky, founder of The fly Fishing Show, is pounding the tarpon with Jake Jordan. Jake specializes in night fishing for these beasts, and is quite adept at it. Opening night was last night, and Chuck hung one of 90 to 100 pounds. After landing it, he hooked a second fish that jumped off the fly. Still, the thrill of fishing for these brutes in the dark, nearly gives one a sensory overload. Want to try? See Jakes info under “Links” to the right.

The suspense is killing me–and my arms!

Behemoth in the night–notice the reflection from the fish’s eye.

Hardy recently conducted a live, on-line museum tour that was very well received. It is now available on line: www.facebook.com/HardyFlyFishing

Have a look, you will enjoy it.

Hardy has been known for quality rods and reels and other angling gear for over 130 years.

The time of the tarpon for 2016 is here. Capt’n Jake Jordan is back on his boat, the “Fly Reel,” and fishing for tarpon in the Florida Keys in the dark hours. I have not yet done this with Jake, but I have talked to him many times about fishing after dark for these big beauties. If you get a chance, it sounds like absolutely one of the most exciting things one can do with a fly rod. The anticipation of fighting one of these big fish in darkness, or having one jumping onto the boat with you in the blackness, or luring a big, unseen shark to the boat as you get ready for the release, has got to be an off-the-chart adrenaline rush. See Jake’s contact info in the links to the right.

Imagine having a fish this size jump into the boat with you in the inky blackness of night. Rare occurrence, indeed, but at night the anticipation is nearly overpowering.

As the fish gets close for the release, one’s mind goes to a big hammerhead surging up from below. Night fishing for big tarpon is an adrenaline rush, for sure.

Spring is blooming in Europe, and the pike season is closing for spawning time. My friend Theo Bakelaar and his companions have been pike fishing on the River Maas the last few days before the close of the season. The best fly had a Mr. Twister style tail, which imparts plenty of action and gives the fly a sonic impression, also. In addition to northern pike, they also caught some rather nice walleyes.

The Mr. Twister tails can be cut from leather—such as BugSkin, latex sheeting, foam sheeting, eel skin, and other flexible and tough materials.

These big northerns loved the flies with the Mr. Twister tails.

A very nice walleye on an imitation with a Mr. Twister tail.

I must apologize for the infrequent posts. Nancy and I are house hunting in the Vancouver WA area (right next to Portland, OR), and we spend a great deal of time driving around looking at potential places. I have not had much of a chance to do more than that and travel to shows and clubs across the nation.

However, the Show Season is over, and warmer weather is coming soon—as will the rainless days—and I plan to be out and about fishing and shooting photos, etc. And, as soon as we find the appropriate home, I’ll be able to get back into shooting photos and videos of fly tying, casting, and so on.

All this to say, hang tight. More, much more, to come. I am also in the process of getting a FaceBook page in play. Then, I can put up small items on a much more frequent basis. Thanks for hanging tough with me.

Thanks for your patience. Watch for my FaceBook page.

Bill Edson was one of the early bucktail innovators. Flies like his Edson Light Tiger and Edson Dark Tiger are still superb trout flies. As he designed his flies, he wanted to add jungle cock eyes to them, but had trouble getting them. So he added small, oval brass eyes in their place. These added weight to the head, and gave the flies a jigging movement. This jigging action gave the imitations tremendous appeal to the trout, and likewise tremendous appeal to the angler.

When I wrote “Long Flies,” and discussed Edson’s early use of a weighted head, his brass eyes were basically a thing of the past. But this weekend, while speaking the Fly Fishers of Virginia, Phil Johnson gave me some of the Edson eyes. They are indeed now available from Whitetail Fly Tying Supply-see Edson Brass Eyes at: http://www.whitetailflytieing.com/products.php?pageNum_products=13&totalRows_products=811&CriteriaCategory=Beads%2C+Bar+Bells%2C+%26+Plastic%2C+3-D%2C+and+Flat+Eyes&Criteria=&CriteriaItemName=&CriteriaPartnum=&itemsperpage=20

Clip off the broad flat end of the eye and trim the smaller flat portion to a taper before tying it in, to keep the head as small as possible.

Edson Brass Eyes–his answer to Jungle Cock.

This weekend I am at the Fly Fishing Show in Somerset, NJ. But before the show, I am taking a day to be with the Mainline Fly Tiers, near Philadelphia, PA. We will have an afternoon fly tying workshop from 2-4 and then an evening program at 7.

My friend, Jay Kapolka, picked me up at the airport. We had dinner together and then he dropped me at my hotel. On the way, he told me he had a present for me. I was a small electric whip to froth milk, but it was modified my bending the end of the whipping wire into a small hoop. He told me that Hans Van Klinken had shown it to him and that he got it at Ikea. Then I remembered that Hans had shown it to me at the EWF show in Munich, Germany, last spring. Being a show, it was all I could do to acknowledge that it was a great tool, and race wildly onward. I wanted to talk to Hans about it, but never got the chance. What a serendipitous way to finally get a chance to not only see it up close, but to actually have one and use it.

Its use? Well, the thin metal wire spins at incredible speed, and with a small hook at the end, it makes the perfect spinning tool. More than perfect—it twists the loop so fast that it’s stunning. Wow, thanks, Jay. And I know where the Ikea store is near us in Portland, OR.

Milk frothing tool from Ikea modified by bending tip

A small hook and it’s a spinning tool,deluxe

The Fly Fishing Shows are a great place to get half-day casting classes at an exceptionally good price. I offer them as space allows at the shows I attend. This year I will be at Denver, Somerset, Pleasanton, and Lancaster. The casting classes are always fun, and everyone comes away with some new understandings and casts, mends, and line handling tactics to apply to their fishing. Hope you can make one of the classes. Here’s where you can go to register for the soon upcoming classes at Denver:

https://www.eventsprout.com/register/classes_denver_ffs_2016

Check out the classes at the other shows at http://flyfishingshow.com

Using a modified Forearm Cast while fishing close on the River Ager in Austria.

Usually one has to run offshore to find the Albies. But now, Jake Jordan has reported that the Albies in his area have come inshore looking for the bay anchovies that are running out of the streams in search of warmer ocean water. Albacore by the thousands busting bait as far as the eye can see. If anyone wants hot action, this is the time. See Jake’s link to the right.

Inshore means inshore.

Albies will fight you to a standstill and beyond.

It’s the tuna in them that gives them such power.