Sight Fishing Presentation with Dave and Amelia Jensen

Hi Everybody!

It was a full house at the West Park Middle School library to take in Dave and Amelia's presentation on Sight Fishing. Dave and Amelia have gathered some amazing video from their travels through Western Canada, the USA and New Zealand. The idea of spending the day sight fishing for trout may have never occurred to many of us. Dave and Amelia have become masters of this type of fly fishing. Dave showed us several important things to think about when sight fishing. Dave's video did a great job of illustrating his points. Learning about where trout are likely to be found, how to approach and set up, how to present a fly, patience (this is a hard one for me), taking advantage of the lateral line sensitivity of a trout and the importance of an accurate cast were all part of the presentation. Tonight's presentation was a great way to start the 2011 fishing season. Thanks for coming, Dave. I know that one hour of video probably took 25 hours to prepare.

If you are looking for updates on what is going on with hatches and water conditions; head over to Dave's blog.

Well, another fly tying season for the Central Alberta Fly Tyers is complete. Again the presenters deserve a great deal of thanks:

Dr. Bill Young

Evan Ritchie

Doug Pullen

Phil Rowley

Bob Vanderwater

Rick Miyauchi

Betty MacKenzie

Tim Maley

Phil Nash

Bernie Peet

The strength of the Central Alberta Fly Tyers is the willingness of members to share their expertise in a friendly way to all fly tyers. We learn so much from each other. If you have any questions about fishing local lakes and waters, do ask some of the gang. I hope to see you out on the water.

Do check back to our web site from time to time for updates on what is going on out on the water. We have an exciting trip to Manitoba set up for 12 members of our club. Phil Rowley is very excited about joining us.

Remember that the Central Alberta Chapter of Trout Unlimited's Dinner/Auction is Thursday May 12 at the Black Knight Inn. Please buy a ticket or two and take in a great evening with the proceeds going to projects here in Central Alberta that will enhance our trout waters. You can e-mail Karen or Bob (karen.bob@shaw.ca) for tickets.

Bob

Snazzy Stimulators Monday March 21, 2011

It's hard to believe it's Spring here in Red Deer. Another snow squall invaded Red Deer but nevertheless 21 fly tyers came out to take in Bob's presentation on stimulators. This was a follow up session from two weeks ago when we tied stonefly nymphs. Tonight we tied several variations of Randall Kauffman's famous pattern. Tying stimulators teaches you so much technique in fly tying including sizing hackle, dubbing a body, tying in deer hair tails and wings and getting a good sense of proportion.

Stimulator fly patterns can be used for stoneflies in Alberta. In a few short weeks the skwalas will be hatching in southern Alberta and a dark green stimulator in size 10 can be a real asset. Later in May skwalas can be found hatching on the Red Deer River. As the season progresses, the golden stones start hatching on many Eastern Slopes Rivers. The cutthroat love to rise to a well presented stimulator dressed as a golden stone.

We have one final session on April the 4th when Dave and Amelia Jensen will be doing a special presentation on sight fishing. This presentation will include some amazing video that you will certainly enjoy. The presentation may inspire you to try sight fishing on our local rivers. There will be a $5 admission charge.

We will also have a draw for 4 tickets to the Central Alberta Trout Unlimited Dinner/Auction on May 12th. I do hope that you will consider supporting this event by buying a ticket. Its a great evening and there is lots of opportunity to bid on some real cool fly fishing gear, art, tools, etc. The best part is supporting the sport that we all love so much.

Bob at the Vice

Stimulator

Hook: TMC 200R sizes 6 to 14

Tail: Elk hair or deer hair

Rib: 3/0 yellow thread (or fine copper wire)

Body: Orange antron or ice dub

Hackle: Brown for the body

Wing: Elk or deer hair

Head: yellow antron/ice dub

Hackle for the thorax: grizzly hackle

Rubber Legged Stimulator

Hook: TMC 200R sizes 6 to 14

Tail: Elk hair or deer hair

Rib: 3/0 yellow thread (or fine copper wire)

Body: Golden stone antron or ice dub

Hackle: Brown for the body

Wing: Elk or deer hair with an orange polypropelyn underbody or synthetic

Head: yellow/orange antron or ice dub

Hackle for the thorax: grizzly hackle

Legs: Rubber

Skwala Stimulator

Hook: size 10 or 12 TMC 200R

Tail: Elk hair or deer hair

Rib: 3/0 yellow thread (or fine copper wire)

Body: peacock herl or peacock ice dub

Hackle: Brown for the body

Wing: Elk or deer hair

Head: dark green antron/ice dub/peacock herl

Hackle for the thorax: grizzly hackle

Legs: Rubber

The Gang working on stimulators.

Monday March 14th

Hi Everybody!

Karen and I are in Canmore skiing. Doug Pullen organized tonight's fly tying session and wrote up the text and took the pictures below. Thanks Doug.

Rick Miyauchi was our guest tyer tonight. Rick instructed 19 enthusiastic fly tyers who braved the heat waved that gripped Red Deer today. There was speculation that Rick would tie naked tonight but Rick felt that the group should stay focused on the 4 fly patterns that he offered the group. Based on years of experience, Rick has determined what elements within a fly that trigger a strike response. His focus is on the fly’s profile which satisfies the fish’s natural curiosity. Simple but effective is the name of the game.
Thanks Rick for a great evening of fly tying.

Doug reported that Dick Talleur passed away in February. Dick had written books and submitted articles to fly fishing magazines for decades. Doug also informed the group of Charlie Craven’s latest book “Charlie’s Fly Box”; lots of great patterns and detailed instructions. Doug also talked about a web site he discovered called “Fly Fishing Internet Radio”. There are many downloadable pod casts featuring interviews with almost every name in fly fishing you would care to listen to; a great source of information on every aspect of fly fishing.

The group was told that Dave Jensen will be presenting a video show on April 4 @ 7pm. Based on his New Zealand experience, he will bring some insight to the fascinating world of sight fishing for Trout rather than chasing hatches and snouts. There will be a $5 admission fee. At the conclusion of the video presentation, there will be a draw for some TU dinner auction tickets funded by the extra money raised by the fly tying club.

Next week is the Stimulator Challenge. Bring your favorite antron for stimies. We will start with size 8 and we will try to work our way down to size 16 (maybe).

The Last Resort Chironomid

Hook: Mustad C49 size 12

Thread: 8/0 black

Bead: 1/8 silver bead

Rib: fine copper wire

Body: 3 strands pheasant tail

Thorax: 1 strand of peacock herl

RK Mayfly Nymph

Hook: Mustad 3906B size 16

Thread: 8/0 black or olive

Tail: 6 strands of black hackle

Rib: fine copper wire

Body: 5-8 strands olive marabou (evenly tapered)

Thorax: 1 strand of peacock herl (1/3 hook shank)

Legs: 4 strands black hackle (tied in on sides of thorax)

Rick talking to the Gang.

Lots of concentration happening here!

Chabrous Nymph
Hook: Mustad C49 size 14
Body: chartreuse wire size brassie (coat with Hard as Hull)
Thread: 8/0 black
Thorax: grey dubbing

Notes: Try making a tri-coloured body using 3 separate coloured wire strands, ie- black/silver/red

Sparkle Booby

Hook: Mustad 3906 size 10

Thread: 6/0 olive

Body: small silver crystal chenille

Underbody: silver mirage

OverBody: olive fish hair

Eye Supports: 1/8 white booby foam

Eyes: adhesive stick-on eyes