Clear Skies, Clear Water – A Day on the River

Posted on May 26, 2021 by Ed Mitchell

Clear Skies, Clear Water – A Day on the River

Met my friend Phil on the river yesterday. Great weather, high 70’s, and plenty of sun. Clear skies, clear water – and beacoup trout. All you could ask for.

Clear Skies, Clear Water – A Day on the River

Well as soon as we got there, we ran into anglers bragging about the excellent fishing. With that kind of news, we wasted no time getting rigged up and donning waders.  Game on dude. I had my Diamondglass 8 foot, 4wt along for the trip.  And Phil showed up with a vintage Vince Cummins “glass” rod. Nice unit.

Phil using his Vince Cummings ‘Glass” rod

My Diamondglass  8foot, 4wt Rod

Phil also brought a Coleman Stove, table and chairs. So we were all set for a lunch streamside. How cool is that? On a cast iron skillet he cooked up onions, dogs and burgers with all the trimmings. And yes, we washed it down with ice cold beer. Ahh a day on the river, you can’t beat it. Life is good.

Lunch on the River

After lunch we went right back to fishing. It was a blast. By the way, during the morning we saw some “sulphurs” coming off. Probably not a true “sulphur”‘; they’re more of a June hatch. Its likely what we saw was Vitreus. But for all purposes, they’re nearly identical to a “sulphur”. No trout rising unfortunately. Hey maybe dry fly action next time.

Sulphur Dun

Posted in Fly Fishing in Freshwater | 3 Comments

The Partridge “Carrie Stevens” Hook Size 2 for Sale

Posted on May 22, 2021 by Ed Mitchell

The Partridge “Carrie Stevens” Hook Size 2 for Sale

Get a kick out of those Mustad size 32, gold plated hooks? Crazy stuff. Best I know, they’re the smallest freshwater hook ever made. Well, this time around my fly tying box coughed up something at opposite end of the scale. A Partridge “Carrie Stevens” size 2 streamer hook.

Box of Partridge Carrie Stevens Hook in Size 2

No longer in production, this hook is now something of a collectible. And it is still much sought after by serious exhibition tiers desiring to make trolling flies in the fashion that legendary Carrie Stevens (1882-1970) did long ago on Maine’s Rangeley Lakes. Stevens lived near Upper Dam which separates Mooselookmeguntic Lake from Upper Richardson Lake. There she became world famous for her flies. In case you are unaware, Carrie Stevens is the creator of the Grey Ghost, among several other streamers patterns.

Partridge Carrie Stevens Hook in Size 2

The hook is handmade in England by Partridge of Redditch. It is on heavy wire and the shank is 10x long! Why such great shank length? Stevens wanted a long trolling fly, but she did not want the wing to extend far beyond the bend. Landlock salmon are notorious for short-strikes. By extending the bend all the way back to the end of the wing, it reduced that problem. Trolling flies tied on more conventional length hooks frequently carry a stinger hook for the same reason!

Partridge Carrie Stevens hook in Size 2

This is a beautiful hook on heavy wire. It has a down-turned looped eye. (Such as you find on a Mustad 9575). Personally I find a looped eye makes tying in material at the head easier. It also has a Limerick bend, the strongest kind and very desirable for large fish. The hook is barbed. The finish is bronze and the hooks came wrapped in a special paper to prevent rust. All is top notch.

Partridge Carrie Stevens hook with looped eye

Partridge Carrie Stevens hook in size 2

If you are interested in owning this box of hooks, or those Mustad 277 size 32 hooks, please contact me. Sold by the box only.

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Mustad 277 Size 32 Gold Plated Hooks

Posted on May 19, 2021 by Ed Mitchell

Mustad 277 Size 32 Gold Plated Hooks

I’ve been doing a bit of tying lately and that’s got me digging through my supplies. Well yesterday during one of these episodes, I came across something interesting. Something I thought you might like to see. Its a box of Mustad 277, gold plated,  size 32, hooks!

Mustad 277 size 32 gold plated hooks

What on earth was I doing with size 32 hooks?  Excellent question. Years ago I used to fish the upper Housatonic River in West Cornwall, Connecticut. Winding between the highlands, the river follows what geologists call the limestone valley. That kiss of limestone ensures these waters are rich with life. Overall, it’s a place of rolling hills, thick forests, and small communities. Yes, an old covered bridge too.

In the fall there is a big Pseudocloeon hatch. At least that is what we called them years ago. They are tiny BWOs that cover the river making for some very tactical fishing. Flies from size 20 on down fit the bill. Frustration during these hatches got me looking to go even smaller. So I searched for and found tiny hooks including these crazy things.

Four size 32 hooks on a dime

Now I bet you’re wonder just how small a size 32 is. Above you’ll see four on them on a dime. If you can find them. Lord almighty they’re tiny! Below is another shot that might help you more. The top hook is a size 16 Tiemco 2487. The middle hook is the same hook in size 24. And the bottom hook is the infamous 32. (Care to own these little critters? I’ll sell them to you. Drop me a line.)     The hooks sold!

Three hooks a 16#, a 24#, and a 32#

Honestly I never used them. Why? These 32 hooks do not have a conventional eye that you could thread a tippet too. It is just a flattened disc at the end of the shank. And even if they did have an eye, back then there was no tippet fine enough to accomplish the task. (Maybe there is today) All you could have done was snelled the hook. Oh well, I’ve pulled them out at group fly tying demos and got some wide-eyes and great laughs.

The Hooks are Sold!

 

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Sherman Foote Denton Fish Prints

Posted on May 17, 2021 by Ed Mitchell

Sherman Foote Denton Fish Prints

Sooner or later every serious angler gets a hankering for some fish art. Maybe its only stickers on your truck window, or a decal on your stripping basket. Fine by me. But it could also be a nice framed piece of art on your mancave wall.  Go for it my friend!

Eons ago, when I was teaching in Albany, New York, I wandered into a antique shop hoping to find old fly gear. On a table near the front door was a pile of fish prints, that immediately caught my eye. Ummm really nice. So I picked up a short stack, thumbed through them and then inquired on the price. “Three bucks each you say?” Sold.

Sherman Foote Denton Fish Print

They were chromolithographs done by artist, naturalist S. F. Denton. The one above is a Squeteague or weakfish. Squeteague is an Algonquian word meaning fish of many colors. Please forgive the reflections in the photo. It was shot behind glass. But at least it gives you some idea of the accuracy and image quality.

Sherman was quite a talent in his day. (So was his father for that matter) He was so good the State of New York commissioned him to document all the wildlife in the state. Then New York published the artwork, from 1895 to 1909, in their The Fish and Game of the State of New York Annual Reports.  These mighty tomes were chockablock filled with bound Denton plates. They were nearly 100 fresh and saltwater fish in each issue. (Along with a ton of wild life). And in one annual, the state also add a complete unbound portfolio in the rear, ready for framing. Amazing. Those were the days.

Today you can easily find Denton fish prints on the internet. Some are 100 year old originals. The background is a light grey and the prints measures about 9″-12″. Prices vary widely, however. From $20 each to over $100. So search around for the best price. On the other hand, copies are typically dirt cheap, although the quality is often inferior.  If you really like Denton’s work you might look on line for one of those annual reports. An intact one will have a huge number of plates, and cost under $200. Quite a deal.

 

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The Stocking Truck Showed Up

Posted on May 13, 2021 by Ed Mitchell

The Stocking Truck Showed Up

Its been a cool, windy and wet spring so far. Rivers rising and falling. With a decent weather report and no rain, I decided to head over to the Salmon River in Colchester. Yeah it had been high, but I figured it was down by now. And it was. As soon as I got out of the truck, a guy walked  over and said “Do you know what time the stocking truck is going to show up?”  “Got me” I replied. He then added “Should be soon.”

The Stocking Truck Showed Up

He then proceeded to show me a fly he planned to use on a Euro-nymph rig. I think he called it a “Squiggly Wiggly”.  He said it was a killer. Absolutely deadly. I had heard of the fly, but had never seen one. To me it looked like a weighted San Juan Worm, a fly I first saw years ago on the New Mexico’s San Juan River. It was an effective fly that many anglers bad mouthed. They said it wasn’t a truth fly. Bull sh*t! There were small aquatic worms in the submerged mossy all along the banks of the San Juan. And I’ve seen them in other rivers too, especially tailwater rivers. Nowadays guys say the same thing about the “Mop’ fly.  Oh well.

The Squiggly Wiggly

For a time I though he might be joking around about the stocking truck.  But sure enough an hour later the truck came rumbling down the road. Oh boy, here we go. Wham, they dumped in fresh trout by the net load. Decent size fish too. I saw one big, brood stock rainbow go it. Real tank. That bad boy is going to lit up someone’s life.

The Stocking Truck Showed Up

Now that doesn’t mean you’re going to catch those fish right off. Typically freshly stocked fish are in a state of shock. Hell, they have spent their entire life in a concrete swimming pool, and suddenly they are in strange new surrounding. Puzzled and confused they are. Don’t be surprised if they nail right to the bottom for an hour or more. And ignore flies too. After all up to now, they have been fed by a machine. But once they get acclimated to their new digs, wow the bite is on. Still its best to keep your flies slow and low. Don’t expect these fish to chase sometime flying by. Creep it by their nose. They may hit it two or three times before you hook them. Yes, yours truly released a bunch trout. And my friend with the “Squiggly Wiggly” did too.  I imagine there were a lot of happy faces up and own the river. Hey, the stocking truck showed up.

The Stocking Truck Showed Up

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