New Fly: The Foxybead Sculpin

For me personally, my best flies spawn from ideas developed on the water, in the act of pursuing my intended quarry. Without time on the water, I would have bored of fly tying years ago. But there's few things that I get excited for more than rushing home after a day of fishing to bring new ideas to fruition. Such was the case for this little creation. It incorporates plastic beads for the abdomen and a cool Enrico Puglisi material called a "foxy brush" for the head. 

I developed the pattern after a recent trip to a couple of Montana spring creeks, and wanted to create a small to mid-size sculpin pattern that could get down quick and had plenty of natural movement. I've been pretty pleased after testing it out recently around Bozeman.

This pattern is available for sale, at $6 per fly, and for inquiries on ordering, email me at: westonthier@gmail.com.

Another Damn Fishing Post

Early Spring, or pre-runoff, as it is known around around here, has been a fun time for this fishing bum. The rivers are showing signs of life; rainbows are spawning in many watersheds and the first of the mayflies and caddis are emerging to the surface as water temps climb. However, a few real warm days strung together usually means dirty water this time of the year, and the trick has been fishing around these conditions. It's been fun, doing a little extra homework before setting out for a trip. I was fortunate enough to fish the Yellowstone just before the most recent "mud plug" rolled through, and we happened upon some stunning spring browns, all on streamers. They wanted black the first day, and were just as picky about yellow the next. Weird critters...

T-Rav proving that climbers can catch fish. 

Nort and I have been exploring other less famous freestones as well. As fun as floating is, my heart has always lent itself to smaller streams and walk/wade techniques. The below photos are from a smaller trib to the Stone. 

Sculpin Hunter

Lastly, I got jonesed for some spring creek fishing the other day while thinking of spring back in Wisconsin, so I made a trek with the hound up to some Montana spring creeks. They didn't disappoint, though did kick my ass. I managed a lot of missed fish on streamers, a few rainbows on nymphs, and a couple more on baetis emergers. Nothing big, but these fish captivated me with their style instead.

Seasons Change

Hard to slow down here in Big Sky country. Winter moved along fast, and now spring's approaching hastily. Not that I'm complaining...lots of fishing trips, flies tied, and even a bluegrass party at the house this winter. My brother Trav and I have been playing some music of our own, and scheming trips into the backcountry for this summer. Here's some iPhone pics of the Montana winter. 

Beartrap.

Trav scaling a wall in Beartrap Canyon, barefoot.

Passenger seat tying. 

The Montana Mongrel's been catching lots of browns lately.

I also took my first trip to the West Coast this winter, visiting my good friend Lauren, who is pictured here taking a glug from the sacred flask.

Bleu and I made the trip in mid February, and we were both stunned by the incredible greenery Oregon had to offer in the middle of winter. 

Even caught a few fish on the Crooked River, near Bend. 

The Geo Metro was once again in beast mode this trip, braving a wicked snowstorm on top of Lookout Pass in Idaho, and then completing the 2,000 or so round-trip journey. Thankfully for Bleu and I, its muffler fell off the day AFTER we returned home. 

January on the MO

A few photos from last weekends mission to the Missouri with my friends Nort and Ryan. The air temp never got above the mid 20s, and we were the only fly fisherman on the river. Around 2 p.m., after about an hour of braving stiff winds ripping off Holter Lake, we took a coffee/beer break in Ryan's truck. That turned out to be a solid move, as we fished til' dark, landing plenty of big rainbows on little pink patterns. Anything pink, they were on it. My goal of fishing clear through my first Montana winter has worked out much better than I could have fathomed.. If I had time to get excited about the amazing skiing others have been enjoying lately, I probably would. But for now, fuck skiing!

Not this buck's first rodeo.

Romanticizing about next weekend's trip to the Bighorn.

Notes From A Basement in Bozeman

Winter here in Montana has allowed for a lot more fishing opportunities than I would have previously imagined (it's forecasted to be 40s all this week), so my off-days from the coffee and fly shops have thankfully been spent on the water testing out new patterns. This fly is a take on a streamer that I have been using all year long in different colors with incredible success. The most crucial aspect to this fly is actually maybe the least noticeable at first glance.

There are two Gamakatsu B10S hooks in tandem on this guy, but instead of articulating them with streamer wire and beads, which also works well, I threaded 20 lb. backing along and through a magnum zonker strip and secured it with a few turns of thread and a dab of glue once on the rear  hook (size 6) and once on the front (size 2). This technique of threading backing through the zonker allows for a "fluttering" action that works well swung, stripped and dead drifted in the current. The threading technique on the zonker was not altogether an original creation. I was shown the idea by fellow Troutfitters employee Johnny Mac in the shop, who in turn took the technique from a couple streamers we sell there.

I have not fished the chartreuse yet, but have smashed fish on a similar tie in white, purple, and silver. If it fishes alright, I may start calling this specific sculpinish variation "Mr. Fo," due to the unruly Senyo's left long on the top part of the head. We will see. Special thanks to Pete Atkins for taking the photos while visiting on a ski trip.

I have learned a lot since moving to Bozeman. Immersing myself in this city, meeting new friends, and exploring the state of Montana has resulted in many valuable lessons learned and a whole slew of new goals and aspirations. One of those "dream-come-true" moments came when I was offered a position at a fly shop in town called Montana Troutfitters. I had never been as excited to accept a part-time position in my life, and I don't think any job has facilitated my career more than my first few months working there. I've met and work with a lot of real cool people in an industry that I adore, and when it's slow I stare at our massive fly tying wall, dream up a fly, and rush home from work with new materials in hand to whip up my little brainchild. On the rare occasion that it turns out exactly as I intended, I get pretty excited. All others are destined for the "give-away" pile. 

Though I plan to fish this winter as much as my schedule and the Montana weather allows, I am especially excited for some long fly tying sessions fueled by bluegrass and caffeine. So in light of fly tying season, I'll be posting photos of some of the efforts of my basement fly tying lab as they unveil themselves. Any non-fly fishing people might find these posts to be nerdy and strange, so I apologize in advance for that. But, for those interested souls, I appreciate any and all questions or comments that you may have about the flies.

A Day On The Big River

For the most part I'd like to stand by my words in my last post, but I may have to eat some of them, because I did fish the Big Hole while I was in the area and spent a considerable portion of an afternoon catching and gawking at outsized brown trout.

This big boy was over 20 and I caught a few more from the same hole that were within an inch or two. They fell for small nymphs, like pheasant tails and little princes. And yes, was it a damn good time.