Let 2009 Bow Season Begin!

Great start to the 2009 hunting season. My fourth bow hunt and I arrowed a beautiful doe at Coke's Camp around 5:30 p.m. Weather was 20 degrees colder than the average and it had been raining since yesterday. Used new Beman MFX Team Realtree arrows with Shuttle T-Lock broadheads and they did NOT dissapoint! Awesome blood trail and she was down within 50 yards. I love doin' the backstrap boogie!

O-Dog Strikes Again!

Great morning at Uncle Coke's pond with Owen and my God-Daughter Caroline. Owen and Caroline caught 7 nice Bluegills (not counting the ones released). Owen also helped me reel in a nice Largemouth Bass too, which I caught on a Texas-rigged plastic worm. I took home the Bass and cooked it up for us as a treat. Fishing with Owen is quickly becoming my favorite thing to do. Another year and he'll be casting a fly rod like a champ!

Bass Fishin' with Owen

I took Owen fishing at Uncle Coke's pond Saturday. He caught five Bluegills and a small Bass with the rod his Uncle John gave him when he was born. I cast one out myself using the same rod. I felt a bite, set the hook (lightly, figuring it was another Bluegill), and saw a huge tail splash. The rod doubled over and somehow I fought a 3lb. Bass to the shore on his baby rod with floss-like line.

My Future Angler

My future angler, Owen, working out his gear. I think his first word was, "Flies." Expecting another boy in August - soon I'll have my own guide staff.

MDTU

I am now a proud board member of Trout Unlimited, Maryland Chapter. I will be serving on the Communications/PR Committee with Maryland's very own Dan Rodricks (of Baltimore Sun and WYPR fame). If you are a fly fisherman/woman or are simply concerned about conserving, protecting and restoring North America's cold water fisheries and their watersheds, I urge you to join Trout Unlimited.

Slab of the Week

Headed out this evening around Lower Glenco (Gunpowder River) with my Scott S4 and Bauer M2SL reel and had an interesting evening. I started off catching my share of those annoying little "Fall Fish." I then caught a tiny Brown and a huge Rainbow! I also caught a Sulphur on my waders, although not much bug action was going on overall. Most of the fish I caught were on a Sulphur. During one back cast, I caught up in the scrub and lost my fly. Since I was having success with the Sulphur, I faked the rest, applying Poo Goo and Dri Shake to a Green Drake and a searching pattern - seemed to work when they were at their whitest. Cool evening. Fished 'til dark.

Memorial Weekend Giggin'

We had a big crew for our camping expedition at Coke's Camp - 11 total. We had a blast. Grillin', drinkin' fireworks, tree stand inspections, guitar and stories by the fire...well, you get the picture. We had a late night foray with frog giggin' at a nearby pond. One pass from two groups yielded 11 big bullfrogs. We even brought the little ones with us to enjoy the experience.

Sulphurs on the Gunpowder

Great mid-day action on the Gunpowder. Caught five decent Browns on a dry fly (Sulphur). They weren't just sipping either - they were hammering the fly! The new Scott S4 cast like a dream and the Bauer M2SL reel had the smoothest action of any reel I've ever owned.

My New Baby

Your buddy pulls on the oars to line up for the drop and you make a rapid fire cast into a small eddy as the boat spills through the narrow drop. You high stick over the froth to get a few precious seconds of dead drift on your dry fly. That’s all it takes to bring the big brown to the surface. Now you’ve got to land him and there’s no back rowing to slow you down. With knees jammed in the lean bar, the boat bucks through the rapid, while you put the heat on and reach for the long handled net. Scott S4 flyrods www.scottflyrod.com handle the big tough stuff. High line speed, tight loops and power. Bring it on. What can I say...I am in love with my new Scott S4 10' 4wt. All Scott rods are built by hand, one at a time, from the highest quality materials. Paired up with my new Bauer M2SL reel www.bauerflyreel.com and, well, what more can I say. Stay tuned for fish porn.

Rockfish Opening Day

Luckily for me, my friend Curtis had a change in plans today, allowing us to get out for opening day of Rockfish season here in Maryland. Nothing beats a killer sunrise over the Chesapeake Bay on a beautiful 80 degree day.

There were a lot of boats as one would expect, yet not too much fish activity. We were only about 5 miles south of the Bridge and trolled with boat rods, planer boards, and a hand line around Thomas Point. The winter jellies were snotting up our rigs and we constantly had to clean them off. We ran 12 lines and caught two nice fish - 35" and 31". We were hoping for a third, but we had to head home early.

Browns On The Rise

Went out on the Gunpowder today and had a great time fishing. Started off nymphing with tandem midges and hooked up with two - lost two others jumping the hook. Switched to a small black stone as they started hitting the surface. Caught another and probably missed about twelve.

Fish On!

Took Owen to a fishing spot north of the MD line today with his buddies Anna and Caroline. It's a perfect place for little kids, since there are 7 or 8 different ponds all stocked with various fish (trout, land-locked striper, bass, bluegill, etc.). Here he shows off his angling skills on a bluegill. Not bad for 2 years old!

Limbrat Étouffée

Kill tree-dwelling vermin, remove PJs, take to flame, chowdown. Drive safely. It's really that simple to get a good meal of squirrel. Limbrat whackin' is truly bigfun any ol' way ya choose it - bow and arrow, pistol, rifle, scattergun, slingshot, falconry, grenades, and my favorite, flamethrower. How can ya go wrong?

First Trout of 2009

My friend Coke and I scouted a new spot along the Gunpowder River this evening. The main season opens on the 28th, but this was an open "put and take" area we had wanted to investigate. As the picture shows - a small Brown and a respectable Rainbow. Should be delicious in the skillet or smoked. Can't wait for warmer temps.

From Feathers to Fins

Well it's the end of another memorable hunting season and looking forward to some exciting angling. This picture was taken by me from our goose pit the last hunt of the year. Thought it looked kinda cool shooting up at the stacked decoys in black and white. Might print it and frame it. Kind of a different shot. Hope everyone had a fruitful season - looking forward to throwing some flies soon.

First Wet Line of the Year

Today was oddly warm here in Maryland - especially after temps in the low teens and crazy ice. Relative I guess, since it was about 43 when I got out on the water, but by mid-day, the sun came and the jacket came off. The water was a bit low, but flowing. Had one small Brown strike and that was it. Look at this gorgeous background. This is one of my favorite entry spots. Now that's a Sunday morning...