Jul 3 2009 8:45 am
check, check, and check
My goal for the near future is to do that which Buster does not condone. You know, use TFO rods, fish with Jerry Darkes, whore myself out to fly fishing companies for free stuff, keep my website up, the basics.
I already own four TFO rods, so check on that.
Jerry Darkes is the Patagonia/Pac Fly/Scott/Nautilus rep for my area and he was in town the other day showing me some waders because we're bringing in a new line at the shop. We went out on the local water and caught dink smallmouth and spots for a few hours all on topwater which was a pretty fine time. Jerry's a good guy. Check on that.
Redington is sending me some stuff to review on this very website, including their new zip-front waders. Another chance to check out a new wader line for the store. Check on that.
And because my site isn't nearly as popular as Buster's Mustard I should have no problem keeping it up on the internets. So check on that.
Jun 29 2009 9:42 pm
looking up
Forgot I had the GoLite clinic tonight at work so we had to push off the new-water mission until tomorrow. But because it was such a goddamn nice day I still managed a few hours on the home waters this afternoon. They were all looking up. In fact, I didn't catch a single fish on a streamer.
Also, have you seen Wade's latest post? If you ever doubt Pennsylvania's greatness, just head over there. Ignore the Maryland and Montana posts.
Jun 27 2009 3:29 pm
the tailwater chafe
The water runs fast through the narrow riffles and fans out into deeper water and slows down. The pod of fish on the bottom of this pool shimmer into and out of warped focus as they shift and jockey for position. The occasional roaming band of suckers rankle the pod, their large white mouths obvious against the dark bottom. A single trout oozes upward like molten copper dripping against gravity and eats something on the surface. Then it drops slowly back into the uncertain depths. I wish I had a movie of a fish that was actually molten copper, show those similes what’s what.
Another great thing about Thursday is that I got the chafe real bad down in my region. I mean, at the time it sucked. I like wet wading though, so sometimes it’s an issue. I’m sure I made it worse by constantly dipping my region into the water to soothe it. But had it not been for the chafe I would not have rediscovered the pleasures of a good regions powdering. Believe me, if you don’t powder your region, I suggest you give it a whirl. It may seem a little metro, but I like to think of it as more old-west. My chafe has mostly healed, though I’m attending a wedding this evening. A wedding on a hot summer’s day is the perfect occasion for a chafe-less regions powdering. 
Jun 26 2009 12:09 am
bass and trout till dark
I turned in grades on Sunday. I’m done teaching for the summer. Perhaps the last time I'll teach the beer class. Such is life and all that.
The last couple weeks have been pretty busy what with the teaching every day, the grading, working in the shop, blah blah bitch whine. But now I’m able to fully enjoy the fact that it stays light here until 9:30pm. Of course the wicked thunderstorms put a damper on things and blew out the river, but I still got out. Erika even joined me in the muddy creek on Tuesday because she’ll try anything once (her words). She didn’t catch a fish, and neither did I, but she did throw a nice line and even charmed a decent bass to her feet.
By Wednesday the creek had come down to reasonable levels with an ideal stain. I fished for a few hours after work until it got dark picking up a lot of hungry dinks and few decent fish. I also managed the first legitimate top water smallmouth of the year.
Today Tim and I fished the “local” tailwater until 9:30pm. I will regale you with sunburn and trout tomorrow. Good night, god speed, etc.
Jun 18 2009 8:03 am
Tuckaseegee Brewing Cooperative gets some ink
Prof. Seán O'Connell, the man who taught me how to use an autoclave, to swirl my beer glass obsessively, and that love is a four lane highway with only a few exits going northbound, has been planning a brewpub in Cullowhee NC for some time now. At first I figured it was a pipe dream, the same kind of untenable fantasy that lingers like a toothache in most homebrewer's hearts. But I should have figured better. I think he's got permits. Seán's the kind of guy that gets shit done.
"An idea for a brewery is also part of O’Connell and Cooper’s larger vision for turning Cullowhee into a college town. They predict that one day the town will be incorporated, allowing for the possibility of alcohol to be served there. By founding a brewery now, they’re staying one step ahead of the curve."
