kjackson

Kelp greenling were never my strong suit as far as identification goes...but it is a greenling. Never did see one quite like that, but the northern Pacific has a lot of really weird fish. This is a rock greenling I caught on the back side of Kodiak Island about 10 years ago or so--the first and only I've ever seen. It was a big surprise coming up through clear water.

Looking at the top rod, it keeps reminding me of of an older Wright & McGill rod I have--the handle shape is identical, but then the blue reel seat doesn't match. The blank color may be close--depending upon the camera and the light in my basement-- I ws thinking it might be a rebuild, but without the writing and medallion, it isn't that. As for tjm's post above, I built a couple dozen Lamiglas rods for salmon fishing, and they weren't painted--at least the yellow ones weren't. I do remember half a dozen jigging rods I built for a charter skipper that were white...and they may have been painted, but it was toooooooo many years ago.

You might want to check what you IDed as a quillback (near the greenling), to me it looks more like a china rockfish. Sounds like a fantastic trip. I envy you!

Not to mention sea robins... As for speed trolling for coho...we would troll with the kicker motor, and I liked it where the wake of the 6-hp was just turning white. Since this was pre-GPS, I have no idea as to MPH. I'd shoot for a fast walking speed or maybe a touch faster. If you get into coho, you'll see the buggers come in at your fly from the side before they smash it. You don't need to put a lot of line out either; they will hit it very close to the boat; in fact, you should keep the fly in the wake. If you're not having any luck with the fly, you might try one of your Z-Man plastics on a light head.

I'm not looking, specifically, but I need an eight-inch pan. I also should work out a deal with someone who cleans 50+ years of crud off old cast iron...or do it myself.

You might try trolling a fly for coho-- generally, the trick is to troll fast, really fast, and keep the fly close to the boat in the wake. If the fly pops out once in a while, that is fine. BUT---hold onto your rod, and I mean be prepared for a strike that will pull you out of the boat if you're not careful. Also, if you're up very early, like before sunrise, you might try trolling for kings with 30 to 50 feet of line out. The kings will feed near the surface during the night and still be up. I used to run into trouble with the Coast Guard because I'd be out early when it was still dark.

Too slow...

I envy you the trip, Haven't done one that remote in that part of the world; the closest was to Nootka Sound. Like Quill, I really miss kings and blackmouth--feeder kings--for eating as well as the fishing. I expect you to catch a greenling or two to add to the list as well as a cabezon and at least a couple more species of rockfish. And then there are some really weird fish--like ratfish... I'm looking forward to your next post.

The smaller of the two sizes measures 3 ¾" inches from the ip of the bill to the tail of the bait. The body looks to be about 2 ⅝" long. The single large bait is 5" tail of bait to tip of the bill. The body is about 3". All the smaller baits have the long bill. I might have a short-bill version kicking around that didn't pop out of the woodwork in my search.

I have six, unfished, pre-Rapala Storm Lightnin' Shads for sale. $42 in Clinton, $50 TYD.

As part of my de-cluttering the dungeon, I've decided to part with an unfished Fenwick DCC56 cartridge fly reel. It's perfect for a five-weight rod IMO but will work well with a six. It comes with four cartridges and a brief warning. As I mentioned in the flyfishing subforum, I cannot for the life of me get the cartridges to eject from the reel easily. Period. The fault could be mine or the reel's, but I have no clue. I am including three extra cartridges. In the image, they have line on them, but I'll remove the line and possibly the backing as well before I ship. $32 in Clinton, $40 TYD.

Needless to say, the pairs are gone.

Sorry, I'm still too old for Venmo...uh, send a check again?

I have a pair of salesman sample Adaro pliers by P-Line. They have an aluminum frame, tungsten-carbide cutters that are replaceable and a nylon sheath. $24 TYD or $15 in Clinton.

Going through the hoarder's stash that unfortunately is my basement tying area, I came across a new, unused Pflueger President fly reel in the 11-12 size. I have a number of the Presidents, and have found them to be a serviceable reel--they work, have a decent drag and cost a whole lot less than comparable reels imported by other fly manufacturers. This reel hasn't been out of the plastic sleeve since it hit the basement. It has been moved twice, though, so the box it comes in is dented. However, the reel and the case are pristine. $110 TYD.

TTT... The Solara, Cayenne and Okuma are still looking for homes. The Cayenne is a small-profile reel. The scent holders are still looking for love as well. I'll be posting more items in a different thread.

Before I list this elsewhere, I'm looking for a good, stable SOT kayak. If you've got one you don't need and would like the above G.Loomis combo, let's make a deal.

Love the history. However, I do see a problem--buying bargains, as that's a slippery slope, and my basement is an example. You're probably relatively safe with fly rods, but if you fall into buying potential fly tying material at thrift stores, you might as well give up all your free space. I am fighting that addiction, but it's still strong. Whenever I see a mink stole (or collar or whatever), I keep thinking about mink dubbing (and zonked strips) which is where I started tying so many decades ago.

I'm looking for a place or places to sell some high-end gear. Do you have any places where you sell stuff that isn't a good fit for OA? A case in point is the 12-weight outfit I have listed in the sales forum. Since I'm looking at getting rid of things I don't use instead of storing them for the future estate sale and they're mostly fly related, I thought I'd ask. What I am most concerned with are a couple of bamboo rods, a Charlton reel and spool, the 12-weight outfit mentioned above, a Hardy glass rod and a few other collectables. TIA.

I'll check, but they were made in the PNW for drift boats. The pin is 0.5 according to my buddy Stanley. The ID is 2.0, at least what the tape says. The brass rowlocks look to have 0.5 pin and 2 ⅜" ID with the top opening 1 ⅝".

These are still for sale, if there is interest. Also, I have pair of open-top brass rowlocks that I'd like to sell as well. Pix to come if anyone is interested.

For sale: G.Loomis CrossCurrent fly rod-- a 9-foot, 12 weight-- that has, worse luck, never been cast. It comes with the original case and sock, of course. But wait! There's more: Also on the block is an Orvis Vortex (not the VO2) in the 11/12 size. It's loaded with a lot of superline backing and a Scientific Anglers 12-weight line. And again, neither the reel nor the line have been used. And for a limited time, that's right a limited time, you can buy the rod and reel for one-half the listed price for $625. That's TYD. I'm not really interested in splitting the outfit, but I can be coerced.

After some thought, I need to come up with a solid Plan B. If wading is out in the foreseeable future, then I'll need another kayak to keep in town or a small boat. There are too many ponds and lakes around here to ignore when at least one of them holds really big bluegill. I had been thinking about building a pirogue/kayak, but I would rather fish than build.

Whaatever... in order t be more like Marty, I headed out this morning to a little pond I've been thinking about for a couple of years. Since my kayak is at our lake place, I threw in a pair of hip boots because my wading shoes also are at the lake place. That's the place where the water is still low and the bleeping otters are sleeping on our dock. I grabbed a couple of fly rods I wanted to fish a bit and headed out. I discovered several things: 1. My casting ability sucks; it's been nearly 15 years since I avidly fly fished, and I really need to work on it. 2. I need a wading staff. I buggered up an Achilles tendon back in January, and I'm still having problems with balance and even walking over rough ground. It's a lot better, but if I'm not careful, I'll end up swimming. 3. Hip boots are impossible to get off if it's hot out and one does not wear socks. 4. The bluegills and green sunfish in the pond I fished are not of the same class as the ones pictured. They do like black flies, though. 5. Despite points 1, 2, and 3 above, it was still good to get out.

I think I want to be you when I grow up...