flyfishmaster

So the family and I are heading out to South Carolina for a little vacation in August to the Surfside/Myrtle Beach area. Has anybody been to this area before and do you have any suggestions what to do and places to go fishing? Have any of you been on a charter boat in this area? Thanks a lot in advance. Later, FFM

Max, What an awesome trip you guys must have had. I really miss fishing in the aspen and pine trees. Also the second river in your photo galley was way too cool. So did you get a guide for any days of just get info/flies from the local shops? Later, FFM

Well is sounds like Phelps Coounty just got hammered with rain today, I'm sure the river is on the rise. IF you are looking for another spot to fish, Check out my report on Blue Springs from this past weekend. REPORT LINK Later, FFM

I stopped at the access point about ¼ mile past the "culverts" on HWY N before you get into Blue Springs Ranch. I found out there is also an Accees Point before the culverts. There is a red metal gate. I noticed about 3 vehicles could fit in there , plus there is MDC sign indicating it is an access point. By parking there, it could save you about 10-15 of walking to get to the better fishing. Later, FFM

Sorry the title is wrong, it should be: 7/3/2010 I was able to obtain a kitchen pass but only for a ½ day so it only made sense to get he most trout fishing in, I had to go to Blue Springs just outside of Bourbon, MO. This would be only my second time at this stream but I knew it would be very low and clear. I started out at the third pull off location and at first glance I noticed the water was really shallow. I rigger up 6x floro to my old standby "Sloppy Ball" and 7x to a dropper sz20 Hare's Ear. I learned very quickly this was going to be a challenging day. I found a small pocket of water(I mean a hole 10' long x 3' wide and 2' deep). First cast I caught this monster. I continued to cast and ended up landing 3 out of that small pocket water. Nothing was bigger than 5". I continued to walk up stream.. and walked.. and walked just to find more small pockets ( if you can tell this is going to be the same verb age for the entire day ) The good part is that I was catching these little fellows out of each hole. After I crossed the road the fishing really turned on. Look at this bright color guy!! At one point I got to a awesome looking hole, but it was not fish-able because of how a small tree was lying across the stream so I took 5 minutes out of fishing an moved the tree out of the way and I would hit on my way back down stream. As I was approaching the hole called "The Honey Hole", there was another fisherman there sitting down reading. (Great to meet you Tim We talked for about 15 minutes about the stream he was very enlightening. At this point I started my trek back sown stream. Hittin all the holes I previous hit, catching a few but not nearly as many as I caught going up stream. Here was a nice hole where I caught 4 out of: I finally got back to the hole I cleared the tree out of and I think I made the right choice by moving it out of the way. I landed 6 fish including two 8" fish the biggest of the day. I was excited. While fishing that hole a gentleman was walking up stream watching me catch these fish. We chatted for a bit and found out he is from Ohio visiting his daughter. Anyway, for the day here are the results: landed 24 trout in the 4" to 8" range and only 2 chubs(I think that is what they called) At least 15 SDRs (ever thing in this stream was short distance) I used the following files: "Sloppy Balls", Hares Ear, Dark Pheasant Tail, Buckskin and Mercury RS2 tan Number of Tree Fish = 13 Number of "Lost Flies" = 0 (this is what I'm most surprised about) I finally left at 1:10 and cannot be any happy with the result for the day. I think I made the right choice. I hope to see you all on the water soon. Later, FFM

Thumbs up to Troy and Emma. What a fantastic job they did on the furlered leaders I got to finally use this past week. I was very pleased with the performance even through I was fishing one of the smallest trout streams in the state. I cannot say enough about them. Troy, FYI: I was not able to test your new pro-type furled leader out on this past weekend, the stream was way too small to utilize it to its full capacity. Later, FFM

RC, Your inviting "Cricket dah Trout Slayer"? Heck there wouldn't be any fish left in the stream for us to catch. That man is a machine!! Later, FFM

Brittsnbird, I know most people reading have no clue what you are talking, but for me when reading this I just had water shooting out of my nose (from my drink of course). You have left me with a visual that I cannot erase from my mind. If I remember right "blue" was the color, correct? As for the actual wader question, I have a few different pairs and I don't have a prefernce to any one manufacture. I just know I have purchased 2 differnt brands from Cabela and they have replaced both of them for "free" after 5 years of use (or non-use in my case). Later, FFM

JAH, That is a great day on the Current any day. Just wondering, was the water off color? I'm asking because of the tippet size you used is a lot larger than I would use this time of the year. I would normally use 6x or 7x. I wish I was there. later, FFM

Eric, I got a complete kick out of your formula. I relly enjoyed it. I went back and thought about the times I hired guides in CO and one rate came out to 22%. Which is about what I actully tipped. I know there are plenty of guides on this forum that would like to provide an input. Tipping is a customers choice and if a tip is warranted the amount should be based on the quanity of service provided. In the food industry I have left a one cent tip 3 times. The reason was due to terrible service and below average food and the server was not cooperative in helping resolve the problem. Tipping a guide should be no different. There was one time i went out with a guide on a late afternoon trip on the Blue River in CO. We did not catch a fish. I did not even get a bite, he received a bad tip becasue he was not willing to change the rig even after I made a few suggestions to mix it up a bit. After he was done, I fished for 1 more hour by myself and caught 7 fish using my own flies and a different setup. I tipped myself with a six pack of the local brew. Tippig people in the service industry is always a debatable topic. Tip on your gut feeling not because you have to. Later, FFM

There is an outside shot that I might make it down on Sunday for a one day trip. Later, FFM

Vanven, If you are looking for some real quality USA made flies, take a look at this site. BigHorn Flies website IMO, Eric has some really great patterns at good prices to boot. Later, FFM

Phil, That was cool to see. No wonder the "shufflers" have so many fish by their feet. Later, FFM

KSBass, I might have to take you up on the offer. Also, I already lift the rod tip up high. So to better clarify, my setup is probably a bit different than how you may setup yours up. I use a Thingamabobber like a few other folk, but I do not put the bobber on the furled leader. So i have a longer section of tippet (usually 5+') than what you all use. I get into a routine and it is hard to break habits. Later, FFM

Tim, Sounds like a great day to be out. So did the big fish have a lot of fight in it or did it just use it's big body and allow the current it to push it down stream? I'm asking because I have catch a few big ones in that area before and they were terrible fighters. I landed a 6+ pounder in 30 seconds on 6x tippet a few years back. Later, FFM

I have been using furled leader for about 3 years now. I think they are fantastic... except for when you have to bring the leader into the eyes on your fly rod in order to land a fish. I have notice that this is causing a lot more wear on the eye at the rod tip. Currently I have a 5' furled leader on a 7½' rod. So are there any suggestion how to save th rod tip besides using a shorter Furled leader? later, FFM

Somebody please correct me because I have heard two stories on the cameras. Is there only one camera by the stone bridge or are there multiple cameras? If there are multiple cameras, what is the web site to view all the cameras? Because at this time I only know of one camera. Thank you for your support. later, FFM

flytyer57, The annual fishing permit expires on March 28 of every year. As a normal I will purchase the Non-resident annual permit and the Trout stamp at the same time $49 total cost. IT is also interesting to me that the license expires the day before opening day trout fishing in the parks. Later, FFM

Heck at least your guy are "getting some action", in the fishing department that is. I have not been able to cast a line since mid January. The family is taking up way to much of my time. Plus starting this weekend we have T-Ball games every weekend until July. But family comes first, and the fish and water will always be there when it comes time for a little of "me time". Later, FFM

Gavin, You could have left the stripping part out. Sounds like an awesome time. Where there a lot of people on the river? later, FFM

Jdixon, Here is a previous post for the Thingamabobber: CLICK HERE I use the oral rubber bands to attach the Thingamabobber to the line as the direction indicate. This will eliminate any link kinks, plus at the end of the day you can cut it off and be done. You can purchase 100 of the rubber bands on ebay for about $2.50. I hope this helps out. Later, FFM

I just saw this article on the web. KSDK -- A Godfrey man has reeled in the catch of a lifetime -- a 92-pound blue catfish. The fisherman, Rick Davis, said he caught the fish in the Mississippi River, near Portage des Sioux. Davis said it took him 48 minutes to land the fish. He then brought the fish in to Bluff City Tackle in Alton for the official weigh-in. The fish yielded more than 50-pounds worth of filets, which Davis has stocked in his freezer. He still cannot believe the size of this fish. "It was a miracle, 'cause I was fishing with 20-pound test on a seven-foot pole and caught a 92-pound blue. I could never ever get that lucky in my life again," Davis said. What's Davis going to do with all those catfish filets? He's planning one major fish fry. Later, FFM

I'm just wondering how the fish even had the ability to swim. I think the fish has an eating disorder. Later, FFM

Wow! The fish looks huge even from a distance. Way to go guys. Later, FFM

Phil, I noticed something on your videos, you back reel a lot when fighting a fish. Do you set your drag tight and back reel? Also what line weight are you using? 4#? Later, FFM