Kansas Fly Fisher

Hey GF, ya got the plans for that little thing? I'd be interested in looking into that a bit more. John

Hang in there Rusty! It does get better, I promise. They're called GRANDKIDS! I told my son the other day that his daughters are MY reward from God for letting him LIVE through his teenage years! They're great to be around and lots of fun. (Who knew kids could be fun?) Plus, you get to see your kids, putting up with their kids doing the same thing to them that they did to you! PAYBACKS! Oh what sweet juice the fruit of revenge has! John

Check out Weaver's fishing report at http://www.missouritrout.com/weavers/report.html they usually keep up on that information and will post the schedule. They also post twice weekly fishing reports with the hot flies for that time. John

I bet you had your hands full with a bunch of teenagers - but still a blast! Hopefully later this summer I'll get a quick trip to Colorado myself. My son-in-law just got a job near the Kansas / Colorado boarder so a visit to them could turn into a fishing trip as well. Thanks for the report. John

Nice fish! I bet it was a blast landing that one. John

Great! We're already up to four tyers and it's just announced. I'll update the original post with the tyers and their pattern. John

Great read JD! It was like living it all over again. And, not meaning to correct you or anything, my snoring is not a "mating call" it's a warning sound to scare all the bears away! They think that theres a bigger, meaner bear in that "den." Now think about it . . . did we have any bear problems when I was sleeping? Take care brother . . . John

I've been tying up some foam beetles, grasshoppers, and ants and decided a swap dedicated to foam flies would be fun. So . . . who's in? We'll see what kind of interest we have before we set a due date and number of tyers. John List of Tyers 1) John Jackson - Foam Grasshopper 2) Steve Smith - Foam Beetle 3) Flysmallie - TBA 4) DeepDiver75 - Foam Flying Ant 5) Don - Amy's Ant 6) motroutbum - noble chernobyl 7) Zach Bearden - Beardens Beetle 8) Mike - Lady Bug

Ted, email sent. John

Great flies! Now I know why I didn't participate in this swap. You'd use my tie to explain what not to do. Excellent pictures. John

Hey Rusty, didn't realize that was you up there. I stopped and consider the wade, but Sue didn't bring her waders and since I was gone all last week, I thought it would be best to stay close. We didn't do any good on Friday but Saturday turned around with several on a black baby bugger and then a zebra midge. John

Shawn, thanks for the comments. I've already booked next year's trip and I'm taking Sue this time so she can experience the great Northwest. John

Hey Phil, she told me if we order the book from their website and email them they will sign the book for us. Be sure to tell them we were with JD who had the "chance meeting" with Cindy. John

Okay guys - here's the link to some of my pictures from the trip. [Alaska Pics] You can also read my journal from the trip by [clicking here]. What a trip it was! I know it's already been mentioned here already about the great value of this trip, but I can't emphasize this enough. This is truly a great adventure and some of the best fishing I've ever encountered. It took me a bit to get used to the take of the sockeye, but once I figured it out - look out! Fish on just about every cast and talk about fighters! I'd put the sockeye up against anything we have here; pound for pound. They make long, fast and hard runs with triple jumps, cartwheels, and flips. They really know how to put on a show. Hooking a sockeye isn't really the problem, it's getting them to the shore. Strong hooks are a must. I lost count of the number of hooks that were straightened by these brutes. Rainbows - the pictures say it all! Big, fat and sassy are the order. In front of the camp you can just about catch them at will. I think the smallest fish of the trip was somewhere in the area of 25 inches and the largest was 32 inches! The trip up Idavane was "intense" to say the least. You get to walk just over a mile up stream using a bear trail as your road. Keep in mind, this bear trail is through thick and tall brush all around, and this area is known to be one of the bear's favorite sleeping areas. The fishing on this small stream was fantastic! I ended up catching 7 graylings there. JD, Jerry and Phil also caught graylings and rainbows. My last two of the day were 2 lbs and I think one of Jerry's rainbows was 25 inches or there about. Brooks and fishing with the bears was very cool! We had the pleasure of watching a couple of brutes get into a fight over a salmon. The sound they make will make your hair stand on end and your feet look for a place to go - all this without any input from you! After the smaller of the two lost his fishing hole, he decided to come take ours. Of course, being the good sportsman that we are and keeping in tune with proper stream etiquette we gave way - rather quickly too I might add. It's amazing how much water this short fat man can cover when you've got a bear floating in behind you and the water pushing you along. I think my strides had to be near 6 feet each! Watching the bears at the falls was a treat! The ultimate fisherman and they new what they were doing. The camp - better than any resort you'd care to stay at - hands down; my humble opion! It's simple and rustic; no running water, sewer, or electric at the cabins. You have a camping toilet in your bathroom, a soft bed to sleep on and a propane heater to keep you warm at night. The tundra stayed moist and wet the entire time we were there so you walked on pallets or wooden planks to and from the cabin. There were some paths that had sand and rock down to walk on, but that was the fancy part of camp. The dinning hall had electric via a generator. There was hot and cold running water and a fancy compost toilet in the shower room. Phyliss was a GREAT cook and I promise you won't go hungry. Everyone morning she's up before the rest of us and has hot coffee waiting for you when you get to the dinning hall. Breakfast was hot and very tasty. Shore lunches included at least two sandwich's per person, chips, cookies, candy bars, and pop or water. Supper was usually some form of salmon and out of this world. The guides - You couldn't ask for a friendlier, nicer group of people than the Johnsons. And of course, we all know how good Phil is. Jim was always willing to help and offer assitance as you needed it. Once you got the hang of it, he stand back and watch or help someone else. Jamie (the oldest son)is a great young man that is always willing to help and usually good for a few laughs and smiles. Montana (a.k.a Tana) helps her mom around the kitchen and is a pleasure to talk with. Hunter (the youngest)is a supper young man that has a heart of gold. He's quite the naturalist and was able to identify several rocks, bushes and trees while we were there. Phil; well we all know Phil and he was a great guide that helped in anyway he could. I still disagree about the "mile" hike, but he had the GPS so I have to suceed to him. Maybe it has something to do with me being fat, short legged and out-of-shape, but I'd swear that hike was a "bit" more than a mile. What I learned - 100% DEET is your friend! Fleece will keep you warm and dry regardless. I BELONG in Alaska and I want to go back - NOW! Phil and the Johnson's are great people. A mile in Alaska translates to about 3 miles in the lower 48. To sum up all this rambling. This is a trip that you do not want to miss out on. It's an opportunity of a life time and you will not regret it. The Johnson's will take great care of you and make sure you have a very enjoyable trip. John

Man I envy you! I wish I was going back. I've already booked next year's trip and can't wait. As for the boots, your wader boots will work fine. You'll spend most of the day in your waders anyway. I'd get a good pair, one that supports your ankles and offers good cushion on the feet. Again, you'll wear them most of the day. Also, felt soles are a must! As for the flies, and I agree with everything Phil as told you. We did our best on the purple woolies w/ a little flash in the tail. Black, olive and white also produced good at times, but the all around best was purple. A good raincoat was a must for us and I can't see it changing in just a week. John

Very interesting! I'd like to see more testing like this. John

Considering a trip on Friday and Saturday myself. Not sure if it'll be RR or Taney. I'll be driving a black Nissan with a camo stripe on the bottom; OAF sticker on the back bumper. Look for a big man with a green tilley hat. John

Just read the thread, sorry it's late but my best wishes and prayers for you on this interview and a subsequent job offer. John

Thanks for the report. I'm thinking of making my first trip over this Friday and Saturday. Not sure, just in the "thinking" stage right now. John

Talk about a way to finish up a great adventure to Alaska - coming home to flooding in your home town. I got diverted twice just trying to get home from Kansas City; had a blow out north of Moran (in the rain); and turned onto my street to see water near the house. Once I got closer I could see it was about half a block away - and rising! The family had evacuated to my mother's in Baxter Springs on Thursday so I decided to stay in Erie Sunday night to keep an eye on the water and determine if I needed to start moving things out. Stayed up most of the night watching the water and when the morning came it appeared to have started going down. The internet stated it would only rise about another foot before cresting so it looked like the house would be spared. My neighbor to the south had water at his door, but not in the house yet. Our back yard was about half under water. I then headed south to find the family and spend some time with them. I came back home tonight just to check things out and will go back down tomorrow for the 4th before returning to work on the 5th. JC - thanks for the PM's checking on me and my family and especially thanks for the offer of help. Everything looks good now. I'll try to get a post of my Alaska Adventure and some pictures to Phil in the next day or two. John

Hope you make it home okay! I just got home myself about 5 hours ago to find my neighbor's house with water at the foundation peaking to get in. Our house is still okay, but I'm keeping a watchful eye out. I'll post my report in a day or two once I get everything settled here. John

Job security! Stupid people = stupid acts = job security for us! (EMS, Law Enforcement, Firemen, etc.) John

Ahhhhhh Disney, they just don't make em like that anymore! Remember, Sunday night and "The Wonderful World of Disney" movies. And then there was The Wide World of Sports on Saturday's! Those "were the days." John

Got mine today; or yesterday; not sure I've been at work for 36 hours. They look great and I can't wait to try them out. I'll be sure to take them to Alaska with me and if the chance comes, they'll get wet. Thanks to DeepDiver 75 for hosting the swap and to everyone else for doing such a great job! John

Good lookin cat! I bet he tasted just as nice! Thanks for the pictures. John