Catching Up - Some Short Casts

Sidetracked In More Ways Than One

When pony feed hit $3.42 for a gallon bucket, my inclination to hitch the ponies to the prairie schooner and head for the river Blue, at anytime I desired, pretty much came to a quietus. But, the price of petro isn't the only thing that has me, somewhat, sidetracked.

As of this past Monday, I took zero... that's like zilch, none, nada, medicines.  But... now I have my first one to take in what may very well be more and more to come.  It seems, upon feeling a little under the weather and out of my skin, a trip to the good doctor was in order and it was there while sitting on the examination table the good doctor expressed his concern for my ol' ticker. 

Now... somehow I've convinced myself that my ticker is just fine.  Sure... it's been fractured, cracked... even broken a couple of times.  However, in spite of these minor affairs of the heart, I think I good to go fly-fishing.  Although I keep telling myself everything is fine, I do plan on being a good patient and take to heart the good and thoughtful advice of some of my fly fishing friends that just happen to work in the medical field.  So... several tests are scheduled and they will be seen through in order to rule out the possibilities.

Besides, in a fly fishing sense, I would like to stick around a few more years to do what I love... because I love what I do.  And... I damn sure can't let Charlie down in our quest to learn more about the magnificent creatures, our friends, the carp.

Carpendous

It still seems a tad bit early for the carp in becoming active. There have been a few moving around, but for the most part the herds are staying close to the deep far banks.

Water conditions are making fly fishing for carp most difficult also. Lack of rain has caused most of the pastures Charlie and I fished last year unfish-able. The absence of stream flow has caused a build-up and blend of algae, moss, and fallen spring blossoms. This cocktail of nature makes sight fishing almost impossible at most of our pasture areas.


The only two pastures that are currently fish-able are Dry Gulch and Charlie's Pasture.  Speaking of Charlie... he saddles up from time to time and rides to the creek and captures a carp like the one below.  This time of year, Charlie calls his efforts the true March Madness.  That's crazy good stuff. 

Carp taken by Charlie.  His classy signature cap adds a nice touch.

                                 
Friday, after work, I stopped at one of the compromised pastures to discover the wind had changed and blown the stew somewhat upstream.  Seeing a few carp was actually a possibility, so a humble offering was sent into the mix in hopes of enticing the beasts.  The first two opportunities were blown.  Both carp went to the San Juan Worm, but, with the water being a bland green color, the relationship of the fly to the mouth of the carp was unattainable and both carp were missed on the hook-set.

The third carp was a different story because I could clearly see the carp suck the worm.  This particular carp went straight downstream and through a rather significant brush-pile.  How the tippet held out I'll never know.

Spring carp on San Juan Worm



The San Juan Worm didn't fare as well though.  The brush-pile acted as a barbwire fence and shredded the worm into retirement. Fortunately, there was another worm wishing for employment and said employment was granted.



It seems that young bass favor the San Juan also, as one intercepted the offering to the carp on the very next cast.  Although bass may very well like worms, I still believe their favorite menu choice is the crawdad like the one pictured below captured by a young explorer discovering the wonders of the creek nearby where I was fishing. 

The young explorer didn't call this a crawdad, but rather a blood pincher.  He must have had prior experience.

A Much Cleaner River

If you've followed these posts for anytime at all, you may have noticed one topic that has been absent from the posts of this trout season.

In years past, the subject of trash on Blue River has been addressed a good number of times.  However, if you look back to November, and the beginning of this trout season, you will not find one single mention of trash on Blue.  The reason is because the river is remarkably void of trash this season.

Granted I spent ninety-five percent of my time this season in the south wilderness area and it can be argued the south wilderness is not as heavily foot-printed by humankind.  But, even though I would agree to this argument in years gone by, this season there has been every bit as much traffic in the south wilderness as the main campground area.  The south wilderness has become quite the popular place to fish.  However, like noted, this area is well void of trash.

As to why the river Blue is a cleaner river is not quite clear to me.  I would love to think that the anglers and outdoor citizens that frequent the south wilderness simply have a keener awareness of the foot prints they can leave, along with a higher sense of stewardship.  Perhaps, it was a concerted effort by the wildlife department in doing a pre-season clean-up and then maintaining that effort during season.  Or perhaps, people just simply got tired of all my belly-aching.

I never enjoyed complaining, bitching, or bemoaning.  The tirades I posted about trash on the river are not indicative of what I like to share with others.  However, if all the groaning I can do at times truly makes a difference in ridding the river Blue of trash... I can serve up a couple more five course meals.

Truly, I believe the outdoor community has grown a greater stewardship, and in this case... a cowboy hat goes off to them.

 

But Then There's Rock Creek

A trash can creek.

Rock Creek, however, is a totally different story.  It's difficult for a man who basically cut his teeth on a waterway to accept the fact the stream has become little more than a trash can.  Three times last year, I cleaned Rock Creek and each time I did I very well knew that cleaning the creek wasn't the solution to the problem.  

The answer to the problem of trash on this creek rests in prevention.  With the exception of one other fine fly fisher, I just happen to know, it seems no one else gives a rat's behind about this little creek. 

The area that seems most affected is still the length of creek that runs along Sulphur Public School property.  I think the Sulphur Public School is missing out on a wonderful opportunity.  The school could adopt this part of the creek and take stewardship of it, making sure it is clean at all times.  In addition, they could then turn this section of creek into an outdoor classroom where students could explore the life of the creek and learn more about the relationship of humankind and creatures.

Perhaps a letter suggesting such is in order.
 

Easy to pick up, hard to prevent.

Too much trash on the creek.

A Brighter Picture For Future Water

Vendome Well at full flow.

Vendome Well at reduced flow.

It appears the National Park Service has placed their management plan for the Vendome Well into action.  The plan calls for reducing the well flow from midnight until four in the morning daily. This action is expected to save 108 million gallons of water annually.

Recently I was able to capture the reduced flow, evidently in a test run during daylight hours.  As you can see from the pictures above there is a significant difference.

The effort is a step in trying to reach a point of sustainability of the Arbuckle-Simpson aquifer.

A cowboy hat off to the National Park Service people.



And More Good Eco News

The folks at Pepsico have been innovators in eco friendly products they produce.  They introduced the first compostable potato chip bag, and offer the Dream Machine which encourages local recycling efforts.

Now, Pepsico announces the world's first 100% plant based renewable plastic bottle. You can learn more by visiting their news release.

A cowboy hat off to Pepsico.

Going For 250

Charlie and I have lassoed and branded well over 200 carp since March 28 of this year.  In talking with Charlie today I suggested we might as well go for 250 by December 31st and this would be a fine way to end up the Carp Crusades of 2010.  Charlie agrees.  With the best count that we can come up with we have about 215 carp, but for argument sake we are going to start at 200, which means we need another fifty carp with only forty-six calendar days left.

Now, that may not sound like a tall task, but consider right off the bat Charlie going out of town for a week beginning Monday.  Then, with today's rain it's going to be three or four days before the creek is clear enough to fish.  And of course, the temperatures are going to continue to fall and we really don't know how this will effect the carp.  Will they stay tucked in their cozy undercut-bank homes?  Or, will they come to the level field of battle?

We will see.  Fifty more carp by December 31st.  Then, we start a new year.

The Olive Damsel Marabou

Thumbing through my season of Rainbows journal from 2001 and 2002, I noticed that I used the olive damsel marabou a lot that trout season and with fairly good success. Why I strayed away from the pattern over the years, I simply don't know. It could very well have been that other patterns such as standards like the pheasant tail or hare's ear were working so good, I simply didn't need to fish the damsel marabou. But, I do remember the pattern brought me a lot of enjoyment... so I started tying some more for this coming season.



The damsel marabou can be tied a variety of ways using a variety of hooks. Probably the most popular hook is a standard streamer hook but for the pattern above I used a 3XL Curved Shank hook. The damsel marabou can be tied with beadchain eyes, mono eyes, or black beadhead. Pheasant tail can be used as a wing case or not and legs can be added or not.

I tied up six of the olive damsels and realized it had been some time since I have been fishing. In a recent conversation with Charlie, I told him I believed the damsel would work on the Rock Creek carp so today would be the testing ground for my theory.

Now, the heat index today was 113, so I waited until late to get on the water, and even at that... I didn't stay long.

The olive damsel would hook-up with three carp but all three were lost. Two were lost to break-offs, and the other to a bad tie I made. Anyhow... I guess the carp like the damsel. What give me the idea of using this pattern on carp is my water garden. It's absolutely loaded with damsel's and they are really odd looking creatures. I netted a number of them so I could get a closer look and make notes of some details.

Figure Scotty could use some of these patterns at the One Stop so it's back to the vise for now.

The Carp Crusades - Crawdads, Clousers, and Fatality

Good times, bad times. No, not the Led Zeppelin song but the real deal. We've all heard of them, and we've all probably had one or two along the way. Today, I had one.

Actually, it was all good until carp number five came along. Trying to get a picture of this freight train in the water, I, of course had one hand on the rod, and, Miss Carol's camera in the other. I snapped the picture and as soon as I did, ole freight train decided to go for another run. Most certainly, I thought I'd slid the camera back inside my waders, as done hundred times before, but when that ker-plop sound resonated down the creek... it was uh-oh time. Miss Carol's camera expired today in a freakish accident on Rock Creek... an untimely demise for sure.

Upon releasing the fish I was done fishing and went to get a beer that I would drink in the park while trying to come up with an approach in informing Carol of the death. A plan was born, and with a belly full of courage I went home to inform my love I thought it time she have a brand new camera... since hers was so terribly out-dated. Carol saw through me like water runs through a landing net. "You dropped the camera in the creek, didn't you." she asked.

Thirty minutes later at Wal-Mart, looking at new cameras, I slid over to the photo processor and presented the saved memory stick from the deceased, to at least get a record of today's fish. Of course the clerk on duty heard the story of today's event, and the good chap suggested we wait twenty-four hours before acquiring a new camera because there stands a good chance the deceased might actually not be deceased at all... just in shock. In other words, the camera might actually dry and work again. I hope that young man is correct, because it will save me a Franklin plus heavy change.



The good part of today was very good. Actually, I went a-fishin' twice. On the lunch hour I hopped down to the creek to fish the area Charlie and I have been exploring the last couple of days or so. In the last two outings, my leader had been effectively... no, completely destroyed by close encounters of the carp kind. I decided to try one of Robin Rhynes furled leaders that I've had for years but never used. The only concerns with using a furled thread leader is water spray from the thread when these creatures are spooky enough. The second concern was the bulk of the leader and color. But... I looped it on anyhow, and added a four foot section of tippet which now made by leader system twelve foot long.

For the first thirty minutes of my lunch hour, all I did was spook fish. As I was spooking fish, Charlie shows up and I see him scouting along the bank. I want Charlie to fish but it seems he has other things to attend to. However, he keeps scouting and then starts spotting for me, but I still continue to spook fish. Finally, I see a patch of water located below some overhanging branches. The water is a mixture of shade with smaller patches of sunlit soup. I cast the crawdad into one patch of light and then see the pale yellow mouth of a carp suck it up.

It was a nice carp... probably about twenty-two inches long. At this point the lunch hour had been expended; plus more; I was fifteen minutes late getting back to work.

Getting back to work it didn't take long to catch up. The food business today seemed like a dead-zone, so my long duration presence wasn't required and I found myself back on the creek within an hour and half.

The main reason I wanted to go back was because I didn't get to try a Clouser pattern on the lunch hour. The first cast of this second go-around still presented the crawdad pattern of earlier... and it captured one small carp about two pounds.

Then the Clouser went on... a black and white with blue flash Clouser, a fly the carp could not get enough of.

Before leaving for the day, I had battled five more carp but one didn't count because he was a foul-hook. Honestly I don't know how that fish was foul-hooked because I saw him swim to the fly, suck the fly, turn and then I set. Guess I pulled it straight out of his mouth but again he didn't count.

In using the Clouser, if they didn't take notice on the plop and drop, I would start to slowly twitch the fly back to me on the bottom. These carp seem hungry because they would come to the fly on the twitch and the hook-set would follow.

Today was the best day I've had in the carp crusades and one note on Robin's leader. Once it gets good and wet there is no spray and after today's results... I think it's going to stay on the ole carp rod for awhile.

The Carp Crusades - More Of Charlie's Notes

Charlie has captured three nice carp in his last two outings and as I am writing this he is currently on Rock Creek searching a new stretch of water we discovered today.

The thing I like about what Charlie does is he makes observations and mental notes not only to use in his future outings, but also to share with others.

Here are Charlie's most recent observations.

1. The big ones lead and alert. The followers are less alert and often feeding. So go for the back of pack.

2. If they are cruising at a pace don't waste time.

3. If they are stationary they are looking for suspended food, so throw them your favorite worm pattern.

4. If their nose is down, sucking and moving slowly throw your crawdad or something found in sand/gravel.

5. The really big ones are almost untouchable, they know your presence early and move to far side out of sight and reach.

Charlie Wright