Blue-winged Olive Martini

Tags

Blue winged olive, mayfly, scotch, spinner

 

Ok, let’s get the technical mumbo jumbo out of the way first.  I tied these BWO spinners, dropped them in a glass of water and snapped their pic with my cell phone.  Why the cell phone?  Why not?  It has more mega-pickle than my Nikon SLR.   So there you have it…you know all my secrets..ha!  The truth is I have been slowly shedding gadgets and gizmos over the past few years.  I don’t carry my SLR everywhere I go like I used to.  I travel light.  I carry fewer flies.  I even quit drinking booze.  I know!  What kind of self respecting outdoors man doesn’t steal a sip of booze from their flask now and then?  Me I guess.  I loved to fish from the first time I held a rod in my hand as a young boy.  It was pure passion.  Somewhere along the line the liquor became more important than the fish.  The passion got diluted in a bottle of Johnnie Walker Red.  At some point I realized I stopped being a fisherman and was just a drunk with a rod in his hand.  It’s kinda like being the guy who cheats in golf.  You don’t think anyone knows…but everyone knows.  So anyway…pour me a nice cold BWO martini.  It’s purity for me from now on.  Wish me luck.  I still dream of scotch.

Trout Window, GSMNP

Tags

120 film, Black and White, fly fishing, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Hiking, Little River, old school, Yashica Mat G

Trout window, GSMNP, a photo by Goyo P on Flickr.

As memories of the Smoky Mountains fade into the night I leave you with this.  Good night little Brookies, Rainbows and Browns.  Sleep well and stay safe through the winter.  I will see you again next year.

Next stop….Louisiana!  I’m off to flyfish the marsh soon and do some birding on the side.  I’m not sure if I will take the Yashica Mat G?  The nice fella at the Image Gallery told me these old guys are not made for humidity.  I did have some condensation problems in the Smokies.  BUT…I’m not made for humidity either.  And, I’m not ready to put these rusty bones on a shelf.  So I have a good feeling the Yashica will go on another airplane ride this year.

Smoky Mountains in July

Tags

120 film, Black and White, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Little River, Yashica Mat G

Elkmont bridge, a photo by Goyo P on Flickr.

This photo was taken on the bridge entering the old Elkmont Resort area in The Great Smoky Mountains National Park.  I recently spent 14 days in the park fishing, hiking and taking photos.  I like this particular photo because it looks like how I feel about nature.  The woods are dark and mysterious and filled with all sorts of creatures big and small.  Some of them are harmless, like the beautiful salamanders that hide under rocks along the river.  Some of them are a little scary like the slithering Copperheads  that I saw every day while fishing.  This is where the wild things live.  It adds to the adventure of fly fishing in the park.  I wish I could say I caught a lot of fish while I was down in the Smokies.  The truth is I only caught one.  Not only is it a challenge to sneak up on wary trout.  It’s also a challenge to find a place to fish where there are no people wishing to escape the summer heat.  Then there’s the weather.  Thunderstorms occurred every other day.  The water would be too high to fish for a day or so, then another storm would come a few days later.  Better keep your fly rod in the car.  That’s what I did.  But, on the last day I broke the tip off my rod.  Dont ask me how?  Maybe it was all that camera equipment I had rolling around back there?  At least it didn’t happen on the first day of my trip.  Anyway, I tried all sorts of patterns and techniques.  What the fish liked the most were yellow stimulators.  The pattern I purchased from the Little River Outfitters was too big though.  So I stopped at the fly shop in Gatlinburg and bought a smaller one.  I did hook and lose a big one with the larger stimulator.  But they don’t stay on very long when the hook point is broke off….which probably happened when I hooked a tree on a previous cast.  I guess I forgot fly fishing rule #643 ~ Check your fly and tippet after snagging a tree.  Anyway, despite the high water, Copperheads, chiggers, and hoards of tourists I had a blast.  I wouldn’t trade my time in the Smokies for anything.   

Psycho Prince

Psycho Prince elevation view, originally uploaded by Goyo P.