Hello all and thanks for checking in at the O’Grady Fly
Fishing Adventures. I have wanted to use that title ever since Cat and I binge
watched Game of Thrones last year. My original idea was that after the first snow
fall in late October, we would take a picture of me with my gear on, lying in
the snow with my rod draped across my body. If you’re not a Game watcher, then you
probably have no idea what I’m talking about but for the Game fans and in my
own imagination, I would be just as sexy as Jon Snow. Well the November weather
never really cooperated and by the time our first snow fall occurred we were already
nearing my not so favorite part of winter. As I have written for several years
now, January is not my favorite time of the year to fish but I will try to give
a few tips to make your late winter on the Ark fantastic.
I
wanted to start by giving a quick update on the river as of late. The Arctic freeze that came through last weekend dropped
the water temps in to the low 40’s and have made the hatches a little
unpredictable. One day the fish are gorging and the next day it’s crickets, proverbially
speaking that is. Cats bug collecting has found a plethora of juvenile baetis
nymphs, lots of midges and still aquatic moth and caddis larvae. Today I hooked
several quality bows and got two to the net, and I felt like I worked for and
earned every fish I bumped. Alex was out as well and had one of his best days
in a while landing several in the fifteen to eighteen inch range.
Now on
to the winter tips; first, if you want to get out on the water please do not
take yourself so seriously. And what do I mean by that, if you are on the water
that that means you are not at work (unless you are a guide), you are not at
the mall shopping, you are not yelling at Kubiak through your T.V. , you are
not stuck at a boring holiday party, and lastly, you are not at your computer
obsessing over college football recruiting(well maybe that’s just me). Now with
that out of the way and on to the water, use the lull times to work on you
technique. One of our shop friends Rich, has been working on his mending by
using the New Zealand strike indicators and it is paying off in a big way. With
the NZ indicator any poor mending will give you immediate negative feedback by
sinking your indicator. If you can get the NZ indicator to float I can
guarantee you will catch more fish in the future. Thirdly, if you are obsessed
with big fish, winter can be a great time to get your best fish landed. Low
flows coupled with cooler water can get you just enough edge to get that dream
fish to the net. And lastly, and relating to the not taking yourself so serious
part, when the dinks start rising, throw on a dry and check your ego at the
door. For such small fish, they sure are smart.
Now on
to the business part of this blog; last weekend’s arctic blast put a bit of a
damper on Christmas shopping so the Drifts shop hours will be adjusted over the
next few days in hope that you get all your dreams and wishes. Thursday will
have normal hours from 8:30a.m. to 5:30p.m., Friday we will be open from 8:30
til 6:00,(an extra half hour) and Saturday we will be open from 8:00 til 4:00
for all the procrastinators. Thanks to all our friends that made it to last weekend’s
Fishmas party and to those that missed it, Cat, Winston and I want to wish you
a truly Merry Christmas. As always, Connell, Cat, Winston, Jon Snow, and the
Drift Fly Shop want to thank you for reading…..
Alex's fish of the day !
Alex's fish of the day !
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