That's a Wrap......

Hello friends and thanks for checking in at the O’Grady Fly fishing adventures. I guess it’s the time of year to look back and do a little reminiscing about the last year and, WOW, what a year! From a fishing stand point, last January we saw warmer than usual temps and the usual Jan-lull was non-existent. Spring saw fantastic fishing and Cat and I had two awesome trips to the Salt. Summer was a little depressing with the high water but I will never complain about farmers getting the water they need; I like to eat. And this fall saw some of the best Blue wing hatches I have ever seen, even I spent a few days tossing dry flies. And best of all and in all honesty, we had some of the most enjoyable and awesome clients I have ever had the chance to fish with.

As for our personal lives, Cat and I had our 15^th anniversary. Winston was doing so much better. We got to spend time with almost all of our out of town family and we got to spend some real quality days with our beautiful granddaughter.                                                                                                                             

Now looking forward to 2020. Water temps have really taken a dip over the last week and fish are beginning to move into their winter lies. Over the next several weeks it is really important to come to the river with a proper attitude. The twenty and thirty fish days are gone(unless they stock), however this is the time of the year when most people catch their biggest fish ever. Takes can be super subtle and with the fish being a little sluggish, 6x fluoro should handle even the super slabs. Once we get through the first week of February, I start licking my chops. The sun gets a little higher and the singles and doubles make their way out of their winter lies and we get some of the techiest and most incredible sight fishing of the year. So, here is your call to action, if you are looking to get a trip booked, January is a great time to work on technique and reading the water and have a shot at the pig of your dreams. If you are looking for some help sight fishing, and this should come with a warning because you will never see the river the same way again, get your day locked in between February 10^th and the end of the month.

Now, about the near future. The Fly Fishing show will be this weekend in Denver, I will be at the Blue Bonefish booth all weekend and Cat will be there with me all day Friday. If you are up there, make sure you drop by and say hello. Now, as for the blog, Cat and I have discussed maybe changing the format from a written blog to a podcast blog. If we move to more of a podcast we will keep the content much the same but it would also give us a chance to do more product reviews and also we would add in some interviews. Let us know what you think and give us your ideas on what you want to see or hear. Pics are just some of my favorite of last year As always, Connell, Cat, Winston and the drift Fly Shop want to thank you for reading….

Transition......

        Hello friends and thanks for checking in at the O’Grady Fly fishing Adventures. I had some running around to do this morning and then I headed to the river. I hooked several fish right off the bat and then the river just seemed to shut down. I headed up river looking for fish and while thinking about the condition of the river, the word transition kept coming to mind. Now here is the funny thing, every time the word transition went through my head, I could feel myself getting annoyed.

            I was wondering why the word was so irritating and then I realized, it’s because I’m a Husker fan. Why you ask, I remember watching the Huskers as far back as the early 70’s and I kind of took them for granted. Year after year they were always top ten. For thirty plus years there wasn’t a more consistently great football team in the country and was topped off by three Natties in the mid-nineties. Our coach retired in 97 and we were warned the Husker program might be transition. The next coach did good but you could see the top end was dropping. The next three coaches were about a different as could be possible, but in constant transition. Two years ago, the prodigal son coach showed up and even though we were warned we need to be patient during the transition, us fans were expecting big changes. Well we are back to being in the transition stage.  Good plays here, good quarters there, good halve now and then and even a few good full games but way too many times I just want to yell at the TV, “can you please get it together”. Yes, my Huskers are in transition, and even though I might get a little more irritated than I should, I’ll continue to watch because I know soon enough, they will be really good again, and I don’t want to miss those few good plays.

            Yep the river is in transition. The last several weeks have been some of the best early winter conditions that I can remember. Fish were gorging most days and at times, if you could hit the water, you could catch fish. The last few days out, I noticed the water temps have been dropping and the BWO hatches are beginning to slow down. My first hour on the water was pretty much lights out and it felt like watching my Huskers in the third quarter of the Hawkeye game, and then after an hour, it was like watching the Northern Illinois game. Yea, we won, but there wasn’t much to talk smack about. I switched back to my nymph rig and hooked a few piggies, like the Maryland game, before calling it a day.

            So, here is what to expect over the next few weeks. Moments will be good and at times you might want to pull your hair out. But here is the most important thing to understand over the next few weeks. Today is not yesterday, this morning is not this afternoon, and this week is definitely not two weeks ago. And just because yesterday might have been on fire, it doesn't mean today will be the same. Bugs are getting small and even when the fish are eating, make sure your drifts are perfect. And please understand, if you stop by the shop and ask us what flies are working and while answering, you jump in and say you caught three twenty inchers three weeks ago on a size 14 Orange Copper John, it’s not the same river. Anyway, get out and have fun whether you catch two or fifty fish, enjoy.

            A few things to bring up before I finish. This Saturday will be the annual Fishmas Party at the Drift Fly Shop. This year we will be doing it a little different. We will be running the party all day with deals going all day. We will have snacks all day and drawing winners can come in any time. From five to Seven we will have wings and adult beverages. Hope you get out to fish and stop by.

            Next, if you were toying with joining us in Belize, space is running out. We have one room left in the main lodge and two int the new upgraded lodge. Also, on Thursday January 9^th, I will be tying up some of my favorite Salt patterns. There is no cost for this but please let us know ahead of time so we can get the shop set up. You can call the shop or message me to confirm. As always, Connell, Cat, Winston, Scott Frost and the Drift Fly Shop want to thank you for reading….