Mother's Day 2013

On this Mother's Day, I think of where this life has brought me and how seemingly insignificant events have significantly shaped my life. Just a couple of years after this photo of my mother and I was taken, mom took my grandmother fishing and I tagged along. Being about 5 years old, she took me fishing with them ( see this blog entry  for more ). Catching bluegills always reminds me of my early days. It's was that fishing trip that triggered my lifelong passion for fishing.

Because of my mother and father, I was very fortunate to have them nurture my love of the outdoors. Thank you mom and dad. Rest in peace.

Circa 1952-53 west of Modesto

Tackle Care: Spring Fly Line Care

With the Spring weather, more and more anglers are getting out. Some tackle examination can make your outings more pleasant.

At this time of the year, one of the FAQ's that I get is, does my fly line need to be changed? There are several things to check to evaluate whether your line needs changing.

• Check to see if the business end ( first 25'-40' ) of the line appears to be dirtier than the running line portion. 
• If the line is beginning to crack, you will see dark lines running perpendicular to the fly line, then it's probably time for a new line.
• Is the fly line is not supple and is difficult to straighten out, then the plasticizers have  migrated out and it's time for a new line.
• With floating lines, does most of the line tend to sink? If your line is otherwise in decent condition, you can during the course of the day out on the water use your fly floatant paste ( or line dressing ) and apply it to the fly line ( I  will also apply the floatant on my leader up to my dry fly or strike indicator ). You will find that floatant on the line and the leader makes mending so much easier.

Here's a couple of helpful videos from Rio Fly Lines on caring for your fly lines.

Cleaning A Fly Line - Part 1 from Far Bank on Vimeo.

Cleaning A Fly Line - Part 2 from Far Bank on Vimeo.

My First Fish

MY FIRST FISH, short film from norcal on Vimeo.

This great video was sent to me by my friend Dan Cockrum. Dan's son is Jason Cockrum and he is the one rowing the driftboat for his friend and his young son in the video. The video triggered a lot of great memories of my first fish ( it was a slightly smaller fish, a bluegill ). I was about the same age as the young boy. My grandmother loved to fish and my mother would take take her to a pond northeast of Modesto, in the rolling foothills of the Sierra Nevada, out near the village of Milton. I would tag along on these trips and these events eventually led me to a lifelong passion for fishing.

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Seeing the video reminds me of how thankful I am that my mom and dad took the time to help me fulfill my desire to fish. 

Another Boat We All NEED!

Live in an apartment and want need a driftboat? According to the manufacturer, " the boat ships UPS, fits in a tiny teeny box "...

Inflatable driftboat? I want need one.

Escape From Summer: 110°F - 51°F Temperature Differential!

With home ( Modesto ) temperatures forecast to be 108°F+, we decided that a mountain getaway was in order! The ultimate destination was Crowley Lake ( which was pretty warm in itself ) but the plan was to arrive at Crowley in the evening and return the following evening.

As we made our way towards our destination, we noticed on the car's temperature sensor, that in Chinese Camp, the temperature reached a scorching 110°F! When we reached Tioga Pass, we were greeted by thundershowers and  temperatures in the mid 50's!!


With the Crowley fishing reported to be " epic ", it was not to be! I had only one strike Saturday evening and no strikes on Sunday fishing from 6:30 AM to 11:30 AM. Others that we spoke to had similar results, however one of our buddies did land his first Crowley Lake rainbow, a 22" hog!

To delay our decent to hell ( the Valley heat ) we stopped to get my skunk off at Ellery Lake. We all caught a few and enjoyed the beautiful scenery and the refreshing mountain air.




Our objective of escaping the Valley heat was achieved as the 50-60°F temperature that we were able to enjoy up towards Tioga Pass was fantastic!



The drive back down was beautiful with the thundershowers and the always majestic scenery of the " other " Yosemite.
Anyway, it was an enjoyable time! I guess I'll wait awhile before I go back to Crowley but I will go back this year!

Exception to the norm!

Who said big fish don't live at high elevation! This MONSTER, 31" brown trout was caught in a 10,000 foot elevation lake in the high Sierra on a #2 weight rod with a small wooly bugger! Watch out Google Earth , you're about to be bombarded!

31" brown trout from Craig Coston on Vimeo.

" The River Why "; The Movie ( finally! )

Back when I opened the store in November of 1987 ( yes, it's been that long! ) one of the books that was a good seller in the store was 1983 novel " The River Why " by David James Duncan. For years following, rumors of the screen adaptation circulated. 

Finally, in April of 2010, the film was released but was relegated to film festivals. The film does feature a couple  of well-know actors; William Hurt, Kathleen Quinlan and William Devane ( he actually DOES fly fish in real life! ). Lead actors are Zach Gilford, and Amber Heard. If you are a subscriber of Showtime, you will be able to view the film before it is released on DVD. Here is the Showtime schedule.