Wait For It Films has recently released Northern Steel, a no-holds-barred video account of some sweet BC steelheading. Warning: Some parts are not intended for the squeamish. But if you like lots of lunker Kispiox steelhead, this is a "must-see." These guys are known for eschewing the "purist" fly fishing philosophies, opting for more of a middle of the road approach, and while I'm not that familiar with the all the gear these guys are using, it looks to me like they might be into center-pinning. Check it out.
William Joseph Fly Fishing has developed a new wader design, the WST (Wader Safety Technology). The waders contain an inflatable air chamber that surrounds the wearer's chest and can be inflated by either pulling a rip cord to trigger a replacable CO2 cartridge or by manually blowing through an air valve. Marketed as a potential life saver, the buoyancy of the air chamber is enough to keep a large man afloat for an brief period, as evidenced in their Facebook video (link below). I say brief because the seal formed by the inflated chamber around the body is not air-tight, and the waders will still take on water. Although not its marketed method of use, I'm wondering how many people will try to use these waders to cross a river without a boat.
Johnny and I hit the 'Stone yesterday. The streamer fishing proved to be less than epic, although the conditions seemed perfect: cloudy, mid-forties, storm rolling in, and very little wind. It seemed like the perfect weather to trigger a feeding frenzy in post-spawn browns. The first hole gave every indication that the day was to be a good one. I caught a nice brown on the strip within a half a dozen casts, and Johnny caught a nice twenty-incher.
The second hole appeared just as promising, as I landed a 13-inch brown three casts out of the boat. But that was it, at least for me. I didn't hook another fish the rest of the day, and Johnny caught only two more: a whitey and another brown.
The highlight of the day came right at sundown, as we were hitting the day's final run. While I was standing out in the water, trying to hit a seam near the far bank, I heard but ignored a repetitive clicking sound behind me. I turned to see four mule deer about 50 feet away making their last steps down to the bank to take a drink. I don't know if they didn't see me or if they didn't care, but they scarcely paid attention as I slipped my camcorder from its bag and started to shoot. To make the moment even more memorable, Johnny hooked and landed a nice brown, which I also recorded. bringing an epic close to an otherwise low-key but enjoyable float.
That float might be the last on the Yellowstone for the year. The outlook looks to be much colder. But there's still water on the other side of the pass, much of which can be hit with a walk-and-wade, so it's still not over. Oh, it's never over.
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Ehren's Blog
