Skagit cast with OPST Commando & Echo Glass Spey

A simple Snap T using OPST Commando 475gr and Echo Glass Spey 12,9" #7.

A great set up that are easy to cast with and got lots of power to.

Happy Fishing Christmas!

Now all presents are wrapped and under the tree and have started to pre pare the food for Christmas eve. No snow were I live and up to +7c degrees and the river closes the 1th of January so there will be some "Christmas Fishing" in next couple of days.

Hope you all will get new rods, reels and skagit heads from Santa.

Happy Christmas!

OPST Commando vs Echo Glass Spey

Glass is not dead! Have been fishing with the Echo Glass Spey 12'9" #7 with the OPST Commando 475gr and a Vision Ace 10" T-14 for a while now and must say I just love the combo. The Commando head works perfect with this rod and with all diffrent tips from float to T-17.

The quality of the video is not the best due to low light conditions and lack of tripod and will make a better soon.

How I make my Composite Loops SBS

The last few months I have been using more and more composite loops in Jerry French style when tying my flies and I really like how the flies looks and not least swims in the water. Have made my Vikingtruders for many years now with hair and dubbing spun in loops. I got the right spin technique but had problems to keep the composite materials together when lifting them form the tying table to sliding them into the loop and many with me had this problem. I have noticed by all mails and messages I get when people ask how I do. I always send them a link to the OPST Youtube site so they can see how Jerry does his loops and hear his thoughts on composite loops flies.

After some thinking I came up with a idea how to get the material into the loop without dropping half of it on the floor or in the bin bag and I call it the Buisness card trick and it works like this. It takes some practise to get it right but this helped me alot and hope it can help you too.

 

 

Take a business card, playing card or other stiffer paper and use a black marker on one of the edges of the card to get a line so it will be easier to see were the loops is going to be placed. Then start placing the material you want to use on the card.

Take a second card or what you prefer in the same size and put it right on top of the first and you will get the edges of the material sticking out. Pick it up from the table holding the cards together and then you can adjust the edge of the material with your fingers.

Put the material in the waxed loop just by the edge of the cards.

Then very carefuly loose the pressure on the cards and slide them away from the loop very slowly so no material will fall out.

Now you can start adjusting the material with a dubbing needle and with your fingers.

Then it's just to use your spinning tool and the composite loop is ready!


   

River Stjördal in pictures

I and my buddies Allan and Dick went over the Norwiegan border to fish for Atlantic Salmon in River Stjördal. We had no luck with the water levels our weather but after some rain the lower parts of the river got better but no fish would bite my flies. Dick did Catch a very small Salmon but a Salmon is Always a Salmon no matter what size.  Heres some Pictures from our trip.

Svarthölen

My rods

107:-NKR

OPST and a Carrot in Midkil

Midkil

Iverhölen

URGE

Rods in rain

Nyhölen

Nyhölen

Nyhölen

Relaxing

Its not the beard on the outside, it,s the beard on the inside that Counts!

Kommunvaldet

Ready for Norway

Small salmon zonkers

Today I will go to River Stjørdal in Norway and fish for salmon and sea trout. Will stay in Stjørdal some days then I will go try River Verdal. New flies are tied and my gear is packed and I ready to hit the road but first some sleep. I will try to update here on the blog and on my FB site how the fishing goes.

OPST Commando Skagit Heads - A "Pure Skagit" Revolution

The brand new OPST Commando skagit heads are finaly on the market and I got a 450gr from Skagit Anglers in Denmark. OPST is a brand that Jerry French and Ed Ward have started and they make great products for skagit fishing and flytying. The line is designed by Ed Ward and he realy knows what his doing as he was one of the guys alongside others that did invent skagit casting back in the 90ths.

The Commando heads are very easy to cast and comes in the range of 150-475gr (10-30g) and  in lenghts between 12" - 18" (3,6 - 5,5m) so it is a short line but not just like any other short skagit heads on the market that I have tried over the year because this is something else. The are designed to be used with MOW tips but the works just great with other tips from Intermediate to T-tips in diffrent grades. Have tested my 450gr head on diffrent rods from 13,4#7 down to 10" Switch but at the moment my favorite set up is my 12,6#6 Cult rod that I think is a match made in heaven (or hell, if you prefere) for lighter Skagit casting. Claus at Skagit Anglers have used his Echo DHII 12,6" #6,5 with Commando and just loved that set up.The short head turns over the tips easy and no problems to fish with a 12,5" T-10 and big flies. I used a 15" Sink 3 tip on my 13,4" and it did turn over my flies well but I think it works best on rods under 13" and that just what the line are designed for.

Have fished the line for 4 days now and I realy love the way it preforms in all diffrent situations and my daughter Ello have used it and think it was very easy to cast with. I can realy recommend OPST Commando if you look for a short and light skagit head. Go to Skagit Anglers shop http://skagitanglers.com/ to order yours!

Stingray Intruder inspired by Ken Sawada

The last couple of day I been cleaning up in my flytying room that had become a real mess and found some old hidden or forgotten flyboxes in a drawer with flies that I made and fished with for eight to ten years ago. Many of my daughters first attempts to make tubeflies and also some intresting other flies that some how have lost there place in my boxes today even that they did catch lots of fish back then. I realy don't know why some of these flies have been put a side but when I get new ideas and start using new material or technics I often transfer my old favorite colors into new patterns and old ones is forgotten. It's Always fun to Watch old flies and see how I tied and what materials I used back then and sometimes give an old pattern a make over like in this case. 2006 I got my hands on a copy of Ken Sawadas book "Tube & Waddington Flies" and I got realy inspired by Mr Sawadas beautiful tubeflies. I Always have used a lot of bright colors and like to try all sorts of crazy color combinations (at least some of my fishing buddies would say) and that's why I realy liked Ken's flies. So when I found these old Sawada style patterns I was realy inspired to re-make then to something in Intruder style that I would tie and fish with today using new technics and also adding some new materials to them. I started this make over on one of my old favorites, the Stingray! Black, green and a little touch of white is a very nice color combination that works well in most of our Salmon rivers all over the world and many fishermens out there have caught big fishes on these colors.

The things I have changed from the original pattern is first that I put in a tin tail of bucktail. Second I tie in a Guinea hackle in the back. Third I change the color on the front shoulder Amherst from white to green but also some other small changes. 

Pattern recipe: Stingray Intuder

Tube: Lime Green

Tail:  A small bunch Black Bucktail tied in forward and holded back. 3 strands of Green Mirage Flash. 3 Natural color Amherst pheasant fibers. 2 Grizzly natural saddle hackle.

First hackle: Natural Guinea

Eyes: Green Pro JC

Body:Bright Green dubbing. (I brusch out the dubbing to get more volym to the body just to get more of a siluett as I will use this pattern for the Baltic Sea run browns that tend to like bulkier flies.

Ribb: Oval silver tinsel (I use no ribb as I spinn the dubbing in a loop)

Front shoulder: Black fox hair spun in a loop. Black Marabou spun in a loop. A bunch of Green Amherst pheasant fibers tied in around the tube or spun in a loop. You can also use a Composite loop and tie in all materials at the same time. Take a look at OPST on Youtube were Jerry French shows how composite loops should be made.

Head: Metallic green Pro Sonic disc or similar discs from other brands.

Try not to over dress the fly as it will swimm much better if spares dressed.

The new one on the left and old on the right.

The Easy Squid

It's been a long time since I could post a fly pattern on my blogg but now I'm back with the Easy Squid pattern. 

Have had the idea to make a easy to tie pattern for a long time because I normaly goes"over kill" when tying my flies always adding some extra material just to please my own eyes and I think it's both good and bad. Good: I get a fly pattern I realy have confidence in when fishing. Bad: It takes more time to tie the fly and when fishing T-tips in logg and stone filled rivers you will snag and loose a bunch of flies in a days fishing. In some pools when I know that I must get down realy deep but also knows that I can or probly will snag the bottom I may not use chose my best looking flies that I realy know works and I love to fish but insted use a fly that I may NOT WANT to use for the moment but I don't will spill any tears when loosing it. So not using the "right" style of fly I will fish the pool with less confidence and maybe not catch the Silver from my dreams.

The Easy Squid is not realy a "Squid" pattern but if you hold it vertical it will look quite like a small squid but in the water it will look and behave like a bait fish.They are realy "Easy" and simple to tie and now a days there's so many diffrent brands of Sili legs on the market so it's no problemo to convert any of your favorite patterns to a Easy Squid. For example you can take a bait fish pattern and use the pearl shimmering legs for belly, silver or gold legs on the side and black with silver or green flakes the back of the fly or why not transform a classic salmon fly to rubber version? I tie the fly in two diffrent sizes, one bigger and a smaller but always the same bead as body.

When fishing the Easy Squid I use a loop knot and I some times slide on a piece of plastic tube as a hook guide. Fish the fly on a normal swing or let it just free drift trough the pools as the Sili legs will get the fly lot of movment.

You can always add some extra materials like a hackle and also some Amhearst fibers just to get it to look more like a more "normal" Intruder style of fly.But just a brass bead, fake JC, Sili legs, disc cone and... Boom! It's ready to fish!

Pattern recepie: Rapala version

Tube: Fl Orange Small plastic tube 

Body: 5,5mm Gold Brass bead

Eyes: Large Orange Pro Fisher  JC subs.

Wing: 8-12 Sili legs (big fly = more legs)

Head: A Disc Cone 

Back in the game!

My oldest daughter Ello have been away from fishing for a while but now she is back again! We Went down the other day to try some new rods and she realy got hooked again and she said´that she forgot how fun it was to fish. Thats fun to hear as I have not been naggin' about it and try to get her back fishing when she wanted to do other stuff.

No fish for any of us but we had fun even that a gaelforce winds made casting difficult. Also our new "ghillie dog" Nova that made her third fishing trip learns more and more how to behave on the river bank and she enjoy being out fishing. We did not stay for more then Three hours as we went out of Oreo cookies after a while, how can you fish without Oreo's?

It's hard to loose your best fishing buddie!

Last autumn I lost my best fishing buddie Bubblan! She did just get 3,5 years old and after getting sick and the vets had done all they could do but she did no respond to the treatment we had to put her to sleep, R.I.P little friend.

We had many funny fishing trips together so I get a tear in my eye but also a smile on my face thinking back on them. As a Chinese crested dog with not so much fur  I had to get her "fishing clothes" also but when to wet or cold she had to stay home and I can tell she was not happy with that. I usualy put my fishing clothes in the halway the night before going fishing and normaly Bubblan did sleep in the bed with me but the night before a fishing trip she sleept on my jacket and waders so she wouldn't miss the fishing. After awhile I did start put her "fishing clothes" with mine and then she could go to bed knowing that she also was going fishing.

 

 

One of the first times we did go fishing she was just a puppy and It was a cold early morning in september. We went to one of my favorite autumn pools in search for Sea trouts and after just a few casts a had I realy good pull and just after that 3 realy nice size fish showed them self so it feelt like it was a good chance to get a decent fish. After trying to get the fish to bite again I decided to let it rest for a moment and take some coffee to calm my nerves when Bubblan sundely took a jump straight out in the river and I had to pull her up. I had a small towel in my back pack for drying my hands after releasing fish that I used to try get her dry but it was to small and her fleece jacket was soaking wet. I must try to get the dog warm again but also try at least a couple of cast before heading home, so what to do then? I took of my under shirt anf fleece sweather and wrapped the dog in then just like a little baby and then put her in my waders with just her nose sticking out and put on my fishing jacket over my bare shoulders... and yes, it was cold with a wet dog against your chest but at least I did get to do around 10 more casts before heading back to the car still with the dog in my waders I did drive home! We did not get any fish that day and after that I did always bring a bigger towel and a extra sweather for Bubblan also. She did not jump in the river no more after that and we had many hours together on the river with all diffrent crazy things happening but it all ended to soon and I will always miss my little fishing buddie!

One day you and I will fish together again!

Rest in peace Bubblan!

Flugfisketsdag i Bergeforsen sön 24/5

På söndag 24/5 mellan 09:00-17:00 är det Flugfisketsdag i Bergeforsen Indalsälven. Bla Hardy med Mattias Drugge, Vision och en hel del andra märken är på plats!

First time on the river this season!

Yesterday I feelt it was time to go down to the river and see how my body would react to some fishing and it went quite good. So back on track I will try fish more and more now in may and june. Also it was fun to see how the Easy Squids preformed in the water and I can say the did realy moove just like I wanted. Will upload an article about them this week.