Leap Day Number Three is a Monday Morning Sidewalk Day!
texas fly fishing marsh fly pops fly shop texas weather
HAPPY LEAP DAY PEOPLE!
Welcome to the leap day on the Monday Morning Sidewalk. This is our third leap day since the site kicked off in 2007, which should give anyone a minute of pause, if for no other reason than to wonder just how long someone can keep writing about something like fly fishing for so long. It still hasn’t occurred to me to quit the quill here, but it would be nice to hear from the hundreds that show up here daily – not all “hundreds” of course, just one would do.
A funny thing happened a couple days ago. I was out somewhere fishing, and my phone rang – something that wouldn’t have happened (where I was geographically) nine years ago, and this guy is wondering where PoPs Fly Shop is located. A conversation ensued where I let him know that was an online store (thanks any Google for mapping it so well to my home!), and it has flies I tie for people wanting a unique advantage fly fishing around here and on Texas saltwater (to a lesser extent).
This young man is headed to (God’s Great) Asheville, North Carolina, in July, and wanted flies for that trip. I put in my 2-cents-worth on swinging more abstract patterns, but didn’t have the chance to let him know he’d be better off waiting until right before leaving, and gather fresh information about conditions and flies right then. Maybe he will follow up.
We’ve had some fantastic, but windy, weather the last several days. It’s almost impossible to imagine that a year ago yesterday, there was about four inches of snow on the ground and we were struggling to save the buds on a prematurely budding Ranger Peach tree. We had peaches, and we’re looking at 75-degrees today with a 5-10 south wind. You know what today’s workout is going to be for this dog, don’t you?
I heard from Texas fly rod company Marsh Fly last week. In case you don’t know, Marsh Fly is a young, progressive fly rod builder on the Texas Coast, I think somewhere around Texas City. Anyway, there was a lot of talk, and I listened some too; a lot of talk about fly rods, glass, shorter rods, one piece fly rods and much more. My big takeaway from the conversation is that their success, in the last year, (no surprise to me) came from states other than Texas.
Forty and a Mule
There’s a lot of rearranging around the homestead these days, as my life has been dually rejiggered – a move more toward artistic expressions in my “daily work,” and a forced attention to a physical workout routine – in an attempt to regain control of my weight, and put it back on the right way. There’s a also one of those short e-books coming out in time for this season – on the basics of lake carp on the fly, and bigger projects in the conceptual phase as well.
Last week also marked the return to the video airwaves for the Texas Fly Caster YouTube Channel, even though it was, and I am, very rusty in that department. With the fly fishing conditions we have, I couldn’t wait to take to the airwaves any longer. The weekly Texas Fly Fishing reports are currently homeless, out of the Fly Bar for now. The Fly Bar has been converted into the Try Bar, an outdoor weight room – until further notice.
Be sure to check your local listings for Texas fly fishing club meetings! And be sure to remember to check out fly tying gatherings all across Texas as well. I am currently working on a story for publication (not here, a paid gig) on the amazing number of regularly scheduled fly tying opportunities from one end of Texas to the other. There’s even a rod building “convention” coming to North Texas very soon. Check back here, and I will break this all down for your benefit.
My request from you for the week? Go take a look at the Marsh Fly USA website and hit their “Contact” page. Let them know you’re interested in their work, getting your hands on their rods, and where you heard about them. It’s the only request I have of you this entire week. Let me know what you want from me …
Have a fantastic week, and arrive safely to your destinations wherever they may be.
Category: Backcasting, Body-Mind-Soul, Complimentary Reading, Culture on the Skids, Equipment, Fly Art, Fly Fishing For Carp, Fly Rods, Fly Tying, Industry
