Good morning, good coffee and a few different flies....

Today is National Coffee Day, and I'm celebrating with several cups of my favorite brew. It's Nantucket Blend from Green Mountain Coffee. I enjoy it black, for that's the way to really get the true taste of coffee, "my opinion only"....you know when you open a bag of coffee and you are greeted with that gorgeous smell, well that's how black coffee tastes. Lots of great deals out there today at local coffee sellers....go for it folks.

Here is an interesting pattern. I found this in a book given to me by a faithful follower of this blog. The book is "Limestone Legends"...the pattern is called the "Madsen". The fly was originated by Michigan angler Earl Madsen. The fly found favor on the famous limestone streams of Pennsylvania. They say the fly is perfect for those warm summer days when the fish would take it as a land based insect that had been blown into the water.

And seeing how we are headed south at least from Connecticut here is another pattern from the southern Appalachians. The fly is called "Corey's Calf Tail"....the caption in the book calls it a "great" attractor fly...it's said it fishes well at dusk and in larger sizes.

Seasonal Changes Along A Small Stream

Clear water, trout will be found along the shady bank

As the season changes some notice very little of it. Yeah football starts, baseball is going to it's post season and a tree or two has started to show color. Life along a small stream as well as in the stream show those changes as well. The water levels are dropping, rain is needed but it is not that bad. The waters have cooled and with the lower flows the clarity of the stream is magnified. The last few outings are shown here and you will see them. Please enjoy.

Contrasts....colored leaf, brown bug.

A tad more orange and this jewel will be ready to meet a mate.

A peaceful place to cast a fly. A strike could come from anywhere.

See what I mean....it could and it did.

The wild brook trouts greatest need, cold clean flowing water.

Unpretentious...a wild brookie and a simple fly.

While about the woods stop and pickup a few wild hickory nuts. Spend some time cracking and picking and....

And someone might take them and put them into some gingerbread. And the best of it is this blogger can enjoy some as I finish this.

Reversed Soft Hackle Flies aka "Kebari"

The reversed tied soft hackle fly, and known by it's other name Kebari. Tenkara has brought these simple flies to the forefront here in America over the years. Tenkara is a very old form of fly fishing from Japan. It is highly effective and I believe it has a great deal to do with the flies used and the way they are presented. I do not fish the traditional Tenkara style but I do use the Kebari style of fly. These flies are simple in construction, using a few materials one can create many forms of insect life.

Below are a few of the Kebari, reversed soft hackle flies that I tie and use.

"Yellow Body Dun"...yellow thread forms the body, with a dun hackle wrapped in reverse.

"Olive Body, Mottled Hen"...olive thread with a mottled hen feather wrapped in reverse.

"Yellow Body, Peacock and Pheasant"...Yellow Thread, peacock herl, and a pheasant feather wrapped in reversed. Just a note...notice how many variations in color come from the one pheasant feather....the fish do.

"Burlap Body, Peacock and Pheasant"...this fly uses a thread body made of burlap, a peacock thorax and a pheasant feather wrapped in reverse.

Images

Posted here are some images of the wonders that surround the small stream. They may be small wonders but they are very large in the heart and soul of this angler. I hope you can take from these and put the thoughts of what they represent into your days and I truly hope all of you can enjoy the experience for yourself.