Sunday, January 26, 2020

Winter Declaration And Small Stream Rods

Today is January 26th, it's still winter and spring is some time off in March. By this time I for one am tired of winter, tired of the drab color, the frozen water, and the color of white. I usually tolerate winter until the baseball spring training starts before trashing winter but this year I just can't deal with it. So I'm declaring "winter over" as of right now. I hope to feature in my future posts no signs of winter. There will be to pictures of any snow, ice, gloves or wool hats. I will try to not use the word snow, or cold arctic blast in my posts. Will this bring spring sooner? I know it already has for me.

I have received many email inquiries about my small stream set up and what rods, and other gear I use when fishing small streams. So I thought I'd share some of what I use when fishing small streams. The first post will be on graphite rods. Then later posts will be on fiberglass rods and then bamboo. There will be posts on reels, line and leaders and tippet.


The Orvis Superfine Small Stream Special..it's a 7' 5wt. 2 piece rod. I have had this rod since the early 90's and is one of the better rods ever produced for the small stream. Number one rod for roll casting.


The Orvis Superfine..a 6' 4wt 2 piece. This rod has been in my arsenal for a long time. A wonderful memory is attached to this rod. A 19" salmon was taken on it in Maine.


The Temple Fork Signature Series..a 6' 2wt. 2 piece. This rod was bought for it's reasonable price. What I received was years of perfection in all aspects of small stream fishing.


The Cabela's TQR..5' 2wt. 2 piece. I purchased this rod at a local Cabelas years ago. I think I paid 50.00 for it. I did not know what to expect from it when I fished it, but it's still in my arsenal...a memory with it. I was fishing a stream that had wild and stocked trout in it. The stream had huge boulders in it "super pocket water" and a stream I could not fish today because my legs won't permit it. But I cast into an upstream pocket and hooked a large trout. The rod performed very well and I managed a 15" stocked brown to hand.


Some chicken sausage. I made this yesterday and grilled it outside. Yes I did get a little wet. I used chicken tenders and cut them into small pieces. Add salt, black pepper, fennel seed, and fresh red peppers and fresh parsley.









36 comments:

  1. the Orvis superfine series with their unsanded blanks are the best of their best. The rods maintain a cult following. there is a facebook site dedicated to vintage orvis rods- check it out for more info on these great rods. Happy to see that the rods are still being fished.

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    1. John Pavao
      Thanks
      John I checked out that FB site and it's awesome. I also had the Superfine Far and Fine but sold it to a man who wanted it for his father.

      Delete
  2. I like my entry level LL Beans, suit my casting style (or lack there of). That 6' TFO is tempting!

    We've had a very mild winter. Most of my fishing has been on sunny 50 degree days.

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    1. billp
      Thanks
      Bill Bean had several fine small stream rods. TFO's are a fishermans rod.

      Delete
  3. Rage against the machine! Don Quixote of the trout stream tilting at icicles instead of windmills! I love that spirit; carry on, Alan, carry on. I've got a couple of the same rods as you (Superfine's) and I wouldn't part with them for anything. Another one that's served me well is a wonderful little St.Croix Avid 7' in 3wt.

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    1. mike
      Thanks
      Rage against the machine! Don Quixote of the trout stream tilting at icicles instead of windmills! I love that spirit; carry on, Alan, carry on.
      I like that. I have a St Croix Avid 6' 3wt. I would have shown it but I can't seem to find it. They are great rods.

      Delete
  4. Alan,
    Nice selection of rods. Good luck on your sprint to Spring. Many have tried but few have succeeded in such an endeavor. Like a lone rider that attempts an early breakaway...most are reeled in and punished by the peloton!
    The chicken looks wonderful now I'm officially hungry.
    JJ

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    1. Beaverdam
      Thanks
      Joe I know we are going to get slammed by a few snow storms, but I refuse to give winter the front page.

      Delete
  5. Love the superfines. Only graphite worth having. The 7' 5wt was named the "otter" when it first came out. Always wanted that model. I got the "tippet" instead. Still have that rod.

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    1. Unknown
      Thanks
      With so many of us who find this series of rods so well made and such pleasures to fish you wonder why Orvis pulled the plug on them.

      Delete
  6. I have 2-6wt, one for stream, one for lake, 1-3 wt. for streams. all graphite. OK, you caught me with the chicken sausage. Got to go eat breakfast.

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    1. Mark Kautz
      Thanks
      Mark those rods are perfect. How about a nice chocolate cupcake right now...

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  7. Alan, yes please! January in Skagit County has been a total blow-out. High winds, snow melt, rain and flood warnings. I have cast a carbon TFO Finesse rod, but not a Signature series. TFO seems to put out a decent casting rod for the $. My only reservation regarding overseas rods is the degree of focus on quantity over quality. I have yet to inspect one that has proper guide alignment.

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    1. Matt Harding
      Thanks
      Matt your winter sounds horrible. TFO a no frills fishing tool. They get it done.
      The proper alignment may indeed be because of poor manufacture. I always thought it was my eyes.

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  8. Alan, I also have a Superfine (3-4wt) which is my go to for most of the trout fishing I do these days. I also have an Orvis Tippet rod from the early 80's which was the predecessor to the Superfine series. Both these rods are 7 1/2 foot long and I have toyed with the idea of a 6 footer. I have a slew of heavier rods that I rarely use these days since my trout time is limited and I head for the smaller wild trout waters. You certainly have a nice selection to choose from.

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    1. NJpatbee
      Thanks
      Pat I'm not familiar with the "Tippet" I'm going to check them out online. Those longer heavier rods are nice for the big waters. The creeks ask for a kinder gentler rod.

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  9. Hi Alan

    My go to rod for small streams is also an Orvis Superfine........ Mine is a 664 Trout Bum (c2008). It has a wonderful full flex, a lovely slow action and is so accurate and delicate. Teamed with a Mirage I reel and a Hyrdros HD line it has landed wild browns up to 1 3/4 lb and grayling just over 2 lb.

    Roll on spring. We have had a cool and decidedly wet winter over here in the UK. I was out yester up in Teesdale and although the air temp was 8 - 9 degrees C (mid to upper 40s F) the wind chill of the water meant it felt a lot lower. Still, I managed 4 good grayling on Czech nymphs (3 of which were well over 1 1/2 lb).

    Here's to longer days and warmer weather.

    Thanks

    Alistair

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    1. Alistair
      Thanks
      The Trout Bum is a great rod. My buddy had one and loved it.
      Nice going on your success with the grayling...and yes bring on spring.

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  10. Alan, I've tried friends Orvis Superfine rods and yes they are a dream to fish. I have the Orvis 6'6" Flea. I previously made the homemade sausage with te country style ribs you mentioned and it was delicious. Now to try the chicken....

    Kurt

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    1. Brookie61
      Thanks
      Kurt I have heard of the "Flea" hang on to it. If you like the pork, you'll love the chicken.
      I'll see you Saturday at the Expo.

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    2. Alan, I'm ready for fishing and baseball. The cold never really bothered me until a couple of years ago. Now I understand what my older brothers were talking about. I look forward to seeing you Saturday. It looks like the weather Gods are going to withhold the precipitation.
      Kurt

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  11. Alan, I look forward to your future posts on small stream fishing techniques. I like your spirit in declaring winter to be over. I have had my fill too at this point, though today wasn't too bad with temps nudging into the 40's. The chicken sausage looks mighty tasty.

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    1. Sam
      Thanks
      Sam today was gorgeous. When the sun stayed out it felt so good. Fished today, streams was up and off color. Stoneflies about and willing browns.

      Delete
  12. Alan
    Graphite fly rods are my favorite because of their light weight. I have six fly rods differing weights and lengths all Graphite. Anyone of these fly rods you are using would be a choice for me on small streams. In fact the 7 ft. would work for me on the Sipsey. That had to be one awesome fight landing that 19" salmon on the 6 ft. 4wt. Thanks for sharing

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    1. Bill Trussell
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      Bill graphite has done itself proud as a fly rod material. Strong and light weight it's has what most anglers want in a fly rod. It was said that the length of a fly rod should be 8.5' but as far as I'm concerned 7' is perfect. That salmon was caught in the Upperdam Pool in Maine. I was on a rock pier in some pretty swift water.

      Delete
  13. sadly, rumour has it that orvis will no longer be making the superfine in graphite, only glass (great rods).

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    1. John Pavao
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      John corporate decisions are not always the best.
      Nabisco choosing to stop selling the "Pilot" cracker.

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  14. Replies
    1. John Dornik
      Thanks
      Landlocked...long and lean in September.

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  15. Oh man, Alan, that sausage. So simple, yet complex in the right ways. I'm trying that, maybe even this evening! Thanks for a great dinner idea.

    I agree on the Cabelas rods being surprisingly good. I own two, with a favorite being an 11ft 4wt "nymphing" rod, which I fish all sorts of flies from dries to streamers on and it works great. On larger water, it's surprisingly adept with a double haul - or single hand spey casting... while on smallish water, it's a super tightline rod. An impressive rod all around.

    TFO, I'm convinced, for the money, there is not a finer rod. I'm sure there are it's equal, but overall... TFO makes fantastic rods.

    Admittedly, this is just my opinion based on limited experience... It just jumped to me seeing your collection. The Orvis Superfine is intriguing. Every time I'm in Kittery, I swing into an Orvis outlet store to see if they have one on super "get rid of this thing" sale. So far, they have only been a little off retail, so I've not pulled the trigger... But I dont own a 3 weight or a 0... So perhaps I will eventually :)

    As for the winter, I'm blaming the 30" of snow we got a few days after thanksgiving. And the consistently "not" fully winter but "not" fully spring weather we keep having. Lets just skip February and go to March. Pat's are out of the big game, Sawx havent started up yet... Time to skip a month :)

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    1. Hibernation
      Thanks
      Will I know you will like the sausage. Lean stuff but spiced right it has lots of flavor.
      Both Cabelas and TFO rods have served me well. Trying to find a rod that everyone is looking for is tough. Right about now the best way to get one is from a friend or a relative. I have seen a few on ebay but the price is crazy. I think the pitchers and catchers show up in about 25 days.

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  16. Alan as a lifetime resident of New England I understand your mindset regarding our winter here. It can be maddening. Still I've never thought of living anywhere else. The winter a small price to pay to live in such a beautiful part of the world. Roughly 8 weeks to go, time enough to tie some flies-

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    1. Dean F
      Thanks
      Dean I'm with you. I love New England and my native state of Connecticut. But it seems that as I age the cold is colder, and the snow is snowier. But I'll never leave.
      Tie flies, enjoy hot coffee and some blueberry pancakes with native maple syrup.

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  17. Hello Alan, do not complain about so cold there in your region, we have winter seasons for six months a few years here on the southern mainland, as it is here in Tierra del Fuego. but it is also a very pleasant time to practice other sports since it is forbidden to fish in winter and the season starts again in November ... patience!

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    1. I think those rods are excellent, I congratulate you on your arsenal of rods

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