Welcome / Introductions

[rodge47]

Hi everyone - I just got started flyfishing about 3 years ago and have mostly fished the Yakima and recently the Cedar. I have so much to learn, but can't think of a better way to spend free time "learning" something new. Not that I have much free time! This looks like a great forum and look forward to tun'in in.

[Fishing Lady]

Hello I started fly fishing when my husband brought me a pole home for Mothers Day. I am still really green. I fish some on the lake above my home. I am here to learn.

[hawkeye]

Glad to be in WA!

Moved here 3 months ago from New Mexico. Lots more water here and an end to 105 degree death marches through gardens of rattlesnakes to remote trickles devoid of trout. I am happy.

I have been flyfishing since age 5. Growing up in Iowa, this meant alot of bass, bluegill and carp. But I've also caught walleye, perch, crappie, and even catfish, on the fly. I like flyfishing for just about anything, but after an incredible trip to Alberta in 2002, bulls have been my passion. I like bushwaking to better waters and take a very DIY approach to flyfishing; not the type of a fisher that yearns to be part of the Yakima flotilla (though a very swell river). A personal goal is to catch all species (and subs) of the Family Salmonidae worldwide. I've spent the past 5 years adding alot of the smaller O. clarki and mykiss tribes from our arid regions to my list. And if you want to know about Apache trout or Gila trout, they have been my specialty so PM me.

I am very interested in participating in conservation efforts (I have a PhD in ecology, fancy eh?) and have participated on public panels in NM. I feel strongly about the unfortunately necessary oversight provided by grassroots conservation groups. The majority (but certainly not all) of the "scientists" that are employed with our fish and game departments (state and federal) are poorly prepared academically and professionally to understand the complex nature of natural populations, let alone manage them. Case in point: a few years ago, the endangered species coordinator for the Gila National Forest, home to the rarest trout in the world, was a dude with a M.S. in animal science degree and specializing in deer and elk. Not good. OK, off my soapbox.

If anyone wants some fishing company, I am game for that. I go fishing at least once a week and I'm trying to explore as many waters as possible, particularily around Monroe and Snohomish county. So much water, so little time...

Glad to be here, this is a great resource.

hawkeye

[Jarad Skeels]

Hello All,
I hail from the east side and have lived here all my life. I began this epic journey of fishing on the fly when i was about twelve or so, now at twenty-two i know less it seems than i did back then. I have definatly expanded the list of quarry i chase, what used to be exclusivly trout now includes steelhead, salmon, carp and most recently bronzbacks. I am happy to share what i know and always exited to learn.

[Jason B]

Hello my name is Jason Buehler and I was born and grew up in Bellingham. I come from along line of fishermen and have been fly fishing and tying flies from the age of 7. My big fish stories are many. When I lived in Montana I caught a 7lbs. brown on the Madison with a skulpin pattern I desiged. That was Nirvava. I am now living in B'ham again. I used to work at H&H Outdoor sports but no longer. Some people here may have known me than. I sold a lot of SAGE rods as I am still and avid fan of theirs. My good friend Liam Wood perished in the Olympic Pipeline explosion while fly fishing Whatcom Creek in 1999. You may have heard of that. I wrote a stoy called "A Fly Fisher That Once Was" back than which is published online at a fishing story site, can't remember the name. In recent years I have been focusing my attention on fly fishing for bass as they are very un-salmonoid-like in behavior and offer new possibilities. Haven't caught a steelhead on a fly in 2 years although I don't get out much anymore, used to fish 200 days a year but now am forced to be a work-aholic as I no longer am supported by my parents. I am currently 24 and live on the Nooksak river near Nugents corner and have 3 private fishing ponds.

[flyfisherbabe]

Hello,

Just joined so I can keep up with the latest fishing news in the Snohomish County area.

Both husband and I are avid fisherman. Like to fish from our Watermaster Kick Boats. We now have one son and wife and granddaughter joining us. My 7 yr old granddaughter can still ride in the back of my Kick Boat, wearing a life jacket,(if a full grown labrador retriever can ride back there, a 50 lb child can too). I have a lot of fun with her onboard with me. She nets my fish and keeps me entertained.

Have a great day.

Flyfisherbabe

[jrathe@comcast.net]

Hello my name is Jan. I grew up in the mid-west Duluth, Minnesota. Right in the middle of some of the best fishing in the U.S. Now I live in the Puget Sound Area on the Kitsap Penninsula, another place close to alot of good fishing. I still fish alot in Minnesota as I have a cabin on Island Lake north of Duluth. I am new to this site and new to Fly Fishing. I am very excited!!! My dad and grandfather were excellent fly fisherman and I kick myself for not going fly fishing with them. I fished with my dad all the time other than fly fishing. I have a wonderful friend who is now disabled and will teach me. I have been building my equipment and yes I have acquired some very nice high quality equipment. It is so nice to hear from the women who are in the fly fishing world. Any words of wisdom I am open to all. And I will not be intimidated by the men. Hope to meet some of you. Good Fishing!!!!

[lochsabound]

I have been lurking around here for a few days now and thought I would go ahead and come out of the shadows. I have been fly fishing for about 20 years now and the addiction continues. I do a lot of fishing in Idaho but in between trips I like to hit the small streams on the westside of the Cascades. Looking forward to gleaning info. Thanks!

[rock_creek_junky]

New to this forum:

Born on the east coast, fish maryland and PA C&R streams.
Lived in Vail CO, fish out west as much as I can. Father of 2 that hate when I go fishing.

Fishing in PA and MD is tough, I mean the fish come up just to see if it is the same guy that threw some junk at them a few minutes ago. Then back to the bottom. Sneaking up on the fish just makes them suspicious, and they lay low. You get so frustrated that you feel like tossing a throw net at em.

It'll be good to get out west again, heading back to Rock Creek, mid august, maybe again late september/oct.

[DB]

Hi Everyone,

I've been 'stalking' the site for nearly 1 year and no excuses really for not joining sooner, anyway thanks to all the posters for great info, some complete nonsense and more than few good laughs (Mingo springs to mind, his pneumatic avatar always seem to catch my eye too :-) Anyway I'm Scottish, based in Ballard, Seattle and with 2 wee kids so mostly all I can do is dream of getting out. I'm into SRCs and salmon, I'm trying for steelhead but with my current family situation it's been tough to find the time, still the wife got me a TFO 12.6 ft spey for my B'day so there's hope. Anyway, thanks again to all the posters and if you bump into a 6'4'' Scotsman in the Sound, or the Sky/Sauk or Skagit, it's probably me.

Cheers,

Dave

[bake]

Hello Folks

Great site. I have been lurking for a while, but joined up recently. I have been flyfishing for about 5 years, fishing for about 40. I grew up in Idaho, about 60 miles from the Bigwood River and Silver Creek. My "home waters" would be Warm Springs Creek, in Ketchum Idaho. Or it was for the last 35 years. My family just sold the place there that my grandfather built, so I am a bit adrift without these home waters. Have done a bit of flyfishing in WA in the last few years (moved here in 93) and have recently been trying to buy some property in the Methow valley... looking forward to the Twisp and Methow Rivers.

Anyway, there is an introduction. Now that that is done, back to the lurking and reading.

Bake

[truckee fly]

Just Registered Today 7-25-2006 And Will Be Moving To Washington Late November From Truckee, Ca. Until Then I Am Making Regular Trips To Puyallup And Vancouver, Wa. I Am Taking A Trip To Mt. Rainier Labor Day Weekend And Wanted To Know If Anyone Has Any Tips On Fishing The Ohanapecosh, I Been Told Its A Tricky Stream To Fish. Please Correct Me If I'm Wrong, But A Washington State Fishing License Is Not Needed In The National Park.
For Those Of You Who Respond, I Thank You In Advance.

[StoneFlyMan]

A friend of mine told me about this forum and once I visited it I just had to join, this forum rocks ! We have a forum we go on called the NGTO here in Georgia, its become too much BS and not enough flyfishing, so I ventured out and here I am. I have been flyfishing since 2002 and love it, I love it so much I moved to the Blueridge mtns in North Georgia, bought a river front home and started up my own Trophy Trout club called Mossys Trophy Trout , 31 members strong and we are catching 18 - 34 inch rainbows on average, I also started up a Flyfishing guide service here in the area, have over 6 private waters to guide on as well as I guide quail & pheasant too. So look for me here and I will post pictures of the rainbows, browns & brookies for your viewing pleasure..

Attached is a picture of a male rainbow I caught back in decemeber 2005, caught him on a ultra light due to the 5 weight was in the truck.
He weighed 6 1/2 lbs and measured 23 1/2 inches long.


The other guy with the big smile is a trout club member holding up a nice rainbow he caught right in front of my house.

[mbcracken]

Hey there,

I just finally started more fly fishing and finally decided to register and say Hi. I live in Fall City and am going to be fishing at random times mostly for trout as I don't have a setup for stillies.

I've had a basic rod/reel for a while now, but finally plunked some money down on waders & boots so i can truly get wet. I plan on mostly fishing Snoq and some of the upper forks for now. My cast is a little less then fair but plan on practicing more and more.

Cheers,
Mike

[SciTeacher]

Hello. I've been reading this forum for some time now. I fish in Oregon and Idaho a lot in the summer. I'm always looking for places closer to home to fish. Hope to post some fish stories soon.
Tight lines!!

[allenro]

I'm a northeast fly fisherman and love to see how people do things around the country. This is a great site with alot of good info. I've lurked for awhile and liked the way people share info here. I mostly fly fish for Stiped Bass, Bluefish, Weakfish and False Albacore from the beach and kayak.

[Fishtales]

Hi everyone! I stumbled across this site and was happy to find a site dedicated to flyfishing in Washington. I've lived all over the country, but learned to flyfish with my grandpa on the Bitteroot in Montana, and later on the many rivers and streams in Colorado.

These days I'm lucky to get out fishing once a year or so since I'm also a stay-at-home dad with a couple of munchkins. So instead, I live vicariously through my weekly comic strip Fish Tales that I write and draw that appears on my own website, as well as other fishing websites.

Having learned most of my fishing skills in Colorado, I've found that flyfishing in Washington is a whole different ballgame, and I hope to learn from some of you local experts.

[johan851]

Hey team!

I'm planning a backpack north of Lake Chelan that'll start in a couple of weeks, and I wanted to brush up on my (very) basic fly fishing knowledge before I left. I'm finding all kinds of cool stuff on this site...I think I'm going to make this a hobby. :)

[Driften]

I guess I better say "Hi"
I am just starting out with fly fishing. A buddy got me interested and we are taking a fly fishing class together in a couple of weeks. I have learned a lot just reading this group and seaching the posts. I live in Issaquah and plan on doing lots of fishing on the forks of Snoqualmie river. I am most interested in fishing creeks and small rivers for trout.

Jeff

[bavnuts88]

Im a new one too. Just bought me a fly pole and was hoping for a couple tips to get started. Im in Marysville and work for the Govt. From central Cali where the big bass roam. Im a bass fisher at heart, but I love to get out and get some trout, crappie, bluegill, anything else really. See you on the fishing grounds

[hatchetjack]

Hello from North Bend.

I joined up today. I fish the S. Fork of the Snoqualmie a lot. It's a stone's throw from my place. My fishing partner is my 10 year old son Ethan. He's been fly fishing for about 3 seasons and is great fun to watch.

If you see a kid with a Red Sox cap and his dad, that's us!

Hatchetjack-

[FlyFisherKid]

hi guys im new here and i am loving fly fishing ive been doing it for five months and found that this is a spectacular sport:thumb:

[sparky]

Hello!
I'm new to fly fishing, and fairly new to Yakima, moved here almost a year ago. Any advice would be much appreciated!

[ratcitycat]

Hey all , born and bred in rat city.Been flyfishing &:beer1:beer1: since I was 16.Taught by a guide named Mike who used to work at Sportswest & Warshalls.I have fished most of WA for trout & salmon. Hope to share & recieve info. :ray1: :cool: :beer2:

[tieoneon]

Hello!

This site is very important to the success of fly fishing in washington state. Thank you for giving fly fishermen in washington the forum to address issues that need addressing and lie or ass off.

[Mark Graham]

ok so i have belonged to this sight for a little while, but never formally introduced myself. my name is mark and i spend my time in kitsap and mason co. i live in e. bremerton and have a family vac. home in tahuya. i really enjoy reading all the posts and all the collective knowledge. so hello everbody!!!

[Sam Soule]

Hello everyone,

My name is Sam and I recently moved to Seattle from Michigan. I have been fishing trout in Michigan for the past 12 years and love the lake run Steelhead we have there. I have no idea about the lay of the land here and i am very curious so any tips will help. Can't wait to start hookin up again.

Tight lines

Sam Soule

[6wtboo]

:) Hi all - was just doing some browsing looking for a fly tying forum. Have been fly fishing now for about 16 years. Just got into tying this past week. Apparently one can never know too much about this activity. Really can't do too much FF here in SOCAL. Sure miss all those lovely rivers that you have in WA. Use to live in Woodinville. You all have a very nice site here. Hope that I can pick up some good tips as well as some constructive critique.

[Citori]

Greetings,

I have been on this site for a couple months now. I started fly fishing in Idaho in 1968, started flyfishing for steelhead in earnest on the Green, pre Green River Killer. Caught my first steelhead on a fly on the Green about 2 mi. above Soos Creek. I have since caught Tarpon at Homosassa in the Gulf, thrown flies at Belize tarpon, caught some Belize bonefish.

I have been away from flyfishing for a while, getting back into it. I am not a youngster, but it is fun re-learning the far and fine. This fall I will be hitting the Grande Ronde, the Methow if it opens, the Stamp for my first time on Vancouver Island, and perhaps the Wenatchee if it opens.

Hope to see you on the river. I am 6'7" tall, gray hair. If you see me, say Hi.

Andy

[Yasuhiro]

Konnichiwa!

My name is Yasuhiro and moved from Kyoto Japan several years ago. I live in Bellingham area and spend my weekends on Skagit, Thompson and other North sound/ BC rivers.

[Alexander]

Greetings,

My name is Alexander. I used to live in WA and been around a bit, TX, CO and now MT. I'm married and my wife's native to WA (born in Everett). Been registered here for a while but never post much since I haven't been back for a while and do most of my fishing in the Rocky Mountain area.

[Reel Fishman]

Hello everybody! I am new to this forum. My name is David Fishman, (hence Reel Fishman)... I have flyfished on and off, mostly off, for a few years. Lately I have been fishing more than ever, bout once a week. I like fishing for most cold water fish's, (trout, salmon). I find flyfishing very therapeutic, (you know calms the anxiety, I have two teens). I still haven't cought that elusive steelhead yet. Actually I haven't cought a salmon either! Good thing is, I am still anticipating that very first fight, and I am still as motivated as ever. I hope by joining this forum and reading all your success stories, I might join the club.

I am a part time humorous writer and have written short stories regarding fishing. It's amazing what you can write about when your not catching anything! LOL. Anyway.................

It will be nice to meet all of you,

David.

[Tim Garton]

Hi all. Good evening. Sitting hear listening to classical NPR and reading fly fishing posts. Finally... a fly fishing forum site with significant traffic. Can't comment on the quality of traffic but, since I just started fly fishing in June what the hell do I know about quality anyway. Glad to be here.

[esoxesox]

Hello from a Duluth, MN steelheader!!!

I bumped into your site doing research for timing a trip to see my Mom in Seattle to make sure I get a little time on the water (she moved out west from MN a couple years ago). Fantastic site!!! Great info and a lot of traffic which keeps things interesting. I wish we had something like that for the Lake Superior tribs. Well, no, I don't. None of the little streams around here need any more publicity than they already get. A dozen guys on most of the north shore streams are a crowd. Most if my time from late September through November is spent chasing Brule River steelhead. The river is gorgeous and the fish are a challenge. Spring sends me up Lake Superiors North Shore in search of the spring run fish that enter the streams in early April through late May. Lake Superior steelhead aren't terribly huge. Fish in the low 30 inch class are the big ones while most fish we get are 24"-28". They are a tremendous battle though. Beats the snot out of the local favorite walleyes that fight like a wet boot.

Anyway, happy to have found the site. Thanks for opening it up to those of us DREAMING of NW steel!!!


Scot
aka - esoxesox

[Dan Kell]

I joined the board recently. I've been fly fishing for about 25 years now. I got the fly fishing bug after fishing the Klamath in California for steelhead with a neighbor. We used Silver Hiltons on a spinning rod with bubbles. I actually started tying flies before I ever picked up a fly rod. I finally built a fly rod and haven't looked back since.

[frankrutledge]

Hello,
I am new to this site and new to fly fishing. I am a native West Seattleite and have been fishing in the Seattle area all my life but mainly for salmon in the sound. I then got into spin casting for salmon awhile back. This last fall I tried fly fishing and bought a rod this spring. I took the summer off from work and fished a lot all summer. The snoqualmie, the Stilly, The Sky, the Yak. and some on the Provo in Utah, plus a ton of WA. lakes (though I didn't really care for the lake fishing).
I went just about anywhere my old car could go. I have read a 3 or 4 books on fly fishing and trying to get the basics down so I can catch more fish. I'm looking forward to using this site as a tool for knowledge and meet some people who are also looking to fish with someone newer. If you'd like to go fishing let me know? I am as I said in West Seattle so nothing is convenient, but I don't mind driving.
Frank

[Charlie S]

Experienced fly fisher still learning after well over 50 years of waving the rod. Like to tie, build rods, help teach anything about fly fishing and related subjects, especially to kids. Moving to Spokane in the near future to retire and fish the rest of my life away.

[Steelhead Stud]

Hello,

My name is David Thurman. Studying at UW in civil engineering (Juvenile Fish Passage in Culverts). I joined the site to see about when silvers were coming in on the beaches (didnt really happen). I have been spey fishing for about 7-8 years and grew up fishing the Sandy and Deschutes in Oregon. I am enjoying the rivers of this state a lot. I will most likely not post though.

Cheers!

[kstrehle]

My name is Keven Strehle and I was introduced to this site by a fishin buddy of mine and it is a tremendous resource. Kudo's to the administrators!
I produce a TV show called NW Backroads and during the last six years I have tried to get as much of your passion on the air. It doesn't hurt that I am a die hard fly-fisherman. If you know of great fishing stories, or of great personalities that would make compelling TV, please doen't hesitate to pitch it. I would love nothing more than to make the show as much about fishing as I possibly can, but need your help. If you like what we do, let us know and we'll do more.

Tight lines! Keven

[Lucky Ducky]

Well, I will tell you all straight up.. I know nothing about fly fishing, except that I want to learn how to do it. I live in Seattle and want something to do that will get me out on the rivers and wilderness in general. I got my first copy of Northwest Fly Fishing magazine and a pamphlet on the basic how to's on the sport in the mail today.

I don't even own a rod yet, but I am going to get one and start practicing my casting. I am self employed and have time I can take to learn how to fly fish and travel to fishing spots here locally and further off in Eastern Washington, Idaho, Montana, Wyoming.

I have been an outdoors sportsman most my life. Hunting Elk, bow hunting mule deer, hunting chuckar, even trapped bobcat and coyote for a few years in northern Nevada back in the 1980's. Never fly fished though.

This is a great site, I can tell that already from the short time I have visited. Looking forward to learning from you all. I might even keep you posted on my progress, or lack of it, lol!