Fly fishing...

Pelican, very inventive. I use a piece of plastic screen with zip ties cemented on it--that way i can roll it up when I paddle and get it out of the way. I was also worried about wind catching it--hence the screen and softness of the material to drape over the cockpit. Still needs refinement though--but at least tangles, which used to be a major problem, are mostly gone now.

Can we see some pics of what you guys are talking about????

I tried a similar situation a few years ago. It worked OK. I actually had and used these little plastic cones that were made to put on the aprons of float tubes and pontoon boats. I did pretty much the same as the Marmot did (By the way I have your lighter Daniel . You lent it the the worst lighter thief to ever come out of Texas.) Pelican you have the right ideal in making you pad stay put. What I eventually figured out was the practice of good line control eliminated one less item I had to have in the cock pit. This is how I go about it. I 'll strip the amount of line off the reel I think I'll be using, then I strip that line back in a neat coiled pile so that when I do cast it shoots out nice and neat. basically I'm using stripping basket techniques. If I was still using LC13 I might try a combination of what you guys are doing.

Tote,
Its really ugly hack right now, but I plan on makign a better one for this weekend--I'll post pictures. You are a pretty innovative and inventive guy--I saw your trailer. Maybe my poor hack will inspire you to create something very cool and elegant we can all use. too bad Sean isn't a fly fisher, he 's retty innovative too.

In the kayak your legs form a natural stripping basket, although it takes a little adjustment in stripping technique to get used to laying the line down in front instead of off to the side. I just leave the loop pad in place and it dosen't budge. The loops seem to  recoil right back after you put something on them. I've been using a T-14 head with intermediate runnung line and the running line just sails off the loop pad like it was in a strippng basket. I don't have a digital camera but maybe I can post a drawing ( I'm an illustrator after all ), and I do have a scanner. Tight Lines!

Nice idea Pelican. I took a foam pad and put in weed trimmer line loops (picked orange to go with my Prowler color  ). I compressed the bend with pliers to make them 'pointy' and glued them in with Goop. Worked well for most the day, but I kept pulling out the loops, one by one so that half were gone by dusk--the Goop didn't bond well. I have some ideas for refinements that should fix the problems and I am going to make it 'foldable' so I can stow it for ocean launches  I'll post pictures. Ocean you say? Yes I have a goal to get a Mackeral, Rockfish, Cabezon, Lingcod, and whatever else on a kayak on the fly in the ocean.  I have caught Rockfish from a boat out of santa Cruz fly fishing, but not on a kayak.

Marmot - I used 3"loops made with an overhand knot that I pulled tight with pliers. The simple knot kind of bends out almost at a right angle to the loop which not only makes it hold better but it is also flatter on the underside of the pad. I pushed the loops through the holes and stopped about 1/2"before the knot hit the pad. Then I coated the knots and 1/2" of line with Devon Weldit, it's an all purpose contact adhesive. Give it 5 min. and then pull the loops up so the knots are tight to the bottom of the pad. At this point you can orient the loops to face any way you want since they have a curve in them.  I have them all leaning slightly to the right since I'm right handed and strip the line into loops from right to left and when I make the cast the line is shooting out to the right side. You can add another coat of Weldit on top and bottom and you should be good to go. The pad I made this way was an experiment but it's held up well and it works. Tom

Hi Fellow Yakers:

                     I'm in for a trip with Ricky next mo. Any tips on fishing Franks' Track. I'm sure I'll
learn a lot from Ricky but I don't want to keep bugging him before our trip on Feb. 3.
                                                                                                                      Thanks
                                                                                                                      Ernie
                                                                   

Jeff,
I have been fly fishing for a long time. Taken large & small mouth bass, catfish, carp, bluegill, crappie, trout (browns, rainbow, brookie, golden, cutthroat, grayling, dolly vardon, et al.) steelhead and shad. Relative to equipment, I would visit www.theflyshop.com or www.bobmarriotts.com to check out prices...stop by the Outdoor Pro Shop (Rohnert Park or Oakland) talk with a salesman. Don't purchase anything though. When you decide the price range you are able to live with...then go to www.cabelas.com and check out their pricing. Over the years I bought lots of equipment and I just can't find a better dealer than Cabelas (price, availability, warranty..). Don't allow yourself to get suckered into spending $500 for a start up outfit. You should be able to get rod, reel, (w/ additional spool), backing, WF floating & WF sinking line, leaders and tippets for under $250 (includes rod and reel cases). Once you realize you are hooked then you can start saving your cash...cause your going to need it. Split bamboo Fly rods in the thousands of dollars and reels to $600+.  But don't go there anytime soon. I've caught thousands of fish on a $60 Cortland rod and $25 martin reel. Good luck...

Don't allow yourself to get sucked into high-priced fly fishing gear any time!

I have fished the same river with folks with $2,000 gear and those with a $150 reddington outfit--and seen the fish tally go either way. Remeber: the only thing the fish sees is you fly, tippet, and presentation. And its a rare trout that you get on the reel. It's a combination of skill and luck. Luck you cannot change but skill you can work on. But skill has little to do with equipment and everything to do with practice, thoughfulness, and 'being in the moment' zen-like.

I have 2 Sages and 7 rods that I made myself and some others and go fly fishing between 50 and a hundred days a year. I met my latest buddy after we both bought Cabela Traditional Fly rods of different generations and we both think they are great first fly rods.
A Cabela package with the Tradition and reel and line is about $130 I think. I like the 4 piece. It can fit inside a suitcase and works fine. They guarantee your satisfaction for a year and if you later want a new rod, you can use this one as a loaner or backup.
It comes with a floating line. If you need to have it sink, you can add 100 feet of mono on the end like a real long leader and it will sink a lot more. In an emergency, I did that at Heenan lake and still caught Lahontan cutthroats. You can't cast it, but it trolls fine.