Well, sorta…

Yesterday, results from a recent study by Frances Kuo, a professor of natural resources and environmental science and psychology at the University of Illinois were released.  Apparently, science has discovered what us fly fishermen have known all along- access to nature is essential to human health.

This study  is more about the effects of habitat change on humans and how living in more urban environments, landscapes that lack trees or other natural features, to undergo patterns of social, psychological and physical breakdown that are strikingly similar to those observed in other animals that have been deprived of their natural habitat, Kuo said.

Just wait till you read this part-

“In our studies, people with less access to nature show relatively poor attention or cognitive function, poor management of major life issues, poor impulse control,” she said.

The article goes on to say that, “none of these studies proves conclusively that nature is essential to optimal functioning in humans,” Kuo suggests that the body of evidence strongly points in that direction.

I’ll just call this one as I see it.  Cabin fever explained.

I just finished reading “The Alaska Chronicles,” by Miles Nolte.  I’m just sitting here with a big smile across my face, like a teenage boy who just got a glimpse of his first naked girl.  Quite frankly, this is hands down one of the best books I’ve ever read.  This is more than just the tale of a guide’s journey through an Alaskan fishing season.  This is literary poetry.

Not only did I find myself repeatedly laughing out loud, I found myself drawn back by the words I was reading.  Words on a page just like these, but put together so eloquently that they could provoke an average joe fly fisherman into pondering deep, philosophical thoughts.  Thoughts he has no business pondering.

From the moment I picked this book up, to the disapointment of having to turn the final page, I was there in the wilds of southwest Alaska; braving the mock charges of colossal Brown Bears, jockeying for hierarchy among a group of unlaundered fishing guides, racing a jet boat through boulder strewn rapids, and being annoyed by narcissistic “sports”.  I was there inhaling fresh blueberries at the edge of a remote pond filled with voracious northern pike.  I could feel the warm beer flowing down my throat while I sat stranded on the river bank after my boat died on a Bristol Bay tributary.  As I sit here typing, wide eyed, unable to hold back this big shit-eating grin across my face- I’m still there.

The Alaska Chronicles will be available in March ’09 via Departure Publishing.  One of this budding publisher’s goals is to seek out accomplished writers who seek to challenge the traditional boundaries of sporting and expedition publishing.  Instead of releasing the carbon copy volumes you’re used to reading, they aim to publish something truly unique.  And that they have with The Alaska Chronicles- 216 pages, and 40 beautiful b&w photos of novel awesomeness.

It’s like Gierach, just better.

Click Here for your chance to win a free signed copy, other reviews, an excerpt, as well as a free wallpaper download.

Only six more months till I’m helping my father-in-law unload the 12′ Deep-V from the ass end of the pickup.  Of course my son and brother-in-law will be there as well.  We’ll slide it into the water, throw all of our gear in there, and slowly troll across the lake to that little cove behind the island.  They’ll be fishing with a glob of worms on the end of their line, I’ll be the lone fly fisherman.  We’ll BS as each of us tries to be the first one to hook up.  They’ll occasionally tell me I’d be better off with worms, and I’ll politely decline(last year, I outfished the three of them put together).

Doing something as simple as going fishing or hunting together used to be a daily occurence.  Now, my son and I live 900 miles from them.  Trips back to Michigan are only possible once a year, and when you think about stuff like life expectancy, we’ve got less days like this ahead of us than we used to get to share in a single season.

Trips that were once taken for granted, are now treasured.

This little guy is under ice right now.

[clicking heels]

There’s no time like May…
There’s no time like May…
There’s no time like May…

[/clicking heels]

I can’t say I was very enthusiastic when I checked out the 10 day forecast this morning. I was hoping for a day in the 40′s, but it’s just not in the cards right now. So since I won’t be fishing for the foreseeable future, I’m coping the only way I know how.

I’m planning more trips for myself this year than I have vacation time for, most are to places I probably won’t be able to afford to visit until my kids are out of the house. I’m tying flies for hatches I likely won’t see, but might. I started going to the gym a few days ago. Not for rock hard abs, even though I need to drop a few pounds. My motivation is that I’ll feel fresh after a long hike into an Adirondack brookie pond, or on those days steelheading where it’s all too common to put 4-5 miles on my boots. I picked up a pair of goggles. Yeah, I got a strange look from the Mrs. when she got home from work and found me laying on the bottom of the bath tub, taking pics of my dry flies from under water, but she’s learned to expect that kind of stuff from me. It’s that window of the year where preperation for the coming season is the only way to keep myself sane.

Preparation, and days dreams. They’re all I’ve got.

Have you noticed? The season is over.  As of tomorrow, there are only 111 days till the official first day of Spring. I don’t know about you, but I tend to get a major case of cabin fever each winter. Here are 16 things to do to beat the winter blues and get ready for the upcoming fishing season.

1.) Flies

First things first. Before you start tying or buying flies for the upcoming season, go through your boxes and get rid of the experiments gone wrong from last year as well as any with rusted hooks. Organize your boxes so that you can find the fly you need, when you need it. Something else to remember is to make sure you have your contact info on your fly boxes, should you lose them. I’ve learned this the hard way, twice.

2.) Suck Up

Do some extra chores around the house and encourage the Mrs. to go shopping, or out with her friends. This will pay off huge during the season when the grass is almost knee high and you’re going fishing for the 10th day in a row.

3.) Fly Line Maintenance

Take your lines off the spool and clean them. There are many methods. I soak mine in some warm dish water, then thoroughly rinse them off a couple times. Be sure to not leave any soapy residue on the line. Once they’re good and clean, dry them by running the lines through a dry cloth, as well as your fingers, feeling for any rough spots.

4.) Check Your Backing

Unspool your backing. Whether you saw your backing last year or not, it’s a good idea to unspool your backing. Chances are good there will be a spot or two where it’s stuck. Wait to spool it back on until after you clean/lube your reel.

5.) Reel Care

Once your reels are free of backing and fly line, thoroughly clean the dirt, sand, or any other debris that might be in them. Also, clean off any old grease with a degreasing agent or brake cleaner. Brake cleaner will evaporate, thus no residue. Once your reel is sparkling clean, apply some fresh lube. I use Quantum Hot Sauce. Don’t get any type of grease or oil on your fly line! If taking stuff apart and putting it back together isn’t your thing, most reel manufacturers will service it for a nominal fee.

6.) Fly Rod Checkup

There’s not a whole lot to do with rods. But it’s probably a good idea to look your rods over for any signs of stress. I also like to take an old tooth brush and go over the threads on my reel seat to get out any dirt, sand, etc.  Check the male and female ferrules for dirt, as well. If there is, clean them with a non abrasive material.

7.) Clean Out and Organize Your Vest

“There’s that peanut butter and jelly sandwich I couldn’t find last Summer!”

“Still tastes great!”

Empty out all of the pockets in your vest and organize everything so you can find it on opening day. Make sure you’ve got enough split shot, bobbers, floatant, etc. Check your vest’s zippers, Velcro, hydration pack, etc. for any signs they might need replaced.

8.) Leaders and Tippet

Whether you build your own leaders, or buy store bought ones, make sure you’ve got what you need. Same thing with tippet.

9.) Check Your Thermometer

Please don’t tell me you don’t carry a thermometer. Water temp is everything! Unfortunately for me, the water everywhere I fished was 60°F all of 2007 due to a broken thermometer. Most people aren’t carrying around a calibration kit for their pocket thermometer, so a good way to check is to turn your kitchen sink on and get the water to a temp that feels about body temperature, not hot, not cold. Your thermometer should be about 98°F. Then run straight cold water to make sure it shows you that the water is getting colder.

10.) Leaky Waders

Check your waders for leaks in the tub or send them to the manufacturer to get serviced.

11.) Recon

Know your enemy. Study aerials or topo maps. This is a great way to kill time. I’ve already found several areas that I’m pumped to explore when the weather warms. Not to mention some better ways to access spots I already know will produce. Check out hatch charts if you’re going to another region to fish, or aren’t familiar with hatches in your area. Practice knots, especially ones you don’t tie often.

• Animated Knots
• Fly Fishing Entomology
• Fly Fishing Research
• Microsoft Virtual Earth
• Northeast USA Hatches
• Saltwater Tides
• Trout Nut
• USGS Topo Maps

12.) Get Legal

I threw streamers with the president of an anonymous chapter of Trout Unlimited a couple seasons ago, the day after the previous years fishing license expired. We were eating some venison chili afterwards and I mentioned that I just got my new license that morning. Suddenly, he looked like he saw a ghost. Yup, he forgot to get a new license. If your state’s fishing licenses expire in the Spring, make sure you don’t forget to renew your license.

13.) Check Your Float Tube, Pontoon, etc.

I can’t think of many things that would suck more than to hike in to your favorite backcountry brookie pond, start kicking your way out to deeper water, and find out you’ve got a leak. Check air bladders for leaks, clean out pockets, etc.

14.) Waterproof Stuff

There are several waterproofing products on the market. Retreat your rain gear, and any other stuff you want to repel water such as vests, tents, etc.

15.) Check Glasses

Make sure you can find your polarized sunglasses. Wipe them off and put them in your vest now before you forget to do it on your way out the door. Make sure they’re good.  Many inexpensive sunglasses don’t offer any UV protection, even though they have that little sticker saying they do. For some reason it’s unregulated, and a lot of people are out there with their eyes wide open to harmful UV rays.

16.) Practice Casting

Take your rod out side and practice casting. If you don’t fly fish year round it won’t hurt to knock a little rust off before you’re casting in actual fishing conditions. If you’ve got money, maybe take a few lessons.

Sure, I may make a spontaneous trip to the Salmon River for Winter Steelhead, or possibly to the Battenkill to dredge streamers for trout. But the reality that I’m not gonna fish for about 3 more months has set in. It hit me as I drove past one of my spots on my way to work yesterday morning. The river is mostly iced over. The ice is paper thin, but it’s there. A few funky shapes of open water still remain, as well as a strip along shore where a small creek flows in. That’s where the geese like to hang out. There were probably about 50 of them packed together in that small trickle of open water near the bank. With the overcast skies and river icing over in the background I couldn’t help but want to take their picture, maybe tomorrow. Three more months.

Is there anything more hypnotizing than a hovering subvaria spinner? I remember my first Hendrickson experience in early April on the North Branch of Michigan’s Au Sable River. They came off in heavy waves during a sporadic BWO hatch and the Brook Trout went nuts for them. The spinners seem to have a preference for willow trees and on nights when the temp stays above 50°F you could count on a nice spinner fall. If it was a cool night it meant I was going to be late for work the following morning. Four more months.

I can feel the warmth of the Spring sun on my face as I’m sitting on the bank of my favorite Bluegill pond. My kids are on the other side of the peninsula playing with globs of sea weed and snails when my Foam Skunk gets sucked under. THWICK! Bluegill are incredible fish. Pound for pound. Can you imagine trying to land a 21″ Bluegill? I lift it out of the water, sliding my hand over it to compress it’s spiny dorsal fin and pop the hook out. Before releasing it, I admire it’s size, somewhere in the 8″ class. It swims away as I grab a Dr. Pepper out of the cooler. I love that first chug from an ice cold pop. Five more months.

Wet wading is probably my favorite way to fish for Smallmouth Bass on local rivers. There’s one spot where I can start out working Clouser Minnows through the pocket water. Move down to a deeper run where bigger streamers and poppers are the way to go, and then further down to a huge, knee deep flat where in mid-Summer they sip tiny mayfly spinners and smash drunken caddis near the bank. Six more months.