Fish Itch - 13 Flies for $8.00

The current Fish Itch deal is through the recycled fish online fly shop from my last post.

For $8 (+$1 shipping) you get a selection of 13 tried and true flies and Fish Itch donates $2 to support conservation.

Dew eeeet! HERE

I did!

Niangua River 6 Pack

Over the summer I made a trip to the Niangua with some good buddies. It was a great day and evening (the parts I remember) spent with friends and memories were made for sure, but the fishing results left a little to be desired. I even got skunked on the smallie water. Not so in the trout water. This six pack of pictures is a good representation of the fishing.

Announcing the Recycled Fish Online Fly Shop powered by West-Fly

Through the magic of social networking (G+ FTW) I have been connected with Recycled Fish PR Director Isaac Miller and he forwarded on the cool news and following text about the cool new Recycled Fish Online Fly Shop powered by West-Fly. You can best I will have some product reviews up in the near future. :)

Please visit the fly shop here.

"Announcing the Recycled Fish Online Fly Shop powered by West-Fly


New online fly shop delivers high quality flies at low prices, delivers money to conservation.



To catch a fish, an angler needs three things: the know-how, the equipment – and the fish have to be there. The new Recycled Fish Online Fly Shop powered by West-Fly helps accomplish two out of the three. It offers high quality flies at low prices to put the right tools in anglers’ hands, and funnels no less than 30% of every sale to conservation efforts to help make strong fisheries with healthy fish populations.



“We don’t ever want to be a fishing products company,” said Teeg Stouffer, Recycled Fish Executive Director. “We are a non-profit organization. That’s why we’ve partnered with West-Fly, who produces, markets and distributes quality flies. They have created something to help our cause in a new and interesting way.”



So does the Recycled Fish Online Fly Shop powered by West-Fly replace standard bricks and mortar fly shops? “Not at all,” says Stouffer. “Fly fishing needs locally owned shops – they’re part of the culture of the sport. What we’re doing complements traditional shops, it doesn’t compete with them. We won’t, don’t, and can’t offer casting lessons or fly tying classes, guide services, or boots and waders. We can’t tell you what the stream flows look like, or what the fish are eating. But once you figure that stuff out with the help of a local shop (probably after buying an assortment of flies from them), you can order a couple dozen of your favorite patterns from us, or prepare for a destination trip by loading up a fly box with the flies for a faraway water.”



The Recycled Fish Online Fly Shop is available at www.RecycledFish.org/FlyShop or by visiting Recycled Fish and clicking on “Fly Shop.” West-Fly makes a quarterly donation to Recycled Fish based upon proceeds from the sales. All purchases through the site qualify for donations to Recycled Fish.



About Recycled Fish:



Recycled Fish is the national non-profit organization of “anglers living a lifestyle of stewardship both on and off the water, because our lifestyle runs downstream.” The Recycled Fish “Sportsman’s Stewardship Pledge” invites anglers to embrace the Stewardship Ethic and join the organization, free of charge. The SAFE Angling Program — Sustaining Angling, Fish and Ecosystems — is a way to help anglers embrace a lifestyle of stewardship on the water. It involves catch and release fishing, including the use of single barbless hooks, biodegradable lures, and non-toxic lead-free weights. Recycled Fish also educates anglers about invasive species, habitat loss, waterway litter and pollution prevention, urban fisheries, and increase participation in recreational fishing for both adults and children. For more information on the 501(c)3 group go to: http://www.recycledfish.org/"

Best Smallie of the Summer

I didn't blur my face because I'm ugly (you all already know that. But because I don't like hero shots. My buddy KC, pictured over my shoulder, deserves the credit for putting me in the front of his boat all day and on this fish. It was only 16-17" but was a BLAST on my 4wt. I can catch fish but still can't catch a tan. :sigh:

Changes

There have been a lot of changes since my last post that have led to a general dormancy on this blog. Those changes, all for the better I think, range from changing up my fishing mode to summer smallmouth, a change in schedule and general business and most excitingly the birth of our second child. I am regretful that I have not made it more of a point to stay current with trip reports on the blog due to the business and other changes, but I am happy to announce that I will be taking the blog in a new direction and giving it a bit of an overhaul that will allow for the posting of more content in the form of warm water and even some trash fish trip reports. You will begin to see the changes take effect over the next few days but they will be slow so please bear with me.

Trout Commander Blog Featured on Fly Fishing the Ozarks!

Guide, fly tyer, videographer, and all around BAMF, Brian Wise featured the Trout Commander Blog on his Fishadelic Foto Friday posting this morning on his blog, Fly Fishing the Ozarks. Too cool. Thanks Brian!

Be sure to check out Brian's kick ass videos and guide services.

Oh and did I mention that Brian's two sons, 5 and 7, both throw some pretty sweet loops themselves? His eldest double hauls better than I do:

Bass, Bastards and Bratwurst

  
April 17, 2011  

Bass Were caught
(and pictures were taken with a cell phone) 

Bastards Harassed us  

Bratwurst Were thoroughly enjoyed

What a beautiful day to be on the water Sunday was. I caught a ride with a fishing buddy and met up with some other guys at the access, took a couple rigs down to our take out and hit the water. Fishing started slow for everyone but picked up as the day went on. The weather was perfect, the river was perfect, the food was delicious and there was even excitement. An over zealous land owner and his buddy with a gun. The landowner liked us so much he visited us twice at two different spots and brought a couple of sheriffs deputies with him the second time.

It is good to note that we were doing nothing illegal and the land owner was just there to harass, scare and intimidate us off of "his property" and the deputies wrote no citations.