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I took my 20-month-old kid down to the river the other day for his first-ever fishing lesson (we bypassed bluegill and went straight to steelhead — got to start ‘em out right, ya know?). While he seemed pretty fired up about it all, it was dad who will never forget the moment. Seeing a little bundle of your genetic material holding a rod in his hands for the first time is…wow…hard to describe.
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Here’s the latest entry to one of my very favorite portions of this site, Taxidermy Gone Bad. This beauty (you can almost see the reflections of the headlights in her eyes, can’t ya?) was sent in by reader Luke Veldt who ran across the mount in Romania.
Guess they have oakies who “truck hunt” at night there, too…
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For no particular reason, other than they’re kinda cool to look at from this angle, I present to you my newest art collection: Trout Heads! (Look for it on tour this summer at a gallery near you)
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I’ve long been a subscriber to a couple basic principles regarding winter fishing that go something like this:
1) If you have to chop a hole in a river to fish, it’s too cold to fish… And 2) If you can drive your truck out onto a lake, well, again, perhaps there are better options to be considered.
Catching a couple ‘bows like this one, however, could make a guy like me change his tune. I mean, that thing is bigger than some the fish we call “steelhead” here in the Central Valley. Kenton Nichols of Eagle River, Alaska, sent in the pic and says that while he’d rather be fishing open water, ice fishing seems to make the long northern winters pass more quickly. Plus, he catches a bunch of really nice fish through the ice each season.
Hmmm, I suppose I could get into it, especially if you threw in a couple of warm adult beverages and a pimped out ice shack…
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Okay, so we weren’t drifting anywhere exotic the other morning, but fog on the American River made it seem kinda mysterious and interesting…
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If you’re going to fit in with the “brush oakies” fishing up along the coast, where wild steelhead are loathed as much as squawfish (because you can’t bonk ‘em), don’t even think about leaving home without the most essential piece of equipment…
No, not your 15-foot leaders…
Or your 1-ounce cannon balls.
I’m not talking about that big ol’ box of beads, either (I heard that they’ve really been hitting the purple ones in the morning and then the guys have been switching to a red-over-2 chartreuse combo in the afternoons).
No, silly, the one thing you have to keep on you at all times is the “Oka-Grip,” which is perfect for schlepping around all those dead hatchery steelies. With an Oka-Grip, you’ll find that the forked stick or chain stringer may just be obsolete (perish the thought!).
Order yours today!!! (Gill ripping tool sold separately, operators are standing by)
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Well, the ol’ mail bag is filling up again, so I guess it’s time for another fun & exciting episode of everybody’s favorite variety show, Ask JD. I know, “Wheel of Fortune” or “Jeopardy” have better rings to them, but they were already taken. Anyway, on with the show!
JD, I know this is a very general and wide open question, but I have to ask. Could you point me and my buddy in any direction on were we cane get reliable information on planning a trip to Alaska. Any info would be very much appreciated. Me and my buddy saw on the water last weekend. Thank you, Mark H.
Hey Mark, whew, you had me a little concerned there for a second that you were going some where else with that one! Anyway, I’d be happy to help you guys with some suggestions but you first need to narrow things down for me. Think about what you want to do…what kind of fish are you into? Do you want some freshwater action? Saltwater fishing? Perhaps both? Also, do you want to do some fluff chucking or are you conventional gear guys? Self guided or fancy lodge? Someplace in between? Time of year? Etc. After you get that all dialed in, we can move forward.
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