Garhan

Here is some general information. This competition is primarily setup to give local fly tiers the opportunity to be exposed to a large group of flyanglers in the Flyfusion demographics. It is a great opportunity to share your flies. I am amazed how many American, International and East Coast Canadians that have sent in their creations. Locally meaning Western Canada could do with a boost of entries. This is also an opportunity as a club to give back to the community of flyfishing in return for, what you ask for, being "support". FLY TYING COMPETITION www.flyfishingevents.comWe are proud to announce that the 2014 Western Canadian Fly Fishing Exposition will play host to the 2014 International Fly Tying Competition!

Current List of Competitors for Comp #1 of SAFFL Competitions1. Justin Hardy2. Jim Trewin3. Kyle Snarr4. Rick LeBlanc5. Dustin Pico6. Gary Hanke7. Rob Viala8.9.10.11.12.13.14.15.16.17.18.19.20.21.22.23.24.Waiting List1.2.3.4.5.Youth Waiting List!.2.3.4.5.

Date: Saturday April 26, 2014 Location: Fish Creek Park Boat Launch-Bow River https://maps.google.ca/maps/ms?msa=0&msid=206344200290030282022.0004ec08b0f193c1fdfefCompetition Water: Venue (sectors/beats) to be announced via email to the registered participants. Registration opens today. Please contact Gary Hanke, Justin Hardy or Jim Trewin via Facebook Registration for this competition is limited to 24 competitors (General Membership and Youth Team Members combined), and is based on a first-come/first-serve basis. 3 spots for this competition are automatically reserved for the members of the Admin group and Youth Team competitors, in the event that this competition fills up before they're able to register. The 3 spots that are reserved for the Youth Team Members are also being dealt with on a first-come/first-serve basis. Once the registration is full (and each of these competitions promises to be sold-out events), additional registrants will be placed on a waiting list and moved onto the list of participants in the event that there are any cancellations. The first 3 competitors on the waiting list will automatically qualify for a spot in the next competition if there were no cancellations. If one or more of the competitors on the waiting list are unable to attend the next competition, their spot(s) will automatically be given to the next person(s) on the waiting list. Members of the Youth Team will be placed on a seperate waiting list. The first 3 Youth Team members on this waiting list will automatically qualify for one of the 3 spots that have been reserved for Youth Team Members at the next competition. In the event that any of the Youth Team Members on the waiting list are unable to attend the next competition, their spot(s) will automatically be given to the next Youth Team Member(s) on the waiting list. This registration process should help to guarantee that everyone has the opportunity to attend at least 3 of these competitions, as the waiting list will ensure that 24 competitors (24 registered competitors and 6 on the 2 separate waiting lists) will be able to secure a spot when registration opens for each competition. It is the responsibility of each competitor to ensure that they take the time and effort to register as soon as registration opens for each competition... Additional Details: 1. One River Venue with 12 beats. 2. There are two sessions, which are 3 hours in length. 3. Maximum of 24 competitors. 4. Beats will be divided in half with 2 competitors assigned to each half of the beat (2 competitors in each of the 12 beats). 5. One competitor fishes at a time in each half of the beat, while the other competitor serves as their controller (time keeper, measuring fish, and recording eligible fish). 6. Competitor and controller switch roles at 30 minute intervals for the duration of the session. 7. Competitors rotate half beats after one hour and switch the order in which they fish and control. 8. Competitors rotate partners within their group after each session. 9. Competitor rotation assures that everyone will fish with a different partner during each session. 10. Eligible fish species: Rainbow Trout, Brown Trout, Rocky Mountain White Fish, all other species are ineligible. 11. Fish must be handled with extreme care and measured in the water and quickly released 12. The Organizer will provide the measuring devices 13. Competitors are responsible for providing their own food and drinks outside of our lunch at the end of the event. 14. FIPS-Mouche Rules apply to this competition (single barbless hooks, no strike indicators or splitshot). Fish point system: • Under 25cm = 1 fish point • Over 25cm = 2 fish points * This point system will ensure that all fish are quickly measured and released, with absolutely no need to handle them or remove them from the water.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Southern-Alberta-Fly-Fishing-League/696138850416192 here is the new SACFFL Facebook page. Please feel free to share this with your friends that would be interested in this league or that would like to just participate on a Facebook page that will be kept informative, instructional and just a comfortable place to share thoughts, ideas, flies and more.

http://www.flyfishingevents.com/fly-tying-competition.html

Keeps your neck warm as well. I don't like a chilled neck.

So true, of North American style approaches. Always approach from downstream. The thinking and water type the Europeans are looking at are fairly turbulent water with broken a surface, and moving slowly downstream seems to work for them in some cases. Just another approach to specific water ctypes. I can see this working very well in knee to mid thigh deep pocket water.

If you want to learn or teach and improve your own skills, then read on. This is a report from another competitor that just fished at the World's and what he noticed about sharing European style. IMO this is sound both in tactics and in attitudes towards other anglers. By: Jeremiah Hamilton European and World Competitors fish there beats in medium to larger rivers they fish from top to bottom, its not only helps to stay in contact with there flies better but also it covers the same spot very well and very fast with every step they are still covering the same spot over and over again because the overlap, another advantage is grayling will lineup in your wake, I caught two bonus fish in the comp I was just dangling my flies at my knees. They feel there is less of a chance of this happening by fishing bottom to top, because you push the fish up stream but by fishing down you are just a moving rock and blocking current in front of them so they move in behind you. I even seen a big grayling sit behind a guy from Norway, he told me in Norway they some times carry a small two foot rod on there back to fish the grayling that sit behind them, but its hard to land when it is pushing +50cm. Also what we are doing with our fast comps we have in canada is what they are doing over there, they are training them selves to fish fast and look for active fish. It is night and day from the US comps, we where told at the beginning of the comp to share everything, help out the next guy, I got onto my second beat and my controller showed me his flies and showed me where he and the other guy caught fish and how, they are crazy open. There philosophy is learn and teach first and the best anglers will come out on top but they want everyone on the same level. I also learned how to fish eur chub, that one thing got me a second in my first session. That is just a taste of what I learned a lot more to come.

Funny thing about the weird names, flies and techniques is that trout behave like trout no matter what part of the world you fish. And European, Czech, Polish, French and British methodology and flies and systems are so advanced over most NA techniques. Yet we seldom give it the credit it deserves, unless someone with a prominient name in the Canadian or North America industry says so. Then we jump all over it because they recommended it. Thats truly the funny part.

l=http://s18.photobucket.com/user/Garhan/media/file_zps6942a4c1.jpg.html][/url] Fishing the "Tash” is a method whereby a couple of buzzers are fished below the Tash or Bung fly which acts as a float and can register very subtle takes. Use a different colour Tash (Macramé Cord) in varying light conditions to make it easier to see. Sometimes fish will even take the Tash fly. A useful pattern for suspending nymphs which also doubles as an indicator. [/url The bung, what is it? Well the bung has been around in one form or another for a number of years, river fisherman call it Duo or klink and dink. It is in fact a floating pattern that has the capacity to hook fish, as well as acting as an indicator to register a take. It is frowned upon by many who see it as float fishing. The ethical argument aside there can be no doubt that this is a highly effective tactic, not only on small still waters but reservoirs as well. The idea is that you can fish the bung as a sacrificial fly allowing you to fish your taking patterns absolutely static. Originally the preferred flies to fish under the bung were buzzers, but now other flies are also very popular such as Diawl Bachs, Damsels and even Blobs. The flies themselves come down to personal preference and should be changed to match the conditions. For the purpose of this piece we will assume that the taking flies are buzzers. So how do we set up a bung rig? The usual way is to have a short leader to the bung then 3’ to the first fly a further 3’ to the second fly then another 3’ to the point fly. This gives an overall leader length of around 11’. There are of course variations to this set up in length, but the maximum length of leader to enable the angler to safely land a fish on the point fly should be no more than 12’. Any longer length of leader than this will result in the fish playing the angler rather than the other way around. Of course by explaining this, it is immediately obvious the short comings of this method. If the fish are sitting deeper than 12’, your flies will not reach them. As with all fishing, conditions and time of year will dictate when to use a particular tactic and sometimes the bung will not be appropriate. But you can modify a 15 foot fifteen pound Steelhead leader if the fish are deeper. Start with the shorter leader design and if you get no takes then change up to the longer leader to get you down to the twenty and twenty five foot mark. Once you have determined with this system the average depth of the majority of your takes, you have one of two decisions to make. One can stay with the system that is working or two you can move over to an appropriate sinking line system with three flies and fish it horizontally during the retrieve to keep all three flies in the zone. So we have our bung and have picked the flies to fish under it, how should it be fished? Well as stated in the opening paragraph, you can simply cast the flies out (not too far as you need to see the bung) and watch the bung. As in course fishing, if it dips or moves at all you simply lift the rod and nine times out of ten you will be into a fish. This can be very effective but it is not the only way of fishing this technique. Another way is to cast as far as you can whilst still maintaining sight of the bung. After the initial cast, it is crucial that you pay particular attention during the first 10 - 15 seconds. This is when you are most likely to get a take, as the buzzers are sinking down through the water column. If you do not get the desired effect after 30 – 60 seconds, give the line four or five long draws then stop. This will bring all the taking flies up in the water column. When the retrieve is stopped again, the taking flies will drift down through the water just like the naturals do. Again pay particular attention to what should be taken as this can be the point the fish takes the fly. Another criticism of this method is that you can only effectively fish at the depths you have placed your taking flies i.e. 3’ 6’ and 9’. This is an incorrect assumption as the bung can also be used to target fish that are feeding in the upper layers of the water column. The way this is achieved is by fishing the floating fry pattern New Zealand Style. This means that the taking flies are attached to the bung via the bend in the hook rather than attached by a dropper. The way in which this fishes goes against the principle of fishing the flies static. The idea in this situation is to cast the flies out as far as possible and allow the flies to settle to their optimum depth. After this has been achieved, a steady figure of eight retrieve is employed. The bung causes quite a wake in the water attracting the attention of any trout in the area. Often they will swim up behind the retrieved bung and take the trailing fly. The takes can be savage so ensure that the appropriate strength of tippet is used. In summary, there is a lot more to fishing this method than is widely appreciated. As with any technique, it needs to be honed. On its day, this method will out fish anything else in your fishing arsenal. It is well to have it in the back pocket for those days.] And don't forget to fish the hang and drawn with this system. If you are not comfortable then use only two flies as the same can be achieved, but it takes you longer adjusting the leader length to systematically fish the varying depths in 3 foot intervals. Dont forget to follow the rules of your Province. Above is only an example and maybe modified to comply with the provincial laws. So for Alberta, not 4 fly system.

Still considerably easier with a 9-10 foot rod.

I know what you mean, I keeping getting a lump showing up in the bad places. lol...

Fishing the "Tash” is a method whereby a couple of buzzers are fished below the Tash or Bung fly which acts as a float and can register very subtle takes. Use a different colour Tash (Macramé Cord) in varying light conditions to make it easier to see. Sometimes fish will even take the Tash fly. A useful pattern for suspending nymphs which also doubles as an indicator. [/url The bung, what is it? Well the bung has been around in one form or another for a number of years, river fisherman call it Duo or klink and dink. It is in fact a floating pattern that has the capacity to hook fish, as well as acting as an indicator to register a take. It is frowned upon by many who see it as float fishing. The ethical argument aside there can be no doubt that this is a highly effective tactic, not only on small still waters but reservoirs as well. The idea is that you can fish the bung as a sacrificial fly allowing you to fish your taking patterns absolutely static. Originally the preferred flies to fish under the bung were buzzers, but now other flies are also very popular such as Diawl Bachs, Damsels and even Blobs. The flies themselves come down to personal preference and should be changed to match the conditions. For the purpose of this piece we will assume that the taking flies are buzzers. So how do we set up a bung rig? The usual way is to have a short leader to the bung then 3’ to the first fly a further 3’ to the second fly then another 3’ to the point fly. This gives an overall leader length of around 11’. There are of course variations to this set up in length, but the maximum length of leader to enable the angler to safely land a fish on the point fly should be no more than 12’. Any longer length of leader than this will result in the fish playing the angler rather than the other way around. Of course by explaining this, it is immediately obvious the short comings of this method. If the fish are sitting deeper than 12’, your flies will not reach them. As with all fishing, conditions and time of year will dictate when to use a particular tactic and sometimes the bung will not be appropriate. But you can modify a 15 foot fifteen pound Steelhead leader if the fish are deeper. Start with the shorter leader design and if you get no takes then change up to the longer leader to get you down to the twenty and twenty five foot mark. Once you have determined with this system the average depth of the majority of your takes, you have one of two decisions to make. One can stay with the system that is working or two you can move over to an appropriate sinking line system with three flies and fish it horizontally during the retrieve to keep all three flies in the zone. So we have our bung and have picked the flies to fish under it, how should it be fished? Well as stated in the opening paragraph, you can simply cast the flies out (not too far as you need to see the bung) and watch the bung. As in course fishing, if it dips or moves at all you simply lift the rod and nine times out of ten you will be into a fish. This can be very effective but it is not the only way of fishing this technique. Another way is to cast as far as you can whilst still maintaining sight of the bung. After the initial cast, it is crucial that you pay particular attention during the first 10 - 15 seconds. This is when you are most likely to get a take, as the buzzers are sinking down through the water column. If you do not get the desired effect after 30 – 60 seconds, give the line four or five long draws then stop. This will bring all the taking flies up in the water column. When the retrieve is stopped again, the taking flies will drift down through the water just like the naturals do. Again pay particular attention to what should be taken as this can be the point the fish takes the fly. Another criticism of this method is that you can only effectively fish at the depths you have placed your taking flies i.e. 3’ 6’ and 9’. This is an incorrect assumption as the bung can also be used to target fish that are feeding in the upper layers of the water column. The way this is achieved is by fishing the floating fry pattern New Zealand Style. This means that the taking flies are attached to the bung via the bend in the hook rather than attached by a dropper. The way in which this fishes goes against the principle of fishing the flies static. The idea in this situation is to cast the flies out as far as possible and allow the flies to settle to their optimum depth. After this has been achieved, a steady figure of eight retrieve is employed. The bung causes quite a wake in the water attracting the attention of any trout in the area. Often they will swim up behind the retrieved bung and take the trailing fly. The takes can be savage so ensure that the appropriate strength of tippet is used. In summary, there is a lot more to fishing this method than is widely appreciated. As with any technique, it needs to be honed. On its day, this method will out fish anything else in your fishing arsenal. It is well to have it in the back pocket for those days.] And don't forget to fish the hang and drawn with this system. If you are not comfortable then use only two flies as the same can be achieved, but it takes you longer adjusting the leader length to systematically fish the varying depths in 3 foot intervals.

Dont forget the quading practices as well. More erosion problems here than you can shake a stick at. There was a time when people consciously decided not to travel sismec lines and trails when they were wet, as to consciously decide not to tear up the terrain. Now adays the more water on the trail the more fun is how it is viewed. With no regard to the damaged caused. And sometimes permanent damage.

One thing I know for sure is that when I go out on long days especially if there are several back to back. My casting begins to faulter. Much of that is lack of focus and being drained of energy in my muscle mass. (Simply out of shape on the casting arm and my body as a whole) So I also workout some prior to the season. I get this handed to me in the spring when casting in the spring winds with an 7 wt or 8 wt for northern Pike. Casting long distances in the lake flat near shorelines and inevitably 30-50 km winds on many of those spring pike days, really helps when I step down to the 5 and 4 and 3 wt nymphing and light rods. Yes I use 3 and 4 wt rods for nymphing, they are not my dryfly rods. The muscles are already used to casting heavier lines in winds and then hitting Stauffer or other small creeks and rivers becomes so much more enjoyable. P90 flyfishing is what I call it.

I practice all the time. Sometimes to increase my muscle memory, sometimes just to play with different Single Hand Spey cast techniques, sometimes for distance, and sometimes just because. And it is "Grahan" Dom. Or you can call me Gary.

Jim it was good training for the bigger event that I hear may come to us in Canada. And the Bow River would be the venue. Cant wait and I want to be all over that executive committee and fish it if I qualify. But cant say to much at this time….

Michael Short will have a show on the competition, that I believe will be broadcast in January. I will follow up on this to everyone when I have the link sent to me.

Here is one that Todd did as well in Calgary on Breakfast TV. http://www.btcalgary.ca/videos/2688088469001/

I found this article interesting and worth sharing. It is so true. Fly Casting is yours letting you down? Improving your casting could be the best preparation you can make. You have sorted out your gear so what about your casting? Ok let’s be honest, this post is unashamedly self promoting, but there is a good message in here none the less and well worth consideration, you would do yourself more good to take some instruction or have some casting practice than with almost any other preparation for the coming season. The number one reason why most fly anglers fail. I have guided clients from all over the world on our streams and I have taught dozens of local anglers the subtleties of approaching these catch and release waters and the NUMBER ONE reason that most anglers fail to get the results they should is because they simply don’t cast well enough. When all is said and done most of us spend far too much time worrying about flies and leaders and all manner of gizmos without actually being able to use all that technology to good effect. The expensive rod, the micrometer tuned degressive leader and the host of fly patterns all fail to work if the fly is not presented properly and in the right place, and that means that YOU have to cast them. You aren’t out there with anyone else and don’t go blaming the wind or the trees or whatever, fly fishing is a sport where there is nowhere to hide, you are solely responsible and it amazes me how few anglers take their casting abilities, or too often lack of them, seriously. The typical client. Take for instance a typical client, he is a great guy and super company on the river, he has travelled extensively and can regale one with wondrous stories of his fishing exploits. In fact I like this guy, and he really makes a super companion and client on the streams. However whilst he has fished for Taimen in Mongolia, Bonefish in the Seychelles, cast for Ponoi Peninsula Salmon, New Zealand Browns and Hutchen in Slovenia. Whilst he may have spent enough dollars to be able to pad a mattress on exotic location travel, guides and helicopters in all manner of places he can’t cast a fly well enough to hit a barn door from the inside? So what’s the problem here? #1: You cannot learn to fly cast whilst fishing. (no more than you could learn to drive on a freeway). Firstly you can’t learn to cast from your guide and I don’t teach casting when I am guiding, there is too much other stuff going on to get it right and you really need to practice, in fact you want to practice until it is right, then you will never have to think about it again. So all the expensive guided trips aren’t going to help you that much. #2: You shouldn’t be reluctant to ask for help and get it right. Secondly, for some odd reason, fly anglers seem reluctant to get help. Golfers automatically go to the pro, squash players, tennis stars etc all get coached by others to help them, but fly anglers seem to think that there is something demeaning in asking for assistance with the most basic of all functions, casting a fly or they simply think that they are good enough that they couldn’t do better. So they fiddle about on the lawn or the stream, they get taught bad habits by their buddies or they convince themselves that this is as good as it gets and carry on at the skill level that they have acquired. Perhaps part of this is simply because being a mostly solitary sport they aren’t aware of what is possible and don’t have a comparison. #3 Not all the people who are prepared to teach you to cast are actually capable of doing so. Thirdly, and this could be seen as somewhat contentious I admit, a lot of people who are teaching casting out there really aren’t that good at it, the teaching that is not necessarily the casting. One thing I dislike more than any other is the reliance on the “casting clock” system, which is almost diametrically opposed to what actually happens in a good fly cast, and a method of instruction that is so ingrained that few fly anglers have managed to completely avoid its pernicious acceptance. I have reviewed most of the casting videos, DVD’s and books that have ever been produced and there are few I would recommend. Perhaps the most honest approaches would have to be the thoughts of Charles Ritz on high line speed casting and the instruction of Lefty Kreh, many others don’t cut the mustard as far as I am concerned. In fact based on what I see on the river every day, there is something drastically wrong with casting instruction because the efficacy of most of the anglers one sees just isn’t up there. If most owners of motor vehicles drove as poorly as most owners of fly rods cast, then the carnage on our highways would be considerably worse than it already is. In fact overpopulation and global warming could take a turn for the better. So to start with here are a couple of tips or suggestions that may help you. You shouldn’t judge your casting by the distance that you obtain but by the narrowness of the loop you can create. Narrow loops begat high line speed and high line speed gives you accuracy, control and in the end, if required, distance, not the other way around. Casting short lines can be as or more demanding than long ones and on the streams that we fish accuracy and efficiency of delivery of the fly weigh far more heavily on the angler than bunging your pattern into the middle distance. You should, on a stream, be able to present your fly with no more than a single false cast, more and you are both wasting fishing time and potentially spooking fish as well. Accuracy isn’t really quite the “land the fly in a tea cup” that one reads about in the books, even if you are hot you aren’t going to do that all the time, but the ability to get the fly into the feeding lane of a targeted fish is pretty important and on small streams that still means that you may only have inches to play with. Fishing short with light lines can benefit from “Double Haul” technique just as much as when fishing heavier gear at a distance. All accomplished fly anglers should be able to do this and as a word of warning, you can’t, and shouldn’t, try to learn to double haul until your basic cast is near perfect.. So is your casting up to scratch? If any of the following regularly happen to you then sorry, but your casting isn’t up to scratch: You get a lot of wind knots in your leader or worse still your fly line..You have to pack it in when there is a moderate breeze.. (fly fishing is rarely as easy or as good in a howling gale, but you should be able to at least cast the fly in conditions other than flat calm).You regularly catch the bushes behind you.You regularly spook fish by casting on top of themYou can’t manage to fish with a leader longer than nine feet in length.You get tired from casting a trout rod for a day.You spend most of your time on stream undoing tangles.It takes you half a dozen attempts to put the fly over the fish and often by then it is spooked.If you have or do experience these things then fine, admit it and get some instruction, this isn’t meant to spoil your day, it is meant to point out what really should be obvious. The better you can cast the better and more enjoyable your fishing is likely to be so why not make a decision now that this year you are going to get it right and be able to enjoy future exertions more fully. The anglers prayer: Lord, grant that I may catch a fish so big that even I, When speaking of it afterwards, may have no need to lie. The guides prayer Lord please send me one good client, no matter that he lie. Who when called upon to do so, at least can cast his fly.

We finished on top of the world and had the best fun I have ever had on a fishing vacation in Alberta. I would like to thank my team for coming out and giving there all. There was some very serious talent at the competition. What was amazing was how all the competitors shared there thoughts, ideas, there knowledge to make everyone better.The competition actually became a second issue and everyone was greeted and welcomed with open arms, regardless of who they are in the flyfishing world. Everyone was very approachable and you simply felt at home and welcomed No secrets and no holding back. As Todd Oishi said " We are here as competitors to make everyone feel welcomed, to share our knowledge so that all competitors will become better at this craft. And to develop depth in a flyfishing community from new, youth to seasoned anglers so that Canada will have some depth to compete at World Events. This was the most fun you can have with your waders on. I would do this again anytime just to meet and help were I can with my new friends.

LOL…

I see that if you don't log in and only view as a guest, then you don't see half the forum posts and topics. Thats good I like it. People are missing so much.

Dont ask me to take you to Frenchman's River again Snowolf. And maybe wait till I am available to go dude. You broke your leg 5 km from were I broke my arm…..haha. But I didn't have to handstand all the way out…..ouchy.

I remember being out Grayling fishing with you last year on a warm day. You wore waders…haha.