USGS Stream Data

Kenai Rvr @ CooperLndg

  • Water Temp: 33.26 ° F
  • Flow: 505 ft³/s
  • Water Level: 5.18 ft
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Middle Kenai @ Skilak

  • Flow: 929 ft³/s
  • Water Level: 6.14 ft
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Talkeetna Rvr

  • Water Temp: 32 ° F
  • Water Level: 4.24 ft
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Situk Rvr

  • Water Temp: 34.34 ° F
  • Flow: 680 ft³/s
  • Water Level: 67.07 ft
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Posts Tagged ‘tube flies’

Spear-It™ Hooks

Confession time; as a fly tyer I have an addiction to hooks.  Not just your “run of the mill” everyday hooks, but to really nice, custom, specialized hooks. Hooks that, like micro-brewed beer, are built for those of us that will spend a little more money for something special.

Cool looking hooks!

Cool looking hooks!

Even when I’m not shopping for hooks, I have to at least seek a glance at the hook rack; which is how I ended up with the new Spear-It™ Sickle Octopus style hooks. And not just a single package of a specific size; but four packages in a range of sizes. I just had to. I couldn’t help myself.

Spear-It Sickle hooks are not designed specifically for fly tying, although they are listed as a fly hook; but rather are designed to be use as a stinger, or trailing hook. Almost any short shanked hook will work as a trailing hook, although most tyers prefer an Octopus style of some sort. If you’re using something stiff to attach your trailing hook, you can position it so that the hook point rides up, with the hopes of minimizing snagging. The problem with a standard Octopus style is that the gape is usually big enough to have the hook point out away from the body a bit. (I’m not talking about offset bends, that’s a whole other design feature.) This new Sickle design seems to have overcome that design flaw. The hook point is in-line with the eye, and the bend is angular instead of a continuous curve. Read the rest of this entry »

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Sculpin Tube Tie

Bruce Berry of Pro Tube Fly Systems demonstrates how to tie really cool sculpin pattern on a Pro Tube Micro Tube.

Posted on YouTube by Caddis Fly Shop

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Tube Fly Class – AFF Tying Clinic/February 18, 2012

Next Saturday!!! Don’t Miss It!!!

For those of you attending my Tube Tying Class at the February 18th Tying Clinic sponsored by the Alaska Fly Fishers, I have created a page that lists some of the basic tubes and tools available both locally here in Anchorage, and through the web.

Download the pdf at:  Tube Flies – Materials and Sources

Tube flies are just starting to make some inroads into the American fly tying culture, and although they are not a total solution, tube flies have several advantages over traditional hooks in some specific applications. In my opinion, it’s always a good idea to have a couple of different tricks up your sleeve, especially when you are targeting our larger salmon (Kings and Silvers), or those beefy rainbows and char that Alaska is known for.

Long shanked hooks, necessary when creating large bulky patterns, have the disadvantage of creating a lot of leverage once the hook is in the fish’s mouth. The current trend of using stinger hooks is one way of addressing this problem. Truth be told, using a stinger loop off the back of any fly pattern is a great solution to the problem of shank leverage.

However, in some cases stinger loops may not be the most practical solution. Tube flies were based on the concept of keeping the fly away from the fish’s sharp teeth after the hook set. The fly body is designed to disconnect and slide up the leader, allowing the angler to play the fish on a short shanked hook tied directly to the leader. This offers the advantage of not having your fly in shreds after one or two fish.

An additional advantage is that the hook doesn’t have a chance to hinge over during casting and hook itself onto your leader, or in some cases the fly body itself. Using junction tubes, you can control the distance behind the body that the hook is riding; which can be important when the fish are short striking, or nipping at the rear of the fly. The junction tube is flexible, but not enough so that it will hinge back on itself like most stinger loops.

Or, as in the case of most of my fishing with tube flies; I just let the fly slide down to the hook knot. I find that a junction tube isn’t necessary most of the time. Without a junction tube the fly will have a tendency to spin on your leader, something that I hope the fish fish find as tantalizing as I do. (I am a fan of the “If it moves, it’s alive and food.” school of thought.)

Whether you get into tube flies big time or just for a couple of specific uses; spend some time getting familiar with this style of tying.

Tubular Smolt

Rainbow Trout caught on a Tubular Smolt

 

Here’s a sample of a tube specific pattern that is working very well for our meat eating rainbows. The Tubular Smolt will be featured in a new fly pattern book from the Alaska Fly Fishers, most likely to be published later in 2012.

Rich

“Any day on the water is a GREAT day”

 

 

 

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