Steelhead Summit Coming April 18th...

Interested in learning about the state of Steelhead, especially in regards to the Skagit River Basin and it's current recovery?  Then make plans to be at the  April 18th Steelhead Summit in Seattle at  the Center for Uban Horticulture building 

The Wild Steelhead Coalition, Wild Steelheaders United and The  Wild Fish Conservancy will be on hand along with noted speakers and biologists John McMillen, Dick Burge Bill McMillen and many more.

The focus will be on the continued recovery of the Skagit River and it's Steelhead stocks.

Get more info on the days agenda by clicking HERE

Playing Guide...

"Nope, I've got the rowing today"

"Are you sure"

"Yes, you bet"

I've rowed and fished this stretch of river many times, I know every twist and turn and likely pocket to hold fish.  Expert I am not, but it's safe to say I know the playbook on this piece of water.

What I hadnt seen in a while was someone's face light up as a fast rising cutthroat levitates up out of nowhere, pauses and then inhales a huge piece of foam and legs.

In my day job, clients become friends and I had the chance to take a husband and wife team out for their first float in my cutty nirvana.   They're previous home in Colorado dictated long leaders and delicate 7x presentations of small midges.

Lets just say picking and popping your casts on the move with a size 4 chubby takes some getting used to.

The fish were willing dance partners all day long.  The only fly changes  we made were from big bugs to small PMD's that were causing the river to come alive with rising fish for 2 hours.  Beyond that, it was like I was a point guard directing traffic, delivering the pass and waiting for the bugs to get snarfed.

It was experience that I wont soon forget.  Watching my new friends take the whole day in, unravel the stress of moving to the area and getting settled and realize they had found a new home in a pretty special area of the world was awesome.

Three quarters through the day, the wife buttoned up her rig, sat down and lit a smoke.

"hey, dont miss this good water ahead"

"Oh, it's ok, I'm just so happy about today I need to take it in for a minute"

She continued to fish after about 10 minutes, but that statement alone was payment enough for a day playing guide.

Soul River Continues It's Mission....

Chad Brown and the entire Soul River crew are continuing it's mission of healing veterans and introducing inner city youth to the outdoors.

Take a peek, and if you can help his cause, get more info on donating by clicking HERE

A Little Piece of Swing The Fly...

The new edition of Swing the Fly is out and ready for your viewing/reading pleasure

In the interest of tooting my own horn a bit, I am honored to have a small piece in this one on page 76 and 77.  Take a few minutes and check it out

Sage Salt Review...

Fish that live in tropical salt water seem like they're dipped in rocket fuel and given a case of redbull before they eat.

Needless to say,  the gear you need to fish for them are a slight step up from your every day 5wt.

Before my recent trip to the East Coast of Mexico, I was given the opportunity to test drive this set up

Rod--Sage Salt 10 wt.

Reel-- Sage 6000 Series 10 wt.

Line--RIO Outbound Tropical Short 9 wt. 


My other salt experiences centered mostly around bonefish and tarpon, so this deal of standing on a beach getting pounded by the waves with a what other fishermen considered a "silly little stick" felt a bit daunting

The third morning I was absolutely trucked by this Jack in the picture above.  It proved to be my only fish from the beach on this family vacation but it gave me a solid feel of this rod reel and line combo

Spoiler alert-- Holy Shit.

Here are my top observations 

1.  The ocean is daunting, so you end up blind casting a ton when you dont have birds or surface activity. The 10 wt Salt felt like a 7 in hand, but has a ton of backbone.  Casting fatigue was limited which helps a ton

2.  The line combo was perfect.  One of my Jedi salt fly fishing buddies recommended to size down on the RIO Outbound as the 10 wt line was too much for the 10wt rod.  Very true.  I could see how the additional 50 grains from the 9 to the 10 could throw this set up off.

3.  Without a good reel, you're not going to stop these fish.  Seriously.  The 6000 series was set to the nuts when the Jack took it's runs and it still did everything it wanted to and then some.  That's no detraction from the reel as I don't think there's a reel out there that can do much better.  The test is that after the big time runs, is the reel functional and in once piece.  Don't bring a plastic reel to Mexico, just don't.  Bring the big guns as you're going after fish that potentially are in that "lifetime" category

4. Solid side note.  If you're going to Pacific side of Mexico, consider bringing a stripping basket.
The only consistent issues I had was in battling the surf, the line would wrap around my legs and detract big time from casting distance.   A couple of times I had moving bait balls rolling by me and I'd get one good cast into the school only to be followed by the line into my toes and my ankles.  In an instance, the bait fish and the subsequent ocean thugs that follow them were gone.

5.  Solid Side Note 2, practice before you go.  If you're normally a trout guy and a 8 weight is big, a 10 wt does take a big of getting used to.  Additionally, if you've never fished with shooting heads and you plan on using a line like this....make sure you know when you practice as to where the line loads the rod.  Being quick with the line and your casts often means everything when the fish are flying by you.  Double hauls are a must and the ability to go from nothing to a 60-80 foot cast is HUGE. Repeat, HUGE.


I felt a solid gear lovers twinge when I had to send these items back.  Fishing with this set up for 10 days made me realize even more than I already knew that solid fly rods, reels and appropriate lines mean the world when your standing in front of a large ocean and waving a silly little stick

Bums, Joggers, Rebar and a River

Wanderlust, urban exploration, whatever it was I couldn't drive over the bridge one more time and look upriver and ignore this stretch of my hometown river.

This river has it's A+ stretches where it doesn't seem possible you're 5 minutes from a Starbucks, but there's just as many where your as likely to encounter a homeless encampment as a rising Redband trout.  It's got a troubled past when residents avoided it like a disease.  Smelly, raw sewage, trash, and more....it was treated like the red headed stepchild of the city

Like many other urban centers across this country, the river's that flow through hundreds of thousands of people's backyards are starting to get their due.  They're centers for urban revitalization, civic pride and for us fishing degenerates,  improving areas to toss bugs.

Our city mascot, the marmots scurried underfoot as I found more and more places to fish that were a hundred yards or so from the busiest street in town.  The fish on the other hand weren't very cooperative as we are in the middle of runoff.   Pieces of rebar and concrete wire mesh darted out from the urban mess on the banks but just off the shore, the seams and troughs looked just like a place where a fat fish would hide under the right conditions.   You just have to time your casts to avoid snagging a jogger decked out in neon.

It's a gritty river in this stretch.  The voices of the past before development are still there, reminding us of what a great asset it is for our city.    Ducks and geese poured in from overhead, beavers worked the banks, herons stalked the shallows and if my guess holds true, wild trout swim in the currents impervious to the 500,000 people living around them.

Get more info on this river in recovery by clicking HERE

The Heart of Spokane...

Heart Connections from Kimbo on Vimeo.


I cant be more excited about how the Spokane River community is taking more and more action to restore the lifeblood of our town.  

The river needs more advocates.  Advocates are the voices of restoration.  More restoration means more fish and a healthy river.  Win, win, win.

Get more info about the Spokane River Forum by clicking HERE