Tuesday, November 13, 2012

It's been a while

I apologize for those who follow me, if there actually are any.  I've been too busy getting my business off the ground and running.  I've got info on Twitter, Facebook and my new website.  Check them out.


Risen Fly on Facebook
@risenflyco on Twitter
www.risenfly.com



Wednesday, September 19, 2012

Here it is!

Precision machine cut from pure aerospace aluminum bar stock and stainless steel for maximum strength and corrosion protection
Large diameter Cork/FXB polymer disc drag delivers ultra smooth, low start-up inertia
Two sealed, precision, stainless steel ball bearings
Fitted with one-way roller bearing
Quick left and right hand handle reversal
Counter balanced spool
Large arbor design
Easy drag adjustment
Drag clutch with zero-backlash
Silent retrieve with a crisp out-going click
Quick release spool
Exposed palming rim for additional control


Price is 40% off of my list!

3/4 list $140, now $84
5/6 list $145, now $87
7/8 list $150, now $90
9/10 list $155, now $93

email risenflyco@yahoo.com for ordering





Colors available now will be Black and Gunmetal.

MODEL
GEAR RATIO
BALL BEARING
INNER DIA
OUTER DIA
WIDE
VOLUME(cm3)
WEIGHT(g)
Ichthus 3/4
1:1
2+1
42
73
27
71
115
Ichthus 5/6
1:1
2+1
51
89
27
82
175
Ichthus 7/8
1:1
2+1
60
95
33
103
220
Ichthus 9/10
1:1
2+1
51
95
33
120
220

Wednesday, August 15, 2012

And the winner is...

Congratulations to Timothy H. for submitting the name "Ichthus" to my contest. Timothy is an active participant on the wvangler.com board.  Ichthus means fish in Greek and is the fish symbol you see on the back of cars and other items.  My reels will be engraved with this name and will come in 3/4, 5/6, and 7/8 weights right now with a limited amount in 9/10 weights.  They should be arriving from my manufacturer in the next 6 weeks.  Keep posted for more updates on new products and other changes for "Risen Fly".

Below are the details of the "Ichthus" reel series.

(pictures of product coming soon)



Precision machine cut from pure aerospace aluminum bar stock and stainless steel for maximum strength and corrosion protection

Large diameter Cork/FXB polymer disc drag delivers ultra smooth, low start-up inertia

Two sealed, precision, stainless steel ball bearings

Fitted with one-way roller bearing

Quick left and right hand handle reversal

Counter balanced spool

Large arbor design

Easy drag adjustment

Drag clutch with zero-backlash

Silent retrieve with a crisp out-going click

Quick release spool


Exposed palming rim for additional control


MODEL GEAR RATIO BALL BEARING INNER DIA (mm) OUTER DIA (mm) WIDE
(mm)
VOLUME(cm3) WEIGHT(g)
Ichthus 3/4 1:1 2+1 42 73 27 71 115
Ichthus 5/6 1:1 2+1 51 89 27 82 175
Ichthus 7/8 1:1 2+1 60 95 33 103 220
Ichthus 9/10 1:1 2+1 51 95 33 120 220
 


Advance orders will be accepted.  Below are the prices with the initial offer of 40% off!!!

Email risenflyco@yahoo.com for ordering.

3/4 wt is $135  discounted to $81!
5/6 wt is $140 discounted to $84!
7/8 wt is $145 discounted to $87!
9/10 wt is $150 discounted to $90!

Shipping for reels is $6 and will combine shipping for all other items.

Wednesday, August 1, 2012

Lines and backing for sale

I got my shipment in of lines and backing.  I have lines in 4, 5, and 6 weights in Green, Yellow and Orange.  These are WF lines and really are impressive.  Cast great and float all day.  List price will be $25 but my initial price on most of my equipment will be at a 40% discount so these lines will be $15!

Line weights in 3, 7, and 8 will be in shortly.

Backing is in 100 yard spools at 20lb test strength in white.  Cost is $7.50 discounted to $4.50!

Will have backing in 100 yard spools of 30lb test soon, and both 20lb and 30lb in orange too!  


Shipping is $2 for any amount.



***Email risenflyco@yahoo.com for ordering***




Here's the specs on the lines.






WT
Tip (E)
Front Taper (D)
Belly (C)
Rear Taper (B)
Running Line (A)
Head Length
Total Length
3 0.5' 4.7' 24.0' 3.3' 53.0' 32.0' 85.0'
4 0.5' 4.7' 24.0' 3.3' 53.0' 32.0' 85.0'
5 0.5' 5.3' 29.0' 3.7' 47.0' 38.0' 85.0'
6 0.5' 6.0' 28.0' 4.0' 47.0' 38.0' 85.0'
7 0.5' 6.7' 27.0' 4.3' 47.0' 38.0' 85.0'
8 0.5' 7.3' 32.0' 4.7' 41.0' 44.0' 85.0'


***My next shipment will have reels and a few other accessories.  Stay tuned!***

Thursday, June 21, 2012

CNC aluminum fly reels from Risen Fly

I've got a series of machined aluminum reels that I plan on getting in stock in the next few months.  I am however without a name for them.  So here's the deal, email me with your entry for a name for my reel and I will give away a free reel, line and backing to the winner whose name I pick!

risenflyco@yahoo.com


Here's a picture of the reel.  It will have the name engraved into the reel.  (photo from my designer, I'll take better pics when I get them in stock)



Max of 3 entries per person.


"Like"  Risen Fly on Facebook.


website coming soon...



Thursday, June 7, 2012

Risen Fly

Breaking News!!!


I'm in the works of starting my own fly fishing business.  Keep posted for updates.  I will soon be offering a line up of fly lines.  I'll start with weight forward lines in weights 4-6 in green, orange and yellow for only $23 shipped and 100yards of 20lb backing for $6 shipped! I will have a line up of machined aluminum reels in a 3/4wt, 5/6wt, and 7/8wt hopefully by fall.  Send me an email if you're interested or just curious on my new adventure.


risenflyco@yahoo.com


Monday, May 21, 2012

paflyfish.com 2012 JAM in State College, Pa May 18th-20th

One of the things I realized after coming home from this weekends trip is that I'm really horrible at taking pictures on fishing trips.  I think I had 5-6 from 3 days of fishing.  So I'll add 1 or 2 as I get to them but just the write up will do now.


So, paflyfish.  This is the one and only reason I'm addicted to fly fishing.  I would be lost without it.  It is an online forum where people from all over Pennsylvania, as well as many other states, go to chat about fly fishing.  From stream reports, to talking about the latest and greatest gear, to entomology, fly tying, etc.  It's all there.  I hopped on there in 2007 and have never left.  I've learned more from that site than I would have in a lifetime.  I've also done my best to pass the knowledge down to others.  The information is great, but the people that make up the board are what counts.

Every year we pretty much take over a campground and fish for 3 days.  Well some of us fish, others enjoy the social scene a bit more.  Campfires, good food, catching up with friends, raffle, casting in the lawn, it's all there!  This was my 4th JAM and probably my best.  I've come to know quite a few people from the board and it's getting tougher and tougher to get around to talking to everyone before the 3 days are over.  It's nothing short of fantastic, and the most anticipated weekend of the year for me every year.

Ohh, and State College has some half decent fishing too.

I drove up with my buddy Greg.  Took us around 3 hours.  I realized that the 3 hours is well worth it for a day trip and I need to start doing this.  We started off at a Class A brookie stream that has always treated us well the 2 years before hand.  It was a rough day.... I caught 20.  No REALLY, it was a rough day.  That stream is so loaded with fish it's ridiculous.  I landed quite a few in the 7-9" range and missed a ton of fish.  But for averages on this stream it was a bit slow.  Hence why we fish this stream early in the trip.  Helps build out confidence.





Speaking of confidence, Greg had a rough day on that stream.  Got about 25% of what he did last year.  We were both hoping it was just going to make up for him getting skunked on the big streams the last 2 years.  Well it did!  We set up camp, shot the breeze with a few guys and headed to Spring Creek.  We got there at around 6pm and I immediately saw rises to the sulphurs.  Greg joined me just upstream and we both managed a few fish right before it got too dark.  Greg was ecstatic with his first brown trout on a dry fly in State college.  If I recall correctly, he got 2 fish that night in the 14" class.  Not too shabby.



We headed back to camp to be joined by about 60 other board members.  We stayed at Seven Mountains Campground and they have been more than welcoming to us the last 2 years.  They put in several new cabins, and have accommodated us with great service.  Everyone hung out at the pavilion till the wee hours of the night.  Talking about the days fishing, preparing tomorrow, catching up with old friends, and making new ones.  This is what some people come for.  The fishing is just a by-product.  I try to do both, but that is somewhat impossible.  I headed to bed at around 1am and froze my tail off and got about 4-5 interrupted hours of sleep due to SOMEONE forgetting the cots, and many people sawing the entire forest behind us down.

The next morning was almost disastrous.  No one brought coffee!  There was a perk, but no coffee to put in it.  I can live without coffee.  I don't drink it much anymore because I like good strong coffee, and every place you go has crappy "mechanic shop" coffee (Maxwell House brewed in river water) or it's $6 a cup.  So I've learned to cope.  Others do not, and Greg was one of them.  Luckily the campground offered up it's supply and the day was saved.  We sat and chatted with many of the guys till about 1pm.  It was a bluebird day.  So not much was expected until night time.  A few of us headed out to Spring and were joined by none of the 8 billion fish in there willing to bite.  We called it not too long after arriving and headed to the Paradise section.  We met up with a few board members, including the gentlemen who founded the site, and a few of the moderators.  They are all very wise in fishing, and know how to spend their days.  The Paradise section is full of history.  There's a small section as you enter it that is still "no wading".  Back in the prime of fly fishing it was customary to have people fish from the bank in their tweed jackets, trousers, creels in tow, and tossing silk lines on bamboo rods.  Much has changed, but the history remains.  There's some large beautiful trees with a few picnic tables scattered around.  A bald eagles nest lay in one, but none of the birds were sighted.  We decided to wait out the heat of the day by cooking up some hotdogs and chatting the afternoon away.



I love to fish.  I hope I've made that obvious.  When it's time to fish, I don't mess around.  Others like to take their time.  Not me.  So when it was time to go I suited up quickly, as did Greg, and the only other one to be ready was Dave, the originator of the site.  I fished with Dave my first ever JAM and had a great time getting to know him.  He's a great man with 2 fantastic kids and has done wonders with this website in building a great community.  Ohh... he's a pretty good fisherman too.  So I didn't bat an eye in the 3 of us hopping on the trail and heading up to a good spot.  We walked a good 20 minutes and finally found a spot that appeased us.

There were several runs and riffles and plenty of room for the 3 of us to get comfortable and wait for the action.  Well the action started quickly for me and pretty much never ended.  I had consistent rises to my flies, but worked hard to get them.  Many of the fish I had takes on I never saw rise, but with enough work I got some great takes.  There was one section of stream where the was a log jam and it created a big calm back eddy with a few big rocks.  I figured there would be some fish back there.  As I approached I saw 2 big fish with their noses buried in towards the wood.  Then I saw more fish behind.  There was a big deep riffle caused by the log jam, so I got as close as I could and cast my fly into the eddy while keeping as much line off the water as possible, so not to get drag.  I caught 3 fish out of there and missed a few others.  It was quite satisfying seeing a spot that most people wouldn't look for and pull fish out of.  I gave that spot a rest and fished downstream over a 20-30 yard section above where Dave and Greg were fishing.  I continued to get strikes, and landed a few fish.  Half were small 7" fish, but I landed a few in the 12-15 range.  Most strikes were coming from 2-5 feet from the bank and I did my best to get flies in there amongst the cover and still produce a good drift.  I lost a good amount of flies this way, but that's par for the course.



I saw a part of the bank I hadn't thrown any flies into and had a feeling there was a fish in that area.  I threw a great cast and it plopped about 3 feet from the shore.  I saw a wake and some BIG jaws open and suck in my size 16 parachute sulphur almost instantly.  I yelled "BIG FISH" and then began the fight.  He stripped line, ran up and down the stream and fought similar to a steelhead, except I had a 4wt and 4lb tippet, compared to an 8wt and 10lb tippet.  So I gently steered him through a few runs and wanted to get him upstream of me.  Greg said he'd net him for me only to realize he lost is net sometime in the last 30 minutes.  Dave was on the bank taking some pictures (GREAT photographer also) and I tried to make my way to the bank to get a chance at landing this fish.  About 3-4 minutes went by and the big fish was just downstream of me.  One small head shake and he was gone.................. utter disappointment.  I've set a goal for the last 5 years to catch a 20 inch trout, and have never come close.  This fish was probably at least 20" if not bigger.  I sulked for a minute, enjoyed the take and the fight, and got right back in the game.  I continued to catch a few more fish on sulphurs right before the spinners congregated and hit the water.  We all had some short action on the spinnerfall, and it was dark:30 before we knew it.  We headed up stream to cross at a small bridge, and walked back to the cars.  The night was over and it was nothing short of fantastic.

The night wasn't over though.  We headed back to camp and this night was the night of the raffle, chilli cook off, and the main night were most people come to the pavilion to shoot the breeze.  I'd guess we had 80+ guys there that night.  One gentleman, who amazes every year, showed off his guitar playing skills with 2 sidekicks at either side, while another painted a beautiful picture of a brown trout to be given away at the raffle.  Everyone else enjoyed the chilli and many other dishes that some so generously provided.  All of this started around 10pm, and I don't think ever ended.  I missed the first drawn number by 1 and missed my opportunity at the painting.  Maybe next year.  I have a smallmouth replica by my tying bench that was given to me by the artist a few years ago to honor my massive smallie that I caught expectantly in a small ATW trout stream.  He painted it up to look like my fish and was a very generous gift. Rod and Brush



Well this was all over and I headed to bed at around 1am even though many people were just getting started.  I attempted to sleep again, and ended up waking up early and sleeping in the truck for an hour or so of rest.  We chatted with the coffee crowd one last time, packed up camp, and headed out.  We attempted to hit another local brookie stream, but didn't have any luck.  We headed out and arrived home at a decent hour, which is always welcomed by our significant others.

The weekend is over, but the memories remain.  Around 360 days till the next one.  The countdown begins!

Monday, April 23, 2012

A 9 pounder!

Ever have the feeling, when you're going to have one of those days? I had one of those almost 2 years ago, and just knew recently I was going to have another. This one was just a bit different. I knew what to expect this time. I headed out with all my gear packed. It was a beautiful day. Usually those bright sunny days aren't all that great, but this day was. It took a little time to get things going, but after it did it was like clockwork. I looked down and saw the big one I was after for a long time. He was waiting for me and I finally got the perfect opportunity to get him. Luckily for me my wife was there, because it would have been impossible for me to get him without her. It didn't take too long, and I finally brought him to net. My wife was proudly by my side. Couldn't believe my eyes, as he barely fit into my net. It was one of the most beautiful sights I've ever seen!




















































Click to see original Image in a new window



Nolan Robert was born 3/21/12 at a whopping 9lb 1oz and 21in long. (took me a while to get the pictures taken) A future fly fisherman in the making!

Monday, April 2, 2012

Neshannock Creek 3/30/12

  So here's my first real outing of the year.  I was off of work for a while with my son being born, and just so happened to log onto ncflyshop.com to check the updates and saw that the grannom caddis were hatching a good 2-3 weeks early.  So I did my best to convince my wife to let me fish for a few hours on Friday, and luckily she said yes.
  This hatch marks the unofficial start to the trout season for me.  It's usually right around opening day, and there are so many bugs on the water that almost anyone can catch fish on top with this hatch.  It can be difficult at times with so many bugs, but if you hit it right it can be a feeding frenzy.  I hit it almost perfectly.






 There's a nice riffle and run behind the shop that I always get a bunch of risers on and this hatch was no different.  I hopped out of my car at 11:45 and walked to the stream to check it out before I got suited up.  The run was open so I dressed as quickly as possible and almost ran down to the stream.  I got my spot and barely moved for 3 hours.  I had constant rises over a good 25 yard stretch to myself all afternoon.  Every fly fisherman's dream.  I used a few different techniques to get takes.  A basic dead drifted dry (dark brown/black body, black hackle, natural elk hair caddis) took a handful takes, and the other half were that dry swung down and across with a skitter.  The down and across technique probably had more takes, but the erratic nature of the fly on that technique also causes more misses.

  The problem on this creek is all of the chubs and baitfish.  They are more numerous than the trout, especially as the weather warms.  When fishing down and across you have to cast towards the bank to drift into the current, and I hooked many chubs within the first second of the fly hitting the water by the shorelines.  This can get annoying, but if you're having a REALLY tough day, you can call it an accident in targeting these fish just to get something to take a fly.  (Did I really just admit to going after chubs?)

  I never took the dry off and probably had close to 2 dozen takes throughout the day.  I landed 4 but had a great time.  It's such a short hatch that I only get to fish it once a year if I'm lucky, but it's well worth it every time I go.  Hope next year is at least as good as this.


















Also during this trip I finally caught my first fish on my new rod from last year.  It is a Greys 8'6" 4wt X-Flite.  It was a discontinued model I got for a steal online.  It's my dedicated dry fly rod and I had at least 3 skunkings on it last year.  So this year the smell is off and it is great.  The rod as a whole is fantastic.  It has a nice medium action to it so I've had to slow down my casting stroke, but it throws line nicely and casts pretty accurately.  The asthetics of the rod are fantastic.  Nice medium green blank with light green wrappings, beautiful wood reel seat, and the hardware on the seat just looks awesome.  It's the lightest fly rod I've cast and is just fantastic in hand.  I look forward to tossing this rod a bunch this year when I'm chasing hatches.  One of my better purchases so far that I have no regrets in.

Friday, February 24, 2012

Cabin Fever

Ohh My Goodness!  Is Spring here yet?  Did winter even begin?  Why am I not fishing?  Ok enough of the questions.  The reason I'm not fishing is my son is due in less than 3 weeks.  I've been working, helping out at home, trying to sell a car, and spending ample time volunteering.  I also threw my back out worse than I've ever done before on Saturday playing basketball with high schoolers.  Yeah that's not smart for an out of shape 28 year old.  I woke up in the middle of the night, got to my feet, and soon went down in pain.  I broke into a cold sweat, felt like puking and almost passed out.   It was a good day. 

Anyways, I'm not all that upset that I'm not fishing because I'm going to be a dad again, and there's absolutely NOTHING wrong with that.  I am however going through a serious case of cabin fever.  I think my daughter knows it too.  I go downstairs to play with her, and eventually I end up at my fly tying desk and she goes "Help, Help?".  So she sits on my lap, plays with my vise and bobbin, and sees what flies I turn out.  It's fun but doesn't begin to scratch the itch.  Hopefully I'll get her into her first fish this summer which will be great.

So I've only been fishing once this year in the awesome winter we have had.  Hit Hells Run and got skunked.  Saw 3 fish, 1 hookup and it lasted about 3 seconds max.  But it was a beautiful day with a few snow flakes and I hiked and fished much farther than I'd ever done before.  This was almost a month ago though.  Fly fishing can be a drug.  It's addictive, and when you don't have it, you want it.  And you want A LOT of it.  I'm however in the place in my life where it's impossible for me to get my proper fix.  That's ok though, family first.  It's still nice to dream. 

Speaking of dreams.... KAMCHATKA!  A fly fishing friend of mine sent me a DVD of Eastern Rises trip to the Russian peninsula of Kamchatka.  OMG.  (yeah it makes me talk like a 15 year old girl).  I can't get this place out of my head.  Big fish, no people, trout on mouse patterns all day long.  Yes I said MOUSE patterns.  It's a fly fisherman's dream, and I see it day and night.  It has officially hit the top of my list.  Ahead of Alaska, Patagonia, and New Zealand.  I will go to all of those one day, but it may not be for a while.

All I can do is dream right now.  This year's dream is to hopefully hit the cicada hatch in the Gettysburg area.  We'll see if it all works out, but that's my goal.  Great streams with big clumsy bugs flying all around and hungry wild trout.  Sounds like a great day to me.  I'm also planning on potentially going to Montana next year.  So that puts 2 trips under my belt to look forward to.  I just hope it all works out.

Now back to my first non purpose blog post.  I'll have a son in a few weeks, and things will be crazy for a while.  Fishing will take a back seat to the expanded family.  I'm ok with that, but cabin fever is still setting in.

It's amazing to think of all the things in my life that I don't deserve.  I don't deserve life to begin with or my great wife, wonderful family, awesome job, and ability to enjoy fishing.  So all in all, I'll fish when I have time, and enjoy it when I actually get to.

Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Anticipation of 2012

What am I looking forward to in 2012?  Well there are many things.  The first, and most important is the birth of my son.  Becoming a Dad was the 3rd best decision I've ever made.  Yeah that sounds pretty low, but next to God and my wife, it's a pretty good placing.  My daughter brings so much joy to my life I can't wait to have a little boy to teach all my "guy" things to.  Fly fishing, golf, music, teasing his mother and sister, etc... the list goes on an on.  I can't wait!

Next, with respect to the this blog is a better year of fishing.  2011 really stunk.  I didn't get out much and didn't catch many fish when I did get out.  The conditions were typically awful, and I was too busy with work and family to get out when I wanted to.  But that's ok, family comes first.

I want to get back to some normal fishing.  I look forward to the grannom caddis hatch on the Neshannock Creek in the early spring.  That is the "unofficial" start to the trout season.  I will probably head out to some little wild brookie or brown streams before then just to get my feet wet, but the grannoms is a great way to start.  They are a snowstorm of a hatch and in the middle of the day so it's fairly easy to catch.



Next up on the chopping block is opening day.  I have a friend who got into a hunting camp a few years ago and we've made a new tradition of going up for 2 days and fishing a wild trout stream on Friday and a nice stocked stream on Saturday.  It's fun to get away and fish some new areas.  Hopefully my buddy will not get lost this year. (that's a story in itself)



The next event is the paflyfish.com spring JAM in Center County.  My anticipation for this event always causes sleep deprivation.  Getting together with 70+ guys from all over the state of PA and beyond, and fishing some of the best streams in the state is just fantastic.  I've met some fantastic people on that site, and learned a lot of how to expand my fly fishing skills immensely in this short weekend trip.





This summer marks the 17 year brood of the cicadas in the Central Valley Limestoners area.  I've never fished the cicadas, and heard when they hit in 2008 in Centre County that it was nothing short of epic.  I have a friend who promised to show me around the area, as I've never fished it, and he is someone I respect as a person and a fantastic fisherman, so even if the cicadas disappoint, the company will not.

The summer also gives me the anticipation of fishing the private pond at my churches annual pot luck fishing event.  Everyone brings a side dish and desert, and they cook up some burgers and dogs.  I would rather skip the food and fish the whole time if it was up to me.  This place is a large pond and has bluegill the size of 2 hands, and enough 12-15 inch bass to last a lifetime.  I typically catch around 25 fish in about 3-4 hours.  I also look forward to helping my daughter catch her first fish then.  I'm fairly confident she can at least reel in one this year, and hopefully cast herself next year.  It's a fun family event, and even get my wife to get in on the fly fishing action here and there.  A few years ago she caught her first fish on the fly rod... not that she has any interest what so ever in sharing my hobby.



Once Fall comes around it's steelhead and salmon weather.  I went to NY to fish for salmon last year for the first time and plan to do this annually.  I know a little bit more of what to expect and hopefully can legally catch a few fish this year.  Our group took the skunk home (actually almost got sprayed by a skunk outside our cabin last year) and we hope to change that this year.  Steelhead is what I really look forward to every year, and the last few years haven't been very productive.  I got spoiled in the first few years I fished up there as the runs were nothing short of fantastic and the last few years have been awful.  Either way it's fun to catch some bigger fish on the fly rod and it's nice to get some new people into those fish too.



Some new things I want to do this year is try a few new streams in the Allegheny National Forest.  I know a few streams that hold wild rainbows and have never caught one of those.  I also didn't get much brookie fishing in this year, and need to scratch that itch a bit more.  I also have never caught a large trout.  My biggest trout is probably around 16" and I've been searching for that 20" fish for a few years now.  I hope to try a few new spots to get a chance at that.

I also have a few goals at work I NEED to hit.  My wife has promised if I hit my fall bonus, then I can go on a fishing trip in 2013.  It's between Montana to visit a fly fishing friend of mine who recently moved out there, or Alaska.  Either will be nothing short of fantastic, just will have to see what works out at that time if I can do it.

All in all I live a blessed life.  God uses me in many ways and to enjoy his awesome creation and enjoy fly fishing at the same time is just a great way to clear my mind and enjoy His presence.

Bring it on 2012!  I'm ready for you!