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Recreational Rumination and Random Rants
Updates, weather, local issues, tackle reviews and more. The non-fishing reports page.
On Socializing and Information Sharing 11/13I live by understanding things. If I don't understand it, it's confusing and I don't know what to do with the "thing", be it information or a phsyical item. Every "thing" gets assigned a use and is plugged into the database, much like a computer. Things that don't fit or are inscrutable can cause a system malfunction or crash.
For example, woodturning. For the past month I have been learning about lathes and their use by reading, thinking, and absorbing. These are all "things" and since it's straightforward knowledge about physical items it's easy to assimilate.
I've barely looked at the machine itself- that comes perhaps this weekend when I'll try turning something for the first time, and by then I'll have an understanding of the machine, the wood, and the physics of what's happening. I'll learn exponentially more when I actually use the lathe, but the base knowledge will help a great deal.
A quick aside on the "photographic memory" I mentioned. I don't remember everything- that's a myth perpetuated by pop culture such as "Grey's Anatomy". Rather, my memory works in pictures. I see images of things, a picture of yesterday, the pages of a book, what the stream or lake bed looks like. Ask me to remember something and a picture pops up, with the attending associations drawn like lines through my mind.
I thought this was normal until recently. Now I find out my brain is actually wired differently than most folks- some parts don't work right, some wires are crossed, and some areas work even better than the original design. But it is different, and I didn't know that until a few years ago.
People are tough. People are both complex physical items and vast sources of information, but they are incredibly complex and there is no real hope of understanding each one. As such I must plug "people" into the database as best I can, with marginal results at best. I make rules to live by. It's basic stuff but I have to learn it to get along- some things are easy, repetitive interactions such as a gas station.
Other things are more difficult- bumping into my neighbor, for example. At first it's easy- I can follow the "stranger" rules. With the passage of time, though, it gets much harder. Each individual interaction leaves unanswered questions, missing pieces of information, or an unresolved conflict. These questions and gaps start to accumulate and over time, leaving large holes in the database, with a stress reaction and failure in communication often the result.
One rule I follow is the "help" rule. I'm beginning to realize this may need reassessment as my personal needs often run counter to the desire to help, but it's a rule I've followed since childhood and will not be easy to change.
Basically, if I'm asked a question, I answer it to the best of my ability. Most of the time I don't have a base reference (questioner's knowledge) so I start at the beginning and, I'm beginning to realize, often impart too much information. I always thought too much information was better than not enough! For example- this summer I had an acquaintance write- I knew him from fishing but also from just around town. He asks for a few tips on trolling. I spent a good half-hour to 45 minutes writing up a good reply with as many pointers I could think of and sent it off. No response, ever.
Now, what does this mean? I don't know.
I can think of several options but since he's an unpredictable person I don't know, I can't know, and this drives me nuts. If it were me I'd say thanks (if someone answers a question I ask, I say thank you- it's that simple), but it's not me- I can guess, based on past experience, but unless he tells me or I can literally see his reaction I'm in the dark.
According to what I've figured out so far, (I think) it seems likely people tend not to reply when the response is useless or they're annoyed, or they can't be bothered. Option three doesn't seem likely as he asked in the first place, and option one is out because I know the email was full of useful information.
That leaves annoyed. This is where my "help always" rule runs into problems- it doesn't take into account the ego. After careful consideration I am led to conclude that I must have sent too much information, and offended the other person in some way because of it.
Perhaps it should have taken longer to learn this strategy doesn't work. Say, middle school. I always gave too much and seemed to suffer because of it- I was the kid you could borrow money from and not pay it back. While helping is usually a good cause, I couldn't find the boundary between helping others and helping myself. Sometimes you are supposed to be selfish, but I avoided these situations. My hobbies were always centered on learning- crafts, birds, plants, etc, and were not competitive. If anything, others in the field wanted to help you.
All well and good but a bit of the bubble for sure. "Real life" was waiting for me, where you had to work to get ahead and competition was the norm. Nowhere was this more evident than in fishing.
For the first time, I was exposed to a hobby where secrecy and misinformation were standard. There were limited resources (the fish) and limited areas in which to pursue them. Competition and ego play a huge role, more than I'd encountered before.
Thus the "help always" rule ran into major problems. Research and real life show that people act differently, more selfishly, with limited resources. I only knew "us v. the hobby" interactions and the new "me v. you v. everybody v. the hobby" was too much to absorb right away.
I remember posting many times on Sander's and the erased LOU this sentiment that it's not me v. you but rather us v. the fish. I think now most folks thought I was bullshitting but it's not true, I really believe this. Fishing would be a better hobby if it were a managed resource, but that's another topic. In the same vein I suspect folks think I always need to be right- not true. I always want the truth and facts as much as possible, and if others can supply them that's great. (It does bother me when others pretend to know stuff they don't, I have little patience for that.) I tend to persist in discussions not because I need to be right but because I want all the information, I need somebodyto have the answer.
This strategy worked quite well in academia but not so well on the lake. For the first time I was getting inconsistent replies to queries, misinformation and worse. Now the database was having a very difficult time- lots of gaps, many unanswered questions and above all the influence of ego and competition, which made things very confusing and stressful.
(I would like to point out that most people are quite friendly and helpful, though not all of the time, and while I'm talking about a percentage of folks, many of us behave this way at least part of the time, myself included. So no getting annoyed when I'm talking about near-universal behavior.)
"Help always" ran into a new rule, "keep secrets", and the two began an epic battle. For a while the excitement of learning and sheer flood of new information kept me happily helping and answering questions- I wrote this website during this period and all was well.
But over time, just as with my neighbor, the unanswered questions and unresolved conflicts with regulars started to overcome the desire to either learn more or help others. The information-based structure I had been counting on became more and more people-based as the stress began to build and eventually caused a fracture in my information-based world. I need to keep things predictable and science based, knowledge and facts. Information is all I've got to make sense of the world, I'm missing "normal" mind filters and must construct my own, from rules of interpersonal interaction to staying away from most crowds to cut the noise and visual stimuli. On Swinging and Snagging 11/7Swinging flies is like life. It's always tempting to take the easy way out, but preparation and forethought can make it more satisfying and productive.
To take just one example from life, recycling. Recycling paper and plastic always takes more steps than throwing it in the trash. At minimum you need a separate container to store it in, and some cities make it near impossible by not offering curbside recycling.
There is little doubt recycling is a "good" thing, it just takes more organization and effort, on both an individual and a societal level. Each person must do their part but the system needs to make it as easy as possible.
The same goes for snagging fish. Sometimes it may seem easier to snag instead of angle, but it's never a "good" thing, it violates both the regulations and the social contract- it's never just an individual act. As in recycling a little preparation can help overcome the "easy demons". This can be as simple as understanding water movement, which you can do at home, or altering your fishing patterns while on the stream.
First, the water. This is extremely important- if you don't understand how the water moves you are doomed to constantly fight it with heavy weights, a path that leads to frustration and foul-hooked fish, intentional or not. I'll have to do up some diagrams to properly explain this, but the bottom line is this: If you are "swinging" flies directly across the stream you are most likely clotheslining the fish.
Imagine this scenario: You are knee deep in prime trib water. The stream is flowing left to right and there fish holding 25 feet downstream and 10 feet out from you. To swing your fly, cast out and maybe 10 feet upstream from the fish. Mend your line upstream and allow your fly to sink for those 10 feet. Let the line to tighten and slowly swing across the current.
If done right the fly will drift into the fish's view, then suddenly start swimming. If done wrong the line will drift into the fish first, spooking them. Let's say you're doing it right but aren't getting any bites- what next? For the best results, don't take the easy way out! It's tempting to step closer and add weight- but this tactic will result in standing over the hole, flailing away with heavier flies and more splitshot until the sheer weight impales a fish.
The alternative requires patience and experimentation. First, if you're in a good position, either add one splitshot or pull out a few more feet of line. The key is to avoid moving closer unless you absolutely have to! It's counter-intuitive but it's easier to properly present the fly and catch the fish if you aren't too close. Your fly needs room to sink and your line needs room to swing- take away either and you aren't swinging flies. To avoid foul-hooking fish stay upstream from them. It is simply not ethical to fish streamers in a clothesline fashion, with lots of weight up the leader and a 90 degree taught line.
Okay, it's late on Friday and this post if feeling somewhat disjointed but the point is, it's everyone's responsibility to "do the right thing" while fishing, just the same as it is in the rest of life. (Recycle!) Don't take the easy way out and snag fish. We all want to catch more fish, right? Well, you can, by trying to become a better fisherman every time out- and this includes being a more ethical fisherman. Snagging is a dead end but learning to catch goes on forever.
Coming Together 10/29Starting to get my thoughts settled. This year I needed to get away from a few individuals who were driving me nuts. I give up trying to be friendly, they certainly weren't willing.
Turns out a break was good for me but ignoring the problem didn't solve it (the panic attacks continued this summer when I thought about fishing).... quite frankly I'm past the point of caring what people think so expect some in-depth posts on the psychology of fishing. All I'm going to say is it's a culture and mindset I was NOT at all familiar with and it caused me a fair amount of grief. Turns out the lake and streams are a lot like the workplace, somewhere else I do poorly.
I try my hardest to be friendly and get along but communicating is so difficult for me it nearly always breaks down, sometimes within seconds. My final apologies to everyone I tried to be friends with and bothered- I won't trouble anyone again. Good luck to you all.
I also don't have anyone to talk to so I have to think out loud, here. I tried talking to a few fellow fishermen about things but I found that's not acceptable, they stopped speaking to me altogether, so just as with everything else, I'm going to have to tackle this for myself. I can't afford any more therapy.
I would like to point out several things before I begin.
One, this will be entirely an attempt to understand myself and the social aspects of fishing. It will NOT be meant to take shots at other people- I think some sensitive stuff will come up but the purposes will be analytical. I will do my best to "clean" it for the general public.
Two, much of it will be personal. If you don't like it, don't read it. It's no secret I struggle for a modicum of functionality in this world. If that annoys you or you think I'm weak, get a grip. Contrary to the Declaration of Independence, we are not all created equal. I am doing the best I can... which brings us to:
Three, I am different from you and I won't apologize for it any longer. I have a photographic memory and strong smells make me puke. I can read two books a day but can't figure out how to talk to people. I can program a computer but can barely use a telephone. I'm a Cornell graduate but can't hold a job... get the idea?
I've posted this link to Wikipedia several times, once more won't hurt. Educate yourself, Autism is a growing problem worldwide- I'm not the only odd duck out there. Okay I'll see how this goes. Automotive Paint Pens! 9/5I found the answer as the title implies. Touch-up paint pens for cars, available at your local Auto-Zone, just about the only thing those stores are good for other than spark plugs. I think I remember seeing them in Wal-Mart too. Lots of colors and metallic shades available, haven't tested them in the water yet but the first results are great. Wouldn't want to do any major coloring this way but a convenient and quick way to do eyes on jigs. This may be a well-known trick but there you go.
Also, I can't make up my mind about dipping jigs. I usually do them individually for quality's sake rather than in bulk, but the question then is, dip straight or sideways... neither way is perfect. I think I'm leaning back towards a head-on dip. Dipping horizontally leaves the eye free but can get paint (Plasti-Dip) on the hook shaft, possibly interfering with good hooking ability.
When doing it head first I take the time to clear the eye before the paint dries, easier now than later. Toothpicks work great, wire on small-eyed hooks. I'd have to say the method is a little faster and ultimately looks better but I'm not completely sold, there are advantages to each, personal preference I suppose. Plasti-Dip ReduxMuch better! The Plasti-Dip works great on jigs, they just needed a curing time to set up properly and finish off-gassing the volatiles. Gave it a week, tested it in the lake and for 12 hr in a glass of water, no problems at all.
I had just "painted" them just the day before with well-thinned Plasti-Dip, a longer cure time is to be expected with lots of thinner in there. Anyway, it worked great! Easy dipping and lake trout teeth usually just scratch a line on the jig, the flexible rubber doesn't flake off like traditional paint.
And a big plus for me- you're not handling bare lead on the boat. I hate seeing my fingertips grey, it can't be healthy- especially on the water where I'm a lot less likely to wash up before doing anything, including eat. Just say NO! to lead poisoning.
Tips:
--Colors aren't easy to find- best luck will be ordering them. Most stores seem to have red and black, or just one of the two.
--Put your unused Plasti-Dip in a completely airtight container or thoroughly seal the original with tinfoil and duct tape. It's important or it'll be useless in a month. If you won't use it for a while I suggest pouring a thin layer of VMP Naphtha on the top- it'll evaporate first.
--Thin it well and double-dip- this will help keep the drip bubble from forming. Also dip in a horizontal fashion to keep the jig eye clear. Sure, this way you might only coat 90-95% of the head without dipping the hook itself but that's close enough!
--Eyes- a black Sharpie will give a great black spot on the jig. Stick-on eyes only survive a few rounds will lake trout teeth but probably work the best as far as attracting trout. The Sharpies rubbed off fairly easily, not the best unless you keep one in your tackle box. Those are good for porous materials like fur and feathers, not lead and paint. I've done some with water-based hobby paint and sealer, same materials as the popper bodies- these can be very realistic and last in-between the first two options, it works well, gives you many options, but takes the most time.
All of the above observations were noted over the course of several outings- not a ton of data and the bite is always variable, but that's what it seemed like. The white vs plain lead test I did not do- in the past it seemed like sometimes head color mattered, especially on the picky days. Have fun and good luck! And They're Off!Gone, gone, gone, thank goodness the flies are in the mail! That's been weighing on me for a while, there's nothing quite like a big ol' pile of should.
Notes: I made big Unique Hair Clousers for bass or pike, if piking you may want to hit them with a little epoxy. Everything is glued from the eyes to the cross-hatched threading, so they're tough, but not bulletproof. These take the place of MFTG. I also made the Imp Bunnies and Red and Whites.
I'm terrible with names, maybe the Red and Whites are actually a pattern but it's just a red/white schlappen hackle with a white Estaz body and white marabou tail. Simple but pretty darn effective! Red and white works great. Also tie these on the Soft Alewife and Imp Bunny chassis.
Taking the few extra minutes to use an (semi-)articulated pattern is well worth it, the fish will rarely be able to throw such a short-shanked hook. Try the Red-Faced Wobbler featured in a recent Fly-Tyer too. That's weighted in the rear and has a fat front to displace water.
The imp bunnies are super swinging flies. Most of them are for water less than four feet deep, not too heavily weighted or flashy, though I think Joe gets a heavier one as well.
The steelhead will love them, the Atlantic Salmon around here eat them like candy... and then can't get off! Simple physics. Treat them right and these bunnies can catch dozens of fish, the hooks are even replaceable.
Anyway. Glad to have them out the door! Thanks for the patience everyone, here's a late summer surprise. Enjoy, and good luck. Swap Update 7/14If anyone is checking here for info, flies are ready to go in envelopes... next step, getting them out of my house! I'll try to remember this week but Grassroots is coming fast and I have to go dance... and smoke up some fish and pork shoulder for fuel.
Other lure news... trying something new for painting jigheads. I've tried powder paints and it was a pain, so I gave up and just used lead-colored heads. They work great but sometimes a little color and maybe an eye has to help!
Got some Plasti-Dip and Naphtha to dilute it, gave a few dozen jigs a double-dipping and stuck on some glittery eyes.
I'm not positive it'll be the best "paint" but it's worth a shot. It won't chip, that's for sure! I do know the company recommends their primer for metal, but the place I ordered it from didn't have any and if it's necessary I figure most any acrylic based primer should work. Whoops 6/30Wow, what a break! It's now basically July and I missed all the spring fishing. Time to get out before the late summer doldrums set in!
Let's see... work will still continue on the site, I have a dozen half-finished pages I'm still dreaming of finishing, some updates coming to old pages, and... lots more promises! Most of them I may even eventually keep. Oh yes but there is one I definitely intend to follow up on, and that's those dang flies.
Fly swap folks: it'll happen within 10 days. It's been a while now and if anyone has moved please contact me! My apologies but I had a period where I couldn't think about (or go) fishing without a panic attack popping up. Heck I couldn't even tie a fly! I think things are okay now although it's always hard to tell. To be safe I'm not checking the boards yet, it's been nice and peaceful here without that bickering and stress. My veggie garden sure appreciated the time!
Hmmm... anything else? Not popping to mind at the moment... well any updates will be listed here. Have fun all, and please obey the regulations! Fly Swap Info 5/20Attention Sander's fly swap folks: Flies will be in the mail shortly. At this point I am assuming MFTG is not sending his in. Apologies for the delay. Good luck. About Carp 4/8
A heads up for all those interested- John Gaulke has recently started fishing for carp and has an article in the most recent "Mid-Atlantic Fly Fisherman", April issue. I'm sure it's worth a read and has good info in it, John knows his fishing. Guess most of you that read this site read his as well, but on the off chance you haven't heard, I thought I'd post the info. Checking his reports he's also discovered the fish are in. Really, it's a ton of fun, give it a shot you guys!
Fixed the Graph 4/4Fixed the temp and pressure trends graph. I was dumb and didn't allow for more than 1 years worth of data to be stored, so I took care of that and updated the script as well. The graph should return to normal in 24 hours as the database is populated with current weather data. Updates 4/4Updated the "twenty species" page. Included a new page with a complete list of fish species present in Cayuga Lake. It should be up-to-date though the presence of a few fish are debatable. The taxonomic classification of the perch family has been changing a lot recently, I believe I am using the most recent system. Page on the historical fish species is on the way but may not be the next page finished, there is some pretty cool history there though! More Updates 3/27
Plugging away now. Biggest news: uploaded the new/old fly fishing for carp piece! I started this one last spring and finally got it done enough to post. This is very much a work in progress, there are admitted gaps in my knowledge, this will be my fourth season chasing carp and my third with flies.
Spring Fly Fishing Finger Lakes Carp
I should have some brand new carp flies soon, I have a pile I need to take photos of before they get wet and disappear! Also, fixed a few other bugs due to old code. Noticed for the first time the background colors look absolutely horrendous on someone else's computer; man, I hope that hasn't always been the case! It looked a nasty yellowish green whereas it shows up on mine as a pleasant pale green. Yet another reason to keep working on the new layout. It has felt pretty darn good these past few weeks to be back at this, that's for sure. More on the way, enjoy.
Go Back to School! 3/27A great opportunity is now here! Local flyfishing guru Shahab Farzanegan is starting a new fly fishing school on Seneca Lake. Set in a gorgeous lakeside location, the Glenora School of Fly Fishing is a welcome addition to the area. Spend a day-long workshop learning the basics (and more!) of fly fishing in the Finger Lakes area and beyond.
This will, without a doubt, be an informative and entertaining class. Shahab is well known in the area and tirelessly promotes the sport of fly fishing; he's in it for all of us! This is a very welcome addition to Finger Lakes fly fishing.
Got spring fever? Early spring is the perfect time to be thinking of your loved ones... how about some fishing lessons to get out of the house?!? Hahaha oops I must be projecting! (Honey I'm just fooling around... ;) Naturally, The Unexpected 3/23I've been busy behind the scenes, one thing I did today was update the broken links from the Reports page. The links to the DEC now work again. Big thanks them for putting so much info online! Great new look too. Removed the "News" section as the filters weren't really working and lots of random crud showed up. I noticed the Sun and Moon page isn't working, I'll put that on the list as well. On The Way 3/18Okay! I've gotten a couple of mini-obsessions out of my system and I'm back working on the site again, I've got the rest of the week free to work. The weather looks bad enough I won't be tempted to fish anytime soon! My darn ADD and Asperger's had me working on three different projects last week, none of which I was supposed to be doing. Yesterday I pounded out a whole bunch of flies too. Naturally no promises but I post these things so you all know I'm at least working on it.
The weather has been improving and fishing chances are coming more regularly! Fishing has been good- the pike in Seneca have been quite cooperative (season is now closed) and so have the trout at Taughannock and Milliken (AES). Can't wait for the open water!
We're still in an East Coast trough and will be through the weekend. Expect cooler than normal temperatures for a week. With luck the trough will slide east and give us some nice High pressure next week, right now there are a few sunny days forecast (including the weekend) but that will be a temporary surface High. I'd like to see a good week of stable weather, but then again, unsettled weather is to be expected in March and April!
Regardless, the days are much longer and things are heating up! Are you ready?!?!
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