With fly fishing, sometimes it is all about the chase. Here’s a day trip that looked unfruitful, but turned out alright in the end.

Colorado Fly Fishing

We put the raft in on a warm morning in Sept. without a cloud in sight. My expectations were not high, since a warm sunny day tends to put the fish down, at least on this stretch of the Colorado. When the fish aren’t rising, I go straight for tandem streamers; there is nothing more exciting than a big pissed off brown chasing your streamer off the bank in shallow fast moving water. Dredging the bottom with a nymph just doesn’t do it for me. If I break out a nymph’n rig, I must have exhausted all other options.

The first quarter mile of water put a bleak outlook on the remaining 9 house of river ahead of us, not a single chase through some of the higher quality water on this stretch!! My invited guest on board had no experience throwing a heavy awkward tandem streamer rig, and was fairly discouraged after nearly throwing his shoulder out with only a handful of well-placed casts. I always talk of the exciting chases, but now; he must think I am full of it. I now know the frustration that guides must endure while watching miles of quality water go by without a singe well placed or completely untouched. “There was probably a nice fish it that pocket we just passed”, came out of my mouth far too many times than I care to recall.

About 3 miles into our float, which is exactly what it had become, a sightseeing float, the weather began to change. Here came the clouds, an encouraging sign, of course unless the wind comes with it. Here came the wind, and next thing you know, our beautiful sightseeing float turned into a back rowing battle to keep the boat heading downstream. Luckily, this did not last long, but the rain did begin to fall.

Within a few minuets after the rain subsided, the mayflies were swarming and the fish were rising. Were eddied out in several prime spots and began to catch fish in the swirling foam. Just about any well-placed cast was rewarded. Time went by unnoticed, until suddenly I realize that we had only traveled half way to our take out and more than half of the day was gone. Pushing through the slack water and hammering the moving water with the streamers was now becoming very productive. Finally, I could prove to my guest how exciting the chase could be. It seems that every other cast produced an aggressive brown, either territorial or just plain hungry.

We landed several nice fish while powering through the final stretch, arriving at last light. A turn in the weather sure can turn on the fish and bring on the chase.

Rick Chapo is with NomadJournals.com - makers of diary and writing journals for fly fishing. Visit NomadJournalTrips.com to read more articles about fly fishing and the great outdoors.

For many people, fishing is the perfect sport. Not only is fishing challenging, but it is a wonderful way to get away from the hustle and bustle of daily living. Perhaps you are a person who enjoys heading out to a lake, pond or stream to spend time fishing. If that is the case, you may be interested in finding sources and resources for cheap fishing supplies. Certainly, if you are like most people, you don’t want one of your favorite past times to be responsible for busting your budget.

When it comes to finding cheap fishing supplies, the Internet can be a very useful and reliable resource. There are a number of websites on the Net that have been established specifically to cater to people who enjoy fishing. These sites offer a wide range of different supplies and equipments. Many of these sites offer their wares are discounted prices.

In addition to websites dedicated exclusively to catering to people who love to fish, you might want to visit one or another of the different auction sites on the Net as you search for cheap fishing supplies. These sites oftentimes have quite a selection of different types of cheap fishing supplies. By taking the time to shop around, you likely will be able to find just about everything you need when it comes to fishing supplies by surfing to the different Internet based auction sites.

On occasion, one or another of the overstock sites that have sprung up on the Net may also be of assistance to you in your hunt for cheap fishing supplies. The availability of cheap fishing supplies at these sites can be rather seasonal. In other words, you likely will have better luck finding lower cost fishing equipment and supplies in the late fall and winter months. Indeed, at these times of the years, many of these overstock sites have quite a selection of fishing gear.

There are a number of resources in the brick and mortar world that can be helpful to a person seeking cheap fishing supplies and equipment. Quite like the overstock sites on the Net, a person generally can obtain some real bargains on fishing supplies and equipment at many sporting goods stores and outlets on a seasonal basis. In the late winter and fall months, many of these stores will put their fishing supply and equipment inventory on sale.

Finally, there are a number of different mail order companies that regularly have discounted and cheap fishing supplies available for sale. From the convenience of your own home, you can telephone a toll free number and have the supplies and equipment sent to you in no time at all.

By taking the time to shop around on both the Net and in the brick and mortar world, you will be able to find the cheap fishing supplies that you seek. In no time at all, you will be set to spend many a pleasurable hour fishing.

Shell Gellner is the webmaster at http://www.rifles-n-rods.com.
A Great Source For Discount Sporting Goods!

Swag bed rolls and what people want them for have really changed a lot in the past 5 years so we recently took a big trip and looked at all the best swags and asked just about everyone we met what they really, really wanted and liked in a swag.

Here are the results.

1. Make sure that the canvas used is strong, tough and at least 15oz weight. Anyone can call any fabric canvas just by dipping it in some waterproofing chemical and there are a lot of cheap swags in the marketplace which have canvas that just doesn’t last.

2. Avoid swags where the foot end is sewn shut as swags can get very hot inside without ventilation and on a wet night you want to be able to get the foot of the swag up off your feet and gear because no matter what some people might tell you, canvas isn’t waterproof - it gets wet and swells in the rain. This is why swags are different to nylon tents which are completely waterproof but don’t breathe and so can be sweatboxes on hot nights.

3. Avoid swags that have a canvas base as water will come up through the base from wet ground. Usually you will find this type of swag has a plastic sheet built in to the bottom of the mattress. Again, canvas is not waterproof and there is nothing worse than sleeping on a wet mattress.

4. Avoid swags that have a complicated set up or can’t be set up without poles. Many times on your journeys poles will be lost or broken and if the swag depends on them then it is useless.

5. Avoid swags that are big and bulky, often you will need to share luggage space with other people so you don’t want to not be able to fit your swag in because it is too big.

Ask yourself is the swag you are looking at light, tough, compact, and can it be put up and down easily even if you forget or run over the poles. Imagine it is pouring rain and you are tired and want to set up quickly, or it is a cold wet morning and you want to break camp and be on your way.

These are the things you should consider BEFORE you buy, It’s too late when you are out there.

Half Price Swags… Quality Handmade Australian Swag Bed-rolls for Camping and Fishing Since 1972, Half Price Direct To You

http://www.vikingswags.com