Farewell MF and some homebrew. 11-14-2014

Frosty moon apogee,

wanning like my feet.

The long hike,

to Spring Gap.

Returning, casting to rises,

The Pleiades guides us

above quaking leaves,

Maple and Ash.

fish,

colored like fall trees,

sipping baetis,

in the drift.

final day,

we retreate by lamp light.

until April my friend.

On sunday I started to make my first west coast style IPA, I started with a vague intuitive recipe, 7 1/2 lbs of lt.amber malt extract, and 1 lb of crystal malt and decided to burst hop with 2 onces of Fuggle and 2 onces of Citra at 15min and then 5 minutes at the end of the boil. After it cooled Todd and I transfered the wort to the primary and added the giga yeast. So far so good, I think i'll get another 1 once of citra and 2 onces of casscade for the dry hopping when i transfer it in a week or so...

Yuba-Sonnet April-2014

drawing by Mary Marsh

photo by Roger Williams

photo by Roger Williams

From Rose Bar to Blue Point,
cobbled path friends hike,
along a river rainbow,
Isoperla incite.

Yuba knows no ego,
flowing to sea,
its only desire to go.
I see,

Rises in view.
Rises to my fly,
trout feed true.
My Princess reel screams to cry.

This river on fire.
While Osprey kite,
trout feed without tire.
Into my net, trout with kype.

We all find bounty,
casting to rises.
Landing and releasing.
We revel in our prizes.

photo by Roger Williams

photo by Roger Williams

Upper Sac, 6-18-2013

Under the bright heart of Scorpio,
standing farthest north.
With the wavering wild rhubarb,
Rainbows porpoise.
While Calineuria Californica lumber about.

Watching from my circle,
but far from Nabta.
Flower
Strawberry
Rose or
Honey,
This moon, under Jupiter together
with Antares rising.

One of four guardians,
like me,
withen Castle Crags I cast,
into the Sacramento.

October Shreders

These are going to shred! I'm getting ready for my annual hallowen trip to the Mac. This year i'm join friends of the GPFF club on the river and I really have focased on developing a true set of game changer flies for this river.
My go to caddis dry fly isn't neccesarily a dry but an emerger or spent caddis. I've had great success all over california with it. My R&D river of choice has been the A game Yuba River near Smartsville. hands down, these "Rainbow Trout" are as strong, witty and forceful as any Stealhead you'd meet and on top of it they all seem to have graduated with PHd's from an Ivy-league college.

Often sometimes I swear they seem to just want to humiliate you off the river. Fish seem to swirl flys just to see if there's line connected, often this is percieved by the fisherman as takes with no fish at the other end...
Anyways, these flys ive been tying for the Yuba have been specificaly targeted as Rhyacophila and Hydropsyche hatches. However for the McCloud I hybridized the patern to fit the Dicosmoecus syntax of Puppa and Emerger stages this fall on the "River Cathedral".

Yuba-Ku

Above crossing glide.
infrequens emerge
Rainbows leap, splash!

Timbuctoo bend.
Rhithrogena morrisoni swing,
oh mighty tug!