Let's Do Lunch.

Lunch. One part of the day that deserves attention from both guide and client. Some go all out with elaborate riverside meals, others just barley squeak by. We take a fair amount of pride in balancing the lunch scene. Everything from tailgate style, riverside access sites, high water drift boat reserved seating and the folding table/chair shoreline affair. Take advantage of the break. Rehydrate, put your feet up and chill. Muy Importante.

Over the years we've served a varied menu. Anti pasta plates, grilled veggies and steak, burritos, chili, lobster rolls, hearty soups, pasta with smoked mussels, cheese burgers, steak salad, lemon chicken and mixed grill meats have all been served at one time or another. One constant is quality ingredients and variety. If you book with us for a week you will not eat the same meal twice. Neither will we.

We have always bought local for the majority of our stock and will continue to this year. Also making the commitment to organic/free range meat as much as possible.

This season will see some new additions to the menu. Grilled Buffalo wings? Fish tacos? Maybe spring rolls with wasabi? Who knows what we will bring to the table. I do know this though. I was told some secret guide advise from an "older than dirt" fly fishing guide once that has never been forgotten:
"How do you top off a shitty day of shitty fishing"?
"Serve a shitty lunch."

New Fly Box.

While cleaning out the gear room we started our yearly foray into the fly bunker. Fly box designs are in constant flux. Boxes for midge, dries, attractor dries, soft hackles, large nymphs, medium nymphs, tiny nymphs, small streamers, huge mammalian streamers, emergers, small streams and the never ending experimental patterns. Then there are the western hatch pattern boxes. The left over Alaska trip boxes. Oh yeah, we can't leave out the Atlantic salmon collection. The Maine salt water box is strangely MIA. The list goes on.

It's enough to make a guide throw in the towel. At this point I'm thinking of combining all the flies in a 50 caliber ammo can and calling it good. Cheap, waterproof, durable and enough volume for a seasons worth of patterns.

Plus room for a flask.

Getaway.

If you are starting to make plans for the 2012 season this winter, you might want to give the Maine Huts and Trails system some thought. Miles of trails designed for hiking, trail running, mountain biking and nordic skiing. Very comfortable lodging. Great meals. Shuttle services. Monthly programs and events.

By the way there is some pretty good fishing surrounding the huts also. These huts are well suited for the novice and experienced fisherman alike. We will be running another fly fishing school at the Grand Falls hut this season. We are also available throughout the season (April-November) for half and multi day trips.

Give them a shout this winter to learn more. Better yet jump on one of the trails for a day trip and enjoy some of the newly arrived snow.

Speaking of huts. We've had the pleasure of staying in quite a few backcountry shelters over the years. From alpine huts, rangers cabins, yurts, lean tos (N.E. ones being our least favorite), bunk houses and hunting/fishing camps. They all have been a unique lodging experience. If you've ever thought of building your own little get away hovel check out Cabin Porn for some inspiration.

Stay warm and stoke that wood stove some more.

Whitey.

The Round Whitefish (Prosopium cylindraceum)aka; whitey, rig wrecker, poor man's trout and dozens of other degrading nicknames is not on the bucket list of many anglers. We catch on average one to three per season here. Most Maine anglers misidentify them as fallfish or chubs.

The round whitefish is native to Maine. It's found on the Kennebec and St. John Rivers and numerous lakes throughout the state. The whitefish is just one more species that is being compromised by illegal species introductions.

We like whitey. He's rarely seen during the season and is subtle in his takes of micro nymphs. Besides he is part of the Salmonid family. Nice family as far as we are concerned.

Required Reading.

If there is one item we look forward to getting every winter it's the Blue Ribbon Flies catalog. Years ago while in West Yellowstone I walked into the Blue Ribbon shop after a not so successful session on the Fire Hole. A shop clerk listened to my tale of woe with great interest. After deciphering my report, he suggested a few patterns, approaches and techniques to up my odds.

A few days later I was back in the shop for more patterns and more importantly to thank the guy working the floor. That guy was Craig Matthews. The owner. You will rarely find a more humble, unassuming and knowledgeable fly fisherman. That experience left a lasting impression to this day.

Blue Ribbon's catalog reminds me of the old Chouinard climbing catalogs. They always had useful information, excellent images and gear that worked. BRF is no different . This year is possibly the best yet. A couple of stand outs are John Juracek's article on fly casting. This should be required reading for anyone picking up a fly rod. Yvon Chouinard's essay on Tenkara will get you thinking outside the box. Everything about sport Chouinard has ever written has always struck a chord with me. Now he goes on to open my eyes to a "new" simpler way to fish. Damn you Yvon!

For the fly tyer, you couldn't ask for a better selection of materials. If you dig soft hackles, look no further. Video tutorials available on their website will help get you through the winter and stocked for spring. Check out the soft hackle vid and get psyched for some upland hunting next season.

Most importantly take notice of what BRF does in terms of giving back. This shop is not feeding off the gut pile and walking away. It's doing the right thing and setting the bar pretty high in terms of environmental commitment. I know they have made us better stewards by example.

Start today by doing the green move. Instead of ordering a catalog from them, go directly to the site and view it there. There, you just did a green thing. Didn't even hurt.

Think Pink.

This Saturday at the Sugarloaf Mountain Hotel the Fish Tales and Cocktails event. All proceeds going to the Maine CFR organization. 5:00-7:00 P.M.

Ski some new snow during the day and attend the event that evening. Get your pink on!

Color.

It's the tenth of January and it looks the same as it did at the end of October. The banality of color needs to end. We can only take so much khaki, brown and gray before something bad happens. Snow in the forecast for Thursday from the weather gurus sounds promising.

In the mean time, I'll just stare at brookie photos.