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We are now adding fly tying videos to the site every week.  Some are the basics, some are unique to our fly shop, and some just rule.  You can subscibe to our youtube site HERE.

Here are the past three weeks flies...

August in Montana means hot and dry, windy days, which leads to one of my favorite times of the year; hopper time.  There are two types of fly fishermen, those who fish hoppers and those who don't.  I won't mention any names of those who don't fish hoppers because Sam would be really embarassed, but what he doesn't know won't hurt him.  For those who haven't fished hoppers or chose not to fish hoppers, you're really missing out.  Its not everyday that you can fish a huge, foamy bug on 3x and continually hook big fish.  For me, it's not about landing the biggest fish I can on a dry, but it's moreso about the take when fishing a hopper.  Fish take a hopper with the worst intentions.  The strikes range from a very aggressive slash to flushing the toilet, which usually fuels my talk around the water cooler the next day as opposed to "You shoulda seen the fish I caught yesterday," sorta talk.  This is the time of year that wind is actually your friend too.  I know what you're thinkin, wind and fishing dries don't go together, right?  Wrong.  Hopper fishing is one of the exceptions to the rule.  Here the wind helps by blowing the hoppers off the banks and into the water.  You can think of it as chumming the water, trust me it makes a difference between a good day and a great day. 





            



        
   



The predominant setup for hopper fishing is known as the "hopper-dropper" rig (dropping a nymph off your hopper...pretty self-explanitory), which tends to lead to more fish on the nymph than the hopper.  A setup that is becoming more and more popular among those die-hard dry guys is a double dry setup with a hopper in front and another terrestrial or attractor behind it.  Try Bloom's ant behind M's hopper (both shown above) for this setup, you won't be disappoint.

For those who haven't fished a hopper, this is the year to try it, thats if you want a chance at a mellon-head like KK stuck here.  Brian Hollum knows what I'm talkin about.



                        


    

Ummmm.... Wow.  I can't believe they could get that close, I can barely seem to hook them, keep them hooked, or land one as it is.

During the summer most kids get into the lemonade business, but 13-year old Jacob Bernhardt has taken a different approach to summertime entrepreneurship, and he knows what it takes to "lure" in customers.

Jacob has been making and selling his own trout flies at the Great Falls Farmer's Market for the last few years; he started out making about 10 different varieties and now has more than 20.

He has had to learn everything about running his own business, from purchasing supplies to scouting out the competition to pricing his merchandise right. An avid fly fisher himself, he's able to recommend the flies for the right conditions, and now, what started out a simple hobby has grown into a successful summer business.

Jacob said, "Someone we know gave me a little kit, I started like that and kind of taught myself. And then we thought maybe I should try this and it just sort of took off from there."

His mother Kathleen noted, "He's had to learn how to relate to the customers, visit with the customers; he's kind of shy so he doesn't like to talk to people all that much, so he's had to learn to do that, and visit with them and ask them what they're interested in and where they're fishing and whatnot. So it's really helped his communication skills a lot."

Customers say they come back to Jacob's stand because they like to help support young entrepreneurs and local businesses.

Jacob says he makes about $50 every week and is putting the money toward college and saving up for a fish-finder for ice fishing.

 Great Falls teen knows how to "lure" fly-fishing customers
By Alex Grubb (KRTV-Great Falls)

Solitude Fly Company's Sculpzilla has been a huge hit.  Streamers are like fads these days, however, some are here to stay.  The Sculpzilla has even founds it's way to its homeland in Japan.

 Can't wait to head down there!  KK, Dan, Sam, Howard, Rich, and Steve (la Manzana) are headed to Campeche next week.

Here is a press release that shows off some of the work of our Great Falls and Montana conservation groups.  A lot of the fund raising money is behind the scenes and often seems untangible but here is a great example of what they get done for all of us.

My old man and Jennifer were carp fishing last weekend (at a location they're keeping from me) and had a little excitement with a few fish other than carp.  The fish on the left is a catfish and the fish on the right is a drum, both caught on the fly.  No carp on their excursion, but I don't think they really cared much after landing these fish.  They also landed another smaller catfish. 

 Carp Rodeo is August 14th.  Sign up sheets will be in the shops this week.  Posters and detailed information will be posted this week.  Get your teams together.  The buckles for the winning carp rodeo team are looking sweet and you will want one.  

Here's a Simms video to get you pumped.

Check this out.  A 44 year-old man named O'Sullivan purchased a carp five months ago that has developed a "human-like" face.  It has developed features that resemble a nose, mouth, and eyes.  O'Sullivan thought that he was hallucinating due to heat exhaustion, but came to find that the hallucinations were not hallucinations at all.  I wonder if this would count for bonus points in the carp rodeo this year?  Weird stuff.