Zero 2 Hero - Musky Fly Fishing

First Annual Musky Fly Fishing World Championships Announced!

2012-01-08T13:39:00.000-08:00

Towee Guide Tested Skiffs (http://www.toweeboats.com/)has announced that it will host and be title sponsor to the First Annual Musky Fly Fishing World Championships on Saturday, March 24th 2012.

Primo Tail - purveyor of the worlds finest predator flies and predator fly tying materials - will be co-sponsor.

Details will surely follow as they become available!

This event is planned to be an annual happening - alternating years and seasons. The first being a southern/spring happening this coming March with the 2013 edition being hosted by Primo Tail in the fall somewhere in Musky Country (Northern Wisconsin).

Rock Island, TN will be ground zero for the inaugural event.

Mark it down and get your travel plans in order all you musky fly wizards...this is sure to be a not_to_be_missed opportunity!

All you frozen_up Northern Musky Tribesman...GREAT TIME to chase off the shack nasties...and enjoy some wonderful southern weather and dust off the arsenal!

Here is a shot from last spring - Tim Fischer and myself with a fine southern musky on the fly in nearby North Carolina!

Happy New Year - Looking Forward, Looking Back!

2012-01-03T15:12:00.001-08:00

I'm already looking forward to the 2012 musky fly fishing season. I recall being out in the Oakland Hills this time last year - wondering what 2011 would bring across my bow...

As I sit on the frozen banks of the mighty Chippewa River this year contemplating the same thoughts I'll take some time to share images and remembrances of the past campaign...it was a memorable one!

For me 2011 was the year of The Tribe. My 'boys' - Porter, Fischer, Thue and Willen all came into their own this past season. Being the old man is sort of strange. I look in the mirror and wonder where all the grey hairs and character lines came from! Musky do that to ya you know;)

I must admit though - I'd not trade places with anyone...no, I have earned my stripes and one of my true joys is in mentoring and teaching. My philosophy has always been to Pass It On...

I was fortunate enough to be mentored by a couple of the best - Nick Holmes of Whitehall, MT and Bob Mitchell OF Lake Elmo, MN being two of the finest anywhere!

Nick Holmes (L) about to take a young Afton Angler floating down the Jefferson River near Whitehall, MT circa 1980 (Grandpa Bob Zietlow and Father Jim Bohen also!)

Bob Mitchell's Fly Shop winter fly tying class Lake Elmo, MN circa 1979 - Bob is second from left...other fellows unknown...

Now don't get me wrong...the Musky Tribe are all very accomplished anglers on their own merits! I'm not taking credit for all of their fishy ways...you don't make the varsity squad without having some really MAJOR fish_mojo mind you;)

Here are some images I quickly snagged off Facebook for the fellows...Tim, Brian, Erik and Chris top to bottom...

Chris Willen came to Musky Country Outfitters with LOTS of conventional warmwater wisdom and parleyed that into one of the most remarkable rookie seasons any fly angler could hope for!

The 2011 edition of Musky Country Outfitters minus Erik Thue...at The Musky Lab - photo by Keith Kaneko (www.anglingonthefly.com)

Solid Gold

2011-12-28T09:29:00.001-08:00

A picture is worth 1000 words...musky are the fish of 10,000 casts. A top water musky on the fly encounter is one of the most hair raising events in all of sport. You do the math!

This fish gave us a great experience last June...ended up giving me the middle finger as most do. Yet Brian Porter took my camera and got some amazing images of a wild musky stalking a Beauford top water nearly all the way back to the boat!

Enjoy and IMAGINE!

The End is the Beginning...

2011-12-27T08:41:00.001-08:00

A guide has a couple of choices when faced with the end of the season...get busy or go crazy. It's a fact of life. I've learned to temper the off season...I like a little going crazy but I know in the long run I need to stay busy. The first month off the sticks my body is tired and needs to rest. My mind and spirit need recharge too.

I used to get a job in the winter. That sucked! Seriously, I'm not a fan of punching someone elses clock. Been there, done that and in the end I always ended up being grumpy no matter how fat the check.

So what else does a fishbum do to keep afloat in the lean time? I looked around at my program and decided to own it from the ground up...

Thus the quest for Primo Tail!

I figured the best way to become a more complete guide and angler was to occupy my realm fully. Back when I was in the restaurant business I learned the value of exploding the system into all the little bolts and widgets...then understanding all of the parts and figuring out how to own as many of them as I was able to.

Why were the sandwiches at Citticaffe better than any other sandwiches in downtown St. Paul? Because Citticaffe did not take the easy way out...buy everything from a big slop dealer like Sysco...instead at Citticaffe we got up at 3am and fired up the proofers and ovens...baked our own bread...ordered whole cuts of meat from a meat dealer and sliced em up fresh everyday...same with the veggies...

It worked...and folks bought into it. I learned...and when I started making my way in the world as a fly fishing guide I took those lessons and applied them to this vocation. So what does the restaurant business have to do with fly fishing?

Well Sportsfans think of what gets tied onto the end of our tippet. The fly!

To me the fly is like a sandwich. It's a bunch of ingredients put together to form an end product. Most if not all flies in fly shops today are total slop. They are tied in sweatshops in places like Sri Lanka, Kenya and Thailand. They are tied by people who never fish. Tied with materials that come from mass produced sources. They have no soul!

Seriously...next time you go to a fly shop ask em where their flies come from;)

Musky fly fishing requires 100% soul. Sure those freaks will eat any pile of crap once in awhile! But my experience has taught me that in order to be the Top Dog you have to go above and beyond with these critters. Fully occupy the realm...

I digress I know. I do that. Bear with me.

I ask myself...how do I get the best? Answer...MY WAY!

Fly or meat...I'm the kind of guy that goes to the source. Shortcuts are for people in a hurry or those who have no other clue. I'm all about the full yard.

So Primo Tail was hatched in the quest to build the best predator fly on the planet.

The meat in our fly sandwich is bucktail. My experience with store bought bucktail? PATHETIC!

They come packaged, cleaned and dyed...labeled Prime Northern Bucktail...you know what? HOGWASH! Maybe one in twenty is anywhere NEAR Prime...most are utility grade cuts...many being doe tails or fawn tails. Pathetic. The difference between a sad little gray family cut steak all cellophane wrapped and hormone pumped sitting under some fluorescent lights at Walmart and that big, thick, aged PRIME steak on the meat tray at Morton's in Minneapolis.

Bucktails don't start off clean, dyed and packaged neatly. No they start off on a dead deer...shit, piss, blood...nasty, nasty stuff. It's death...no way around that...the smells alone are rude. But reduce, reuse, recycle...it's more than a catchy way of being hip in Musky Country...it is necessary as a way to live sustainable.

So for me I exploded my fly fishing world in off-season. I just flat out refused to knuckle down and go get a short term job waiting tables...pouring drinks...pounding nails. I need to find something to keep me busy and to provide a source of income.

Funny how the Universe places things into your sights if you ask.

Interestingly enough...just as I come off my rowing season...needing something to occupy my time and provide some scratch to keep the heat on...along comes this BIG tradition here in Wisconsin called the gun deer season! Yup something like 250,000 whitetail deer get killed every November.

You know what is attached to each one of those dead critters? Prime northern bucktail!

And I tracked down the source. A one legged man who is the modern day equivalent of a mule skinner. He has HEAPS of hides. Now every December I go to what must be like on old time buffalo camp...at least the smell of it must be like that. Piles of raw hides...10,000 or more and each hide has a tail. I get first pick! And I only pick the best of the best!

Primo Tail

No second rate stuff in Musky Country. No, 100% soul...the best musky and predator flies on the planet come from shit, piss and blood. No shortcuts. No sales jobs. Just passion, dedication and commitment.

The End is just the Beginning in Musky Country!

Cheers!

2011-12-26T11:46:00.000-08:00

Well Sportsfans 2011 has been an interesting one up here in Musky Country!

I'll start this post off by sharing a shot of my last musky of the season...it was a hard earned fish for me...just look at the stupid-happy look on my face;) That's our new guide Chris 'Willhelm' Willen with me and Lucky Porter was on the oars and behind the lens.

Being with these two fellows late in the season chasing one last good fish is a great memory in a season FILLED with great memories. Brotherhood is a by-product of working hard together and living life on our own terms and to the fullest!

Here is a great shot of our brotherhood in action by another one of our 'new' guides at Musky Country Outfitters...2E aka Erik Thue. It was a moment when all things were as they should be during our annual Musky Ball. Fellow anglers from all parts of the country converged at our place - called The Musky Lab during the last weekend of October. Ain't life grand?

It's pretty easy to sit in my warm chair and fondly look back on a fruitful season...the hard part will be putting it all together and keeping it in perspective. Reflecting back upon the recent campaign has become one of my true joys...and something I feel is well earned.

So I'll indulge myself these next couple of weeks and attempt to make sense of 2011 and in the process hopefully share some of the lessons we learned on the hunt for musky. For sure there will be excellent images to share as well. Wow what a bunch of exciting fly fishing shots we collected this season!

Stay tuned as I recap 2011...another year of the musky!

My Best Friend and constant companion Lucky Penny

Ol' Afton Angler reflecting in a reflection - ;)

Zero 2 Hero takes Best DVD at International Fly Tackle Dealers Show

2011-08-22T11:48:00.000-07:00

http://midcurrent.com/2011/08/19/angling-trade-and-midcurrent-announce-iftd-product-award-winners/

Musky Opener looms...

2011-05-26T07:26:00.000-07:00

Symbolic Weekend in Musky Country!

We are one day away from showing our film Musky Country - Zero2Hero at home...where it was shot in it's entirety...along with eight other fly fishing films from around the world! That's right...The Fly Fishing Film Tour is coming to DOWNTOWN Seeley, WI on Friday Night, May 27 2011.

The show is at the Sawmill Saloon complex in a kick-ass venue called the Freight Station Theater. Go to www.seeleywis.com to learn more about one of the cooler places in the Northwoods.

Doors open at 5pm...show starts at 7pm. First set is 63 minutes...here is the line-up:

Waterline Media - Red Like Winter - giant bull reds in the winter marsh on the fly

Gambit Stone - Waters of Greenstone - hard core crazy fish pals Taylor and Hardwick DO New Zealand...lotsa big trout and laughs;)

WORLDangling - Satori - Dave Teper puts together a monumental permit film that was five years in the making!

Motiv Fishing - Geofish - Original AEG members reform and run a veg converted truck from Portland to the Yucatan...epic adventure!

Intermission - drawing for Fly Rod/Reel/Line combo courtesy of Chippewa River Custom Rods and Scientific Anglers/3M and a Play and Stay fly fishing package - Two Day Float Fishing and one night lodging courtesy Musky Country Outfitters!

Second Set is 58 minutes...here is the line-up:

406 Productions - Black Tailed Devils - Permit and passion on the flats

Beattie Outdoor Productions - MidWest - Smallmouth in Cheeseland and other Uppermidwest stuff from R.A Beattie

Third Year Fly Fisherman - Musky Country - Homeboys strut their stuff with the fish of 10,000 casts

LDR Productions - Speed, Muscle and Teeth - Conway Bowman rocks the fly with jumping mako shark off San Diego

Beattie Outdoor Productions - BlueWater - taking on sailfish and marlin on a fly with legendary bluewater captians

We will have signed copies of the DVD available for sale!

Behind the scenes stories about making a fly fishing film will flow in Seeley for certain!

Check out a preview of our new starting line-up for our soon to be launched Brand - Premium Tail!

Of course bring your fly fishing gear! Fishing has been great in Musky Country so far this season and on Saturday we will officially be into the 2011 Musky Campaign!

A 20" smallmouth for MCO client Jim Hyma from an early 2011 outing(photo Jim Hyma)

Back in Musky Country!

2011-05-13T14:42:00.000-07:00

Whew!

What an adventure it has been since the last post Sportsfans!!

I finally made it back to Musky Country...basically in one piece after a coast to coast road trip with the Fly Fishing Film Tour in March and April. Penny and I got our feet wet in the Pacific and the Atlantic...and got to do all kinds of fishing and fun related stuff in between.

Touring around showing off Musky Country - Zero 2 Hero to fly fishing crowds from California up the coast to Oregon and then across Nevada, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Missouri, Tennessee, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois before getting back into Wisco. was really a dream come true.

I have always been a big time Steinbeck fan and his book Travels with Charlie Across America inspired me to dream about seeing the country in an epic road trip on day...well I got my opportunity finally this off-season.

There are so many stories to tell and people to thank and photos to edit and share that I hardly know where to begin...hopefully I'll be able to share some of those people, places and things here...and hopefully this latest adventure will be the beginning of a pattern of off-season travel and networking for your old pal Afton Angler. Because it is in my blood!

THANK YOU to everyone along the way who opened up their lives and shared the spirit of the road with Penny and me! The American Dream is still alive and well out there as well as back in Musky Country folks.

You just have to reach out for it and give yourself permission to follow your own version...

Speaking of Musky Country - getting home to Boulder Lodge saw some changes since I last rested my head here.

Boulder Lodge now has a new hood ornament as well as new ownership. It was really refreshing to get back to some familiar landmarks!

ROCK SOLID

HOME STREET

The Musky Lab wintered well...

Opening Night at Boulder under new owners Terry and Michelle Conroy had new faces as well as old friends...and it felt great to be back amongst em all...

Of course weather in Northern Wisconsin at the beginning of May can be any ones guess...and one minute it is springtime and the next it is still winter! But you learn to roll with the punches and make the most of what the day throws across your bow in this place I love so much.

The general fishing opener had to wait a week after I arrived back so I went way up north and met up with Lucky and another guide buddy Blake for some lakerun action on the Bois Brule...
Lucky Porter swings for spring steel...
Blake gets bent as Lucky watches intently
A decent Lake Superior steelbow goes back to the Brule

Opening Weekend found me haunting a favorite place - Seeley, WI! This little place on the banks of the Namekagon will have plenty of airtime on this blog in 2011. Coming up shortly will be the Fly Fishing Film Tour at the Freight Station Theater on Friday, May 27th on the eve of the Musky Opener! Followed by a very cool event MCO is hosting for the Wounded Warriors in Action in late June. Remember the 2010 Musky Ball? Well the Sawmill Saloon and the Freight Station Theater will be the host for the 2nd Annual Musky Ball on October 28th-30th, 2011!
Sawmill Saloon and Freight Station Theater in Seeley, WI
The Lenroot Lodge on the banks of the Namekagon River.

Spring does have a way of...well, Springing up...
When I see these I know the Hendrickson mayflies are hatching...

So I go here...

With her...

And pull out these...

I have been so focused on musky fly fishing the past couple of seasons that I sort of lost my roots - that being 'something_for_every_season'. It is the philosophy I grew up with...you know taking advantage of the best that Nature puts in front of you each and every day. It is a balance that has provided me great comfort and pleasure in my life and I aim to get back to that more in 2011!

Decisions, decisions...old school or high tech?
Dusting off the light trout kit(I did not even fish for trout in Wisconsin in 2010 -gasp!)I waver on what to wield...

Gotta love a custom made graphite and tricky little light reel

But the classic Norling Cane given as a gift by the maker wins out...I'm sentimental and traditional at heart I am!

I love cane rods with agate strippers and English Blue reels!

Well, the trout and the Hendricksons in early May up here in Musky Country provied some of my favorite troutin' of all time. Seriously, I lived in Montana and got to fish the best water all over the West...but I have yet to find an equal to a brown trout born and bred on the Namekagon. Seriously.

Getting bent like this gets into ones blood it does...

I love to call up on friends and invite them to share in some dry fly action...
Musky Addict Derek introduces his son Elliot to the Ways of the Trout!

Fat Namekagon browns are tough customers to fool but wow what specimens. A solid week of trouting restores my balance and now I am open to what else the Universe has in store for Afton Angler in 2011!

Whats on the Horizon?

Still have plenty of Premium Tail to work with...

A new pastime I discovered in Hayward with some friends...
Throwing Tomahawks!

Trapping minnows to monitor whats going on in the predator/prey chain...
Good minnow trapping grounds
A bit of a slow start on the first check...
Things get better as it heats up!
The traps provide clues as to what we should be tying at the bench and using on our fly rods...

And of course we have the warm water stuff to look forward to. Ran the first drift boat trip of the season on the Chippewa with old friend Marv and new friend Nate...it was GREAT to be back at it and the smallmouth were fat with pre-spawn and hungry for out flies!

Don't forget this is Musky Country!
Tim Fischer with our first 2011 musky release...from North Carolina...but that is another story!

Till next time...
See Ya

Lucky Porter

2011-02-18T16:57:00.000-08:00

Brian "Lucky" Porter...Musky Country Outfitters river guide...every muskies worst nightmare;)

Great predator fly tier! Appearing Live in Pleasanton, CA at the Fly Fishing Show courtesy Clear Cure Goo and Musky Country Outfitters.

Friday, Saturday and Sunday - Feb 25,26,27 2011

Musky Box Update...The complete Drake Swap Collection

2011-02-18T12:19:00.001-08:00

My Bad! I missed having one of the 12 patterns from The Drake fly fishing board Musky Fly Swap in my original image. Here are some shots of the original complete collection of 12:

There has been an outpouring of donations to this box...in fact the number of flies that are being tied and are on their way will overflow this Cliff Justin Case!

I have a dozen KILLER big trout streamers from one of the best big trout freaks Wisconsin has ever produced - Whahoo Adams from The Hud! Wha's troutmeat concoctions are most highly prized!

Those alone will fill up a small streamer box.

Over a dozen other musky fly tiers are contributing patterns...some a single deadly personal favorite and others three or four patterns. I'll shoot photos of all contributions and will make certain all tiers get noted.

THANK YOU for the show of support on this fundraiser for young Sage in Montana.

I will announce that the LEGENDARY big fish and topwater fly creator Chas Bisharat (think AirHead and PoleDancer...ya THAT guy!) will be contributing. Chas is an big time star in the royalty tier world...and even hangs out with musky riff raff like us from time to time.

William Joseph Company has donated a boat bag to carry the Justin Case!

Tom Schenk of Chippewa River Custom Rods has donated a 10 wt fly rod! One of our favorite boat rods in Musky Country Outfitters arsenal. Tommy makes a fishy and fine stick for sure;)

I'll continue to post updates on this as things continue to take shape...

If you want to contribute please do so my March 7th 2011

Mail flies to:

Brad Bohen - Fly Swap

c/o Wild Birds and Gardens
5339 Sunrise Blvd
Fair Oaks, CA
95628

Please include any information you care to share about the flies.

Thank You in Advance!

AND PLEASE PASS THE WORD THAT WE ARE PASSING IT ON...

2011 Fly Fishing Film Tour - First Leg...

2011-02-17T08:24:00.002-08:00

Friends, Fish and Fun

And Film about Friends, Fish and Fun...that is what the 2011 Fly Fishing Film Tour(F3T) has been all about for The Musky Tribe on the West Coast Leg.

Forgive me for the shitty snap shots but they are all I have for now. I even borrowed a few from friends to make this as complete as I am able. Being a Touring Fly Fishing Tramp is grand but it does challenge my process.

Lucky Porter showed up on an airplane in SAC just before the F3T kicked off down in Ventura Beach, CA on Feb 3rd 2011.

Lucky, Penny the Setter and me - The Afton Angler loaded up the trusty 'new' Landcruiser and made tracks SOUTH from SAC down Highway One - The Pacific Coast Highway...one of the most beautiful drives you can take anywhere!
Gas Station/Coffee Shop @ Big Sur...$4.98/gal GAS! FUCKME!!
Lucky and Penny enjoying one of the many pull-overs along the Cali Coast on Highway One
Penny catchin' some Pacific Wind!
The Beautiful Coast as it lays out before the driver all down The One...

Well, we made it to Ventura in one piece but not without some drama...the Landcruiser had some issues with a broken Oil Pressure Sensor and was spraying a fine mist of 10w30 and causing us some tense moments as there are long miles on the One with no services what-so-ever...Lucky picked up a case of Poison Oak/Ivy or something like that and we had to go to an Urgent Care...and the traffic on the CA freeways as ones gets down south is just utterly white_knuckle for this hick from the sticks!

But we plodded onward and it was a gas!

Our old Musky Tribesman Dynomite Dan roadtripped up from way south CA to meet up with us. It was GREAT to have the quartet of Lucky/Dyno/AA/Penny together again. We all lived and worked together up on the Brule River at the Winneboujou Club when I was the Caretaker there a few years back.

Dyno, Penny and Lucky outside our lodge in Ventura Beach

Not a bad view from the lodge for a couple of Wisco hicks to enjoy!

Well the Opening Night of the F3T in Ventura was a thrill. I'll keep it at that! THANK YOU VENTURA!

AA gets a bit soused...

We...um called it an early night and got to business first thing the next morning up the coast a bit. A fellow fly fishing guide named David Wratchford aka Unskunkable took us under his wing for a few days and showed us around his hood!

David and I are fellow Drakians and if you have to ask what that is too bad! Drakians are a crew of fly fishing brothers that just click no matter where in the world we find one another...and it has been one of the great privelidges of my fly fishing career to be included in this brotherhood!

Like I said David showed us the nines all around So Cal...

There are some really cool fly fishing connections down in that neck of the woods! But the fishing is what keeps everything grounded... David was a superior host and guide!! And he managed to not embarass us too badly with his prolific surf fishing abilities...they don't call him Unskunkable because he is a Ronnie sportsfans!

The boys getting set to get at it...

Dyno gets some action!
Lucky hooks up!
Sun and Fun as fishing fools in SO CAL!

Surf Perch...

David outfitted us all and proceeded to outfish all three of us about 20-4 or something like that! Surf fishing with a fly rod is all about TOUCH. Something that ham handed 10 wt slingers from Musky Country had to develop slowly...

No worries. We each managed to get a few perch to hand. There were some leopard sharks about as well but no hook-ups. Lucky did manage another exotic species...some kind of 1/2 ray - 1/2 skate bugger called a guitar fish or something like that...thing came in ass hooked but it was still cool to see...

Long Beach was the next stop on the F3T and the Musky Tribe kept it well under control for the show that night. Actually we did a little Lie-N-Tie at a great fly shop on the edge of LA called Fisherman's Spot(http://www.fsflyfishing.com/).

I love to be in a fly shop! This place was super cool. The owner Ken treated us as sons. His lovely wife cooked us diner and they put us up at their house for the night...and introduced us to some of their SO Cal clients...we spun our musky concoctions and told our tales. Penny actually took over the shop for a spell and they let her do her thing!

THANKS - FISHERMAN'S SPOT for the great Hospitality!

The show in LBC was fun. David got to spank JJ! Snicker...

BTW - JJ is one of the coolest cats you will find. A REAL good guy!

Our Drakian crew had some more company in LBC...a couple from Vegas came down to rock with us...Blumpkin and his Mail Order Bride!!

Now we were rolling...and all I can say is WOW!!! At this point it was all about seeing the town, making new friends and just throwing down and enjoying LIFE;)

Lucky and AA with a new ginger friend who poured great Zin and sang us a song from her soul...
Drakians in the LBC!
Lucky and The Mail Order Bride...SHE ROCKS!!
Snoop Luck and Unskunkable rappin' to the gangstas...Lucky brought the house down...SERIOUSLY!!
AA belted out some GOD BLESS THE USA...and was told to shut up and sit down...haha;)
AA manages at least one fan though...
How you end the night in LBC...Roscoes Chickin' n Waffles!!!

Well after Long Beach F3T went up to SAC...nice time but a little anti-climatic...The Musky Tribe got to hang with the F3T road crew and that was cool. Those guys travel hard for this thing. They are excellent Amigos to tour with. My Ma and Pa got to see the show.

That made me PROUD! Such wonderful support on the home front...THANKS FOLKS!

After SAC I went solo up to Portland for the show. I have a special woman in my life...that some might recognize as a Mermaid...and she is in PDX for now. Stella - THANKS for such a memorable time...you put wind in my sails Baby! I love you!

Well, that's it for now from the F3T/Musky Country Road Trip...

Last but not least...a little love for one of our great sponsors PIKESABER!!
Thumbs up from The Musky Tribe for PIKESABER!!!

Drake Musky Fly Swap

2011-02-16T16:13:00.000-08:00

My trusty old musky fly box...

Filled with patterns from the Drake Musky Fly Swap. I'll be filling this box with more patterns as well and auctioning it off to benefit a young man named Sage...

Pretty serious looking junk in this line-up. Should end up fetching a pretty penny in the end. Stay tuned!

It's COMING!

2011-02-15T13:37:00.001-08:00

Hang Time Optic Minnow

2011-02-15T12:25:00.000-08:00

Hang Time Optic Minnow

by Brad Bohen - www.MuskyCountryOutfitters.com

Orange and Black 3-D Eyes by Piketrek

Head by Clear Cure Goo

Hair and feather by Premium Tail

Flash by Flashabou and Crystal Flash

Hair, feather, flash...

Bankable predator fish ammo. Balanced and lifelike with many, many actions at all speeds from still to thrill.

More Wild on the Fly this week!

2011-01-31T16:58:00.000-08:00

A great shot by Brian "Lucky" Porter - one of Musky Country Outfitters guides and chief photog talent...funny image...Lucky shoots Mike filming Drew and me trying to stay out of the way!

This was a pig musky! It could not have happened better. Fourth hard day of fishing. Drew had missed a nice hard take just minutes before. Then he really locks down and I talk him into the zone...he does it all like the pro he is (His nickname is The Show I think) and sticks this 43" fatty on film!

You can see it all again on The Outdoor Channel this week. Wild on the Fly Producer Joe Daniel called me this morning. "Good news Brad!"

"Your show was a hit and we had some schedualing issues so they have decided to run Musky Madness again..."

AWESOME!

So tune in on Thursday, Feb 3rd at 6am Pacific Time - Friday Feb 4th 3pm Pacific Time and Saturday Feb 5th 9:30am Pacific Time. Wild on the Fly on The Outdoor Channel.

Thanks to everyone who watched and emailed or called after watching it last week. It's inspiring to know people are seeing it and enjoying watching The Musky Tribe in action.

I touched on this before...but as a little kid watching the Saturday morning TV fishing shows like old Virgil Ward(anyone remember him?) I was transported to a Galaxy Far Far Away.... That was like crack to my eight year old brain.

If you would have told me that I'd get to be a part of making fishing TV shows back then...well, I'd have been blown away. Still am!

So, pass the word that The Musky Tribe is on National TV again this week.

Joe edited the show a bit. Included some additional fishing footage and added a song from a band called Angling Wayne and The Trollers recorded at The Musky Ball last October.

When was the last time you watched a fly fishing show that included whiskey poured out in tribute over a grave, a pike getting bonked, dressed and then roasted whole over a campfire and in my opinion the show_stopper - a guide (Tim Fischer) stripping down to his skivvies in icey conditions and diving under water to retrieve a stuck fly?

That is REAL TV Sportsfans!

ENJOY - WILD ON THE FLY in Musky Country on The Outdoor Channel

Heros

2011-01-30T08:19:00.001-08:00

Alton Van Camp on the Flambeau River circa ~1925

One of the truly rewarding things about living your passion and working at something that you love to do is how the Universe just happens.

Huh?

I know, I know...I'm flaky. Get used to it! Let me try to explain...

The above image is of-in my humble opinion-the greatest river guide that Wisconsin has ever produced - Mr. Alton Van Camp. Mr. Van Camp is my Hero. I idolize him. I often wish I could spend a day on the river with him.

So guess what? He is long passed away. As are most of the Great Ones. That is how it goes...we all pass on. Great or common...we all have our limited time on this rock.

Bummer? Only if you are a pessimist. Me? I'm an eternal optimist. I can not understand how you could not be as a musky fly angler!

So I know that my time is short...all of our time is short Sportsfans. Live THE DREAM! Every single day to the fullest!! Find your passion and celebrate it!!!

That is EXACTLY what Zero 2 Hero is about. That is THE POINT!

So what?

Here is what. I can not fish with Alton Van Camp but by living my passion I have come into contact with his family. His grandson sent me a picture that the family cherishes...the one you see above.

You know what? Alton is their Hero as well...they Idolize their Grandfather too...

So he is Alive and Well in many respects!

And you know what? He has a great grandson...who loves to fish! And he has yet to catch a musky...

Here is the kicker folks...

I get to take Altons great grandson out in September to try and catch his first musky on a fly! WOW!!

I'm blown away by this. I get to fish with Alton Van Camp after all!

Live The Dream Friends...

Live The Dream!

Wild on the Fly

2011-01-28T15:47:00.000-08:00

Well I was surprised on Wednesday afternoon by a phone call from Joe Daniels - producer of Wild on the Fly saying "Brad your episode is being aired this week..."

Huh?

Turns out Musky Madness has its first run this week: Pacific Times Thursday (6am), Friday (3pm) and Saturday (9am) on the Outdoor Channel.

Situation normal all fucked up! I had planned on seeing the first showing on Feb 5th but as with most fishing situations the only sure thing is what is happening right now!

No worries...I'm a musky angler and if I could not adapt to changes I'd starve!

I took a big gulp and quickly drafted an email to everyone on my mass-email list and put the word out that our first appearance on National TV was coming a week ahead of the listed time...and I also realized it was a little like having a professor tell you a term paper is due early!

Oh Shit...

Off-season for me is anything but off. In fact the hustle being a start-up, independent, second-year owner of a guide and outfitting company requires me to wear all hats...mostly ones that do not fit and make me look silly! But I live and learn and have developed a system for learning stuff off-the-water!

Mine...Bulldozer! Lower your head and plow through it Cowboy;)

This stuff is called Business 101 and is what most folks do every day for a living. I had always been confident in what I do on the water. And the common notion is that being a good angler and good guide is all about getting it done on the water...

Well you know what? That is the easy part. Seriously, if that was all there was to the fly fishing business this job would be cake and everyone would be lining up to do it.

In my ideal world I would just snap my fingers and my Harvard Grad executive assistant would swiftly handle all my communication, proposals, requests and multitude of other behind the scenes tasks that put asses in boat seats a that allow me to be the shit hot fly fishing guide that I keep telling myself I am.

Snicker...

The reality is my executive assistant has no thumbs and thinks she is the boss. I'm her bitch and if I have any doubts all I have to do is take her for a walk! All anyone says is "Oh, what a pretty dog...she is so beautiful..."

And I roll my eyes and laugh..."Yup, she is damn pretty..." and mutter to myself "..but she don't type worth a hoot..."

I digress.

So Wednesday I get a phone call from the professor and he tells me that my term paper is due early. And I realize that all the stuff I wanted to have in place on our website and across the board with Musky Country Outfitters is just not going to be a reality when our first BIG National Break happens.

I did not even know where or when I would see the show. Seriously!

I missed the first showing on Thursday. I was tickled by phone calls and emails coming in from folks saying they saw it...my Aunt in Madison...she and Uncle Denny loved it and DVR'd it for Grandma...guide buddy in MI said he was proud to know me...Tim Fischer called from Ft. Lauderdale and was grinning ear to ear through the phone I shit you not...

So I relaxed a bit. Shook off the anxiety of not having everything "As it should be" in my control freak mind...and just did what I do best - roll with it.

I got to watch the show this afternoon! Loved it! Laughed my ass off...and was really touched and proud of how Joe put it all together.

OK my hand hurts from typing now and I will give you all a break from chewing the cud today. I'm gonna go have a long afternoon bike ride then some cold beers and bask in this life that really is:

Wild on the Fly!

Movie Star...every little boys dream!

2011-01-26T12:04:00.000-08:00

left to right - ProAngler Drew Miller (from The Grizzly Hackle in Missoula, MT), MCO Guide - Brian 'Lucky' Porter, Wild on the Fly Camera Man Michael Grasseschi, MCO - Guide Tim Fischer, Myself, Wild on the Fly producer Joe Daniels.

It has been a spell since I last sat down and even thought about updating this Blog. Not that is has not been on my mind...mind you! It's just that I have been out of touch with computing since finishing my guide season in late November and then traveling out to California to spend the 'off' season with my family in Sacramento.

But yesterday I called my friend back in frozen Minnesnowta - Big Pike Mike Thomas(http://bigpikemike.blogspot.com/)and he said "Dude, you need to update your Blog..."

Now Big Pike Mike is one of the most tardy bloggers I know of and when he calls me out then I know I have been slacking! So thanks Big Pike Mike...for the motivation!

Getting back in the saddle actually feels good. I notice that I have a bunch of new followers...despite my slack ass ways! THANKS fellows...I'll honor your following in 2011 with a more diligent approach.

Oh, where to begin. Lots of water under the proverbial bridge since the last installment at Musky Ball Time!

I guess I will spend the next few posts looking back on a remarkable 2010 Season and discussing some of the unique things that happened to me as an angler living my dream.

The title to this post - Movie Star really encapsulates my 2010. You see I finally got to live a dream come true and was in front of the rolling cameras many days in Musky Country. Call it narcissistic if you want to but I see it more of just wanting the ball!

It is what every professional worth his or her salt strives for - getting the ball at crunch time. You know digging in when you need to and calling your shot and making it happen. What better way to do this than to have cameras rolling to capture it all for others to enjoy. Making History!

The image you see above is of a crew put together for a TV show actually. Wild on the Fly came to Musky Country to film an episode for their self titled series that airs on The Outdoor Channel.

I invite you to join in and view the show if you have access to The Outdoor Channel. If you are like me and do not I'll see what I can do about getting the episode onto this blog after it makes its TV run...

You can learn more about Wild on the Fly here...

http://www.wildonthefly.com/blog/wild-fly-tv-january

This episode was a challenging one to film. We worked our asses off for several days on many fronts...both on the water and off and in the air. There is so much that goes into putting good angling on film!

Musky Country Outfitters learned a ton about fishing from this experience. Fishing for rolling cameras is really the ultimate test to me. True, guiding clients to a musky on the fly is a super challenge but for my money making it happen when you have a film crew rolling is what really separates the wheat from the chaff.

There is pressure! And pressure can do two things sportsfans...it can fold you like a cheap suit...especially when the chips are down - as they often are when musky fishing...or it can elevate your game.

Look at our faces in this image! What do you see? I see a happy, tired and satisfied band of angling brothers. And that is what this image is. A band of angling brother assembled from strangers who jumped into a common foxhole and come out on the other side changed humans and lifelong friends.

As I said the MCO crew worked our asses off...so did the Wild on the Fly crew. They flew in and had to quickly assimilate to an entirely foreign type of fly fishing and filming environment.

Joe Daniels films Drew Miller from an interesting perspective!

Drew Miller is one fishy motherfucker! This man is a guide and an angler that I'd say could and has caught most everything that swims. You know what...we beat him up and so did the musky for five days.

But he listened and he kept castin' and despite the shitsandwich conditions that were thrown our way we managed to stick enough musky to make a show of it. And then some I am told by Joe.

Just yesterday he called me while putting the finishing touches on that episode. From what Joe says it is one of the finest they have done. I can't wait to see it!
Drew Miller with a slob musky he caught on camera for Wild on the Fly...snapshot from my guide bench perspective

So that was a great highlight for me last season. But I also had a bigger stage to perform on in 2010!

The Big Screen!

And the result was a film by Robert Thompson(http://thirdyearflyfisher.com/) who for my money is the best fly fishing film maker out there. I predict that he is the NEXT BIG THING...
Rob Thompson melting his brain in Musky Country shooting the film Musky Country - Zero 2 Hero

I'll certainly blog more about these experiences in the next few posts. These experiences definitely altered my life in a very positive way.

Going Deep...Staying Deep...

2010-10-29T12:26:00.001-07:00

It's On! The First Annual Musky Ball is kicked off...

The Pig is bout near done. The Band is settin' up. Now we just Groove until it all burns out!!

Wish You Were Here;)

YeeeHaw

It's Official - New World Record Fly Rod Musky!

2010-10-18T16:16:00.000-07:00

Unlimited Tippet Class World Record Musky - Fly Rod Catch and Release

Howdy Sportsfans

A day off the water at this point of the season is a rare commodity in Musky Country! I just wanted to take a moment out of a busy off_day for me to celebrate a memorable moment...

Just got the word from the Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame that Musky Country is now home to another World Record Fly Caught Musky! It's Official: Brad Bohen is now the angler of record for the Unlimited Class tippet category in the Catch & Release Fly Rod Division with a 46" natural musky taken from the Chippewa River in Rusk Country, WI on September 12th, 2010.

Brian 'Lucky' Porter was witness to the catch. Lucky was on the oars once again for this memorable angling moment - THANKS Brother!! The beast took a Hot Pink Double Trouble boatside...I'd go on about the details of the catch...but that would spoil the tale. You see, film maker Robert Thompson (http://www.thirdyearflyfisher.com/stillsmusky) candidly captured this entire catch on HD film...along with about 13 other musky fly catches, a bunch of smallmouth and pike too and oh ya, a fat walleye that joined us for a campfire diner.

Rob will be creating a tale of life on the Musky Trail to be released sometime early in the 2010/2011 off-season. All I can say is that I lived it folks and it is some of the most kick-ass stuff I have been a part of as a professional angler. I can't wait to see what he comes up with after emerging from the editing booth(poor bastard!). As tough as taking one of these critters on a fly is...his job of capturing a fly caught musky on film is like 100 times more challenging! Basically he has to be on point rolling film for eight hours a day...cast after cast after cast.

Jeez!

O.K. - Thanks for taking a moment with me friends to give credit to another magnificent fish and the MIGHTY Chippewa River! We are blessed to have such a wonderful river resource here in Musky Country. My hope is that all anglers and non-anglers who value our freshwater resources will use examples like this new record musky to become aware of how precious and vital our free access to public water is! Protect and preserve our water and our rights to access and use this resource responsibly!

Musky Country Outfitters is still in Prime Time!

Friday, October 29th through Sunday, October 31 2010 marks the First Annual Musky Ball. Proudly sponsored by Musky Country Outfitters and hosted by Boulder Lodge located 24 miles east of Hayward, WI (Home of World Record Muskies) on Highway 77. Friday night come and join The Musky Tribe in an old time Hootenanny - Hog Roast, Kegger and LIVE MUSIC featuring ANGLING WAYNE and the Trollers. Music from 7-10pm...eats and drinks will be going from about 5pm on...

All you can eat, beer_drink(responsibly!) and music in advance for $25. Still setting up ticket locations - Boulder Lodge, The Man Cave in Hayward(?)...

Music Only at the door on Friday, October 29th...$15.

Musky on the Fly stuff all weekend long at Boulder is free!! Come celebrate another season of Musky Love with us in the heart of it all!

Plenty of camping room still at Boulder...rooms nearby @ Spider Lake Motel, Spider Lake Lodge, Clam Lake and Hayward...

Musky Country Outfitters is proud to have a talented new guide on board for the remainder of 2010 and full time for 2011. Welcome Tim Fischer (aka XG or XtraGravy)! Tim has openings for the remainder of 2010 and Musky Country Outfitters is booking for Tim RIGHT NOW...

Contact guide@muskycountryoutfitters.com for a special introductory rate for the remainder of 2010 for Tim. He is a great fly fishing talent...relentless and very fishy, solid oarsman with a sporty RO skiff. Tim can put you into a fish of your dreams yet this season in Musky Country.

Brad continues to row through another record breaking season personally. 125 musky on the fly in the boat as of 10/17/2010! WOW, I am just humbled and amazed to be going through another dream season! I owe a great deal of gratitude to my guiding partners number one to Brian Porter! Lucky, man we have been through it all the past few seasons and now look what the pup has drug home eh Brother? Could not have done it without you...and I look forward to see where this takes us. Also a big props to the other Tribe boys - Tommy Schenk, Jason JGuy Stewart, Tim Fischer, Marv, Bearcat, John Coolidge, TimmyP, Churchy and all the other fine anglers I have had the pleasure to share a boat with in 2010 - THANK YOU!!

Finally, whew...this always starts out with the intention of being a short message...lol! Finally a big shout out to the Corporate Sponsorship who helped support what we do in Musky Country in 2010:

The Drake (www.drakemag.com) - The best voice in fly fishing print period!
Chippewa River Custom Rods(http://www.crcustomrod.com/) - Brother Tommy builds em on the banks of the Chip and both world records fell with his sticks!
Clear Cure Goo (http://www.clearcuregoo.com/) - The most revolutionary new product for musky fly fishing in 2010! Thanks CCG - you made tying bullet proof and FUN AGAIN!
Scientific Anglers/3M (http://www.scientificanglers.com/) - Cutting edge lines for intense anglers...GOES DEEP...STAYS DEEP!
Piketrek (http://www.pikeflyrod.com/pike-fly-rods/26-pikesaber-10-weight-9-00-4-piece-specialist-pike-fly-rod.html) - Makers of the PIKESABER! Brad Bohen's favorite musky fly rod!!
Premiere Oars and Blades (http://www.premierflyfishing.net/premier_oars_blades.php) - Premiere oars and blades...just like the name...our shoulders and elbows and backs thank you 10,000 times fellas!
William Joseph (http://www.williamjoseph.net/) - Kick ass cool boat gear!
Cortland (http://www.cortlandline.com/) - American Made Fly Line since 1915!
Patagonia (http://www.patagonia.com/us/environmentalism) - Showing us the way to do it on many levels!
Scott Rods (http://www.scottflyrod.com/) - Lucky Porters new favorite musky fly rod!

Musky Hunting is a difficult business. Our professional sponsors provide us with not only cutting edge gear but their belief in what we do give us that extra edge that puts Musky Country Outfitters at the top of the class. THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU!

Now please visit their websites and buy lots of stuff;)

Check out The Drake and Fly Fisherman this month on your newstands to see and learn more about musky fly fishing and what we do in Musky Country.

May you all have a wonderful day and a stellar remainder of the 2010 Fishing Season. I'll give one more recap after the Musky Ball and then will wrap things up for the 2010 Edition sometime in November...

Drop me a note an let me know how things are in your corner of the world. Grace and Peace to all of you!!

Sincerely

Brad Bohen

And So It Begins...

2010-09-20T14:17:00.000-07:00

Prime Time in Musky Country Sportsfans!

From here on out until Freeze-Up or the last day in the Month of November it will just be silly, wild and GameOn for the rag tag bunch of anglers of The Musky Tribe...

Call it the Playoffs, Call it Tenderloin Time, Call it Balls2theWalls or whatever trips your trigger because that is exactly what we are doing - tripping musky triggers and everything else we do leads up to this time of the season.

Sleep, eat, drink, nookie and the other essentials of a balanced life take a back seat. Bills, phonecalls, cleaning, organizing and other mundane nuances of a "normal" existence must be fit into whatever time is left over after chasing tail.

We are lean, we are mean and we are not too far between (muskies that is) so keep checking in...Brad is at 93 in da boat now and smells an even Hundo like it is last nights rib sauce on the ol' mustachio...mmmmm!

I’m proud to introduce a couple new and vital members of the Upper Wisco faction of the Musky Tribe: new guide Tim Fischer and our bucktail guru Jonathan. Like the Yankees - Musky Country Outfitters is all about getting the best players and these two are BlueChippers.

Enjoy some quality fish porn from Upper Wisco...no one gives it out like Musky Country! These are from Lucky Porters camera and I can say no one does it better!

2010-09-14T08:23:00.000-07:00

Robert Thompson was up filming again this past weekend...all I'll say is that he is one hell of a camera man...real artist and I can not wait to see what he does in the editing booth!

Here is a little teaser of what is to come(http://www.thirdyearflyfisher.com/stillsmusky). The Tribe fished hard and we brought the goods for Robert. He still has four more days of filming in October so I'm predicting a super product when all is said and done...

Jesse from St. Paul got his first musky on a fly Monday...and put my total for the season at 90. Wow, things continue to roll here in Musky Country...

She Said Yes!...and so did the muskies!!

2010-09-05T18:03:00.000-07:00

Catching a musky on a fly generally dominates the news of the day around Musky Country basecamp...but every once in awhile another story trumps even a four fish day!

She said Yes...Annie booked a trip back in Feb for her boyfriend Charles...Charles then pulled an end run on his girl and asked if it would be OK to propose marriage in my boat.

Gulp...Um, OK but can you at least wait until after lunch...?

Nothing to worry about in turns out. The weather was super rugged, but the gal hung in there. She got her man and then he got his fish and then another one and then another one and finally another to make a four musky in the boat on a fly day plus a happy fiancé.

Booya!!

Only in Musky Country folks! Can Not Make this kind of stuff up!

Oh and I got a neat present out of the deal as well. Zero 2 Hero...

I Love My Life!

Summer of (musky) Love

2010-08-31T09:07:00.001-07:00

Big and Small We Love Em ALL!

A musky on the fly is a magical thing to experience. Summer 2010 has been filled with many great experiences. On this last day of August I share with you a sample of random images celebrating a slice of what we do up here in Musky Country!

Enjoy...there are firsts - first musky on a fly, first musky of any kind, first musky on a top water, first musky on this lake, first musky on that lake! Bests...biggest - biggest musky of the season, biggest musky of a lifetime...well you get the picture (pun intended).

All these images make up the tapestry of our life...look at the smiles, look at the fish and the flies...lots of love and fellowship. All part of the package that we pursue.

We are honored to share time and space with those who come up to Upper Wisco to seek out these experiences and look forward to sharing many more here with you as our peak part of the season unfolds.

So I toast the Summer of Musky Love - Skanobish!

Big Pike Mike...gets fishy!

2010-08-29T09:54:00.000-07:00

Guide buddy Big Pike Mike needed to get his mojo back. He came up to Musky Country looking to get healthy...and found this big headed monster (his personal best musky on a fly)!

What a cool thing to share an experience like this - wild fish, wild water and wild times with a Brother From Another Mother! Good seeing you Mike...see you back in October for the Musky Ball!

Speaking of the Musky Ball - come one, come all you musky and pike on the fly junkies!

Friday, Saturday, Sunday October 28-31, 2010 - Musky Country Outfitters is hosting the first of its kind musky on the fly rendezvous. Think old time mountain man get-together but instead of pelts and traps we will be talking flies, gear and Esox...right in the heart of the best Musky on the Fly territory at the pinnicle of the season!

How could anyone pass this up?

Grassroots fly fishing Hootenanny at its finest!

Boulder Lodge Ghost Lake, WI

Friday Night - Music by Randy Sabien...pig roast...kegger...

All Weekend - musky on the fly talk...

Stay tuned for details as they happen.

for further into guide@muskycountryoutfitters.com

St. Paul Pioneer Press Outdoor Writer Chris Niskanen tunes into some Musky Love...

2010-08-15T12:46:00.000-07:00

The Musky Tribe hosted Chris Niskanen a few weeks back. We think he did a bang up job describing our time on the water and what the sport of musky on the fly is all about.

Thanks Chris!

Mark it Down...Dude...

2010-08-13T15:23:00.000-07:00

Thursday October 28th thru Monday November 1st, 2010

1ST ANNUAL MUSKY BALL

Boulder Lodge - Ghost Lake - 24 miles East of Hayward, WI

The first musky on the fly conclave of its kind. Prime Time...Prime Place!

Details to follow...

email guide@muskycountryoutfitters.com for details about staying and playing.

MCO MIA?...NO WAY!

2010-07-27T13:26:00.000-07:00

Musky Country Outfitters is happy to report that things have been hoppin' on the musky trail...we have been working for em but they have been eating flies with regularity.

Just way too much time on the water to be any damn good at Blogging this time of the year...I'll post more when I'm able...

CIAO for Now

Brad

2010-06-25T10:05:00.001-07:00

I love the scene in the movie Bull Durham when Crash Davis gets the boys a much needed rain out by turning on the sprinkler system at the ball field late the night before the game.

Ma Nature handed me a much needed break from the oars this Friday and Saturday...I generally never scrub trips except for ground lightening and a death in the family. The next two dudes in the hopper both had some pressing schedule issues and it did not take much convincing for me to issue weather checks and reschedules for July.

The 61st annual Hayward Musky Festival is this weekend:
http://www.haywardareachamber.com/MuskyFest/index.htm

Hijinks will ensue!

I’m taking a week or so off the guide roster. Time to heal up the esox-cut hands, clean up the boat and tow rig, sort out my tackle kit, tie flies, edit photos, get caught up on emails, start hustling summer and early fall bookings and whatnot…then I’ll need a break from productive stuff and will be ready to hit the water with a vengeance again when those flow charts start to drop back into the safe to float range again!

Here is some random Upper Wisco fly fishing porn from June – Enjoy!

Fight Club

Deep Throat - Muskies Love Flies!

Keep On Keepin On!

2010-06-24T17:11:00.001-07:00

Musky Country is flush with water...a 6.5 year drought was finally broken this past week...I'm finishing up a silly busy guide run in the next couple of days...then will have time to put together some quality posts...

For now enjoy a hard earned musky by NYC angler The Muskquire! Nice work Brother!! What a fatty!!!

Peace to all you Esox crazies...

What We Live For...

2010-06-19T07:44:00.001-07:00

Helping passionate anglers get their first musky on a fly! Brad Billingsly from Denver, CO got hit with The Fever while on a musky hunt one fine June Day with Musky Country Outfitters.

He fished long and hard for this beautiful native musky. The fish took an Angry Minnow that was cast to the mouth of a creek entering the Chippewa River. The Pike Saber fly rod did the trick once again (Thanks PIKESABER!) and after a couple of minutes we had fish number one in the boat for this Rocky Mountain Musky Man.

Nice work Brad and I'm already looking forward to your return in late October...

Wanna be like Brad? Look up Musky Country Outfitters...we live for this kind of stuff!

Rainy Rewards

2010-06-13T08:12:00.000-07:00

As I mentioned in the last post - musky fishing is tough business. That is the nature of the game...the nature of the beast. This fish lives by its own rules and often times the pursuit of them leaves us anglers scratching our hair covered computers and wondering if the database we operate with is ever going to be more than swiss cheese.

Tim from St. Louis got a wet and wild baptism into the musky realm on Friday. Ten hours of driving to get up here to Musky Country and a hope to see what this kind of angling is all about.

Well Tim must have been living right! He fell right into a wild couple of hours of action the first morning...raising six fish, hooking two and landing a true trophy as seen above.

Congrats Tim! Wow what a first musky and to get it on a fly rod!! WOW!!!

Sometimes getting up early and braving the weather and the wondering are the only thing I can turn to on the musky trail. Other times I feel like I have these fish in my hip pocket only to realize that my pocket has a hole in it.

I love this sport and the life that revolves around the quest for a musky on the fly.

Tough Start!

2010-06-11T04:11:00.000-07:00

I have been a slacker on the Blog front...but only because we have been relentlessly on the water. The first two weeks of the musky season have been consistently tough...when the weather is not throwing a curve ball in our direction the esox have lived up to their reputation as difficult customers!

Not that it is all doom and gloom mind ya! Musky Country Outfitters has had a couple of dozen musky attacks this early season and plenty of fish into the boat...including this posts head shot model taken by our good friend and often boatmate Jordan.

Nice Job to all our lucky anglers...

I have a day off next Monday and will hopefully have some time to get a proper accounting of this early season ready for a fish_porn filled showing...for now hang in there and keep following along.

I'm off to run a Friday river trip!

Let the Games Begin!

2010-05-28T16:03:00.001-07:00

The 2010 Musky Season kicks off tomorrow - 5/29 in Upper Wisco!

Follow along as the Musky Tribe kicks it into toothy gear this season...I promise there will not be a dull moment until the snow flies in November.

Tally Ho!!

On the Road Again...

2010-04-29T11:20:00.000-07:00

One last shot from Oregon...a hard-earned steelhead!

Really going back to Musky Country this time Sportsfans...

I'm about one hour away from launching the return voyage. Thanks to my Family - Dad, Mom and Brothers...Uncle/Aunt/Cousins for all the Love and Support this off-season!! You folks mean the World to me:)

Also, Hasta Luego to all my new friends out in the Pacific Time Zone...can't wait to get back here and continue what we started!

I'll be doing Pyramid one more time the next couple of days...followed by a visit to Salt Lake City and some time with an equally fishy brother...then up to MT (and it looks like a top-secret trip with a certain famous fly fishing book author from Bozo)...aw, shoot...who really knows eh?

Just keep tuned and I'll get something up as I am able on the trail. Remember - Never go Straight...Always go Forward;)

A new Super Stick that I get to play around with for a spell! WooHoo!! PIKESABER!!!

Let the Games Begin!

2010-04-18T06:46:00.000-07:00

When old fishing pal Dynomite Dan shows up in the Commando Rig...a roadtrip is about to break out...

What could be better than a little fishing roadtrip? A lot of fishing roadtrip!

Game On for the next few weeks...

First Installation = Pyramid Lake with Dynomite Dan

Busted down in Sparks, NV...but not for too long

We blew a belt going over Donner Pass...also discovered a broken bearing mount...ah, the joys of Roadtripping...

Dynomite dealt with getting the mount welded and belts replaced...I turned my attention to exotic fare...

mmmmmm...roadtripfood!

Long story short...we made it out of Sparks, got up to Pyramid...and had three days of excellent adventure and managed to catch a few fish too boot!

First camp at the South Shore

Hiking out to the Truckee Delta the first morning...

Some dead shit and the mountains...

A typical fishing beach at Pyramid...

My first Lahontan Cutthroat!

Dynomite Dan working the waters...

A great fly fishing beach!

A beautiful trout in hand...

Perfect conditions...

Camping out at Wino Beach...

Morning at Wino Beach...

A little refreshment at Wino Beach...

Giddy AftonAngler

Stuck on a rock...

Beautiful Lahontan Cutthroat Trout

What Color!

Dynomite Dan and the Pyramid

One Happy Angler...

Stay Tuned...we're off to NorCal - a concert in Arcata by Trampled By Turtles and some messing around on the Trinity...then the Rogue in Southern Oregon...

Ready to head home...

2010-04-12T12:57:00.000-07:00

I'm readying for a return to Musky Country in a few days...hard to believe my first winter in CA is now almost through! It's been grand in so many ways...but I do miss home.

I'll get around to posting up some images of the variety of fishing I have done the last few weeks. Trout up in the Trinity, an Upper Sac float trip, surf perch wrangling down in Carmel and a wild Pacific king salmon foray on a launch out of Montrey...

Then there will be the wild ride I take you on between now and the first week of May! Pyramid Lake NV, a return to Trinity Country (and a kick ass concert up in Arcata featuring Trampled By Turtles), back to Southern Oregon, then Utah tiger musky(and testing out a killer new fly rod called PIKESABER), Idaho skiff works checking out the X-13, and a reunion and drop-in tour of Southwest MT - whew!

Sould be fun.

Then back to my wonderland, my homesoil, Upper Wisconsota for another season of hunting big esox and other predators on a fly...

From my new fishing buddy - Dan Blanton's web site (a terrific resource of information for anyone serious about fly fishing...seriously one of the best bulletin boards around as far as hard core fly anglers exchanging info and ideas...check it out!)

http://www.danblanton.com/viewarchive.php?id=137600&archivefile=/arch201003.php

Dan writing on his day of fishing with me...

Brad,

It's always fun to introduce someone new to the wonderful California Delta and our much-loved striped bass. We got very lucky and had a great weather day and the fish cooperated. It was a pleasure, my friend.

Of course having an angler share my skiff who casts foot-long, football-fat, musky flies a hundred feet all day long, makes my job pretty easy. Brad was tossing my striper flies back-handed into the next zip code. And being a guide himself he picked up on all the nuances of the retrieve and was into fish pretty quickly.

We never had wide open fishing but it was a steady pick with a few fish at almost every stop. We ended up with 25 released to 8 pounds with a couple of 5-pounder and lots of 2 to 4s tossed in. They were hot though and pulled like much larger fish.

The water temp ran from 57 to 59 and they ate well with few 'mush' bites.

Speaking of flies, Brad ties some of the most fantastic musky flies I've even seen. They are incredible; and they have incredible action too. I know many of them fished on top or on a intermediate line will slay our big stripers. He gave me a handful of them but they are so beautiful I don't know if I can force myself to fish with them - maybe I'll force myself to take them with me for peacock bass next January.

Anyhow, Brad is one fun and energetic guy to share a skiff with and I just have a feeling he is one heck of a good and fun guide to fish with. I most likey will be taking him up on his opportunity to fish with him on his home waters for musky - a fish long on my 'bucket list'.

The next day I fished with Nick Curcione. He met me at my trailer just after Brad had headed back to his dad's place. The wind started howling - gusting to 30, clouds sweeping in like wraiths and I knew a big drop in pressure was occurring. Well, we fished yesterday anyway and the score went from 25 to 5 stripers and one nice LMB. They just shut off, like they almost always do when there's a radical pressure drop. Still Nick and I had a great time looking for some eaters, we covered about 60 miles of water, shared lots of old stories (we've been close friend for 40 years) and a great dinner at GR Marshals. Nick will be back!

I'm sitting in my trailer now at the Sugar Barge, looking out at a brilliant sky with the flags on the pole looking like they're made out of sheet metal. I'm heading for home...

Go easy Brad; it was a fun and successful day on all counts; and you're always welcome to the casting deck on my skiff for a shot at delta stripers - so long as we still have them that is.

Nick, I'm going to keep hounding you to get up here at least a few times to fish with me this coming season.

I like guiding but I like fishing with my pals much more.

Dan

musky boy meets Striper Man

2010-03-25T19:53:00.000-07:00

Pretty Much Says it all...

What can I say...it was a superb day? As I was driving down the levee system west of Stockton in the pre-sunrise hour I felt a distinct sense of 'I have been here before'. Getting to Sugar Barge RV Park in Bethel Island was no small feat mind you. The Delta is low country a maze of canals and berms and fields and orchards. Early mornings are foggy and dank. Sense of direction is nearly obliterated.

I was on a mission though - musky boy meets Striper Man. I was getting a chance to fish with a fly fishing legend and a personal idol of mine in the character of Capt. Dan Blanton. AKA Mr. Striper, Delta Dan...Inventor of the Whistler which became later the Flashtail Whistler, also the Sul-Mar-Mac and the Flashtail Clouser Baitfish...

But I am getting ahead of myself! I generally do ya know.

A hot fly for AA in the Delta low country in late March of 2010

One of my primary hopes for this winter/spring California fly fishing adventure I am presently on was to get a shot at fly fishing for striped bass on the Delta. And what better way to experience this hallowed water than with the man who really put it on the map. Dan invited me to join him for a day at the tail end of his winter season and of course I jumped at the opportunity!

Capt Dan navigating his Eagle Skiff through the toulees as the Late March sun burns through the morning dankness

I was up at 2am - a jumble of pre-game jitters as I tend to be prior to any big fishing outing. I used the time to tie up some of my patterns - Hang Time, River Pig, Beauford and a new Optic Minnow in Delta colors...chartreuse, green, blue and white wanting to give a special offering of Wisco junk to Dan in return for his hospitality.

Dan says if he had only one fly to fish the Delta with it would be this one...A Flashtail Clouser Baitfish in his favorite color scheme

I got to Sugar Barge a little past our appointed time and was nervous that Dan might be high strung about it…turns out that he is one of the most Chillin’ Dudes you would ever come across. Despite being an internationally famous fly fishing celebrity who has been in the business since 1961, traveled everywhere/fished for everything/with everyone – Dan is just an engaging and personable fellow.

I take the shut up and listen approach when I get around such seasoned anglers…only talking to ask questions to prompt more dialog in order to pick brains. I was surprised to find Dan continually wondering about what makes me tick as well.

He talks almost non-stop the entire time mind you. I learned all about the history of the Delta, how the Whistler came into being, what having a best fishing bud named Lefty Krey is like, what his second favorite woman (next to his wife) Wanda is like to hang/fish with, what the fuckstick politicians are planning to do to the Delta fishery by attempting to make the striped bass a scapegoat non-native species, how to manage a career in the outdoor sports professions, setting up and rigging a skiff properly, why he does not make lunches for clients any longer, the best type of knob design for a reel handle for fighting big fish, how he feels about writing for print media vs. electronic sources, photography, editors, lodge owners, his all time favorite fish to catch (tarpon)…you get the picture. Oh and how could I forget – at nearly every turn Dan has an anecdote about this particular HPS (High Percentage Spot…he has an acronym for just about everything!) at this point in the outgoing tide for this time of the season at this place we now presently find ourselves in the vast, vast maze of water, weed and sky that is the broad and mighty Delta.

Whew! If you are a curious and information hungry angler like me a day with Dan Blanton is like a Vegas buffet for a food-a-holic.

A day with Delta Dan is full-throttle non-stop fishing fun…better come prepared to fish hard, listen and learn!

Dan is 66 but moves around and has the energy of a man ½ his age. No shit, he is a force. He knows it and likes the fact that he can and will fish your ass into the Delta mud if you let him. Pure Blanton!

“I use to play competitive racquetball…was always around 185 fighting weight…then when I got to be 60 I developed a sweet tooth…why did I get a sweet tooth Brad? Now I got about as many chins as Chinatown…are you sure you want to take a picture of me from down there…O.k….”

‘I got more chins than Chinatown now Brad’…when a master opens up his fly wallet take notice!

We hit the first spot of about 50 we will run to and fish this day as the sun starts to win the war with the morning dank. We can tell that it will be sunny and hot later. Dan had instructed me that I need to bring layers and was wondering about my bare flip-flop clad feet at this point…”You gonna be alright with those bare feet?” “Ya, I’m a Wisco boy Dan…thick blood!”

He chuckles and tells me the drill ”…we water load the casts with this T-11…better learn how to over-the-boat cast or you won’t be worth shit…oh, I see you can throw…wow, nice backhand…cool, it’s always a treat to get a guy that can cast…man you can throw boy…”

I brought along a 9 weight outfit with a box of my musky flies but I have always defer to the guide as to what to fish and Dan comes fully equipped and then some. I loved his Eagle skiff and the way he had it rigged. Also really liked the LMD’s (Line Management Devices) he favors using…15” pvc pipe cut off at about mid-thigh height with a bottom installed with a pattern of cones…fancy stripping barrels – he has three in the boat and even has a 12” version he takes on all his travels…”Just take the bottom out…stuff your clothes in it and put it in the duffel…”

Everything Dan has or uses on/in his boat has been well thought out

I strike the first fish of the day – a 12” black bass which turns out to be the only non-striper we get. After that it is all Dan for the next six or so…

Delta Dan and the first of many stripers he put the hurt on

I’m fishing well…but Dan has about 30 years of striper chops on me. He just has that little extra something for the first couple of hours…and he wonders through a series of adjustments in my situation – several fly changes, a leader re-do, count down longer, count down less, strip this way, strip that way…

I tell him no worries…I’m the black bass guy today, you’re the striper guy.

But then I find my groove and we both enjoy a nice day of striper action!

Tough, hard hitting and beautiful fish the Delta Stripers are!

We kept loose track and by the days end figured around 24 stripers all 3#-8# class fish boated. I was thrilled…and instantly became a fan and addict. They just drill the fly, fight like fish twice their weight…no shit a 5#er pulls like a 10#er and they have staying power and really put a bend in the rod.

A fair number of schoolie stripers agreed to this offering

This is my first experience with tide…first incoming then high and at the days end outgoing…and I am wide-eyed at how it affects all the spots and situations. I’m smitten! It makes the hunt all the more interesting and fascinating.

Along with the pursuit of the fish the Delta is a nature lover’s wonder. Wildlife abounds…from sea lions (yes they have been coming all the way up to Bethel Island now) to otter and beaver, snow geese, specks, ducks of every variety, pheasants, sand hills, blackbirds…oh my!

Plus there is this thing called Mt. Diablo…I had seen it a few times from over on I-5…a big looming and brooding hill above a perfectly flat plane. And now we were just about at the foot of it. A very menacing and interesting landmark in an otherwise very flat and strange place.

But what will stick with me in my memory above all else - above the fish (which are special and wonderful creatures), above the diverse and wonderful Delta and its myraid of fauna and flora and yes even above the ever present Mt. Diablo is a man named Dan Blanton.

Dan is larger than life but not in a way that distracts from his being a true human being. He fishes with a passion and intensity and thoughtfulness I have rarely ever encountered.

Hooked up yet again to a good one Dan gets bent deep

He is a treasure to fly fishing as the Delta is a treasure to west coast naturalists and wildlife. I was both humbled and honored to get to spend time with such a being.

Two Delta Lunkers

So yes, at the end of it all I did feel like I had been there before – for the Delta is much like all of the other great fisheries I have experienced only different in the ways that helps us set them all apart in our minds. And I got to fulfill my passion and desire to explore and experience some new stuff on this adventure – new waters, new ways and new species.

It is something I will not forget and will always treasure.

The Shocker...

2010-03-22T19:53:00.000-07:00

No, not that kind of Shocker...that will be another post!

We're talkin' acoustic footprint...shock waves in the water...big fly, big push!

I have been fly tying my ass off lately. Mostly production tying but as a unabashed man-child I'm prone to daydreams and being utterly distracted with the stuff I find in my vise...you could say it is my vice!

When I turn out a special fly I just have to go down to the pool where I am staying and take it for a swim...then I get inspired about 100 different ways and get to experimenting and shit...there goes another productive day down the tubes!

I'm far, far away from being any type of scientist. But I like to experiment and have some kind of Universal understanding of Physics. Lately it seems like there are some cutting edge anglers out there seeking the truth beyond the traditional understanding of what makes fish tick.

I was reading something Nick Granato wrote the other day about UV spectrum and the way fish see...pretty cool stuff. Nick is a really cool angler and badass fly tier.

Nicks website - http://flyobsession.com/

Here is my two cents worth today (and it is 1/2 price Monday)

Fly Fishing Film Tour

2010-03-18T08:34:00.001-07:00

Headed to Modesto, CA tonight to catch my first viewing of The Drake magazines Fly Fishing Film Tour.

http://www.flyfishingfilmtour.com/Schedule/

I'm super stoked...as fly fishing film is one of my new passions. One of my good buddies Lee Church or LeeMD as we call him put together a very good film last season about our Musky Tribe and how we go about the sport of chasin' musky with a fly rod.

Check out a trailer for The Musky Chronicles

Another really talented fly fishing film maker from the Upper Midwest is this fellow:

http://www.thirdyearflyfisher.com/video.html

Robert and I have been making plans to do some filming in 2010...and I'm very excited about it!

Follow the Green Stripe Sheamus

2010-03-17T07:43:00.000-07:00

Irish Beauford

Back when I was living in St.Paul, MN this most festive of Irish Days - St. Patty's Day was celebrated to the hilt...so much so that the City painted a green stripe down the middle of the street that the Parade route followed to give much needed guidance to the Revelers. And indeed they needed it!

I also remember Butte, MT to be quite the place to be a proud Irish on this day. The Buttanese took to the streets and discharged various weapons...something that sets Montana and Minnesota apart in my mind at least.

I give you my shot and green stripe on this St. Patrick’s Day 2010 - from green, green NorCal and in honor of my departed but not forgotten Irish GrandPappy Gadge...hoist a pint if you will...I know I might hoist a pair!

Skanobish!

Sponge Bob Square Head...a predator popper

2010-03-15T23:30:00.000-07:00

Introducing Sponge Bob Square Head...

Brad Bohen
Fly Tier
http://www.MuskyCountryOutfitters.com

This pattern made it's debut in Musky Country in 2009. Early in the season I had a couple of clients up from Thorne Brothers/The Fly Angler out of Fridley, MN. They brought along a big squared headed closed cell foam popper that I got a big kick out of.

The square head was very effective. I was suprised at how well it popped. That fly was a bit over-the-top size-wise and was a bear to cast...but it got me fired up for topwater! They left the monstrosity with me and I started playing around with it and then incorporated the square head into some fly designs...

Basically I ended up marrying the square head to a Hang Time streamer. The results are a top water pattern that is easy to tie, casts very well and really calls up the fish...plus it is SUPER durable! Another bonus is it takes a lot of fish "just sittin' there"...something I think all good topwaters should do. The Hang Time form behing the square head looks and acts alive being still.

Don't just take my word for it - try one for yerself this season!

Materials

Glue: Clear Cure Goo (thick) and Gorilla Super Glue

Hook: Daiichi 2461 (6/0)

Thread: Danville 210 Denier Waxed Flymaster Plus

Tail: Bucktail – long and slender, topped with flashabou (20 strands), flanked by two long barred saddle feathers

Body: Hair, Flash, Feather applications – reverse tied bucktail, flashabou or crystal flash reverse tied, pair of long barred saddle feathers and spey wrapped blood marabou. This hair, flash, feather routine repeated until hook shank is filled.

Collar: Spey wrapped blood marabou feather.

Head: Square Cut - Closed Cell Foam

Optics: WTP decorator tape eyes (1/4" OR 5/16") - made 3-D with CCG

Tying instructions

Prepare the head and eyes prior to starting the fly tying.

Using Clear Cure Goo (thick formula) and some WTP decorator tape eyes - make up a batch of 3-D Optics.

Just apply a bead of CCG to the surface of each eye (make certain they are clean - no oil or grease)...
Zap em for 5 seconds with the UV light...
Coat each 3-D eye with Sally Hansens and you are good to go for eyebalz Amigos!

Now onto the square foam heads...
I like these 4" wall scraper blades...
Held with a Vise-Grips locking pliers...
To custom-cut my foam heads! O.K., so 'square' is a relative term...more like Trapazoid...but Sponge Bob Trapazoid Head just does not have the same ring to it!
Run a small nail through to provide an easy entrance hole for the hook later...

Then a small dab of Gorilla Super Glue to set each 3-D optic...
And your head is done!

Now tie the fly. I'd suggest brushing up on a few Hang Times to nail down the reverse-tying of the bucktail and the Hair, Feather, Flash sequence. But for those of you who just jump right in...

Prepare a level, solid base of thread covering hook shank behind hook eye rearward to position even with hook point.
Select a bunch of long, thin bucktail from underside of tail. The best tailing fibers are generally found at the base of the bucktail or at the tip. Tie in bunch securely above hook point with the tips facing rearward and let the fibers rotate fully around the hook shank. Advance the thread forward, then flair the butt ends up with the thread like a small hackle.
Select 20-30 strands of flashabou and tie down with five to seven secure wraps over the level tie down area before taper. The majority of the flashabou fibers should flow off the back of the fly with about 2” forward of the tie down.
Reverse the short ends to face rearward spreading short ends in a half-hackle fashion and encapsulate tie down area in thread.

Select a pair of nice flowing saddle hackles and strip the butt sections clean...
Tie in the feathers...

Prior to clipping off the stems - measure where the back of the foam head will be...and clip off the stems here...this will give you and 'end-point for the fly body later when all the material is applied.
Then build up a little 'saddle area of thread on the tie-down area..this will be where you place the neck bucktail.

This time 'reverse-tied'...and then fold the tips back and encapsulate with thread to get the desired 'angle-of-attack' for the bucktail.
Now select a prime marabou plume and strip the butt section.
Tie it in by the butt and wrap spey style - making sure to stroke all the fibers rearward while you wrap to avoid fouling. This step is not entirely necessary but provides a nice way to cover the butt wraps from the reverse tying...also if you are building a fly with contrasting colors adding a marabou feather in this manner between bucktail steps lets you get contrast with minimum bulk.
Now a couple more saddles...
Then some more flashabou...
See - Hang Time is forming!

Reverse tie more bucktail...

Add a couple more saddles...
Some crystal flash this time...
Finish with two spey marabous one in front of the other just to the end of those first saddle butt ends...remember...

Build up a good thread base, whip-finish, coat the area with Gorilla Super Glue and then slide on the foam head (remember to take out the nail Dummy!)

DONE!

Props out to a talented friend!

2010-03-15T08:29:00.001-07:00

Good friend John Koch from Spring Valley, Wisconsin down on the southern end of Musky Country got some much due attention recently by making the cover of Grays Sporting Journal with his woodcut image 'Sun, Moon, Stars'!

Congrats John!!

Check out his studio - http://troutlilystudios.blogspot.com/...if you would like to purchase something cool related to Musky Country go to 'Trout Lily Studio Cards' and you will see a woodcut called 'River of Fire'. This was an image I commissioned John to do several years back.

It's a likeness of me poling a Lucius River Boat up the Brule River and is one of my all time favorite pieces of art (being the Narcissist that I am).

John is also the proud dog-father of Stella – an English Setter that came from my best-friend K-9 and fishing side-kick Lucky Penny.

The only thing derogatory I can come up with about John is that is has yet to make his way up to Musky Country to Get Bit by one of our big toothys…maybe in 2010 we can coerce him over to the dark side…

Evolution

2010-03-05T16:26:00.000-08:00

Some tried and true stuff is always fun to work on...Hang Times for some custom fly clients: I have been working on some new prototyping for the 2010 season. Last weekend in Pleasanton, CA at the Fly Fishing Expo I worked the Clear Cure Goo booth. www.ClearCureGoo.com It's the BOMB. I'll certainly be featuring plenty of new creations on here using this stuff. Revolutionary. I was amazed all last weekend at how many great and well know West Coast (and beyond) dropped by to check the stuff out. If I was not so busy, lazy and distracted with actual tying and fishing I'd give a re-cap and a who's who rundown. Instead I'll indulge myself with trying to find a new bar to raise my tying envelop to...

Sorry for the poor quality video...I'm barely Janitor material when you get me away from the river...not that there is anything wrong with being a Janitor. I was and Once a Janitor - Always a Janitor.

This is some testing of Clear Cure Goo Afton Angler style. Prototyping. Serious Work...Skunk Works. Or Anti-Skunk Works if you prefer.

I'm calling this pattern SitNSpin. It's a rotating fly to be fished in conjunction with a barrel swivel and a split ring.

Evolution of the form and the idea. In my world anyway...

Haters Hate, Lovers Love and Anglers Fish

2010-02-24T18:07:00.001-08:00

Like Santa Clause...the musky are watching you...
You better watch out
You better not cry
Better not pout
I'm telling you why

Musky Clause b comin to town!

I'm a big believer in karma especially when it comes to all things fishy.

Those souls interested in tackling this toughest of freshwater foes on a fly need to keep their karma reserve in tip-top condition.

No room for hate mon.

Haters hate.

Naw mon...be happy. No worries...everything is gonna be alright mon.

Cast dat fly again and again. Watch her wiggle all the way back to the boat mon. Dat be da way...

Peace and Grace from the Musky Trial.

The Musky Tribe is readying for a great looking weekend at the Pleasanton, CA Fly Fishing Expo...come out and see Brad at the Clear Cure Goo booth...lying and tying.

Alive and Well and Stirring up the Interwebs...

2010-02-22T10:12:00.000-08:00

Wow man...I have now been out in Cali a month!

Wow.

Just found my way back to the interwebs and was really amused this morning by an email I got from one of the Musky Tribe fellows.

This Blog has generated some very interesting knashing of the teeth in the wild, world of cyberangling. That must mean the nation is vapor-locked for real angling stuff presently if a silly little Musky fly guy with a barely started Blog even gets a wink!

http://www.moldychum.com/home-old/2010/2/15/zero-to-hero.html?currentPage=3#comments

I guess there will always be critics...I just wish for more educated and balanced ones someday...and for gosh sakes - grow a set of balls already!

For the record:

I am a dipshit*. A humble and genuine soul but for sure I am a dipshit.

I have never and will never claim to be an expert on anything.

I think World Records are silly...I'm glad that my remarkable luck back in October of 2009 generated some awareness of the Hayward Area and it's special fishery. My big hope is that this awareness will lead folks to love and protect these waters with a vengence.

I take ego lessons from Rickey Henderson...he's the Greatest! I actually stand in front of a mirror naked when I type this shit:)

As was brought up and posted on the Moldy Chum blog - Case No. 16-T8-99-001716
The State of Minnesota vs. BRADLEY JAMES BOHEN

*Yes I did receive and pay a citation on 2OCTOBER1999 in the State of Minnesota for hunting without a valid license.

At the time I was on vacation in Northern Minnesota staying at Lutsen. I'll tell you the truth is I was riding in a pickup truck with my then Brother-in-Law Dan Crawford on a backroad up near the Caribou Trail.

I was planning on taking pictures of the wonderful autumn colors(which I did and still have the slides - some of the best sporting images I have ever captured) and drinking coffee and enjoying a morning of watching Dan hopefully get a grouse or two for diner. His wife Colleen and I had brought along shotguns in case we all wanted to do some bird hunting. Our two guns were cased and on the floor of the truck in the back of the extra cab. Shells were in a seperate cargo box.

Dan had his gun cased and riding shotgun between the front seats. It was empty and he had a pair of 12 ga shells in a cup holder. His was a 12 gauge and the other two guns were both 20 gauge.

Early in the morning we were pulled over by a pair of Conservation Officers. They checked us for our licenses - Dan was valid, I - as I stated did not have a hunting license. I did not claim to be hunting.

But the CO's take was that I was riding in a vehicle with three shotguns and ammunition. I was hunting by using a vehicle for cover.

I disagreed.

The lead CO confiscated my shotgun - a Browning Citori that was very near and dear to me. I was told that I would need to plead guilty and pay the fine and I would then get possession of my shot gun back.

If I wanted to dispute the charges I would need to appear in person in Court up in Northern Minnesota on 120CTOBER1999.

At the time I was a graduate student at the University of Minnesota as well as a serving member of the USNR. Time and money were both things I was short on.

Dan paid the fine for me I remember. I did not even consider going back up and making my case and was just relieved to get my shotgun back.

This is the simple truth. Yes, I am a dipshit...no I am not a violator. I still disagree about the case but I pled guilty, paid my fine, got my weapon back and have lived and learned.

If you need to pick away at it I understand and will meditate for some peace of mind on your behalf.

Those of you who are interested in real angling and real characters - come on out and see The Musky Tribe in the flesh this spring:

AA will be at the Pleasanton, CA fly fishing show Feb 26 & 27 2010 - look for me tying flies and telling lies in the Clear Cure Goo booth.

Saturday March 6th - The Fly Fishing Film Tour, Sacramento CA - At Large and In Charge

Wednesday March 10th - Delta Fly Fishers Club, Stockton, CA - Slide Show "Musky Country" and 1st public showing of the original 16 minute film The Musky Chronicles by Lee Church.

Saturday May 8th - Lombard and Chicago Orivs Stores - Musky on the Fly

More dates and locations will be posted as they come about.

Peace and Grace...

Packing Up...sucky and fun at the same time!

2010-01-19T09:11:00.000-08:00

Well Sportsfans...I'm about to embark upon an epic voyage. If I were not in my own shoes I'd be jealous...I really would. But alas, I am the one about to ship out on a two month open-ended journey and you? Well let's just say you will have to be satisfied reading about it on the Zero2Hero Musky Fly Fishing blog.

I'll be flying one-way out to Sacramento, CA where I will spend a month or so with my father. Jimbo is one of my best friends in the world. To have the opportunity as a 40 year old fly fishing bum to go back to live as a son is really a great joy for me. Jimbo lives in suburban SacTown and normally I would shy away from suburban anything...to a true Musky Tribesman suburbia=hellhole.

But in the true spirit of Zero2Hero I will attempt to show you the anglers way...tuning into everything and anything fishy everyday immediately around you...being an angler 24/7 all 365 Days and 366 in Leap Years. Silly? Maybe but I bet you are curious!

Trust me in this. If you follow along. listen and pay attention I will help you become a better angler and a more balanced person. Big words I know. But anglers are persons of action.

Talk is cheap. Actions speak louder than words.

I digress. Get used to it. I do that often.

Packing Sucks! But it is also an opportunity to really study your situation and learn to operate in any travel situation with grace and peace.

So I dug out a packing image from the Musky Country archives...this was from an over night mission last September(2009). AA(me), Marv, Big Pike Mike, Lucky and the fishdogs Spicey, Penny and Lily went for a little Tour of a remote corner of Musky Country.

I do wish packing for an open-ended two monther was as easy for me as was this trip. I generally procrastinate and wait for inspiration when packing to travel. Past images help me to connect with the journey that is ahead.

Visualization is key to proper angling and life.

I already shipped out a road bike...no not the gas and go HogHarley kind...the two cylinder foot mobile...a Bicycle. Super fishy way to get around and get to know the territory Sportsfans.

It's Green by God and you really get to know the terrain...you earn every hill and kill many birds with a single stone. Think about it. If you can define your Home Angling Territory by the waters you can walk and bike to and from then you have a pretty groovy start to a full fledged 365 fish campaign.

Back to packing...arg!

I gotta buckle down and actually do it now. Trust the process.

more later...

Ice...not Just for Musky Guides cocktails...

2010-01-18T14:38:00.000-08:00

...or it looks like the Zamboni driver is djrunk again...

Premium Tail

2010-01-18T12:59:00.000-08:00

Most aspects of the life of a Musky Flyfishing Guide are governed by a quest for Premium Tail.

Seriously.

Being tuned into where the Best Tail comes from, knowing how to get hold of that Premium Tail, knowing what to do with the Tail when it comes into your possession...that is all basic 101 Life for one of us Hayward Musky Guides in The Musky Tribe.

What really separates the Varsity guides from all the JV'ers is being able to finish the job out properly. To make that Tail sing!

Dragon Slayers

2010-01-17T16:19:00.000-08:00

Line up on tiers row...Duluth, MN at Great Lake Fly Fishing Company(http://www.greatlakesflys.com/) The Musky Tribe hangs out with ultra cool shop owner John Fehnel and gets a start on the 2010 seasons toothy predator arsenal. Orange and Firetiger Hang Time...in demand at a Toothy Predator lair near you.

Thanks Ribs!

2010-01-17T13:45:00.000-08:00

Thanks Ribs! Roosters BBQ

in St.Paul, MN was a very

MMMGood way to bring in 2010!

The life of a professional

flyfishing bum is all about

taking in all the senses...

Our buddy Big Pike Mike breaks out his famous Big Pikes Mike Pickled Pike...and some PBR's

Tribe members Brian "Lucky"Porter, B Rad Bohen and LeeMD Churchy with the BearCat posing as a musky...New Years Eve just prior to the screening of Lee's full length film called The Musky Chronicles.

2010-01-17T10:55:00.000-08:00

It's a start!

Zero 2 Hero...in the blink of an eye.

That is what fly fishing for musky is all about in Upper Wisconsota or Musky Country as we call it around here. My life is that of a man-child driven by his passion - attempting to make sense of a world that has missed the point...

I a full time fly fishing guide/outfitter based in Hayward, WI - Home of World Record Muskies. Zero 2 Hero will chronicle the life of an independent, outspoken, passionate fly fishing bum. As well as other independent, outspoken and passionate humans and some doghumans.

If you do not like colorful vernacular, piss poor spelling and miseuse of the Engrish Language then stop right now!

If you like sexy fish porn, dripping wet tails ans true characters...stick around - this place might have something to offer you. I'll serve you up tales of the real and fishy variety - adventures of the rag-tag band of miscreants I hang around with...Lucky, BearCat, BigPikeMike, Whahoo, The Blind Squirrel, Marv, LeeMD, DRock and other Members of The Musky Tribe.

I pull no punches and might take one from time to time mind you. Zero 2 Hero is real, raw and gritty sometimes. The trail is twisted - NEVER, NEVER do straight...always move Forward.

Hard hitting and hard loving - that's life on the musky trail. Take nothing for granted and enjoy the process.

So this is it, this is the start...I'm B Rad the Afton Angler. Welcome to my world.