Pike on the fly in Sweden!

Although I've done a lot of Canoeing & Kayaking I haven't fly fished for pike before from one,and it looks a bag load of fun. So much so that I'm looking at getting four sit on top "Freedom hawk kayaks" for here around the island. 7 day trips paddling & fishing between many of the 2000 islands that can be found here while camped out during the evenings.

Knots

Everyone has there own prefered set up with regards to pike fly fishing. I like to keep things as simple as I can. My leader is always joined to the fly line by way of a loop to loop connection. I then merge my 60lb mono leader to my flexible wire trace by way of an albright knot. I have total confidence in this knot as I've never lost a fish since I started using it many years ago. My wire swivels are then attached to the wire trace by way of a Uni knot. Quick and simple!

Cavity search please Mr Graham!

Sorry for not being around for a few days but have been suffering from serious back problems and also construction work down the bottom of my oldmans road ripped through the telephone internet lines last week as well.Anyway You know I like to fish with a condom strapped to a hook well around a year or so ago I came across a fly from my good mate Marc Fauvet who writes the popular "The Limp Cobra" blog who had a novel idea for a pike fly by strapping on doctors rubber glove to a hook which I thought was down right over the top!

So I decided to give one a go my self.

Step 1: Take a rubber latex glove and add some colour by way of permenant coloured markers. I used black and a number flouro colours with this pattern.

Step 2: Take a pair of sharp scissors and cut the fingers up into thin shreds

Step 3: Add a clump of flash to the back of the hook bend.I used blue Xmas flash. Slide the glove over the flash & tie securely on.
Step 4: Stick a couple of eyes on if wanted.I used kids party stickers here in green and blue. Bug-bonded over them, and there we have it, one of the ugliest fucking flies I've ever tied. This will be one of the first to be used in the spring and I can guarantee it wont be long before I catch something with it.

Fly Swap with Mike Williams!

Another fly tier that has blown me away over the last year or so is a chap called Mike Williams who writes the very popular blog "Bigflychucker" . This guy is really pushing the bounderies with regards to fly construction and has become not only a great resource but a massive inspiration with regards to my own fly tying. I was so impressed with his "Duckling fly" that I knew I needed one for my collection.

This fly is simply one of the best I have in my growing wall of fame. I have had it on the water but just to see how it floats and it looks the bollocks I can tell yeh! Two sections of round foam tubing are mounted onto a double hook then layers of under feathers strategically tied on to form the body of the duckling. It also has a couple of rubber jig tails mounted to imitate the ducklings flapping feet as it moves on the surface....Fucking genious!

Mike you know I've been busy with moving,my trip here but I have nearly completed your flies for the swap my friend. Thanks for this, it's the shizzel brotha! You all need to visit his blog and bookmark it cause this guy kicks ass! "Bigflychucker"

Mike Smalls Musky/Pike madness

Here are a couple more Musky/Pike flies from Mike Small that will eventually feature in Balticpikeflies.com. The top one is another version of the Slide Winder and is a combination of flash, fur & feathers and will retail for $25,00

This ones called the "Cone Head" and can be fished as a surface lure or mid depth. Personally I'm not a big fan of these cones on pike flies as you need to work extra hard to impart any action on the fly and they are a bugger to cast but I was pleasantly surprised how light it was and especially how well it swam. These will be retailing for $20,00 Click images for larger view!

Fly Candy

This was the last fly I chucked before I left for my South African safari. Grey Raccon zonker tied onto the back, followed by several strands of silver krinkle flash and 5 white microbarb saddles,then a clump of Chartreuse bucktail followed by a clump of white.Then several more strands of the silver krinkl flash ending off with a small strip of white raccoon zonker palmered around the hook shaft. It moved great under the surface but I just wasn't able to entice a snotrocket to take it. Oh well, its dried and ready for next spring.

I haven't been out fishing the last week much as I'm still clearing fly orders away but will be out a lot from next week so I'm hoping to have some decent reports from up and down the coast here and from the sandbanks in Durban harbour.

2011 season Stats!

They've taken me a while to compile but here are some of the more interesting stats from my season this year around the island.

2011 stats

Fished exactly 240 consecutive days this season on the island
Approx 720hrs
1838 before 12h00
1059 after 12h00
First (120 days) - 1670 pike caught & released + 2 pike for the table
Second (120 days) – 1224 pike caught & released + 1 pike for the table
797 caught between 60cm – 65cm
691 caught between 65cm – 75cm
968 caught between 75cm – 85cm
409 caught between 85cm - 90cm
18 caught between 90cm – 95cm
11 caught between 95cm – 100cm
3 caught between 100cm – 105cm
2 caught between 105cm – 110cm
3 pike taken home for the table
Had 11 blanks this season
733 caught in the North of the island
814 caught in the Centre of the island
532 caught in the West of the island
312 caught in the South of the island
506 caught in the East of the island
1122 caught on sunny/partly cloudy days
1775 caught on overcast/rainy days
134 caught on calm flat windless days (Interesting stat)
723 caught on days where the wind was 0m/sec – 5m/sec
866 caught on days where wind was between 5m/sec – 10m/sec
651 caught on days where wind was between 10m/sec – 15m/sec
451 caught on days where wind was between 15m/sec – 20m/sec
72 caught on days where wind was between 20m/sec – 28m/sec
367 caught on days when Northerly winds were blowing
1121 caught on days when Southerly winds were blowing
861 caught on days when Easterly winds were blowing
548 caught on days when Westerly winds were blowing
1841 caught with floating line
1056 caught with Intermediate line
19 fish caught with the 1^st cast of the session
912 fish caught from 72 days fished from a boat
1985 caught while wading or rock hopping
1177 caught with water temps between 3´c – 12’c
1238 caught with water temps between 12’c - 20’c
482 caught with water temps above 21’c
342 caught with spinner blades running along my wire trace
366 caught with Fish skull head flies
Guided 43 clients this season that caught and released 2632 pike
Clients caught 17 pike over 1m (biggest being 118cm in late Oct)
I Caught 27 Ide this season on the fly
I Caught 12 Perch this season on the fly
I foul hooked 7 Bream on the fly
1 Carp on the fy
1953 caught with attractor patterns
944 caught with synthetic baitfish patterns

Flies (Attractor patterns)

Replot stinger

132 Chartreuse/white
119 Pink/white
82 Olive
111 Black/green
246 Black/purple

Raccoon bunnies

97 Red/White
36 Turquoise/White
71 Orange/Brown
25 Blue/Grey

Fury Flash-tails

46 Pink
39 Blue
17 Chartreuse
11 Brown

Dubbing brush flash flies

22 Gold/Brown
19 Red/Silver
41 Balck/Blue
52 Balck/Silver
76 Green/Gold
9 Purple/Pink
56 Red/Orange

Bunny-bug type patterns

83 Fire tiger
72 Black/pink/White
17 White/Black
68 Black/Red/White
45 Orange/Black
28 Olive/white
37 Red/White
12 Purple/Orange
43 Black/Purple
21 Chartreuse/white
9 Chartreuse/Black

Feathered fur streamers & (Deceiver type patterns)

34 Black/Silver
18 Black/White
13 Chartreuse/White
27 Orange/Black
19 Black/purple
24 Pink/White
21 Olive/White
16 Olive/Black
10 White/Silver
22 Pink/Black
7 Black/Yellow

Synthetic baitfish patterns

Soft belly baitfish

26 Electric yellow
31 Olive
17 Perch
28 Pink
79 Blue
12 Tiger Chartreuse

Realistic baitfish

146 Baltic Herring
39 Black/Olive
51 Black/Chartreuse
23 Olive
47 Red beard
20 TX9
32 Perch
19 Green Mamba
106 Herring 2

Baitfish patterns

29 Black knight
46 Blue white
38 Red/Black
28 Perch

Rattle n hums

17 Pink
25 Blue

Other streamer baitfish (Bangers)

12 Orange/Black
16 Pink/White
24 Black/Silver
9 Black/White

Poppers/Lazy boys/Divers

16 Lazy boys
5 Popper streamers
3 Divers

glag rags!

Bloodknot latest offering " Off the grid" issue is out on the airwaves

As well as "Flymage issue 10" , if anyone didn't know already

Pike on the fly in Sweden!

Heres my mate Rickard Hodel from "Me & my rod" blog in Sweden getting stuck into a nice fish!

Friday funny!

More from Mike Small

Here are a couple more flies from Mike Small that will be retailing in my fly shop.This one is called the "Hawg Frawg" and has become one of Mikes go to patterns. They become deadly when thrown into the bank,grass or brush then pulled into the water. They can also be fished with a sink tip,starting with a few pops on the surface,then retrieve it the rest of the way like a streamer.It will rise slowly between strips. Retail price $22,oo


This one is called the "Slide winder" and is primarily a surface fly that has a great "walk the dog" action. Dropping the tip as you strip gives the fly a little slack and allows it too swing sideways (or vertically) and will retail for $25,00.Here is a short video of the flies in action at the Milwaukee Musky expo.

Mike Smalls Musky/Pike madness

Many of you might remember this video I featured at the beginning of the year with regards to Mike Smalls musky/pike flies swimming action in a testing tank at the musky expo.


Well over the last couple of months I've been toying with the idea of not only featuring but also selling other like minded Pike & Musky fly tiers flies in my Baltic pike flies shop. Flies that aren't produced in some dingey sweat shop buy by the tiers themselves.Each will have their own page of six flies to showcase and retail. The first of these fly tiers is newly aquired friend Mike Small. The quality of these flies are unbelievable and are proven musky/pike/Bass catchers. This one is called "The snake eater" and is around 13" inches in length & is a combination of feathers,synthetics and flash and retails for $32,00

This second one, "The Rainbow leach" comes in at 14" inches and is similar to "The Snake eater" in length, materials and swimming action (above Video) and retails for $35,00. I've tested all these flies this autumn with regard to casting and fishing them and they are fun fun fun,I can tell yeh! I'll be featuring a couple more of Mike flies tomorrow, Click images for larger view!

Rag mags!

A bit late with these but here's some lunchtime reading for you. "This is fly"

"Scale" - spin & fly magazine
Click images or links to visit sites

Tube fly combination tails

Heres a cool concept for all you guys that like to fish with tubes for Pike. I was sent these a few weeks back by Fabrice Boucher that have interchangable tails or heads depending on the colour combination you want to fish with. The tail end where the hook slides in gets pushed into the main body tube which allows for easier splitting of the fly once you've hooked a pike. Not only that but one can make the tails however long you want to as well. These flies are super light to cast & are a combination of synthetics and fur (craft and icelandic sheep hair)


Thanks for these Fabrice,I'll give them a good run in the spring mate.

Surf Candy!

Stepping out of the plane in Durban, the unmistakable smell and vibe of Africa hits you. Yes I've arrived and after a couple of days getting organised I'm back on line. Anyway I'll be updating daily again now that I have a portable modem. Just to get this African adventure started I've been tying up a couple dozen of these surf candy just before I left.Marco Reisen from the German fly tying team blog sent me a batch of flashy white synthetic material to try out whie I'm over. I.ve combined Krinkle flash and other assortments of flash n microbarb saddles to produce these 100 - 120mm baitfish patterns onto 3/0 long shanked hooks.The heads are Bugbonded for extra rigidity. Looking forward to getting these wet soon. I've nearly completed compiling my stats for the season which will be up on Monday. See yeh tomorrow!