Streamside on Line

In this issue:

  Articles, news and fly tying tips are gratefully accepted. Please e-mail them to Roy Cubbler. Thank you.

If you’ve read one of my previous articles in the Streamside newsletter then you may guess this story is about fly fishing somewhere other than our local Pennsylvania waters. A few months ago, I came home from work and my younger daughter, Karlie, immediately shouted, “Dad, we’re going to Laguana Beach California for our family vacation.” Since at our house I am normally outvoted three to one based on gender, I said, “Fine with me!” 

I did an internet search for fly fishing guides in the Laguna Beach area but did not come up with any names; just one person who only guides on weekends. I ended up calling Bob Marriott’s Fly Shop in Fullerton, CA. Brian answered my call, checked his schedule and said he was booked. He suggested I call Captain Bill Calhoun who was available for Wednesday, August 9th. My older daughter, Chelsey, decided to join me on the trip. That was a nice surprise. I haven’t fished with her since Fathers’ Day six or seven years ago. Chelsey is not a flycaster so Bill suggested and went out of his way to bring along some spinning gear for her to use.

Chelsey and I were up and out of the room by 4:15 a.m. Bill showed up in his gray Durango only minutes after we got down to the hotel lobby. After introductions and handshakes we were on our way to Newport Bay, but first we had to stop at Bill’s house to hook up his boat, a 17 foot Bayliner with a 90 HP Mercury. Bill lives in the Newport Beach area minutes away from where we would put in. Bill mentioned that the sizeable Newport Bay has just one marina. He paid the $15 fee at the security gate and proceeded to the launch area. A full moon was still high in the early morning sky as we shoved off from the dock in low tide. A boat going out before us got stuck momentarily in the low water. Speed in the bay is restricted due to the wall-to-wall homes located on the shores surrounding the bay, so it took us 20 or so minutes to get to the open ocean. After we all put on windbreakers, Bill went full throttle south to the first spot we would try which was just north of Laguna Beach.

The sun was not quite up over the mountains when we arrived at a rock formation a few hundred yards off shore. Bill said he likes to look for structure, that’s where the fish are concentrated. He turned off the motor and started up his bow mounted electric Minn Kota that would move us quietly to prime locations as we watched the fish/depth finder. Bill remotely controlled the Minn Kota from a wireless transmitter on his wrist. We were in 30-40 foot water with shallower rocky areas of 10-20 feet. Bill set me up with a 9 weight Sage, 300 grain shooting head on a Tibor Everglades reel. Nice stuff! Since I have not used a shooting head before, Bill gave me some useful pointers and a casting demo. The leader was straight 15 lb Seaguar about 9 ft long to which he tied an unweighted streamer using a non-slip loop knot. During day, I switched to 8 and 10 weight outfits depending on the conditions, all top-of-the-line equipment. The streamer had a white belly, darker top, a bit of flashaboo, and stick on eyes. The routine would be: cast as far as I could, allow enough time for the fly to get towards the bottom, keep the rod tip low to the water, then 2-3 short strips, pause, 2-3 strips, pause, etc. Bill thought with the water temperature at 65F this technique might work better than a fast strip, and in the end, it did. If a fish hit, I was to ‘strip strike’ first, then raise the rod. He said not to worry about snagging the bottom. Loosing a fly now and then means your doing things right. I think I lost 2 or 3 Bill’s flies to the ocean bottom.

Bill set up Chelsey with a chartreuse colored plastic “minnow” on a weighted jig hook. She was to cast it out and slowly retrieve it so it stayed close to the bottom. We both began casting/retrieving hoping for that first strike. Oh, the weather. Yes, it was a gorgeous Southern California day. Sunny, 80ish, very light wind and calm seas. However, I quickly found out that it was going to be a chore to keep my balance during the swells. I didn’t have anything to lean against while casting/retrieving. It made it interesting, but luckily, I didn’t slip or fall. It wasn’t long before I had a strike but didn’t hook the fish well enough and it got off. It struck again and the first fish of the day was on the line! It turned out to be a small calico bass. A photo was necessary since it was my first ever calico. Chelsey was next to hook and land a calico, of course larger than the one I caught. More pictures taken, Chelsey hooked up and then I did too, our first double. The photo taken shows Chelsey with a nice sand bass and me with a dinky candlefish, which legally I didn’t catch but snagged. It made for a nice Father/Daughter photo! For a while, Chelsey had the lead, but I caught up at six fish apiece. Chelsey was doing well with the chartreuse lure so Bill switched me to a chartreuse streamer.
Bill was great. There are guides you’d highly recommend to a friend and he’s definitely in that class. He moved us into the best locations, tied on the flies/lures and helped to get the snags out. He didn’t ‘overguide’ if you know what I mean. Bill previously worked at Bob Marriott’s Fly Shop for several years and is in the process of building up his guiding business.

We moved closer to the split rock formation to fish the crazy currents the waves made as they crashed into this structure. Bill had both motors going to keep the boat ‘stationary’ near the rock formation. The neat thing about this spot was there were a bunch of small sea lions, birds and one lone large sea lion resting among the rocks. What a backdrop for the fly fishing! Between casts, we took several photos of sea lions. We could see schools of baitfish in dark blue water. Bill said close to these rocks were normally a productive spot, but no strikes for us yet. We moved clockwise around the rocks and managed to get a couple more calicos. They weren’t big fish, but they fought hard, similar to the hard fighting smallmouth bass.

Chelsey decided to sit back and relax for the rest of the trip. I tried a few more spots and picked up one or two more fish. The count stood at five calicos and a sand bass for Chelsey and 14 calicos for me. With a little time left, we decided to try in Newport Bay around the boat docks for a while before calling it a day. Bill moved me nicely into position so I could cast parallel to the docks. Bill wanted me to drop the fly as close as possible to the docks where the fish would be hanging out. I got a little too close and snagged two docks. Anyway, the trip ended on a good note. I hooked and landed a spotted bass, the third bass species landed that day. We motored on past all the expensive waterfront homes including one that was once owned by John Wayne and arrived at the marina around noon. We were back at the Surf and Sand Hotel by 12:30 to spend the rest of the day with the family. (That meant catching up on our sleep!)

The summer has gone by way too fast, but I am looking forward to our upcoming meetings this fall. We have some excellent speakers lined up and it should be a lot of fun. I am particularly interested in the November meeting where Theaux from Backwater Angler in Maryland will be talking about the big browns (yeah…24-inches) and rainbows that now inhabit the Gunpowder. What a difference a few years make. Please see the fall agenda elsewhere in this issue.

On the topic of meetings, I have been the de-facto refreshments coordinator for a few years now. Although I have tried to solicit help from our members in this regard, I have had no one step up to the plate to coordinate this activity at our meetings. In addition, we have not recovered our refreshment expenses. As a result, we are not doing refreshments anymore, so bring your water bottles and your chips and you will need to make do. Our club thrives on member participation and help. If there is someone out there who would like to take on this responsibility, then please let me know.

On other matters, I recently resigned from the Board of GVA as my six-year term is to expire in November 2006, and I couldn’t make many of the future Board meetings because of other obligations. Nevertheless, my intention is that DJL will continue to maintain and support a close relationship with GVA. 

Lastly, in my role as President of the Water Resources Association of the Delaware River Basin I am honored to be the Keynote Speaker at the Sixth Annual Delaware Water Policy Forum: The Delaware: Challenges and Opportunities Affecting a Working and Environmental River. The forum will be held on October 16, 2006 at the University of Delaware’s Clayton Hall. Registration is only $25 so we are hoping for a good turnout. For more information please go to: 

http://www.wr.udel.edu/publicservice/WaterForum2006/WaterForum06Home.html

Tight lines…Bob

On Saturday, August 5, six stalwarts of the Dame Juliana League gathered at streamside to accomplish some important improvement work on French Creek. The task at hand was to drag a considerable number of Christmas trees from their storage location along the pathway and place them in two locations on the south bank of the creek. The trees were staked and tied in hopes that they would help to develop a natural break in the creek’s flow. Slave driver and Stream Improvement Coordinator, Larry Heimes, directed and participated in the operation. Others who lent a much needed hand were Ed Nugent, Lance Morien, Joe King, Bob LeClerc, and Roy Cubbler. The work was hard, but the camaraderie was outstanding. One interesting diversion to the main activity was the attempt to identify the various rodents, frogs, toads, and salamanders which had taken up residence among the Christmas trees. The weather was cooperative. It was duly noted, that except for Heimes, youth was not the order of the day. Food and drink were provided. 

Rick Stevens knows streams, fish, and “bugs.” One does not have to talk to him very long before it becomes obvious that Rick loves all things connected with fishing. A resident of Douglasville with wife (and fellow Penn State alum) Lora, Rick earns his income dealing in antiques and as a Registered Investment Advisor, but his enjoyment comes from fishing, etymology, and generally doing all manner of things to improve the streams upon which he floats a line.

Rick has been a member of DJL for “a long time,” and is a major contributor of time and effort on behalf of the club. He is a featured presenter at the Learn to Fly Fish Program, he helps with trout stocking, and he has planted hemlock and willow trees along the banks of the French. He has often helped out on work days. Of course, he also serves as our club’s able secretary.

Rick claims the French and Pickering Creeks are his “home streams,” but he also enjoys angling trips to other areas. This summer he and a friend hit Potter County and cast lines in such well-known streams as the Kettle, Slate Run, Cross Forks, Pine Creek, and the Allegheny. He has also tried his luck in Wyoming and Colorado, and on the Yellowstone. He enjoys salmon fishing and he does not hesitate to do some salt water fishing when the opportunity arises.

Lest you think Rick spends all of his free time standing in water, not so. He is a member of a number of local historical societies, and finds pleasure in delving into the past to ascertain how people lived during other eras.

We are proud that Rick has chosen DJL as an outlet for his love of fishing, and by way of “The Spotlight,” we say, “Thanks, Rick, for all you do for us and for our sport.”