New Year and New Goals

Going on a year now since I left the fly fishing industry and it has been a little strange;  I miss it a lot at times and there are other times I'm glad I'm out for the most part. 

So here we are onto a new year year and I have some new goals. 

I have decided it's time to take my fly tying a lot more seriously.  In the past my designs have come from a need I had and I wanted to make a fly to fill that need.  That's how the Meal Ticket and Protein Crunch, which are now both being produced by Rainy's Fly Company, came to be.  I needed a smaller articulated streamer for the Driftless Area and a replacement for the woolly bugger.
 
I have a few more that have been sent off to Rainy's for consideration;  The Harasser and the Food Stamp.   We'll see how these do in the new future....fingers crossed and they get picked up.

 

Now with the new goal of pushing myself t work on my fly tying more I've decided to make the transition into fishing only my patterns (there will be some exceptions)  in the future.  I've decided this will be the best way to push myself to become more creative.  Now will this lead to more flies with Rainy's?  I have no idea but it can't hurt.

 

                                            

Tying videos with aTightLoop

Here is a quick compilation of the videos of my flies that I have filmed with Kurt of aTightLoop thus far.

Hansen/Driftless Hopper
https://youtu.be/wJSG9w47nsU

A quick and easy caddis we dubbed the Super Simple Caddis
https://youtu.be/332iG-zJB8g

An old  version of the Harraser
https://youtu.be/__cI1C_t9iQ

Meal Ticket
https://youtu.be/M0cF9-_-sG8

Big Changes

Big Changes in the Rushing Waters world.   Little over a month ago I received a job offer at an office for a 9 to 5er.  Long story short I took it.  Better pay, better hours, MUCH shorter commute (14 miles) which puts 3 more hours a day back into my life.  Now I have time for my young family , to get back to tying and creating new patterns and actually get to fish.  With all this time I also plan to get back into guiding part time in Wisconsin.   Nothing serious, just a little bit to fuel the habit and satisfy the itch.   Also had an idea for a video I'm going to work on this year that I think will be really neat.  Stay tuned for more from me.

Thoughts

It has been one long, long summer.  It has been absolutely fantastic and dreadful at the same time.  

I would like to say the reason for such few post this last year has been from fishing too much but that is not the case.

On June 13th my wife and I went in to just see the specialist and get an ultrasound done since there were some concerns with the pregnancy.   Long story short my son Logan was born at 8 30 that night.  He was 2 pounds.  His due date was August 10th.  So he has been in the NICU since then.  Thankfully he seems to be perfectly healthy and just some minor and normal setbacks have kept him there....  Hopefully soon I will be able to bring my son home.

I did squeeze in a little time to WI last week with a friend and caught a great rainbow along with some awesome hopper caught fish.  And with a training day and trout school and a wedding September is looking up.

Photo Tim Adkins

Alaska Steel by Austin Trayser

http://vimeo.com/m/100264335

A Tight Loop Summer issue is live!

http://atightloop.com/Summer2014.html

Logan Paul Hansen

Friday was a little crazy.  Went to see a specialist with my pregnant wife Friday morning.  And at 8:14 pm my son was born.   Yep Logan was born on the only Friday the 13th this year and on a full honey moon to boot.  He'll be in the NICU for a while but he is doing good.