fly fishing film

22Jan

In the Land of the Cutthroats-2010 Fly Fishing Film Tour

Fishing for me has always been about getting away; away from the busy city life of course, but even getting away from crowded tail waters and frequented man made bodies of water. Fortunately, a certain native trout thrives in places that are a far from these.

There is something special about the allure of a high mountain ridge casting a shadow over an alpine lake as the sun shining through the clouds paints the sky with colors. Could there be a better place to fish? Not only a place with breathtaking scenery but also one where you have a chance to catch a trout species that has lived there for more than a million years. To think about that is simply mind blowing. Imagine the Rocky Mountains untouched 1 million years ago, wild creatures all across the land living amongst each other in a land untouched by man except for a few Anasazi native americans. Untapped lakes and streams ran clean and clear while native cutthroat trout flourished in the mint condition waters. Today, back country wilderness areas are about as close as you can come to how it was long ago. The pristine wild, which is exactly why I treasure spending time in these places.

I’ve always wanted to portray this concept in a film. So I started documenting my high mountain excursions a few years back. This year, with the help of a friend who is a seasoned outdoor writer, we produced “In the Land of the Cutthroats.” The film tells the story of three native trout species that evolved along the Continental Divide in Colorado. From ancient beginnings in tepid coastal waters, the wayfaring cutthroats found their way to the loftiest slopes of the Rocky Mountains and into the hearts of modern fly fishers. After a medley of mountain scenery, cutthroat trout, mayflies, and cutting-edge time-lapse photography, the film takes viewers to a high-mountain lake for action-packed angling for greenback cutthroat trout.

Here is a trailer for the film:

This trailer features the music of Drew Goldstone from Reel to Reel Records Also featured in the film is music from the talented Johnny Martin out of Buffalo NY, and Andy Mass with Mass Destruction Entertainment

Check out another trailer for the film HERE This trailer and the film features fly tying from Brian Yamauchi

We were fortunate enough to have the film accepted into the 2010 Fly Fishing Film Tour. If you get a chance come check out “In the Land of the Cutthroats” along side an incredible line up of films.

The tour officially starts next week, Thursday January 26th at the Patagonia store in Ventura, CA and then comes to Fort Collins, CO Thursday January 28th and then to Denver Saturday January 30th. Also, there is an independent show put on by The Angler’s Covey Saturday January 23rd at 7pm in Colorado Springs.

The tour will make stops all across the country over the next couple of months. Check out the tour schedule HERE

One last thing … the film featured in the film tour is a modified short (8 min) version of the full (14 min)”In the Land of the Cutthroats” film. Stay tuned for information about a screening in Denver of the full length version of the film.

05Mar

The Frying Pan

No, not a pan to fry eggs in… a river… an infamous river. One of the most sought after trout fisheries in the west. The red sandstone rock walls surround this trout rich tailwater that flows out of Ruedi Reservoir, just minutes from Basalt and the roaring fork valley. Its almost as if god decided there wasn’t enough good rivers in the area (the Crystal, the Roaring Fork and the Colorado to name a few, are all neary by) and bestowed another beautiful little gift for us fisherman to utilize. One among many we are so fortunate to be blessed with here in the State of Colorado.

The first day we fished the weather was amazing, the sun was shinning and there wasn’t a cloud in the sky. Despite the non stop sunshine we were still forced to break ice off our guides every 5-10 casts… but that was the least of our worries because we were catching fish!
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A nice brown caught while dredging an RS2

Midday bugs started to come off and fish were rising everywhere. In the hole we were fishing huge rainbows and browns were coming out of no where and slamming bugs near the surface. Grey RS2’s size 20-22 were the most productive. There were multiple times when me and my buddy Tradd were both hooked up at the same time.
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Two nice browns we had to land in the same net

The non stop action continued until about 3pm when we decided to head down stream… where the action continued
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I caught this little buddy just before dark.

The next day woke up to the sun shining and already 45-50 degree temperatures. After loading my car and sweating profusely I thought, damn its hot, it feels like spring! I was forced to take off a couple layers…. and never put them back on. The mid 60 temperatures were amazing… and surprisingly enough, there was hardly anyone else on the water. It was like we had this whole river to ourselves. We fished all day in the same hole catching a handful of fish. I managed to get some great video of the action. When the action died down we headed down stream.
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Tradd hooked a couple fish while I filmed, then I nailed one after my video camera’s hard drive was full.
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Surprisingly this fat little rainbow gave me the best fight of the weekend, immediately after I hooked him in the current he leaped up out of the water like a true wild rainbow should… I stripped line and watched him jump again and again. After a good 7 or 8 leaps all over the place he thrashed downstream into the current and pulled line out of my drag. I couldn’t believe this little fish (maybe 12″-14″) was fighting this hard. After battling him for a couple minutes I brought him in and was able to get a couple pictures.

I’ve done a fair amount of winter fishing, and I’d have to say this was the best winter fly fishing trip I’ve ever been on… great weather and no asses and elbows (large crowds where your ass almost touches the elbow of an angler next to you) you can’t ask for much more on the pan… in fact I was so stoked about the weekend that I threw together a short video teaser:

15Apr

Angling the Globe, The Trailer

The new trailer for Angling the Globe, featuring the extraordinary country: South Africa.

With apartied’s troublesome past, a plethora of natural beauty, and an array of cultures South Africa was one of the most intriguing countries I visited traveling the world on Semester at Sea. Not to mention the amazing fly-fishing opportunities. From yellowfish to tiger fish to trout Sudesh Pursad, a local fly fishing expert out of Johannesburg took me to Kosi Bay, just south of the Mozambique border. This bay surrounded by rocky hills was rich in natural splendor and inhabited by our target species: the Kingfish, Caranx Ignobilis, AKA The GIANT TREVALLY.