- Raise your hand if you can’t get enough of movies featuring Fly Fishing for Steelhead!
Click Me!
Well, the AEG fellas that brought us the Trout Bum Diaries series are at it again for one last hoorah. The journey now takes them into the remote Northwestern wilderness in search of fly fishing’s holy grail, the wild Steelhead. Dwindling populations make films such as this one extremely important to the protection of these beautiful fish, as they help raise awareness and get more people involved in conservation efforts.
Click to Purchase!
Catching a fully grown female Steelhead on the Fly has been a dream of mine since I first laid my eyes on Raising the Ghost last year. Metalhead only seems to heighten my excitement and fuel my ambition. Judging from the previous AEG projects, Metalhead promises to be a knockout film, worthy of your hard-earned dollars and cents.
Check out the trailer at Fly Fishing Film Tour blog, and be sure to buy the film when it drops on February 16th.
Tight Lines,
-Ben
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-Howdy folks
Pardon my week long hiatus! While you may feel saddened, deprived, or just plain robbed of your daily Up’North fix, I can say with confidence that three groups of freshmen Civics students are better off for it. So think of it this way, by not remaining my top priority this week, you helped educated almost 80 high school students on their way to greatness. Pat yourself on the back for a job well done!
Almost a year ago I posted the trailer for Felt Soul Media’s newest project, Eastern Rises. To this date that single post remains my most popular one by a long shot. Every week I get a half dozen or so emails asking if I have any idea when the film is coming out, or if I have any new information to pass along. Unfortunately, the answer has always been a simple NO. Today my friends, is your lucky day.
Heeding the call of my readers, I dropped the Felt Soul crew an email asking for any information they could pass along regarding Eastern Rises. In less than an hour I received a response from Mr. Rummel himself. Take a gander…
Benjamin,
We have been getting similar amounts of email inquiries as well.
We had to put ER on hold for longer than anticipated in order to help adapt Red Gold for PBS’s FRONTLINE series this past summer and fall. That is all behind us now and we are actively working on the post production of ER. Our goal is to premier it at the Telluride Mountainfilm Festival in late May and ideally have the DVDs dropping around the same time.
We are about half way through the edit and it is feeling very good. We are stoked to share it with the flyfishing community as soon as humanly possible.Thank you for your interest and for getting the word out to the masses.
Best, Travis Rummel
Now if your as excited as I am for this film (and I know you are) this is excellent news. If you’ve been living under a rock and are reading this completely confused, I give you (for the second time) the stunning trailer for Felt Soul Media’s Eastern Rises.
Together, we count down the days…!
Tight Lines,
-Ben
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SleepingintheDirt.com--Few things fly fishing are worth your time more!
- Nothing makes me smile more than a completely intentional and well deserved b*tch slap to the face of corporate fly fishing. Leaving out the sponsors, high priced ads, and focus on fancy gear, expensive trips, and “professional” fly fishermen, Sleeping in the Dirt is simple: by the people, for the people. Regular Joes from various walks of life, fly fishing because they love it and not because somebody paid them to. They don’t endorse the most expensive gear, or push you towards fancy waders and name brand jackets. All they endorse is a good time, and a love for fluffy flies and fins of all shapes and sizes.
CLICK ME!--(Issue 1-Volume 1: Sleeping in the Dirt Mag)--CLICK ME!
Spawned from an already spectacular blog comes the online magazine everyone and their mother is talking about. Sleeping in the Dirt. Issue 1, Volume 1. Photographic genius and stories that you can relate to. Show some support for the fellas that support you!
Tight Lines,
-Ben
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- Recently I’ve had a shameful (or not) obsession with Marabou, tying with it furiously usually in small black ghost variations. It is no secret that Marabou has an action in the water that just drives fish crazy. It’s natural movements are preferred by many tyers when designing new patterns, but marabou also goes a long way in enhancing many classic patterns as well.
Muddlers-Tied by Simon Graham: www.pikeflyfishingarticles.blogspot.com
Up’North friend and Pike fly expert Simon Graham tied me a beautiful collection of large flies for my Muskie fishing adventures this summer. In return I sent him a bag of goodies including some assembled tandems, cork popper heads, threads, and more. So what did Simon do with the new addition to his stash? What else!? He turned around and tied me EVEN MORE stunning flies, this time for trout and salmon.
Muddlers-Tied by Simon Graham: www.pikeflyfishingarticles.blogspot.com
I would like to personally thank Simon for his kindness and friendly dealings with Up’North over the past few months. In all honesty I would be ecstatic to receive even one of your stunning patterns, let alone an entire collection. You may not think so (you humble devil you) but I am forever in debt to you. Some day I hope to have even a fraction of the skills that you do at the vise, and when that day comes I’ll be sure to send some patterns your way!
May your bobbins be full and your fly box fluffy,
-Ben
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For all you Muskie lovin’ northern Mainers and beyond…!
A little Muskie Chronicles Trailer to sooth your souls and cure those winter blues. Spring 2010 ladies and gents, I’m ready for my first Muskie on the fly!
Counting down the days….
More soon!
-Ben
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I like lists,
Quick
Simple
Entertaining
Idea stolen from the roughfisher
Cool Right? Everything just looks better in a list. Because the weather in Maine changes more often than the values of a politician, weekend plans can be hit or miss no matter what time of the year it is. This weekend will be no different. From over 50 degrees to 10 below zero in just a few days is enough to make anyone’s head spin, but wait, there’s hope!
If going ice fishing, watch for thin ice, and remember-Watch your step! Derplo found this out the hard way!
Take a peak at Up’North’s guide of things for deprived fly fisherman (or anyone else) to do when you don’t want your weekend to be completely uninteresting and forgettable.
- Tie Flies
- Blog (horray)
- Watch Glenn Beck (or Keith Olberman if you happen to roll that way.)
- Various Facebook activities (keep it legal you stocker)
- Play Farmville (deserves a spot on the list seperate from Facebook)
- Spend money on fishing gear you won’t use until April!
- Sleep (because no one wants to hang out with you anyway)
- Play COD Modern Warfare 2 (unleash your inner warrior)
- Go for a run fatty
- Go Skiing
- Ride snowmobile
- Walk the dog (never ignore man’s best friend)
- Take/Edit pictures (and send them my way)
- Spend time with your wife/girlfriend/significant other (because once fishing starts you can use it as an excuse to get out of the house!)
- Spend time with your kids (so they don’t turn emo and hate you)
- GO ICE FISHING!
- Play poker and steel money from your friends (or lose your wife’s cash)
- Go Bowling
- Go to a hockey game
- Watch a movie or play a game with the family!
- Take a drive (leaving town is always fun)
- Food and drinks with the fellas
A shot of my skiing skills from a few years back! I really miss skiing every day.
That’s just about all I can think of that might be on the agenda for me this weekend, other than the usual lesson planning for my upcoming week of Civics classes. So how do you spend your free time during the winter months? What replaces fishing in your list of priorities? Or maybe you can still fish (and believe me, we (I) hate you for it.)
Let’s hear what the Up’North readers do in their spare time. Do I attract the most boring people on earth, or people that generally know how to use their time wisely. Don’t worry, I would never judge (maybe)!
Happy Castings,
-Ben
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Riding a wave of confidence and a renewed love for learning new fly tying methods and techniques, I made the decision recently to become part of yet another swap with some of the fellas from The Streamer List. The topic for this swap is Ora Smith, which will be both exciting and challenging at the same. I am eager to get started on tying and am really anxious to see the collection of streamers when all is said and done some time in late April. The streamer on my vise this time? The Golden Marvel. After a little research, I even managed to find a step-by-step guide for tying from the wonderful people at NorthCountryAngler.com. Thanks guys! My stockpile of materials is primed and ready to go, wish me luck!
Image Property of northcountryangler.com. Click the image to visit their site today!
Property of www.northcountryangler.com
With a new swap comes the hope of improved abilities behind the vise, and a greater level of craftsmanship and quality. But regardless of how “perfect” the finished product looks, professionalism is in the TOTAL PACKAGE, quiet literally. After I received my streamers from the 2009 Favorite Streamers swap, I reached out to expert streamer tyer and Up’North friend Mr. Chris Del Plato to see where he purchased his nifty little business card sized packaging. After a brief conversation on twitter I was finally able to place an order for similar packaging. With a shiny new business card and a snazzy looking streamer, I think I can say with confidence that I might actually be successful in convincing people that I know what I’m doing. Take a looksie to see for yourself!
Fly Placed on the back of the card, Card Placed in perfectly sized plastic package. Can you say snazzy?
This packaging is exciting for me because it also means I can mail out some Alexandra flies that I promised a few individuals a few months back. With such a long wait, I really have no choice but to include a nice little assortment of goodies! After all, I have to make it worth the wait!
Tight Lines,
-Ben
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Comfort?
What is this meaningless word? Certainly one would not be so inclined as to think they might ACTUALLY sleep comfortably during the winter months!? Right? I know this morning I promised I wouldn’t talk about the weather, but guess what? I LIED! It’s 11:30pm on Monday night and quiet frankly I should be two hours into my evening slumber. My first day of teaching classes is tomorrow and lord (sorry atheists) knows I could use the rest. Unfortunately, mother nature has other plans.
Currently outside the temperature is 54 degrees, and the light breeze outdoors is awfully reminiscent of a lovely fall evening on the river. What was once a snow laden winter wonderland has quiet literally transformed in a matter of hours to a muddy wasteland that smells of Spring fishing, wet Labrador Retriever, and the soaking seat of a pickup truck. For those of you who don’t follow, I’ve officially entered the twilight zone (cue scary music).
Orono, Maine
So as I pry open my window and listen to the rain fall ever so gracefully on this exceptionally frustrating, outrageous, b*ll$It messy and uncomfortable evening, I thought It only fair that I share a snapshot of this madness. And remember, if your in my area and you happen to see a young devilishly handsome man outside in his boxers shaking his fist at the sky, please just go about your daily lives and let me wallow in self-pity.
Fishing season is coming…I can feel it….sorta!
-Ben
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-Howdy Folks, and a Happy Monday morning to you all!
It has been some time since I’ve had the opportunity to bring you a Mornin’ Coffee post, my schedule simply does not allow me to post as frequently and systematically as I would like. Still, the plus side to this scenerio is that when I finally can do a Mornin’ Coffee post, it really feels like a special occasion!
I could start off talking about how angry I am with Brett Farve today, but I won’t. I could talk about Scott Brown, Glenn Beck, or the fading National Health Care agenda, but mixing politics and fly fishing is simply unnecessary. And I could speak briefly about the cycle of warm weather, cold weather, snow, and rain that Maine just can’t seem to escape, but I won’t talk about that either.
Instead, I thought It would be nice to formally congratulate the Libby and Corriveau families and my cousin Jessica on her new baby boy Parker. I cannot wait until that little man gets his first fly rod, and I’m sure his first casts probably won’t come far behind his first steps! That just leaves one obvious question: Does Orvis make toddler fishing apparel? A big Up’North congratulations goes out to Matt, Jess, and big sister Kayla. I look forward to meeting the little fella!
Other than new additions to the family, I have also acquired some new additions to my fly box. The Winter 2009 “Favorite Streamer” swap is now in the books, and the participating fellas from the Streamer List have really outdone themselves. A while back I posted my Maple Syrup variation that I tied up for the swap, and it was joined by 12 other stunning streamers to round out the collection. As you can see from the photo below, lots of fish catching potential is now in my possession. Still, some streamers are almost too nice to fish! Chris Del Plato’s Golden Darter is simply stunning, and will likely remain in it’s packaging until I can mount it in a small frame that will hang proudly on the wall in my home or office. I would like to thank everyone involved for helping to make my first fly swap a HUGE success. I have learned much from the experience and look forward to many more swaps in the near and distant future.
Click to see a larger picture of each streamer!
As the rain falls steadily outside my window, I can’t help but drift into a daydream of warmer weather and Spring fishing. The wait is simply unbearable, but I know that in due time April 1st will roll into town, and with it a brand new season full of adventures and learning experiences. Until then, I’ll have to settle for my daily dose of fly fishing blogs, gear reviews, and pictures from past seasons to get me through the rough times. My fly tying vise has a long winter ahead of it!
Tight Lines,
-Ben
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Just put the vise away for the evening, my head is pounding and my eyes just can’t focus anymore. What started out as an attempt to tie the Moose River streamer went horribly wrong, and then back to right again. I’m not sure what to call this baby because honestly, I’m not sure if there is anything like it. To say I’m completely satisfied would be a lie, as I’m sure somewhere along the lines I’ll add/subtract/alter this design ever so slightly. But I would also be lying if I said I didn’t get some sort of warm feeling when looking at this streamer.
The Beautiful Mistake
The wing assembly is all wrong, I’ll be the first to admit that. I’m still struggling with matching feathers, and even more so when attaching them to the streamer. Cheeks also seem to give me somewhat of an issue, which can be seen on this streamer when one looks at the position the golden pheasant tippets are tied in. Regardless, my learning experience was not a total loss and I’m left with a perfectly “fishable” fly. Whether they’ll eat it is another matter all together, but time will tell!
So help me out folks! What can I add, subtract, or alter to make this streamer more appealing or effective? I’m all ears!
Tight Lines,
-Ben
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