Today, the Arizona quail season officially begins again. Technically, I am at work, so tomorrow will be my first day in the field. My buddy, Austin, and I have unceremoniously hunted the same spot these past several years on the first Saturday of the season and so far this canyon is pretty kind to us. Usually by the end of the morning, we realize that we are far too out of shape, can’t hit the broad side of a barn, and October is still way too hot to be out scrambling over rocks and picking cacti out of your boots.
So while all of you hunters are out there skipping work to be the first in the field, I will tip my cap to you and plod off to work. Best of luck on the opening day. Shoot straight. Hopefully by Monday, I will have a nice little post with a beautiful Arizona sunrise and a couple of Gambel’s quail in the game bag.
Hunting Gambel's Quail: A Beginner's Guide to Hunting Gambel's Quail
Don’t forget that if this is your first Arizona Gambel’s quail season or the first time you have been out in a while, swing by the Arizona Wanderings shop and pick up your copy of the Hunting Gambel’s Quail E-book.
If you happen to get out this weekend, leave us a comment on how you did. The Arizona quail season runs from September 30,2011-February 5, 2012. Let the fun begin…
We bumped and bounced our way over the washboard road until we reached the creek and, after driving up a ways, found that we had the creek to ourselves. The water was a little low and gin clear with the aquatic vegetation growing thick.
On our way in, we saw what we figured to be the Tanner Fire...
Fishing has been getting tougher on this stretch of water due to the popularity and general accessibility of this stream. This creates some very spooky fish that are starting to turn very picky. Out of all of the Rim creeks this one has some of the most prolific hatches of insects that I have seen. Upon reaching the water, Blue Wing Olives were making a strong appearance and so after few missed fish on my mini-hopper, I tied on a #16 parachute Adams. A couple of small fish rose to the occasion and I managed to nab a nice 13 or 14 inch creek resident.
Brown Trout
I continued along upstream, as Jason hiked down to fish back up. The water truly was crystal clear and I had to lengthen my leader significantly in order to not spook fish. The going was very slow as I scanned for actively feeding fish.
Gin Clear
My efforts were not rewarded with any of the monsters who inhabit this stream, but I was able to tease a dozen or so browns to the surface. It amazes me how healthy the creek was in spite of the large amount of traffic that I know this water receives.
Creek Resident
All in all, it was a perfect way to spend a Saturday with a good friend. The time away from the water is always too long and I am chomping at the bit to get back up there…
It has been a month since I was last on the small streams and it has been too long. Saturday morning dawned cool and clear as my buddy, Jason, and I turned into the pullout. We decided he would drop my off on the lower part to let me fish up while he went up farther to fish the upper section.
Small Creek Brown
The resident browns were eager to take flies off of the surface from amidst the pocket water, and some beautifully spotted fish came to hand.
Wild Brown Trout
While fishing up the small creek, I was greeted by two other fisherman who were walking down the bank. After a little small talk, we figured out we frequent the same online fly forum. We exchanged some flies and talked for a bit and it truly was a pleasure to meet these fellow Arizona fly fishermen.
Rainbow
Out of all of the trout that came to hand were browns, but one large rainbow made an appearance. After taking a an orange mini-hopper out of the film, he flipped and jumped around the pool until finally coming to the net.
Rim Creek
All of the creeks are still cold but definitely running skinny. I spooked several deer and I was surprised to see some horns amongst them. Although that is usually how it goes when the season is over.
Arizona Brown and Sierra Net
Jason and I met up back it his vehicle around noon and headed to lunch. From there, we game-planned for the evening and settled on one of the popular rim creeks that holds a strong population of browns. With our minds made up we pointed the SUV towards the new water and spooky brown trout.
I never gave much thought to my feet while I was growing up. Wearing flip-flops and flat, non supportive shoes became a way of life until about 3 years ago. After a couple of very long days in the field, the arches of my feet were killing me. I would get the same burning and aching feeling when I would get up in the morning and take my first steps. After some time on webMD and other research I figured I had plantar fasciitis (yeah that’s a self diagnosis, but who wants to pay a co-pay) I tried everything from sleeping in a special boot to rolling a tennis ball under my foot for an hour a day. I was still miserable. Enter Superfeet insoles.
Superfeet Premium Insoles
First impressions:
Price – Having read horror stories on the internet of other people with “feet issues” shelling out gobs of money for custom made insoles, only to have them not fix their issues, I was much more ready to check out Superfeets options. When looking for services online with financially capable of settling monthly financial obligations attached to the loan. Visit www.moneyfall.co.uk for more details.
Selection – Superfeet Premium Insoles come in a couple different colors. Each color corresponds with a different fit for different activities. Their website and/or sales associates can explain the difference, but I use black (low impact) for my every day shoes and green (more aggressive) for my hiking and running shoes.
60 Day Guarantee – Superfeet guarantees their product and if the customer is not satisfied, they have the opportunity to return them within 60 days for a full refund. As they put it, “You have nothing to lose but your sore feet.”
Green Superfeet Insoles
Field Use:
At 40 dollars a pop, I started with the Green insoles in my hunting boots. What I instantly noticed was that my arches actually felt supported and after the initial break in period, my dogs did not hurt so bad at the end of a long day of hiking.
I picked up a pair of the Black insoles for my every day shoes. Being a teacher, I am on my feet most of the day and desperately need that extra support. If you do not have problems with your feet, this next statement may not make a whole lot of sense, but it was not as if Superfeet made my feet feel a hundred times better. Instead, I felt normal and my arches did not burn when I first stepped out of bed in the morning or kicked off my shoes at night.
Superfeet (Might be time to replace the Black insoles too...)
The Superfeet Premium insoles are not an extremely padded or squishy insole. On the contrary, they are noticeably stiff. The heel of the insole actually helps to lock the foot into place and reduces the amount shifting of the feet when walking. Long story short, I like these insoles.
The insoles do need to be trimmed to size in order to fit into your shoe.
Superfeet trimmed to size...
Pros:
A product that actually works
60 Day-Gaurantee
Price (much easier to swallow then the custom insole prices)
Cons:
Need to be replaced roughly every 12 months or so based on wear.
The reviews at Arizona Wanderings are my honest opinion. Arizona Wanderings is not sponsored by or associated with any of the stated companies and is accepting no compensation, monetary or otherwise, in exchange for this review. My independent status may change in the future but, as of the date of publication, no relationship other than described above has been pursued or established.
After a couple of requests, I have tied up a San Juan River Fly Collection that is on sale now in the Arizona Wanderings Shop. This collection is full of the classic San Juan patterns that are sure to get you into some fish not only on the San Juan river but on just about any tailwater in the West. The San Juan Fly Collection comes with 24 flies:
– #24 KF Zebra Midge (silver rib on black)
– #24 Zebra Midge Emerger (gold on brown with poly wing)
– #22 Red Glass Eye Midge (silver rib on Red)
– #22 Brown Thread Flash Midge
– #20 Red Hot
– #20 Bead-head Pheasant Tail Nymph
– #16 San Juan Worm (Pink)
– #16 San Juan Worm (Orange)
These San Juan flies are a great place to start when thinking about filling your box for your New Mexico fishing trip. Head on over to the shop and stock up your box today.
I had a couple of hours free on Saturday morning, and even though I did not have the alarm set, my eyes opened out of habit at 5:00 am. After filling a thermos with coffee and grabbing my 6 weight, I hopped in the truck and drove over to some of my favorite ponds. I had contacted the usual suspect to join my on my walks, but everyone was busy, sleeping, or fishing elsewhere, so I aimlessly walked from pond to pond, looking for feeding fish. It did not take long to get hooked into a spunky koi that did not like the idea of coming to the net.
Whitey
I had a green simi-seal bugger tied on and it seemed to do the trick as always. The recently stocked tilapia, who could not seem to get enough a couple of weeks ago, were much more wary, although I did fool one into taking a fly.
Tilapia
The last pond I visited is one of the bigger ones and a bit out of the way. I had never fished it before but found a very aggressive carp who actually chased down my fly, which is definitely out of the ordinary. After letting him peel off line, he let me net him for a photo before releasing him.
Carp
Fall is in the air here in Phoenix. It was 80 degrees when I left the water and I drove home with the windows down. It is nice to finally feel human again here in the desert…
Rambling Review – Cortland Precision Platinum Salmon Line
Cortland Precision Line
Why:
Gearing up for my summer trip to the Northwest, I was looking to pair some quality line with my Lamson Konic and 6 weight BVK rod for the big water of the Deschutes River. After shopping around and talking to a couple different folks over at Cortland, they turned me on to their new Cortland Precision Platinum Line and sent me their Platinum Salmon line to try out on my float trip.
Cortland Precision Line
First impressions:
The Dyna-Tip – The fly line changes from mango orange to white and indicates Cortland’s high floating Dyna-Tip. Cortland Dyna-Tip has a very nice durable welded loop to attach a leader to the fly line and it is impossible not to notice how well the Dyna-Tip floats, even in the fast, choppy water of a powerful river.
The Little Things – It is always a good sign when a company goes above and beyond however small it might be. Cortland includes a “pro line cleaning applicator” with their Precision line. I love these handy little cases for a quick clean on the river in the hopes of lengthening the life of my fly line.
Cortland Precision Line
Field Use:
While on the Deschutes I was presented with various fishing situations that put this line through the paces. While most of my casting was between 30 or 40 feet the Deschutes really pushed my distance casting far beyond that. The precision line shot through the guides and really performed well on these far reaching casts. I was able to lay out some fairly sweet roll casts that really put a smile on my face. Wether it was 3 inch foam dries or a double nymph rig, the Cortland line was the ticket.
Being back from the Northwest with time on my hands, I am not one to let nice line sit around unused. I tote my 6 weight with the Cortland Precision line over to my local carp and bass ponds here in Phoenix. When carp are tailing out on the middle reef, my casting needs all the help it can get to reach these big fish. So quality line that casts well is a nice feature to have. I feel that nailing this line down as simply “salmon line” is selling this line short as it really is an all around high performance floating line.
I try to thouroughly clean this line after I fish these ponds due to all the who-knows-what-that-crud-is floating on the surface, and after 6 months of use, the line looks as good as new.
Cortland line being pulled through the guides...
Pros:
High quality line
Floats high all day
Sails through the guides
Pro-cleaner patch included with line
Cons:
Comparable price to other fly lines (they are all high in my opinion)
Carp Fly Line?
Prognosis: Having used a number of different brands and styles of fly line, I believe that Cortland’s Precision line is a great choice.
* Disclaimer:
The reviews at Arizona Wanderings are my honest opinion. The Cortland Precision Salmon Line were provided by Cortland for the purpose of this review. Arizona Wanderings is not sponsored by or associated with any of the stated companies and is accepting no compensation, monetary or otherwise, in exchange for this review. My independent status may change in the future but, as of the date of publication, no relationship other than described above has been pursued or established.
On any given Tuesday evening, Michelle takes off for some girl time over at her friends house and the pups and I get a little boy’s night in. After mowing our 100 square foot patch of grass out back, we settle into a nice little routine.
A little quality time with the Fox Breed...A little pepperjack cheese can make the world seem right...Begger #1Begger #2. I can't say no to these faces and they know it.The WorksA Cold One and Some Tying
