Mary Ann and I just got back from Boise and the 2014 Western Idaho Fly Fishing Expo sponsored by the Boise Valley Fly Fishers. We had a great time there and met a lot of great folks very interested in bamboo fly rods. Here we are at our booth at the show:
Our booth at the 2014 Western Idaho Fly Fishing Expo
Mary Ann also gave a casting demonstration on the do’s and don’ts of fly casting…with a bamboo rod!
Mary Ann giving a casting demonstration at the 2014 Western Idaho Fly Fishing Expo
Mary Ann and I just got back from two days in Boise at the Fly Fishing Expo. This is always a fun show, with a very enthusiastic crowd interested in talking about bamboo fly rods. I met a lot of nice folks, and had some great converstations about “Why Bamboo?”, how to build bamboo fly rods, and how to fix up old rods. Several attendees also brought by their old rods to talk about. It’s always fun to pull an old rod out of the rod sock to see what treasure is inside.
Along side my booth was Mike Morin of Cutthroat Leaders. Mike makes some great furled leaders, and I fish with them often. They are a great match to the action of bamboo fly rods and turn over flies in wonderfully smooth manner.
Mary Ann also gave a casting demonstration on “Adjusting your casting stroke for different distances”. She also had the chance to spend a lot of time on the casting pond with folks who were interested in casting bamboo fly rods to see what it’s all about.
I just completed a new Switch Rod for Mary Ann. This one is my 10′ 6″ 3/2 5 wt Progressive Action Rod designed for swinging streamers and soft hackles for trout. It’s casts great with a light Scandi Head or 5 wt Switch Line, perfect for medium-sized rivers and larger trout. I’ll have this rod at the Fly Fishing Expo in Boise next week for attendees to cast, fondle, and oggle!
I’ve been so excited about matching thread furled leaders with bamboo fly rods. They have an amazing feel, turn flies over extremely well, and are an incredible match with bamboo. Michael Morin at Cutthroat Leaders offers some really great furled leaders. After watching his video, it’s hard to not try them:
We had a great time at the Western Idaho Fly Fishing Expo in Boise last weekend. The Boise crowd was incredibly friendly and made Mary Ann and feel right at home. I had a booth at the show, and I had a lot of great conversations with “bamboo enthusiasts”. Mary Ann gave a few casting and fly fishing classes and I did an impromptu “Building Bamboo Fly Rods” class when the scheduled presenter was unable to attend.
I had the chance to try out furled leaders from Michael Morin at Cutthroat Leaders. Michael’s leaders are a fantastic addition to a bamboo fly rod. I found they roll out very smoothly and are great for delicate presentations on just about any action bamboo rod. I’ll be adding them to all my bamboo rods in the future. I encourage you to check out Michael’s WEB Page at www.cutthroatleader.com.
One very exciting outcome of the show is that I was requested to design and build a Switch Rod in bamboo. The client is interested in casting streamers and skating dry flies for large Idaho trout and wants to do so with a light switch rod. I’ll be designing this rod at 10 1/2 to 11 feet in length, and a 5/6 wt action. I’m currently researching several different tapers to identify the right action for this style of fishing…should be very exciting!