Ptero-Knarly

Different renditions of the prince keep my head spinning, yet they always seem to produce. With the vast amount of stoneflies we have started to recognize in the Arkansas, the more and more obsessed with them I get. The most intriguing of all of the Stones is the Giant Stones or Pteronarcyidae.......

These are extremely large froms of the general Stone, measuring 15-50 mm excluding tails. The gills are very evident, and by god they will pinch the ever living heck out of ya with their jaws. Pure and simple they remind me of the Aliens from the Predators movies. They look like they were sent to earth with medieval style battle armor to search and destroy. The second clear diagnosis I draw is that our happy Brown Trout love them some cheeseburgers. I tie this 2 together, and bring myself to fish these babys more and more. And, man have they been successful!

Above is my latest creation, a super knarly rendition of a prince, nymph with all kinds of other goodies. Let me tell you, this will kick A-S-S!

Ptero-knarly (Tear-O-Knarly)

Hook: #6 Tiemco 2457

Bead: MFC Lucent (c0ffee) 4.7 mm

Thorax: Hareline Brown Ice Dub mixed with Peacock

Wing: White Goose Biots

Wingcase: Flashabou Wingin Fiber

Body: Brown Lucent Chenille/ UTC Brown Tubing

Tail: Brown Goose Biots

Epic Spring Slumber

Boy what a great/ busy spring season! As we sit back and watch the river rise into possibly what we call "chunky, tree trunk movin, inner tube tossin, river rat dunkin" form (runoff). I picture what the next few weeks might have in store. I know there will be some epic footage gettin laid down. Maybe a trip down to Baja to chase some roosters. Quite possibly some carnage in the kayaks. Hopefully some great times with the honey.

Until our trips really start poppin on the reservoirs, and come back to life in the form of big streamers from a boat at receding water time on the Arki.......I'm gonna have a little more time to kill.

The one thing I know that will be epic is the Teva Mtn. Games. 100's of Outdoor Pro Atheletes will be convening in Vail on June 4,5,6 to lay down some crazy competition! I am proud to say that my head guide Clint Werthman and I will be joining 80 other Guides/ Pros/ Sticks in a 2 fly/ Accuracy/ Distance competition. We will do our best, but in the mean time have an epic time, and throw back some mean brews! Mark that weekend off the calendars, and come down and hang with us. It will be a time to remember!

Wildlife Commission Opposes "Artist" Christo's OTR Project.....

The other day, I viewed 2 bumper stickers on a Subaru at the local market. One sticker said "Save the Earth!" The second sticker said, "I Support OTR (Over the River)." I simply wrote a little note to the guy or gal, and stuck it on the driver's side window; reading: "You have found yourself in quite the quandary it seems. You move for the protection of the earth, however you also support the drilling of 4000 4" diameter holes in the Arkansas River and the displacement of the last local Bighorn sheep herd, for some of Grandmas old bed sheets to be hung over the river. Where do you draw the line Sir, or Mam?"

With a very strong and determined move the Wildlife Commission, which is charged with protecting, preserving and enhancing the wildlife and wildlife habitat in Colorado, stood unanimously (9 Votes to None) opposed to the controversial landscape art project known as "Over the River" proposed by Belgian artist Christo. Major step in the right direction! Now maybe we won't have to endure 3 years of construction (with accompanied local economy drain), the loss of the last local Bighorn Sheep herd, and drilling holes in our riverbed, for three weeks of viewing "art!" Is the Arkansas River so ugly as it is? Some people must think so........

Read More: Wildlife Commission Has A Pair

Trump Stone

So we get a sample pack of some new stuff from Hareline the other day, and included is this sick new stuff called Senyo's Shaggy Dub. It is basically a micro rubber leg "dubbing like" material. I have been looking for a natural gill material for my stonefly patterns, and let me tell you this really pumped it up a notch. Not only does it give it a very natural under gill, but just makes the stone look super buggy! Look for Senyo's Shaggy Dub at your local flyshop. I present the Trump-Stone.........

Another great private water day.

Yesterday we had another tremendous day on our private water section. A half day afternoon trip provided non-stop action. There were caddis and blue wings on the water and fish were more than eager to eat drys. I had three great clients and several times had two rods doubled over with fish on the end and once all three had fish at the same time. Sorry I have no pictures for this post but with so many fish to catch it's hard to stop and dig out the camera. With the warm weather I expect the fishing will only get better and better so I encourage you to load up on dry flies and get to the river. I'm sure that's the only place you'll be able to find me during day light hours for the next couple of weeks.

Matt Ellis
Guide

WTF Arki Fishing!

I enjoy fishing so many rivers all over the world. And, it was so good to be able to get away and spend some time on the Reef last week. However, I am always stunned at the caliber of our Colorado Rivers, and more importantly the river I live on. It seems like I can never fully understand how well this river truly fishes until I spend a full week guiding on it. We had such a tremendous back to back float trip yesterday to cap off a great week on the water! Caddis have been huge in places and sporadic in others; however, combined with BWO's and great attractor fishing, has allowed for pretty easy fishing. This is just a post for myself to acknowledge that I feel so blessed to be able to live and work on one of the greatest rivers in the world. And to be able to share my perspective with other angling enthusiasts is simply icing on the cake!

T