Billy Belsom
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For a special destination, since it is so hot here in south Louisiana in August, I would head to Alaska for a “special” trip, probably the Bristol Bay region? For a more expensive experience, perhaps Bristol Bay Lodge, or for more reasonable prices with more for the non-angler something close to Katmai Nat’l Park like Brooks Lodge. But that’s me.
For warm & salty, I might focus on a central-american destination where he had a good chance at a grand slam, Turneffe Flats (Belize) comes to mind, also might try Roatan (Honduras). I think Belize would have a lot more for his wife to do.
There are other cool places to go, but (1) I don’t think August is the time for an Angler to go to some of those places (Argentina, New Zealand, Costa Rica), or (2) others are not friendly to the non-angler (Russia, Labrador).
Seychelles does sound intriguing . . .
Um, is he an experienced fisherman? Would he need a place where fish are easier to catch, or would he be bored catching lots of smaller bones and wish he could go after bigger, harder-to catch monsters?
Does the wife fish, or does she need lots of non-angler activities during the day?
Do they prefer simpler tastes or are they accustomed to luxury accomodations?
Answers might narrow the responses down to a more manageable number.
Jim, great pics. Only fished there once, and can’t wait to get back.
And it was the trip reports that originally drew me to this board, so keep ’em comin’!!
I agree, Borat, that the rods keep getting faster. As many have said before me, I suspect this is due to the manufacturers’ need to sell something new – “come buy this rod, it’s even faster than your old one!” – rather than due to a real improvement.
I realize I am not the first to think that by a long shot. But what I wonder is whether and when the tide will shift someday as (1) science can’s make rods much faster, (2) the boomer population retires and more and more fisherman can’t generate line speeds with fast rods that they could in their youth, and (3) bamboo seems to be making some inroads. Will the next “new thing” be a slower rod that loads more easily, “casts itself”, etc.? Or are we on a one way street with no return?
I for one enjoy fishing slower, shorter rods on small to medium rivers. The superfine was a great rod. Hope it still is.
Yeah, I am a big fan of the Lamson Litespeeds as fairly affordable saltwater reels. I fish a 3.0 with my 6/7wt., and a 3.5 with my 8wt. Without making the (huge) jump in $$ to the Tibor/Lamson ballpark, the Litespeeds are some of the best saltwater reels I’ve fished with. The sealed drag appeals to me. And they are light, so I find they balance well with the lightweight graphite salt rods.
Sexy? Well, I’m not sure I’d go there, not that there’s anything wrong with that Zach!
Welcome, Steve! Look forward to hearing about the trips with those new rods. You’ll find as the fishing season kicks in there are more fishing trip reports, with photos, which is one of the best things about this site.
Cheers,
Billy
Uncle Larry and Roger, you guys behave or you’ll get all of us red-stickers expelled from the site! ;D
Seriously, nice to have the company around here –
Billy
Easy now, seafood! Actually, I can’t even see your pics in my safari browser – just little blue question marks. In Firefox there isn’t even the quetion mark. Also, you might try using your real name instead of a “handle”, if possible.
Second the Costa Triple Tail frame, glass amber/copper lens. I am too careless with sunglasses for polycarb lenses. I have a lightly tinted pair of cloud-something also that I bought for fishing in shade, but even those were too dark for the GSMNP. Thinking of getting a clear-lens polarized pair for that sort of fishing.
Dog,
Thanks for responding to my question – glad to hear about the groundskeeper’s efforts to use enviro-friendly stuff. Sounds like a company with some integrity.
Best of luck,
BB
Joel,
I don’t mean to sound accusatory, by any means, but was wondering what effects the golf course fertilization will have on the adjacent waters? I understand the coastal fisheries in South Carolina are suffering due to the large amount of fertilizer runoff with the abundance of golf courses. I am curious if there is an effect caused by your type of development out west, and if that is something the developer had to take into account? Perhaps a single golf course doesn’t
Word is the Becks have a saltwater photography article in the latest “FF in Salt Waters” mag, but it hasn’t hit the newsstands here yet. Dunno if it is too basic to help the likes of you, Zach, but might be worth checking out. Anyone seen it yet??
Richard,
Interesting advice. Are there certain shots or focal lengths in particular for which you would avoid using the polarizer? Why? Same questions for those in which you would use a polarizer?
Thanks,
Billy
Bob, MassBass, you are predicting failure of electric cars in the future given today’s alternative energy source technology. I am not an alternative fuels (or any type) of engineer, but I am sure at least one of those guys has better access to the development timeline for other sources of energy, like solar, and are not depending on a slew of new coal/oil power plants. Not to mention better productivity and cleaner production from existing plants. Or bovine gas technology! 😉
Zach, that’s big news. I think the average person is not “addicted to oil” – they are addicted to powerful, safe and cool-looking cars/trucks that are now run on oil. When alternatively powered cars are sufficiently powerful and safe, watch out . . . and these seem to almost be there.
Billy
Mike, make sure you are comparing apples to apples? I found the same issues when looking for a card and realized I was comparing faster cards to slower cards. Someone on this site pointed me to the following link, where you can compare the performance of different cards with different cameras:
http://www.robgalbraith.com/bins/multi_page.asp?cid=6007
Billy
When sight fishing for reds in the marsh, about half of your opportunities are within 10 feet (sometimes 10 inches!) from the boat. Sometimes I feel pretty goofy trying to reach them with a 9 foot rod. Would like to try that short rod for those shots . . .
I am good friends with a couple of the redfish guides here in New Orleans, and am fairly certain that one or both of them would be delighted to participate. One guides here year-round, the other has spent the last seven summers guiding in Jackson, Wyoming, and also has guided in Argentina and the Seychelles. Be happy to try to recruit them if the need arises.
bb
Sorry to hijack the thread, guys . . .
Bob, fishing is actually great in the marsh and the gulf around New Orleans. Tuesday I got my biggest (and ugliest) fish on a fly, a 28-lb. black drum. My buddy landed a 23-lb. red, which was a beautiful fish. The storms knocked out the commercial shrimp fleet, resulting in more food, as well as the elimination of bycatch mortality (which is the biggest population threat next to wetland habitat loss). Redfish and speckled trout are abundant. I understand the offshore guys had a great fall/winter. The only problem has been somewhat limited bait supply for the spin/cast fishermen, as many bait shops were washed away, though even that is better now.
Freshwater fishing south of I-10, on the other hand, still hasn’t recovered from being wiped out due to saltwater intrusion.
I’ll be heading to Sarasota sometime in March, I believe, to visit an old friend. Hoping to chase some snook for a day, have never even seen one before. If you end up heading here, p.m. me if you want more fishing info.
