November 2009 Newsletter
November is a month of opposites- warm Indian summer days that lull us into an easy restfulness, interspersed with cold and snowy weather that jolts us back to the reality of the winter to come. There is still lots of fishing to be done, but for many of us, the urge to start tying for the coming winter and next year is greater than the desire to catch fish. Whether your cup of tea (and wouldn't a nice warm cup of Chai taste good in front of the fire?) is tying or fishing, the Laughing Grizzly stands ready to meet your needs.
Winter fishing is a blast! Don't think you have to put your rod away until next spring. The Big Thompson tailwater just up the road below Olympus Dam (the dam that holds back Lake Estes) fishes very nicely throughout the winter, and further afield are the Taylor, Yampa, Frying Pan and other tailwaters. There is a prolific midge hatch nearly every day on the Big T to satisfy your dry fly Jones, though nymphing will take plenty of fish during other times. During hatches, try tiny size 20-24 dries like the Parachute Adams, Griffith's Gnat, Stuck in the Shuck midge, or one of the many other small midge dries and emergers. Our preference for nymphing are a Prince nymph, Flashback Pheasant tail or Frank's Flashy trailing a midge larva or pupa pattern. Midge patterns for nymphing we've had success with are Mercury Zebras in black or red, Deep Blue or Black Poison Tungs, red or black Jujubees, Rainbow Warriors, Brassies, RK Emergers and the like. These little goobers are easy to tie up, and, of course, we'll have a good selection in our bins.
And speaking of tying, take a class here at the Laughing Grizzly. A beginningindividual 2-3 hour class is only $65. Get together a group of up to four people and pay only $50 per person. You'll learn to tie five basic patterns that use a variety of techniques that will get you off to a great start in your tying career. We also offer a five session class that covers additional patterns and techniques including mayflies, stoneflies, caddis flies, terrestrials and a variety of winging, tailing, dubbing and other techniques for $225. Just call (303-772-9110) or stop by the shop to set up a time for your class.
Chile Ole'
Join the Laughing Grizzly in Chile at the Rio Salvaje Lodge in late March 2010. This beautiful lodge sits on the western edge of the Andes near Homopiren Park, dominated by glacier carved peaks, active volcanoes and temperate rain forest. Fish species include rainbow and brown trout, and many saltwater fish in nearby fjords on the coast. Accommodations a first class, and the food and Chilean wines and beers are prepared and served by world class chefs. All guides are fully experienced in local waters and will ensure that you have a trip of a lifetime. Check the details on our website at http://www.laughinggrizzlyflyshop.com/chile.html.
Saturday Tying Clinics Santa Claus List Guided Trips Brush Creek Cane In the Shop Tying Materials Wapsi Flashabou Accent is similar to Krystal Flas, but finer with a twisted rather than crinkled texture. Add it to streamer wings, use it for ribbing, or wrap bodies with it. Comes in a dozen great colors. Other
Saturday Clinics will continue through the winter until at least mid-April. All clinics, with one exception, are from 10:00 to 12:00 every Saturday except for 12/26/09. The one exception (so far) is the November 14 clinic featuring Rick Takahashi and Jerry Hubka- it will start at 9:00 and will be followed by a signing of their recently-released Modern Midges. We always have coffee and Great Harvest pastries, so you don't even need to get up early and make it to breakfast. We've got a great lineup of tyers including the aforementioned Rick Takahashi, Charlie Craven, Pat Dorsey, Steve Schweitzer, Jay Zimmerman, Rob Kolanda and a host of others. You can find the complete Clinic schedule on our website at http://www.laughinggrizzlyflyshop.com/Crntevnts.html.
Have you been good boys and girls this year? Santa knows, and we help him out by maintaining a list fo your most desired Christmas gifts to make it easy for your friends and family to shop for you. Every year, wives and girfriends (and husbands and boyfriends) come into the shop looking for gifts for their spouses and significant others. We end up selling lots of gift certificates. Make it easy for them (and for us) by sending your Christmas Wish List to the Laughing Grizzly. We'll pass it on to Santa. Just email us at laughinggrizzly@comcast.net with Christmas Wish List in the subject line. Make sure you include your name, as your email address may not tell us who you are.
Guided trips don't end with the nice fall weather. We're willing to brave it on the Big T tailwater if you are. We also guide on the San Juan in New Mexico and the Gray Reef on the North Platte in Wyoming. A guide trip makes a great holiday gift. How about that brother from out of town you don't know how to entertain? We can take him and the kids off your hands for a day. Maybe there is some aspect of your skills you'd like to work on; we can help with that, too. Check the details on our website.
Many of you know from your visits to the shop that our guide, Frank Drummond, is a bamboo rod builder par excellence. He builds beautiful rods with lovely fittings and the wonderful feel that only bamboo can provide, for an unmatched fly fishing experience. Frank always has a rod under construction, and he'd be happy to discuss it (or another taper or style) with you. In addition to his fine rods, Frank also conducts one-on-one rod building classes. You'll start by splitting the cane, and you'll finish with a beautiful rod that you built yourself. Contact Frank at 303-810-4538 for more information.
Ross Evolution Closeout
Ross has updated the Evolution to an LT model, so we are closing out our existing stock at 20% off. There are only two left:
2 size 1s- $285 original price, $228 closeout- Perfect for a 2-4 wt rod
Both are in copper finish. These won't last long, so come in early.
Hareline Rainbow Scud Dub comes in light and dark mixes for tying Rainbow Warriors, Scuds, Rainbow Princes and such. This is the best rainbow dub mixture we've seen, with a variety opf bright colors with a brilliant sheen. Having a very fine texture, it dubs very nicely, even on small bugs.
The pre-season orders we placed at the recent Retail Show will soon start rolling in. You'll see neat gear from Simms, Redington, Sage, Ross, Rio, Fishpond and others. There will be some new lines as well- we won't spoil the surprise, but will announce them as they become available.
The Laughing Grizzly Staff