Fly Fishing Fabisch, the Weekly Picture Archive 1 - 2016

Aren't we lucky to have politicians ready to practically put their lives in jeopardy to save us, our world, our nature? You think I'm being sarcastic? I don't; I rather feel like sitting down at night like a wolf and howl at the moon. Why does that picture pop up in front of my inner eye all the time, of a guy sitting in a tree and sawing away as best he can on the branch he's sitting on? Anyway, have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year everybody! Wolfgang Fabisch

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Winter Calm: the Road into Lungsdorf in the Pegnitz Valley

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The photograph was taken on a Canadian lake not far from the US border. We had spent a few days there before hopping on our plane back to Germany. The calm of this place is just beyond comprehension. This picture to me still radiates the calm we felt when we were there. I have decided to make it my screensaver. Relax as you're watching it, and let your mind roam to whatever corner of this world it decides to go.

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Fall Mood on a Canadian Lake

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To make things more interesting, we mounted the boxes on the base plate on the river. Nice fingerwork at temperatures well below freezing. 10,000 eggs in 18 boxes, a little over 500 per box. Mounting the first one is easy, but the filled boxes should not be lifted out of the water while the rest of them are being mounted to the base plate. Next we had to wash gravel - gold panning has made me an expert in that - fix the wire mesh cages to the bottom of the river, and fill the whole thing up with gravel. We're quite content with this year's achievement, but we'll do even better next year.

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Stocking Brown Trout Eggs in the Wiesent

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As I'm a rather down-to-earth guy, I stick with memories. At the end of our 2015 Canada Tour we spent a few days on Vancouver Island. Unfortunately the conditions were not exactly favorable for flyfishing. Most rivers on the island were unfishable due to flooding. Only two of them were in acceptable condition: the Campbell River and its tributary, the Quinsam. The coho I took on the Quinsam has already been in the weekly pictures; here you have a nice chum taken on the Campbell. These fish put up a great fight on a flyrod!

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Chum in Spawning Colors from the Campbell River

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On my Canada trip in 2015 I had plenty of luck. First I managed to improve my own steelhead record for the Bulkley from 87 cm (34 inches) to 92 cm (36 inches), and eventually to over 1 m (>40 inches). When I caught the 92-cm-fish, three young flyfishers were present who knew better than myself how to handle my S5. The one from Ontario said to me: hold the fish like this for a change; when it gets free, you'll get your first picture. I hope you like the picture. Next time, try to do something differently yourself. Here, the scene lasted hardly 30 seconds.!

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Steelhead from a Different Point of View

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This picture is supposed to bring a little color into our early season. The fall colors on this Canadian grayling river could hopefully accelerate the coming of spring and fire up our anticipation of fishing adventures in 2016. Will our new fly and nymph patterns actually work? Will that hidden giant fish we spotted last year still be there? I wish you a good start into your new season

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Grayling River in Full Fall Colors

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It would certainly be great to have a great camera with a long telephoto lens available at all times, but as a rule bear spray has a higher priority for me. You wouldn't believe how many opportunities for great shots you miss over the years, just because you left your camera in the car and carried your bear spray instead. When I took this week's picture, all the equipment was available, even a 200 mm lens, but this guy just wouldn't move the least bit outside his cover.

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In the great outdoors: don't forget to keep your distance!

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The ski lifts on the Hochkönig are still running at top capacity, and the towns are filled with people with skis either on their feet or over their shoulders. Most of the lifts will close by the end of this week and skiing season will be over. A short distance from here, in the Salzach Valley, fly fishing season is getting on its way.

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Coming to an End, a Winter Dream

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On the wall side along the bed is a little built-in bar with some friends from Scotland. All of these modifications make for a cozy place for overnight stays. A problem that remained unsolved until recently were wet waders and other garments. It doesn´t make sense to take them into the car you intend to sleep in, and you´d better not just hang them outside. For one, there´s rain and morning dew, and then there´s those € 600 you just spent on those brand new Patagonia waders... A little addition on the driver´s side of the car solves that problem. Even at temperatures around 2°C everything dries.

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Doesn´t it Look Like a Little Winter Garden?

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Here we are on the upper Bulkley River. This pool allows for perfect fly fishing, especially when you´re right-handed, and every one in our group was that day. Unfortunately, the place is also the perfect spot to launch jet boats and drift boats. So the anglers fish this run rather superficially to get the feel for their flyrods before they start their boat ride. And Wolfgang-come-lately can gaze at the moon!

A Perfect Run - With Too Much Traffic

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