Delta 9/04

[SullyTM]

SURF'S UP! Very windy this AM!(On Hairstacker Slough) Made for a difficult time in the inflatable kayak. Tide was out, exposing 3-4 feet of shoreline rock. It seemed like the current(s) were moving in several different directions...I got bounced pretty good, twice, by a Delta sheriff's boat which didn't slow down to a safe speed as it passed me. Combined with the stiff wind, I had to hold on! Lost a Altoid tin of clousers in the process. Stay safe today if you're on the Delta!

Later...

Thom

[mikenewman]

You Delta inflatable guys are right up there with Base jumpers and Free Divers, as far as I'm concerned :lol:

I reckon you all went to the Jack Gartside School of Flyfishing:

http://www.warmwaterflyfisher.com/newpatterns/images/Gratside.jpg

Cheers

Mike

[mike N]

Don't lump free divers in with base jumpers. We have a different type of death wish. :D Ab diving was great this weekend! No sharks, but I did sea a rather large seal swim under me as I surfaced with my last ab.

MN

[Hairstacker]

Thom, sorry to hear you had to struggle with the wind. Unfortunately, some days are just like that, regardless of the time of year or planning you put into it. At such times, I try to take advantage of parking the inflatable on top of weed beds to the extent possible to maintain boat position. By doing so, unless the wind is truly horrendous, you can usually still make a fair session of it by slowing down and going with a pause-pop style of retrieve.

Mike, is that what they're teaching at the Jack Gartside school? To me, it looks like too much work to fish out of an inflatable that has no backrest. Also, that specific model doesn't look particularly stealthy to me. :? Ah well, to each his own. :lol:

Mike, you ab divers are crazy!! And braver than I'll ever be. :)

[SullyTM]

Where can I get me one of those giraffe inflatables?! :D

Mike, I did park on the weed beds, however, depending on the stretch of H2O the wind still moved me :shock: I worked the weed line on the open side of the weeds and also tossed the flies onto the weed beds! I saw no activity on the top.

Getting out of the kayak was fun...The exposed rocks has slime all over them. Almost took a dump in the Delta :oops:

Later...

[JerryInLodi]

SullyTM, I was also out. The wind and low water was too much and I parked it after about 45 minutes. When I got home I checked the wind speed indicator at Bethel Island. It was bouncing 15mph. It showed a max gust at 31mph for the day when I just checked just now.

I did manage to work about 300 yards of shoreline before hanging it up. I only got one grab from a small LMB on a popper. The water, besides being exceptionally low, was pretty muddy as well. I also tossed some clousers for stripers in a couple of areas. No grabs, no follows.

The best day in the next three looks to be Thursday in the afternoon with wind speeds less than ten and high tide at about 3:15pm and low tide at about 8:30pm. The only negative is that the water exchange will be minimal with only a 1.3 foot drop in just under six hours.

[Hairstacker]

Thom, by the way, sorry to hear about your tin of Clousers. As far as passing boats, yeah, sometimes you get jounced around a bit but I've yet to ever come anywhere near flipping. Ever. Those inflatable kayaks are pretty darn stable.

And yeah, you do have to be extra careful on those levee rocks when they're wet. A couple of seasons ago, I slipped on one and ended up jabbing my foot against a rock underwater and fracturing my foot in the process.

Anyway, I hope you don't feel discouraged. There are going to be days like that, just the nature of the beast. That said, I also know there are going to be some simply magical days ahead as well. :D

[SullyTM]

Capt.Jerry...Your water description was nearly identical to what I encountered. :D

Mike...Yes, the inflatable is very stable! I just thought the sheriff's boat would slow down for me :? Discouraged! Not really...tying up the lost clousers will get me back at the vise. Haven't tied much lately...

I'll return another day...

Thom

[David Lee]

Thom -

It's JUST a little wind .......... :evil: :evil: :evil:

Don't sweat it , you're due for MOE soon . Are you coming to the October fest ??

David :)

[SullyTM]

David...Packing a spin gear outfit probably would have been a good idea to combat the wind.

My weekends this Fall will be spent chasing high school pigskin throughout Northern California. No time for fishing...

Thom

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

http://www.warmwaterflyfisher.com/newpatterns/images/Gratside.jpg

I met Jack Gartside in Ennis, Montana one summer. Really cool guy to talk with.

He is an "outside the box" kind of fly fisher.

http://www.jackgartside.com/

[JerryInLodi]

Cool picture Bill. I think I would have mounted the beast facing toward the tail though!

[Adam Grace]

I love that picture of Jack, too funny :lol: