Zak's shot and a few flies

So a few days ago I got a surprise email from a recent customer of mine. Zak sent over an email saying "Hey Mike, I think I won your 50 follower contest...right? Am I too late?" It had been so long since I posted the winners avatar I had to go check and, sure enough, Zak was in fact the winner so he has the flies from that contest headed his way after this weekend. He also sent along a picture of a solid 20" brown that he got in to with one of the Meal Tickets he picked up from me a few weeks ago. Congratulations on the win and thanks for the fish shot Zak!
Now we are in the countdown for the 100 Followers dozen flies...

Here are a few shots that I posted randomly on Facebook this week, but wanted to get them up here as well. The first is a size 24 Trico spinner tied with fibbets, Superfine Dub, and snowshoe hare. It is a great little pattern that will float extremely well and is very visible despite it's small size. The trick to consistent wings this small is to pick out the guard hairs to get down to a manageable clump, then keep a firm grasp as you tighten your wraps so that the hair tips stay even.

The second is a shot of some custom Swimtail Deceivers I tied up for my good friend Mike Berkshire. It is a fun little pattern that, when jerked with sufficient force, darts in a very erratic manner. Tied on Gama SL12S hook means that anything trying to eat this fly is in for a world of hurt.

Finally, a shot of some flies from tonight that are headed west in the morning.

I have been working on filling up my Trico and BWO boxes in my 'spare time' over the last week. Once they are filled up and ready to hit the stream, likely in a few more weeks, I will get a few shote up. I always find it interesting that my favorite two fly fishing pursuits are throwing monstrous streamers or he smallest mayfly...

-mike schmidt
www.anglerschoiceflies.com