Saltwater Fly Fishing Forum

August 24, 2001

Dear Saltwaterflies.com,

I was fishing in Buzzards Bay, Mashnee side of the canal,10 AM. I was within casting range of an all out blitz - terns, gulls, ospreys, cormorants, everthing. But the bass were very selective and were ignoring everything I threw at them. I thought I would try to let the fly sink underneath the action and hoped something big would grab it. It worked! That fish hit a large white snake fly hard and took off. I remember telling myself to let it go and not to palm the reel - the fish would have to stop sometime! While it was running I remember thinking that this was it: I finally hooked into a 40 inch bass on the fly. I checked my backing and just as I was about to panic I started to get some back. Then the fish made another run. Then he made a run back towards me and I cranked that reel faster than I thought I could. I was able to keep the tension on him the whole way back. I felt good at this point but still had not seen the fish. By now, another angler came over to see what it was and the fish was heading towards him. When he saw it he held his arms out and said, Holy s---! its a king mackeral! I was ok with that, but then as he swam in front of me I knew it was a Bonita or albie. My new assistant grabbed it by the tail and I started screaming. It was the biggest rush of my fishing career. It was a beautiful fish. The first glance of that greenish back and unusual stripes was something I will never forget. When I first saw him, I thought of a bonefish. I needed a photo of this guy, so I took off and ran to my car then to walmart and bought a disposable camera. I sprinted back, and my assistant helped me take some pictures and measure him up. He was 28 inches long with a 16 inch girth. I gave him to my new friend, Dave, to bring home to his family and I went home and got my film developed. I made an 8x10 of the best photo and brought that picture to get framed. I will have it back on Saturday and will immediately hang it on my wall. Some who have seen the picture have said that Bonitos don't get much bigger than that. I will never forget that fight and hope it was the first of many more to come. What is the average size for a bonito?
(Click Here to see the photo of Rick Ripley's Atlantic Bonito).

Rick Ripley

Rick,

Thanks for your e-mail! The fish you caught does look pretty large - probably in the 8-9 pound range, possibly larger, which is on the upper end of the size limit for bonito caught in this area, and a real trophy for a fly rod catch. The largest bonito taken from Cape Cod waters on hook and line have been in the 12 pound range, but these fish are rare. Some of the largest Atlantic Bonito found in the world are in the waters off the coast of Spain, where they may attain weights of 16 pounds. I'm sending you a free bonito fly to thank you for sending in your photo, and I hope that you get a chance to tangle with flyrod bonito again someday!

June 4, 2001

Hi Chris,

I'm looking for a little support for stripers here in Oregon. Our fish and wildlife commission is I believe doing all they can to see the species eliminated from our estuaries. They have the belief that these sport fish are one of the reasons our salmonids are in decline, even though their own studies of stomach contents show a very low percentage of fry in evidence. I am on a work group who is supposed to make a recommendation to the state. We have had three meetings and it looks like the "get rid of them" folks are going to prevail with the biologists recommending lowering the minimum size for taking to 12 or 18 inches and bag limits of 5 to 10. Obviously this will be more effective than a gill net in assuring there are no stripers left of spawning age in just a short time. What I'm looking for is some ammunition (information, statistics, etc.) to use at public meetings coming up. Maybe some of the folks out there have fought some of these same battles, have some economic stats on value of fishery or just some suggestions that may be useful. If you have any suggestions they would be more than welcome. Maybe you could post this in your forum. Thanks Chris,

Mike McCoy

Mike,

Thanks for e-mailing. I'm not sure I can offer anything constructive...sounds like a real challenge, especially since the real problem appears to be deforestation of the watersheds and heavy commercial pressure on salmon. You might bring up the point that there were a lot more salmon around 30 years ago, at a time when I believe there were also a lot more stripers around in the Northwest. If anyone has any other info that might be helpful to Mike, please e-mail him at mmccoy@teleport.com.

March 17, 2001

Dear Chris,

Just a note to let you know that after forty years of not tying any flies whatsoever, I have begun to tie again. Actually it is over forty years, and now that I am in a position to do some extended fly tying, I find that the thrill of tying once again, regardless of cost, has returned. Sure I could go out and buy any flies that I want, but the idea and thrills of tying my own flies and catching fish on them brings back my youth once again.

I purchased Sparkle Body from Feather Craft and was unsure of how to use it. I called Bob at Feather Craft and he gave me your Website. Funny - it was already listed on the bottle. Well anyway, it has given me a great deal of pleasure forming flies with Sparkle Body. Today I am going to spend the afternoon trying more flies, and I will enjoy every moment of it. I have made copies of almost every fly that you have given instructions on, since I feel that they may attract fish in the area that I presently fish. By the way, I fish the Tampa Bay area on the east side, and fly fishing is really starting to gain a foothold here.

I have a very good friend here named "Dastardly Dan the Fly Fishing Man", who is in his own way quite famous in this area as an accomplished fly tyer and inventor of different patterns. He does a fly tying class for free every other Tuesday, and I never miss them. I purchased every color of E-Z Shape Sparkle Body that is available, and will restock as soon as I get half way through a bottle.

I built a fly tying room, that is 36 feet long and 18 feet wide, and I had a cabinet maker build three fly tying desks with side drawers for material. I have been getting materials in from any place and every where. Hell, half the fun of this entire episode has been just looking through catalogs and buying things.

I guess I am trying to say that the flies that you tie are most interesting and I am going to tie quite a few of them and I wanted to thank you for showing us the way....I do have every fly tying video that Lefty Kreh and Bob Clouser have put out on saltwater fly tying, along with Popovic's, and some girl name Page ?? ... If there is a video on your fly tying, I would like get one.

Keep up the great and interesting job...There are some of us out here who really do appreciate what you're doing.

Ron Cavalier, Florida

Ron,

Thank you so much for your message. It is most encouraging to hear from someone who has taken the time to offer their thoughts and send a personal message...there are times when we wonder whether anyone notices the efforts that we make. I have tried my best to offer some useful information on our website, and I am pleased that you have found it enjoyable. I'm especially pleased that you've enjoyed tying with 'Sparkle Body; I know I have.

March 1, 2001

Hi Chris,

I was fishing Penn's Creek recently, and the trout fishing was quite good...I finally got a twenty incher from Penn's! By the way...all of the fish were caught on a Golden Stonefly nymph that was enhanced with E-Z Shape Sparkle Body! A friend of mine started out with one of his stones, but after I landed 5 or 6 fish, he switched to a 'Sparkle Body stone, and we both tore 'em up. The 'Sparkle Body on the belly really helps the fly sink, as well as giving it that brighter underside. The winter nymphing should stay good here for a few weeks...let me know if you can make it down!

Don McCue, Elliotsburg, Pennsylvania. Cloud Nine Aerial Photography - Martha's Vineyard Aerials

Don,

Thanks for the info about the Golden Stones and the good fishing. I'm stuck here for a bit, but I hope to join you on the water soon. Keep me informed!

February 16, 2001

Dear Mr. Windram,

I'm an Italian flyfisherman who like very much saltwater fishing. But unfortunately we have no so good chances to fight against the "real monsters" you can catch in your wonderful Atlantic shorelines; but for us is very important to be able to read your beautiful website and to have from it some good ideas for tie new flies and to see good photos about species of fish we'll never have. I'm wondering about planning a trip to Martha's or to Nantucket next months or next year.... For now, many thanks for your work and best wishes from Italy P.S. excuse me for my English not so good.....

Mioletti Fabrizio, Italy.

Fabrizio,

Thank you for your message. I am glad that you've enjoyed our website. Keep checking Saltwaterflies.com periodically; we add new information as often as we can. I sincerely hope you do get to travel to our Atlantic coast - the fishing is quite good.

February 14, 2001

Dear Saltwaterflies.com,

Do any of you guys have any data or first hand knowledge on the time period for a hook to rust out of a fish's mouth in saltwater? I've always heard, "oh' it only takes three days...", but I'm having trouble believing that. Set me straight if you are able. I'm hunting for size 1 and 2 hooks for tying my own flys, but have a high rust rate. Thank you for your time.

Chad Mckellar

February 4, 2001

Chris,

Nice to see your website. I met you a few years ago on Martha's Vineyard in June about 1am. Fishing was fantastic that night, especially after you handed me a white bunny fly and suggested I try this on a slow retrieve. I hope your business is doing well and maybe will see you at The Vineyard again some day (I haven't missed a year so far). Your advertising is doing well. I've been looking for the E-Z Shape Sparkle and saw your ad in the Saltwater Fly Fishing mag. I'm glad I stopped by. If I remember correctly, you were getting married in the fall that year, correct? Well - take care...

Bruce Campo

Bruce,

Hello! I remember that night well...I recall losing a very nice fish during the time we spent talking together. Glad to hear that the fly worked out - the fish were a bit picky that night. Jennifer and I are happily married now, and we fish the 'Vineyard for many weeks each year - I hope to see you there again soon!

February 3, 2001

Dear Saltwaterflies.com,

Your booth at the New Jersey fly show was great, the people were super friendly and informative. In all the excitement I forgot to ask about weakfish. Last year I was not too successful in catching them. If you could please respond with a pattern and time or tide to fish for them I would greatly appreciate it.

Valestrand@aol.com

February 1, 2001

Hey Chris and Jennifer,

You did it again - Mary and I had the trip of a lifetime. We came home with 7 potential world records; she got 6. False Albacore, Blackfin tuna, Cobia and King Mackerel! The tuna loved the Maximum Deceivers, and the Kings devoured the Flashtail Clousers you recently tied. I have a few left but I am out of the decievers - can you tie us up 2 dozen when you get a chance?

Tom Taylor and Mary, Edgartown, Massachusetts

Tom,

Congratulations on your trip - Especially to Mary! I will tie up some more flies for you at once.

January 30, 2001

Dear Chris,

Just picked up some E-Z Shape Sparkle Body at the Somerset fly show. I am wondering if you could recommend a brand of epoxy that you use when finishing flies like your Epoxy Minnow. I recently tried 5 minute epoxy but the body that resulted was a bit cloudy/milky in appearance, unlike yours. Your website is great, the photos and tying descriptions too. Thanks for making this information available. Maybe its because I've been tying small trout flies for some time now, but I'm really looking forward to getting into these saltwater patterns.

Adam Kaeser, Secretary- Penn State Fly Fishing Club

Adam,

Thanks for your kind words about Saltwaterflies.com, and thanks for your inquiry about fly tying epoxy. We have our own brand: "Saltwaterflies.com's Professional Fly Tier's Epoxy". This is a one hour epoxy which is easier to use than the five-minute variety, and resists yellowing. As a general rule, the shorter the cure time of the epoxy, the more volatile the epoxy is. Longer curing epoxies stay clearer over time, and are a little more forgiving when it comes to getting the proportions mixed correctly. I hope that you come to enjoy saltwater fly tying as much as I have. Best wishes for good tying and good fishing!

January 25, 2001

Chris,

It's January 25, cold out and there's snow on the ground, but I'm drooling with anticipation of the fishing yet to come this summer. Your site only helps to feed the fire.

I really enjoy the web page. Your hard work is appreciated by many. The false albacore articles and photos are great - beautiful fish. When do these fish run in the cape/island waters?

I will be staying in Chatham this summer in mid July. Any suggestions for good bets on where to fish from the beaches/jetties?

Attached are some photos of a schoolie and blues I caught off Eel Point in Nantucket in the first week of July, summer 2000. I tie the sand-eel pattern with the E-Z Shape Sparkle Body and they don't let me down. I like Scott Patterson's version with the silver sides. I'll have to try that one next.

Rob Catalano, Catalano Design, Watertown, Massachusetts

Rob,

Thanks for the photo - I'll send you one of our "Team Saltwaterflies.com "Got Backing?" t-shirts with our compliments. False albacore and Bonito run in South Cape waters August through October. Best fishing is probably in mid to late september for the False Albacore. Try the middle of the South side of Cape Cod around the various inlets, as well as Martha's Vineyard and Nantucket. I'm less familiar with Chatham; you might try checking out: https://www.fishingthecape.com/. Thanks again for the photos - I enjoyed a wonderful week with bluefish at Eel Point several years ago, and I hope to make it back there someday soon.

January 21, 2001

Chris,

It was my pleasure to finally meet you at the Marlborough show this past Friday. Your innovative method of tying salt water flies has helped me to connect with many good fish in the past few years. As promised, I am sending along photos of my spring trophy striper. The fish was caught on May 31, 2000 in Charlestown, Rhode Island. I was using an 8 wt. Sage RPLX rod with a 12 lb. tippet. The fly was a cinder worm imitation. The fish was 44 inches long and weighed in at 40 lbs. The whole thing took approx. 20 min and the fish was released unharmed for someone else to enjoy. Thanks again and hope to meet with you again soon. Keep up the great work and the great web site.

Richard Tremblay, Putnam, Connecticut

Richard,

Thanks so much for the photo. I very much enjoyed meeting you as well. My most sincere congratulations to you on your extraordinary catch - most folks will search all of their lives to catch a magnificent fish like the one you managed to land last May. Best wishes for another great season this year!

December 14, 2000

Chris,

I have been using your material to tie flies a lot this year. It's great. I tried a new shrimp pattern with the sand material. I attached a picture. I put the sand color under some epoxy. I'm going to tie some without the epoxy. What do you think? Any suggestions?

Ray Avitable

November 26, 2000

Dear Saltwaterflies.com,

Great site, great energy, great - great!! I recently fished your friend Jeff Sayre at Harkers Island, and checked out his web site, Flyfishingthevineyard.com yesterday. Jeff is a very good fisherman but don't tell him that, you know...the fat head syndrome. Really he's a blast to fish with. Again, I enjoyed your website. You guys are the best.

Captain Barry Kanavy

Capt. Barry,

Thanks so much for your message. Jeff Sayre told me all about the great fishing that he had with you at Harker's Island for the false albacore. When I get a chance to get down there, I'm going to give you a call to inquire about booking your services.

November 22, 2000

Dear Chris,

At Larry's Tackle Shop on Martha's Vineyard, I admired and bought your Maximum Deceiver. How do you get such a clear epoxy head? Any special epoxy brands? I was hoping to meet you on the Island where I saw your green truck parked. I'm a crazy fly fisherman from Falmouth and I have a place on the 'Vineyard. I live and breathe fishing all over the Cape and islands. Your stories and web page are terrific. Thanks for all the useful info.

Art Crago

Art,

Thank you so much for your message. I seem to recall talking with you either by phone or e-mail in the past - sorry to miss you on Martha's Vineyard. In answer to your question about the Maximum Deceiver...I use a 1 hour rodmaker's epoxy applied in one coat for the Maximum Deceiver heads...I'm trying to get a reliable source for this so we can offer it in our catalog ...meanwhile you might try the one hour rodmaker's epoxy available from Flex Coat in Texas. Contact Flext Coat at: FLEX COAT CO., PO BOX 190, DRIFTWOOD, TEXAS, 78619, 512 858-7742.

November 20, 2000

Dear Mr. Windram,

A few words of encouragement with you project(s)...you are doing a nice job (very nice) with your webpage. When the day comes that we are web-ready (working on it), I'll inquire of a link or advertising with you.

A little background on us...We are Gaines Company, an old and small domestic manufacturer of a variety of freshwater and saltwater popping bugs. Some of the big saltwater bugs (and the special 2/0 hooks for them) were a project of ours in the mid 1970s. At the time we had several New England fishermen encouraging us to make some big saltwater bugs, but in particular a gentleman by the name of Armand Courchaine (not sure of spelling). Running with little money but lots of enthusiasm we finally bit the bullet, placed the order for the hooks (Mustad required us to order 50 thousand of them) and watched them grow old for about five years, when all of a sudden interest started to grow. Every since then there seems to be an increasing interest and growth in the saltwater market.

And...some background on saltwater "MOE" patterns. As a writer, publisher, editor I think you find this interesting. In the early 1980's we were looking to expand our product line and found another Pennsylvania firm, Phillips Fly & Tackle, that was for sale. At one time Phillips had made lots of flies and poppers but what really interested me was their line of hardbaits which included the famous old Crippled Killer. They had sold off all the fly tying stuff and we had plenty of that anyway, but once we got everything moved here and started to sort it out we began getting calls for the "Optic", a round headed saltwater fly. It was a molded head and I found the tooling for it so of course we put it back into production. As time went on we began getting calls for more saltwater flies of this type. In 1982 we began making a custom shape for one of our major national accounts. They were fun and I began digging into more and more of the old Phillips stuff. Today we have several "Poxy Flies" as we call them. And at least three or four of them are based on patterns that George Phillips made in the late 1930's or 1940's. We have a nice set of old B/W prints from Phillips Company that were taken in south Florida in the late 1940's...the fishermen in them all had flyrods and some beautiful fish! Joe Brooks (the writer) is in several of them. One has his wife Mary in a boat with Ted Williams (the ball player) and Sam Snead (the golfer) and I'd sort of guess that Mr. Williams was only in his mid to late 20's at the time. I think there are two points here...they were all saltwater flyfishing a long time ago and some sort of history of saltwater flyfishing might have a market.

Years ago in the mid 1960's to the early 1970's I was the editor of the state fishing magazine Pennsylvania Angler. When I took the job the honest paid circulation was just over 10 thousand...when I left in 1971 to move back to Gaines and to buy Gaines Company our paid circulation was over 40 thousand. The only thing color was the cover and I was the editor, photographer and writer although I was able to buy some material from outdoor writers or use articles written by other staff members. I was a pretty good photographer and a pretty poor writer but I had a very good touch with the editing part of it. For some reason I seemed to have that instinct for what people liked to read and the ability to keep it focused, straightforward and positive.

One day I got a call from Arnold Gingrich, Esquire owner & publisher and of course a fisherman and writer. He asked me to drop in some day when I was coming to New York. He later wrote me a handwritten note which I might still have somewhere, again complementing me on my editing efforts. He was looking for some additional editing talent and apparently what I was doing must have caught his eye. I hadn't even realized he was a subscriber. I tormented over whether to go to New York and see him or not. I had a girlfriend who lived there and swore she was going to live there forever and I was terrified that if I ever took a job there I might end up living in New York for the rest of my life...so I never went to see him. But I am proud he called.

Anyway as I look at what you are doing I get the same feeling that your editing instincts are exceptional. You are working in a different media, in a different time, and to a potentially very large audience...but I sense that you have a special "attitude"...positive, straightforward, honest, and enthusiastic...things somehow lacking in many publishing and web efforts. Stay with it!

Hope I didn't bore you with all this but I like your page. Keep up the good work and a pat on the head for your dog, Polly. Our old lab Martha sticks with me like glue and it is wonderful to have such a great friend.

Tom Eggler

Gaines Company

P.S. For anyone interested in the Gaines Company or their products, please contact them by clicking here.

October 6, 2000

Chris,

My fly The "Flirt" strikes again! Just fished Montaul with Paul Dixon the last two days and we were thick into the Albies and Bass. Got my first "Montauk Slam" using the Flirt fly tied with the Pearl EZ Shape for the head around Umpqua Red/Nickel plated barbell eyes on a #4 Orvis Saltwater fly hook. Body tied with White Fish Hair, Coppery Krystal Flash and a tuft of brown faux polar bear hair under the white wing of the Fish Hair. Bass were in thick on the beaches blitzin' bait, albies all over bustin' pods! Great trip made sweeter having reconfirmed the fish-ability of your EZ Shape to withstand multiple chewings!

Rick Bannerot

Rick,

It's always good to hear from you, and I appreciate you sending the sample of your "Flirt" fly - I can see why it works so well. I hope your fishing continues to be fantastic!

October 3, 2000

Hello,

My name is Anthony and I'm 15 years old. I purchased your Shrimp Pink E-Z Shape Sparkle Body at Dick's Sporting Goods and persued my own design in constructing a shrimp for "snapping blues", a.k.a. BABY BLUEFISH. I just made this lure with help of a friend and we're quite proud of it! Im making more than one so I can test it out on them. They'll bite just about anything that hits the water... Anyway, getting back on track, I wanted your opinion on my design and maybe its good enough for your website!! (I hope, I hope, I hope!) I hope to hear from you.

Thank you!

Anthony

Anthony,

Your shrimp fly looks really great, and I'm sure it will catch Snapper Blues and probably much larger fish, too! If you e-mail me with your mailing address, I will send you one of our free Saltwaterflies.com bumper stickers. Best wishes, Anthony - keep tying flies!

September 8, 2000

Chris,

Thanks for the flies. It has been quite a year and I will scan the pictures and forward them to you. All the fish listed below were caught on your flies, the Cortland Precision II fly rod I bought from you, and a scientific anglers fly reel.

Here are the stats for 1999/2000:

30 lb. armor jack caught in Freeport, Bahamas, July, 1999
3.75 foot baracuda caught in Freeport, Bahamas, July 1999
13 lb bluefish caught from kayak Orient, NY, October 1999
8 lb (false?) albacore caught from kayak, Orient, NY, October 1999
17 lb striped bass caught from beach, Orient, NY, October 1999
9 lb jack of some type caught from beach, Key West, FL March, 2000
3 foot baracuda caught from beach, Turks and Caicos, May 2000
5 lb snapper caught from dock, Hamilton, Bermuda, August 2000

We are headed out to Orient, LI for a week in October of this year. As of last weekend, there were lots of baitfish in the water, but no blues or albacore. Plenty of smaller stripers, though.

I probably will take you up on your guided carp fishing tour one of these years. Thanks again for the tackle and introducing me to saltwater fly fishing.

Regards,

Bill Gerosa

Bill,

Please allow me to express my most sincere thanks for your message. I'm very pleased that you've enjoyed such great fishing and success with our flies and other products. I must congratulate you on the fabulous fish that you've caught this year - your list is extraordinary! I would look forward to a carp excursion with you someday- we've caught some big ones this year! Keep well, and keep in touch.

June 27, 2000

Hi Chris...

Sorry you missed what turned out to be a unbelievable week of fishing for and catching big stripers and blues on Martha's Vineyard... Of course, your sand eel and squid patterns were the big winners...

Take care ... and next year, we gotta get out again ...

Larry Newmark

Larry,

Thanks for rubbing it in! I am sorry to miss this really great fishing, but I'll be looking forward to some serious bonito and albie fishing soon.

June 26, 2000

Dear Chris,

I thought you might enjoy this picture of Alba and her keeper striped bass (although she didn't keep it) she caught at Dogfish Bar during our vacation on Martha's Vineyard. She used your EZ Shape Sparkle Body Sand Eel. Larry Newmark, Alba, and I had a fabulous week of fishing with many large bass at Dogfish Bar at night and lots of nice blues caught sight fishing out of Mo Flaherty's boat and Cliff Snyder's boat. Sorry you weren't able to be there to join us.

Tight Lines,

Charles Wohl

Charles,

Yep, everyone's telling me about the great fishing. I hope to be there the next time the fish go nuts at Lobsterville and Dogfish. Best wishes to you, and congratulations to Alba on her keeper bass.

June 11, 2000

Hello Chris and Jennifer;

Thought you might like to know the results of the 2000 Martha's Vineyard Striped Bass Flyrod Catch and Release tournament. Largest fish: Tom Taylor 38" length; 19 1/2" girth - First place! Runner up: John Fuller 36 3/4" length; 19 3/4" girth. Team winners with 30 fish: John Fuller and Charles Finnerty. All fish taken with the Windram tied Maximum Deceiver pattern in chartruese and white ( these are the flies you tied for me last year) I felt sorry for John and Charles and started passing out your flies. Hope all is well with you and look forward to seeing you on the island!

Thanks again,

Tom Taylor, Edgartown, Massachusetts

Tom,

Thanks so much for your e-mail. I'm glad that the flies helped! Sorry I couldn't make it to the tournament this year, but I'm looking forward to next year's. See you soon, Tom.

March 24, 2000

Mr. Windram... I received my order in two days... tyed a few flies . 'Sparkle body is amazing! Makes fly tying easy! Thanks for your prompt service and free fly, and keep up the good work.

Yours truly, Chris Hazard - keep a tight line 'n a sharp hook - thanks!

March 23, 2000

Dear Chris,

I can happily report that I (finally) caught bonefish. WOW-- WHAT TERRIFIC FISH!

The first came while fishing with a guide on the Marls off Treasure Cay. While sighting and casting, a huge knot of line formed, but incredibly, passed through the snake guides as the fish was sprinting south. With the fish on the reel, after two more good runs, I was able to reel up to the big tangle, whereupon our guide, from high atop his poling platform, was able to clear the line. I steered the fish away from nearby mangrove roots and boated him. What a beautiful creature. I wanted to kiss it. Snapped a pic, held him in the current and released him to the salty waters.

I missed some good shots but hooked up with a hefty fish before the morning was done, one that our guide said was over six pounds. My partner, Christopher, also landed two bones, also a first for him.

The best, however, was taking a nice fish while wading Town Flat, on my own. What a complete and perfect experience to stalk, sight, make the throw and get a take. Chris waded over for the trophy shot after my yelling "FISH ON!". I'm sure that they heard me in Freeport.

Missed were many other good fish, including some huge, single cruisers. So much confidence derives after that first fish is in the camera-- as the week went on I felt increasingly able to locate fish and see them in difficult water. Much more to tell you-- I'll have pics back by tomorrow. Also, I was so proud and confident to be using your flies. I have one to show you-- crushed and mangled but still fishable. Thanks again for all your encouragement and help.

David Lawson, Chef Owner Aubergine, Hillsdale, New York

March 20, 2000

Hello. I am a regular customer who has enjoyed considerable success with your flies. I have the opportunity to go bonefishing in Los Roques, Venezuela at the beginning of May for a few days. It is very isolated there so I need to be self-sufficient. I was hoping you could recommend an appropriate selection of flies for me to bring (I have only Northeast patterns for stripers, etc, for fishing near my home in Chilmark). I have both an eight and a nine weight, I assume to use with floating line. Thanks.

F. Khedouri

March 18, 2000

Chris-

The chartreuse deer belly that I ordered from you arrived today! I really appreciate you effort in terms of searching out and delivering my order, even though it was my smallest one (by FAR!).

Take care and best of luck this coming season,

February 18, 2000

Hi Chris,

This is to inform you that your nice material (E-Z Shape Sparkle Body) was checked in Cuba !! I and my friends had a great success with crabs (little modified) on big bones !!!

Thank you ...... and ciao from Italy - Graziano Avanzi

March 15, 2000

Hi Chris.

I know you used to have a link for Ken and Lori on your site. They're great flyfishers! I used to fish with them when they lived on LI, then a couple of times up at MV. That Lori, she could pull a fish out of a glass of water! Really, she is enchanted. I've been on the beach with them, a dozen or so flyrodders and spin casters all around, she's in the middle and the only one taking fish! Some people have the touch. Next time you speak with them tell 'em I said "Hi!"

I was looking over your squid fly (great fly!) and was wondering what material you put over the shank before you added the E-Z Shape Sparkle Body. Did you use chenille? Yarn? etc?

Thanks,
Jaiem, Fly Tier
ArtsNFlies.com

March 10, 2000

Hi Chris-

Though it's been quite some time since our last correspondence, I have getting your updates and visiting your web site on a regular basis. Great job. I really like the newest addition to the site: the info on guides. I was on MV last September during the derby (and Hurricane) and actually went out with Ken Vanderlaske. Caught my first albie in Edgartown Harbor on a size 2 baitfish imitation tied with E-Z Shape Sparkle Body!!!

Regards,
Joe Borawski

February 15, 2000

Chris!

Thank you for your wonderfully informative web site. I recently purchased your product (E-Z Shape Sparkle Body) at the Marlborough fly fishing show. I've had very good results with the patterns I've tied. I just can't wait to put them to good use on some stripers. I have a question on a shrimp fly though. In your opinion, would your pattern for a shrimp fly be a good replication of the grass shrimp I find stripers feeding on from time to time? If so, what color would you suggest and if not what pattern would you suggest to imitate a grass shrimp? How long should a grass shrimp pattern be? Looking forward to your reply and thanks again for making my tying a little bit less tedious.

Best Regards,
Richard Tremblay
Putnam, CT

February 12, 2000

Dear Chris,

The pink E-Z Shape Sparkle Body worked great for those bonefish shrimp, at least in tying the flies. I'll let you know in a couple of months if they worked on the fish as well. There are a few patterns, notably the Mother of Epoxy flies, that call for transparent bodies of epoxy. Obviously, these would be much easier to tie using E-Z Shape Sparkle Body. Any chance of coming out with clear Sparkle Body?

Charles Wohl,
Lenox, MA

January 9, 2000

Chris!

I was just looking at your site a few minutes ago. I was looking for your snail mail address so I could send you a copy of our January newsletter - Coastal Flylines. I used your article on Windram's Cinderworm as the featured pattern. Again, thanks for giving permission to use the article. By the way, I like the way you have laid out the site and particular, the way that nonprofessionals can brag about their catches. Keep up the good work.

Tight Lines,
Richard Eppinger, Secretary
South Jersey Fly Fishers
Woodbury, NJ
Mail to: eppinger@voicenet.com
SJFF web site: https://community.nj.com/cc/sjff

Richard,

Thanks so much for including my article in your newslestter. Best wishes to you and all South Jersey Fly Fishers members! Anyone interested in joining the South Jersey Fly Fishers should e-mail Richard Eppinger at the e-mail address listed above.

December 19, 1999

Hi Chris,

Time for some end of the year communication.

Early last month I decided to celebrate a last day of fishing. I grew up in PA where the first day of trout season was always an event. So I went to the Housatonic River in Lenoxdale, Massachusetts and promptly caught a pretty native brookie. What this 6 inch fish thought he was going to do with a 3 inch rabbit tail woolly bugger is beyond me. Later a bass came completely out of the water to try to catch my Gurgler but the G was already in the air in a roll cast to the middle of the stream. The bass no doubt caught a lot of heckling from his buddies ‘cause he wouldn’t look at the bug again. So I had a nice last day - no big fish but some fun later in the season than I normally fish.

I have to thank you for a few things - opening up my eyes to all the fishing in the Housatonic, the wonderful world of salt water fly fishing and a nice rod and reel that can lay out the big flies without having cost more than a Rhode Island vacation. The other thing you introduced me to was EZ Shape. I love the stuff and use it on many of my flies. I even found a new use for it. My wife and I both have GM cars with the same shaped keys. I put a dab of pearl EZ on one set to make it easily distinguishable from the other both day (sparkle) and night (a little lump on the keys). You also put my rambling nonsense story on the Web. What a year.

In another month I'll be severely cabin feverish and need to at least talk about fishing. Are you around on Saturdays to sell some material and swap stories? I'd definitely call before I came down to Housatonic. It would be nice to talk to someone instead of just reading Jack Gartside and Ken Abrames.

Wishing you and your family a great Holiday season and a safe happy year 2000,
Jack Swegel

December 15, 1999

Hi,

I regularly check out your web site and I am also a subcriber to On the Water. I was wondering if you could help. I was looking for directions on how to get to Scorton Creek. I heard it is not a bad place to catch some holdover Stripers on a fly in the Winter. Your help would be greatly appreciated. Congrats on a great Site!

Thank you,
Marc Antetomaso

November 7, 1999

Chris,

Just a thought for your line of bunny flies: I've taken a tungsten cone head and put it in front of the bunny: It has an almost-clouser-eque action through the water, but has 'bunny action' like no clouser ever had. The nice thing is that your sparkle body forms up behind the cone head very well, and makes it move smoothly through the water. I've enclosed a photo:

Took some friends out fishing Halloween day. On the back side of Nantucket (about 25 miles from where the Egyptian airliner went down) we caught (get this, the last day of October!):
11 stripers (4 keepers)
4 bluefish (6-10#)
1 gannet (too short, we released it)
1 bluefin tuna (40#)

You shouldda seen the angler with a small trolling reel and short stick (5' rod) when the tuna got pissed..... what a fight!

Hope all is well....
Thor Farrish, Edgartown, Massachusetts

October 13, 1999

Dear Chris,

I see you have a number of South Africans on your circulation list. I recognize Keith Wallington's name, we call him "stretch", he's about 6ft 9. Fished with him in March this year in Zululand near the Mozambique border in a series of salt water lakes connected to the sea through an estuary and getting increasingly fresh as you move inland. They have resident populations of fish which are traditionally pure salt water but which have adapted to the local conditions. Kingfish in the freshest of the lakes up to 80lbs are sometimes caught on bait and 40 lbs not unusual on fly. Lots of springer (ladyfish) as well.

I will be taking a few E-Z Shape Sparkle Bodies with me to Durban in a couple of weeks time.

Chris D. Binnington
South Africa

October 12, 1999

Dear Chris,

Just wanted to send you an interesting report from Martha's Vineyard...The #$@#$%#@! little tunny are coasting through the swells, rolling on their sides and slurping shrimp! C'mon Chris...you're the best: give us a krill fly! :-) Plus, I just got a call from a buddy of mine...He just returned from a bass trip on the back side of Nantucket: of the 30"-35" fish he caught in his favorite rips, all had bellies full of krill!

Guess its not just the Albies.....

Thor Farrish
Martha's Vineyard, Massachusetts.

Thor,

I heard about the krill thing from a couple of people - amazing! I'll try to cook up some fly for this for next year, just in case the fish get on krill again. I see you're still in second place for boat flyrod bluefish in the Martha's Vineyard derby - congratulations! Keep catching fish, and keep in touch.

October 4, 1999

Dear Saltwaterflies.com,

I have caught my first, very picky, stripers and false albacore off Montauk this past week using E-Z Shape Sparkle Body. I call the fly: "The Flirt". (As you may know, the bloom seems to be off the rose based on last year and this year's Montauk Albie action.)

The flirt is tied on size 2, 4, or 6 hooks. I use black thread. Wind on two peacock herls and over wrap lightly with the thread to keep it from blowing out. I add two small grizzly saddle hackles two-thirds of the way up the shank. I add a sparse tie of white fish hair and then an olive green crystal flash cover. I add 1/24 or 1/30 lead barbell eyes. Whip finish the head. The barbell eyes are about 15% back from the hook eye. I then lightly coat the head with Pearl E-Z, so it dries clear with the flash being very blush. I have been coating the barbell eyes with E-Z red gill and add a spot of EZ Black for a pupil. First ties tended to get the colored eye paint dinged off. I have tried clear plumbers silicon for more cushioning, but it takes too long to dry and remains slightly tacky for days. I am about to try to tie some Flirts with an Umpqua clear "soft body" Angler's Choice (thin) soft body plastic Resin. Any other suggestions for protecting the eyes?

I just bought a new bottle of Saltwater Blue E-Z Shape and can't wait to try it. I am headed to Harkers Island in two weeks and can't wait to tie up some more experiments. All the best and tight lines.

Rick Bannerot
Stamford, Connecticut

October 2, 1999

Chris,

Hi Chris, Thanks for posting the photo of me as the main graphic on the Larry's Tackle Shop website. I don't mind at all if you use any picture of me at anytime. I remember that day at the Lobsterville Jetty, and wish I could catch that bone on fly right now. I fished the Lobsterville Jetty today as a matter of fact and there were some huge albies there. Dave Desmarais caught one that was around 13 pounds, but he released it because he is in 1st place in the fishing derby with a 14 pounder. I had one of those brutes come up on my fly but he didn't get it. Oh well, maybe tomorrow. I did land 3 albies on fly and had 7 on! I'm using a squid fly and they are tackling it. Take care Chris - I hope to see you soon!

Jeff Sayre
Oak Bluffs, Martha's Vineyard

August 30, 1999

Chris,

The term "swoffing" originated with Jock Grey, who was one of our fathers of the sport here in Oz, about 1967 or so and it is a sort of reference to the SWFROA Int and salt water fly rodders of SWF. Those doing it were SWF'rs and it ended up swoffers.

The modern version of SWF in Australia, after WW11 began, as far as I can find out, with Lance Wedlick in 1947. Between 1947 and the 60's I couldn't find any references to saltwater fly fishing although it must have happened. Jock Grey tied saltwater flies, about 40,000 in total and gave the lot away. He was part of a group called the rusty feathers because of the hook corrosion which stained the feathers. They were Bluey Powell, Tom Davidson and Jock Grey. Jock started the Aust chapter of SWFROA about 1970 or so with a few members including the Feathers, Ron Pearson and myself. We were all, as they say Swoffers. Cheers - have a nice day.

Max Garth SWF circa 1967

August 10, 1999

Hi Chris,

I just wanted to drop a quick note relaying the experiences I have had with your flies/saltwater tying products.

I'm not sure if you will remember me, but I purchased a fly selection from you earlier in the season for fishing Long Island waters. Suffice it to say, they didn't last long. Not because of poor clinch knots or broken leaders over rocks. The fish simply destroyed them. Of course, this isn't to say they were of poor craftsmanship, for these flies saw MANY fish each before they succumbed to the pressure!!

Having seen the success of the EZ Shape Sparkle Body flies and wanting to tie my own, I then order a shipment of tubes in many different colors (8, 9 perhaps?) to cover all my bases. Since then it has been non-stop action (with the exception of this recent heatwave which brought water temps up into the middle 70s - a tarpon was caught in Fire Island Inlet!) on your patterns that I have tied myself.

As such, I just wanted to thank you for putting out such a great product and a great website (I find myself continually checking for updates!). It was a pleasure doing business with you. I look forward to the fall fishing season and wish you the best of luck!!

A lifelong customer,
Joe Borawski

August 10, 1999

Hi Chris

I just returned from Tofino, British Columbia where I had a great week fishing for Coho salmon, and the Coho were scattered all over the Sound. We fished a method that I've never done before, it's called Bucktailing. Bucktailing is when you troll at about 1000 RPM with the fly right in the prop wash (10 to 15ft. behind the boat). The Coho will come up and track the fly like a billfish would; as soon as you twitch the fly the fish will attack it. Once the fish hits the fly, you kick the motor into neutral and shut it off. I'm not one for trolling - as a kid I did that with my dad for hours on end for Northern Pike, but this was different, and a lot more exciting because the fly is right in the prop wash and it sits right on the surface so you see the strike. Altogether we boated about 50 Coho and lost at least that many. We also fished for Sea Bass - these ran between 2-4lbs, and we cast to them around kelp beds. They fight the same as a Bronze Back (smallmouth bass), only without the jumps.

In June I was out at Monomoy where we had some decent striper fishing, and over the winter I was down in Big Pine Key, Florida, where I caught my first tarpon. I've sent along some photos for you to check out. Well, it's back to the tying bench!

Rick Whorwood
Stoney Creek, Ontario

June 20, 1999

Chris,

Just wanted to drop you a line to let you know that I purchased Sparkle Body locally and made several Sparkling Sand Eels using your directions. Using one on my first attempt at salt water fly fishing at Corson's Inlet, New Jersey, I caught a 4 pound weak fish and a 14 inch striper. The sparkle body worked! Not only does it make tying flies easy, but catching fish too.

Thanks, Ken

June 1, 1999

Hello Chris;

Well I have to finally register a complaint. I could only get 150 stripers on one of your maximum decievers. I need to order more. Please call me asap about 3 dozen in tan/white, blue/white and chartreuse/white should do it. If you could tie them on the Trey Combs hook, that would be great. The fishing has been steady - some keepers, lots of small fish, big fish yet to come. Hope to see you at the catch and release on the 12th.

Tom Taylor

May 14, 1999

Hey Chris

Joe Gaudin

April 30, 1999

Hello,

Just found your site and wanted to say thanks for all the helpful info. This is the first site I'v seen that actually lets you copy the recipes for their flies. I am gonna try your Sparkling Sand Eel, Deep Sea Serpent and your Sparkling Crab. I live in South Louisiana and these should prove deadly on our Redfish. Will let you know how we do.

Thanks again,
Joe Gaudin

March 25, 1999

Hello,

Just wanted to drop you guys a note and let you know how much I am loving the "Sparkle Body". I home brew a lot of bucktail streamers, deceivers, and clouser minnow style flies. The thing that has always bothered me (and I think the fish too!!) is that fact that I have this really beautiful fly and then a large white, black or brown head. Have you looked at a bait fish lately? They don't look like that!! But by using the sparkle body I can now bring the colors all the way up to the eye of the hook!! It is fabulous!!

I am not a great tyer. But with "Sparkle Body" I can get a nice even finish that looks good and fishes great!!! I met you guys at the show in Marlborough, MA back in February. I have been using your stuff since then. And I will be using it for long while to come!!

Thanks, David Finchum

Walland, Tennessee. (at the entrance to the Great Smoky Mountains. No I don't trout fish! I am not in to chasing minnows around in a cold stream!!! :-)

Hi David,

Thank you for your message regarding E-Z Shape Sparkle Body. I'm glad you've enjoyed working with our product.

February 17, 1999

Good Morning

I was telling a young dark haired lady working your booth at the Marlborough show about a floating crab pattern using the E-Z Shape Sparkle Body material. Here is the link: Don's Hard Shell Crab. (This link will take you off of Saltwaterflies.com, so please use your browser's "back" button to return to Saltwaterflies.com).

Rich

February 17, 1999

Dear Chris,

I just wanted to thank you for introducing me to your E-Z Shape body material at the Marlboro show. Your innovative material will work wonders for my flies. Thank you.

A satisfied customer, Christopher Gosselin

February 17, 1999

Chris

Help! - I'm addicted to tying with E-Z Shape Sparkle Body! I've tied over two dozen of the sparkling sand eels. By the way - went with olive for a dozen as opposed to chartruse, as olive epoxy surf candy-like flies are the hottest fly for me when I fish the rocks off of Gloucester, Mass. Is there any cure for "E-Z Shapeitus?" I can't tie enough - what an absolutely great product!!!!

Dale Hubbard

February 11, 1999

Hello,

I met you guys at the San Mateo Show and got a couple bottles of Sparkle Body. When I try to make a body coating like a minnow body, this stuff is so good at not dripping that each "line" of applied material stays raised and does not melt down to form a smooth minnow body side for example. My question is this, is there something I can use to thin the stuff down a bit?? Maybe add a little of some fluid to the bottle to make flow easier??

Thanks, Al Shaw

A little background on myself. I've been saltwater fly fishing for more than 25 years. I've won the Bonefish on fly release category in the Metropolitan Fishing Tournament a few times. On the other end of the spectrum I've also released two blue marlin on the fly, biggest 175#. I've also caught a flats grand slam on the fly in the Keys (150# Tarpon, 18# Permit, 10# bonefish). Here's a photo of a nice bonefish that I thought you might enjoy.

I take my guide friends fishing when they want a break and I fish 60-90 days per year. I also tie flies commercially. My friends include Mike Conner, Tim Borsky, Bob Lemay, Mike Praznosky, etc. I know and appreciate saltwater flies. I'm telling you this not because I want to brag, but so you will appreciate what I'm about to say. I started using your product and love it!

I bought two bottles last week and had to go back today to get four more colors. I see a lot of possible applications. Especially for bonefish and redfish. I hear that you have more colors. Please send me what info you have on your product and let me know about your new products. I'll tell my friends.

Thanks :-)

Rory J. Santana, Miami, FL.

Rory,

January 19, 1999

Hi!

My name is Adam Young and I am a very keen fly fisherman and I was wondering if you could please send me any free flies or some stickers or something along those lines? I am having trouble finding the right flies because none of the stores here have any. Do you think you could help me out?

Adam Young - Queensland, Australia

P.S. Your site rulz and so do your flies!

P.S. I love it when our site rulz!

November 30, 1998

Hello there,

I just thought that you might want to know that if anyone is planning to come down to Pensacola, Florida anytime in the near future the bonito are plentiful as of now. They are eating anything white and pink. I am using a white clouser with a chartreuse thread head and they can't resist it. These bonito are averaging 8-12#, so plenty of backing is the name of the game. For some real fun just a few miles off the coast bring a 9weight and get a good forearm workout.

Thank You,

Joel Howard, Pensacola, Florida

November 2, 1998

Hey Chris,

I am a new salt water flyrodder. I am looking for some leader recipes for surf casting for stripers/blues/anything. I am using a 9wt. rod and an intermediate line. If you have any info please e-mail me.

Thanks,

Wayne Halsall, Fair Lawn, NJ

October 20, 1998

Chris,

I was out on the North shore of the Northern Fork of Long Island this past weekend (10/17 - 10/18). I flyfished from a kayak along a riptide and the fishing was fantastic. I was using your Sparkling Squid and caught plenty of blues, false albacore and even two stripers. One of the albies was caught on a backcast that mistakingly touched the water! (It is hard to get height flycasting from a kayak.

I had two questions:

I have been using an Ugly Stick flyrod that was given to me. It is 9 feet tall and can carry 9 weight line. I don't like the way it handles. I have been freshwater flyfishing for years and something about this saltwater flyrod doesn't feel right. I don't think there is enough flex in the tip. It is plenty strong, though. Can you recommend a good (ideally under $150) rod for saltwater flyfishing where the fish would range from 5 to 12 lbs? I already have a decent reel.

Second, how is the fishing in LI Sound in March/April compared to the Fall? What is running?

Thanks again for a great set of flies and all your help in getting me started in saltwater flyfishing.

Regards,

Bill Gerosa

October 19, 1998

Gang,

I joined up with Andy Harris on the grounds of Millstone Power Plant - first time ever there for me - for some albie fishing from shore. Got there around 12:30 PM as the big moon tide was beginning to fall. Albies were stacked like sea green cordwood practically up against the grate, all in the channel and were surfing the waves created as the outflow formed a rip against the prevailing southwesterly. Seeing those fish swim and flash and surf was one of the most beautiful things I'd ever seen, and for awhile I was pretty content to just sit and watch the fish - they were gorgeous, all backlit by the October afternoon sun. Threw about ten different flies at 'em - nada. Went down to the rocks and studied the bait, found a small school of baby bunker, a small school of mullet and lots of rather smallish silversides all along the rocks. Then I thought , "Why not a popper, right in their face - kind of like what you do do with salmon and steelhead-when they won't eat streamers?"

So I tied on one of Joe Blados's huge Crease Flies, tossed it out there, two pops and my long-dreamed for afternoon of "dry fly fishing" for albies began. They tired of that fly quickly, took two more on old Farnsworth flies - pearl sliders - they tired of that. Then I tied on an olive/white Slim Jim and "the games" officially began. For the rest of the afternoon I fished the Slim Jim or the Beach Glass Silversides. Hooked an astounding 22 fish between 1:45 and 5:15 on these two flies. Landed 6. First three were in the 11-13 lb range. As the tide fell, and there was less water in the outflow, the fish got wildly careless. I hooked all fish on Ande 20 lb; problem was Andy and I were trashing tippets on every fish, because of all the rocks and barnacles (now I understand how these guys were breaking off so many fish and trashing fly lines out there - I was very lucky as three fish went around the corner and made as if to go up the "other" outflow-I was really lucky I turned them and they came back out!!!) By the end of the afternoon we were out of 20 lb and could not hold them on anything less. So... what to do?... yeah, you guessed it. I cut the perfection loop off of the Ande 40lb butt and tied the fly directly to 40 lb test. Butt was not even 3.5' long - hooked last three fish on straight 40 lb test. So much for the need for fluorocarbon...

Andy and I had to call it quits because we both forgot water and were seriously dehydrated by the end of the afternoon. This was an afternoon that will get me through the worst parts of February and March. Hope you have one too!

Page Rogers

October 13, 1998

Gang,

Ed Mitchell graciously invited me to fish out of his Hyde drift boat in Jordan Cove and along Pleasure Beach/Seaside this morning. The albie bite was in full swing in the early dark hour between 6 and 7 am. Ed & I lazed out of the shore anglers' way and over to the beach part of Pleasure Beach. I hooked an extremely fat false albacore (over 10 lbs) on my second cast. Really fantastic fight and two very long runs. The 16lb Jinkai held up no problem, as did my fly line. About an hour later an even fatter albacore came right out of the water and nabbed the fly. When I saw the size of this gator as he/she began to circle the boat I was amazed - this fish was big - and I've caught them over 14 lbs. Kind wore a rut on my left middle finger as the gel spun backing zigged and zagged over my taped fingers. This fish was spectacular - a real tank - with the shoulders of an offensive lineman. The we poked over to Seaside as there had been a good bite there yesterday. The big bite did not really set up, though I got two nice bass and another, much smaller albie. After those other two brutes it felt quite light and we were hoping it was a bonito - but no such luck. Still bonito-less in the Sound, and its mid-October. But life is good...my shoulders are sore.

This was a wonderfully relaxed way to fish and stealthy too. Very enjoyable time. You can book Ed and his driftboat by calling him at 860 529-0685.

Page Rogers

Page,

October 10, 1998

Dear Chris,

I have a small flyshop in Seaside, Florida (panhandle). I began using your stuff a while back and would like to offer your product within my stores. I also guide here for tarpon, reds, specks, etc. Should you ever get down this way, please give us a call.
In the meantime I have boated four white marlin already this week using streamers tied with your "stuff". They seem to love it.......just about all of my tarpon flies and shrimp and crab patterns get tied with some sort of E Z on them...all to great success. Keep that product coming.

Best regards, Gordie Hinds
Go Fish; Seaside, Florida

October 3, 1998

Gang,

There are, as many of you know, just BILLIONS of baby bunker in LI Sound. Yesterday was into bass, blues and albies from shore in Old Lyme no less - saw eight fish come straight out of the water representing all three species - wild! The bunker are getting bigger and harder to represent with a fly.

Page Rogers

August 27, 1998

Chris,

My name is Eric Naguski - you might not remember me, but I wrote you a couple of months ago about fishing on Martha's Vineyard (I'm the guy from Central Pennsylvania). I just wanted to thank you for your help on wading spots on the island. I mainly fished around Menemsha and Lobsterville Beach and was able to consistently find fish. I did not catch any very big bass from shore (the largest was about 25") but I probably averaged 3 or 4 fish every time I fished during the two weeks I was on the island (I only missed 3 days). I also fished with Mo Flaherty twice and had a blast! Too many fish to count out of the rip at Middle Ground, mostly in the 4-8lb range. I did manage one bass which came in at 15 lbs. I also got got two shots at bonito and got two strikes but I was unable to hook up, very frustrating after chasing those things around in the rain for two hours. Anyway, thank you for your help. This winter, if you want to find rising trout any day of the week (as long as we're not flooded out), give me a call. I owe you a fishing trip.

Thanks again,
Eric Naguski

August 20, 1998

Dear Chris,

Brilliant! I am just in the process of embarking into the field of saltwater flyfishing, having never fly fished before. The Internet seemed a logical place to start looking for info, but what I found has overwhelmed me. But by far and away, one of the best sites I have come across for useful info is your site. The step by step fly tying guides are excellent, and I have printed out every last one so that one day I might be able to tie my own.

So, thank you for sharing your knowledge and the information. I look forward to seeing more flies up on your site!

Sincerely,

Jan Korrubel

Pietermaritzburg, South Africa

July 11, 1998

Yo!

John Schillinger weighed in a 6.6 lb bonito at Larry's in Edgartown this afternoon....taken off of Dogfish Bar. Yes! Let the games begin in Paradise!...

Page Rogers

July 1, 1998

Gentlemen,

E-Z shape arrived this morning. Great service. Tied a Grass Shrimp using the Pearl E-Z. Great Product. I'll give my Devcon Epoxy away soon. Please keep me in mind when you have the clear developed. At that time I'll probably want a Pure Black for eyes. I would appreciate you sending me your fly catalog. By the way I appreciate the Shrimp Pink E-Z. I'll let my fly tying Club members know of your great product.

My Thanks,

Bob Ferguson

June 30, 1998

Chris,

I just wanted to say thanks again for one of the best fishing trips I ever had. You made it really exciting and fun, and the keeper striper I caught was a big bonus too! I hope I get invited back next year to spend time fishing with you...and by then you will be my brother in law! Thanks again so much for everything; my sister is a lucky lady. By the way...the kids loved squidding alot!!!(so did I).

Your soon to be brother in law,

Gregg Dyer

June 27, 1998

Chris,

Just returned from a great trip to the Vineyard; amazing fishing for stripers but even more amazing was the guide. He took me and my son Greg to some of the most beautiful spots on the island and we took stripers up to 40 inches. He was very patient with my fly casting and I learn a lot from him each time out. His companionship was delightful and many other fisherman on the island were familiar with him (perhaps he's becoming legendary).

Just wanted to tell you about a great trip. By the way, the guides' name was Chris Windram, my soon to be son-in-law, and I also want to thank my daughter Jennifer for sharing Chris with her father this past week.

Bill Dyer

May 20, 1998

Chris,

Had some great action this past weekend here on the Vineyard. Went down to my favorite spot Friday afternoon around 5 and had non-stop bluefish action until 7. Used your deep sparkling sand eel with a #50 test mono shock tippet almost the whole time only took around 15 fish because it would take so long to get them in. They were in the 4 - 9 lb size range. Near the end that one fly had just about had it but was still catching fish. I then switched over to your white spun deerhair head fly and was getting all bass (biggest was 34") while the guy next to me was getting all bluefish!

The most memorable part of the evening was the sight of thousands of fish lined up in the crest of the waves. They were mostly bluefish but once in a while you could see a bass in among them. I've been here 10 years and this was the first time I remember seeing them in the waves like that.

Now get this, I saw Jeff Sayre in the shop on Sat and he told me he was at my spot with John Schillinger on Friday and it was dead. I asked him what time he was there and he said he left around three. When I told him the news that he should have stuck around he was bummed out. Then a few minutes later a guy came in the shop and recognized me from the beach on Friday and he told me I left too soon because the bigger bass moved in about an hour after dark. Then I was bummed out...I guess it's all relative.

See you soon,

Bob Lane, President - Martha's Vineyard Surfcasters Association

May 20, 1998

Hi Chris,

I was thinking of you last night while fishing a stretch of the East Fork River headwater about 40 miles northeast of downtown Cincinnati. The hybrid stripers are running and of course I'm chasing them but in heavily stained water last night I couldn't get one of any size to accept an offering. I threw every fly I owned at them without any luck. I finally tied on a 1/16 ounce chartreuse jig and got hit by a freight train on the first cast. I pictured the filet on the grill while waging a 5 minute war to land him. Yup. You guessed it. 3 lb carp!! Lost my appetite but hell of a fight though. If I recall correctly, you once told me they were your favorite fresh water hookup and this encounter reminded me why.

How's the fishing been where you are?

Tom Neess

May 12, 1998

Gentlemen

At the Australian National Dictionary Centre we're trying to track down the term 'swoffing'. A search on AltaVista for 'swoffing' took me to your forum site, but I couldn't find the term on the page. The other sites all have Australian addresses. We have been trying to establish whether 'swoffing' is an Australian flyfishing term, or whether it is used world wide. Can you provide any information?

Many thanks

Bruce Moore

Bruce.Moore@anu.edu.au
Australian National Dictionary Centre
Australian National University

May 6, 1998

Chris,

Thanks for the super delivery. I used one of the chartreuse and white sparkling deceivers last night on a 5 wt LL to catch a 20-22 in. 6 lb fish and in the process won 2 dollars from my fishing buddies in a " First One To The Beach " contest. Some day you have to tell me about the lovely little cigarette boxes you shipped them in. They look like antiques. What is the significance of the numbers or dates written inside the lid of the boxes in pencil? Thanks again. Your work is super and most appreciated here on Nantucket. Have a wonderful day.

Tight Lines (no pun intended),

Bill Pew, Fisher's Tackle; Nantucket Island.

Note: Interested readers shouldn't hesitate to check out Bill Fisher Tackle's webpage.

April 28, 1998

Chris,

I have been fishing all my life and fly fishing for about 5 years, but I never quite got the hook size thing down.

I would like to order a few of your flies such as your sparkling deceiver, sparkling sand eel, deep sparkling sand eel, deep sparkling island squid, and sparkling bucktail.

What sizes should I get? I will be fishing mostly for school bluefish (5 to 10 lbs.) and striped bass (8 o 15 lbs.) around Long Island Sound by Orient.

Please let me know and then I'll send my order with check to you via snail mail.

Regards,

Bill Gerosa

March 17, 1998

Chris,

Hello. I wanted to let you know that I landed a nice Giant Herring (54cm) on a Clouser Minnow with E-Z Shape Pearl Head. These fish are more often caught about 1000 k's north, but we still get a few down here from time to time. Real rockets, like a bonefish that jumps 2 metres out of the water. Good fun on a #5 sage! I've been sneaking back to the same spot in the hope of hooking into a full sized one which are normally just over 1 metre long!

Chris Dunham
Perth, Australia

February 9, 1998

Dear Sir,

I am a fly fisherman and fly tier (saltwater and freshwater). My name is Graziano Avanzi and one of my best places is the Yucatan (Mexico) at Boca Paila and Ascension Bay; over there I have matured a nice experience in saltwater for bonefish and permit (I have also two "super grand slam" in a week - August 1997- in Boca Paila). I have tested your nice material found in Kaufmann' catalougue, but I have seen only four colors, so I'm writing you to know more informations. This is the right material for my nice crabs with which I have hooked many permit. I hope you write me as soon as possible. Thank you and best regards!!

GRAZIANO AVANZI
ITALY
E-mail: a.avanzi@aznet.it

February 4, 1998

Chris,

Cheers from dreary MVY (Martha's Vineyard)...MAN have we had rain... Geez Louise!

Anyway...to keep the boredom at bay, I've started tying flies...and lots of them with EZ-SHAPE SPARKLE BODY...but I'm having some difficulties. Got time for questions/tips?

When I apply the 'Sparkle Body, it goes on lumpy. I try to smooth it out a bit with the bottle top/bodkin, but that thins it out quite a bit. By the time I'm done with the bodkin, I've got a thinner application of the same lumpy body. Am I doing something wrong?

I recognize that the liquid "flattens" itself out rather well (it tries to form a continuous surface). But there are usually bends and turns left behind (probably from me messing around with the stuff too much)...any hints on what to do?

I tie off the bucktail/fur/etc. well into the shank, thinking this will add body to the fly, and allow the 'Sparkle Body to form up well (and thick). Should I wrap chenille/yarn/something else to help the sparkle body distribute better across the hook and give a thicker body to the fly?

How many coats did you have to apply to the minnow I saw at Larry's Tackle Shop in Edgartown?

Is there something that 'Sparkle Body won't stick to? That is, could I make a mold (wax/wood/etc) to receive a fly, and pour/mold the sparkle body by filling it into a mold? I love some of the squid-thangs you've done, but don't think I have the time/storage-while-drying to do it layer-by-layer, hour-after-hour.

I'm probably off to Belize for permit in March... Any suggested Sparkle Body flies I should take/tie?

Thanks buddy. I know I'll see you in the spring. By the way, did you know that the Catch & Release this year will be June 13&14?

More later...

Ciao for Niao...

-Thor-

January 28, 1998

Dear Chris,

I spend my summers up in Nantucket Island (right across from where you like to do your fishing), and I spend all of my time up there fly fishing. I go through flies like crazy. The bluefish, stripers, bonita, and albacore just tear them up. I have had great success with sand eel patterns like the hard body shiner, and with clousers on the flats between Smith Point and Tuckernuck Island. I'm not sure how familiar you are with Nantucket, but it offers some great flats fishing for bass. Anyway, after reading your article in On The Water magazine, and checking out some of your information on E-Z Shape Sparkle Body on the internet, I decided to purchase a few bottles and tie some sand eels to save some money; since most flies are about $5 apiece in stores. I was wondering if you could recommend any other flies that can be made with the 'Sparkle Body, and would work well for bluefish, stripers, bonita, and false albacore. If not, could you recommend any other flies that you have found to work well? This would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you very much,
Teddy Obrecht

January 20, 1998

Hello Chris,

I thoroughly enjoyed browsing through your home page; keep up the good work. I am interested in purchasing a video on fly casting; is there one which you would recommend? (there are a couple advertised on the internet). I fish exclusively in saltwater (Eastern Cape coastline, South Africa) and intend tying some of the flies listed in your home page. I get the impression there are more species of fish that will take a fly off the American coast than off the South African coastline, unless we are still too new to the game and have not experimented enough. Do you have any knowledge of our fish species or any fly fisherman (South African, American or other) with fly fishing experience along The South African coast? I would like to correspond with them if possible. Thank you

Regards,
Ian Gaylard ian.gaylard@eskom.co.za

Great to hear from your side of the world. Thanks for the kind words. In response to your questions...Check out any video by Lefty Kreh, especially those that feature demonstrations of his "Modern Fly Casting Method".
There are quite a few species of fish along the American coastline; in the Northeast where I live we commonly fish for striped bass, bluefish, bonito, and false albacore. In the Mid-Atlantic region flyrodders cast for bluefish, seatrout, redfish, and false albacore. In the Southeast (including the Florida Key a great variety of species can be found, including bonefish, tarpon, snook and many others.
I'm not too familiar with the species along your coast; perhaps there are other anglers who might know a a bit more about your area.
Anyone who knows more about saltwater flyfishing in South Africa should feel free to send Ian an e-mail at the address given above.
Tight Lines, Ian!

December 27, 1997

Chris,

If you have a few seconds, please tell me what vise you'd recommend for someone brand new to fly fishing. I'm like lots of folks; fascinated by the gadgets that go along with my hobbies - and it looks as though my newest hobby is gonna be fly fishing.

I'd love to learn to tie, but I'm painfully aware that I may either a) not have the time to do it right or b) not have the skill. So I want to start with an economical vise that will support moderate efforts and at the same time not fail me while I learn whether or not I want to "tie or buy".

If you have a few seconds for a recommendation, I'd certainly appreciate it.

By the way - your website is fantastic. Kudos to Morgan Davis. Congratulations to you for having him show you and your skills off to "the world". (And thanks for the trip to outer space).

Warm Breezes and Tight Lines - Steve Boothe, partners@hal-pc.org

November 11, 1997

Greetings friends of SaltwaterFlies.com! I've just returned from my month-long fall fly fishing excursion to Martha's Vineyard. Once again the fishing was great, with false albacore the main attraction. For all of the great angling that I enjoyed, my trip to the island would have been much less enjoyable if it were not for the excellent company of so many fine anglers and friends.

Thanks again, my friends. I look forward to many happy returns.
-Chris Windram

November 7, 1997

Chris & Jen,

Hi guys, how's the weather out there? Congratulations on the prize you won in the Octoberfish raffle, Chris. I'm going to try to get it from Ruthie and send it out to you with your cookie box. Great cookies Jen, I never knew fish could taste so good!

Been going down to that spot I told you about pretty regularly. Took my British guest, Jeremy Barnett, down on one afternoon and got him his first striped bass in the channel. He was thrilled to say the least. He paid the price though because when I worked at Larry's Tackle Shop Friday evening, Peter Jackson came in and took the fly rod lead with a 9.55 striped bass, and fly rod second place with a nice bluefish. He told me he got them at West Chop, so I dragged Jeremy out there on Saturday. Now you've got to understand that the only reason we were still on the island on Saturday was because we were afraid they were going to shut down the boats due to the wind, and we canceled a planned trip to Boston. Needless to say we got a little wet and only one tiny fish between the three W's (wind, waves and weeds). We ran into Mike Stimola and his brother in Law Stephen Benedetto in Bunch Of Grapes bookstore on Saturday, just before we went to West Chop. They had been at Tashmoo Friday and saw fish way out, but they were smart enough not to go back out on Saturday. Anyways, after our soaking on Saturday I then took Jeremy to the Octoberfish awards ceremony. Ruthie had it next door at Georgio's and it was well attended. The Don (MacGillivray) won a T&T 10# fly rod for his albie, I won a nice Abel luggage bag in the raffle. Don already had three T&T 10# rods and had his eye on the bag so we struck a deal where I gave him some cash and the bag and he gave me the rod! Naturally on Sunday, Jeremy being the good fishing buddy he is, insisted that I take him out fishing again specifically so I could try out the new rod. Again it was raining but with a little less wind, again we got soaked and again the three W's prevailed with no fish to show for it. But the rod did cast nicely. (I think Jeremy has been bitten by the bug.)

Jeremy and the British entourage went back on Monday so I was forced to go back to the spot by myself on Monday and Tuesday to really test the new rod. Monday I got three fish in the channel as the surf was much too heavy to fish outside. Tuesday I was able to get out on the bar and for an hour and a half it was non stop action. I managed to land 25 with a hit on every cast. Nothing over 25 inches, but what fun. Used the new T&T and the Teeny Line along with the leader and herring fly you gave me, Chris, before you left. Thanks, it's doing great, haven't changed anything yet. I keep checking the knots, shock tippet and the fly but all is holding up well. Had a meeting and then a dentist appointment on Wednesday but today, Thursday, is open with beautiful weather, moderate surf and very little wind. Friday through Sunday is supposed to blow and rain again. Don't know how much longer our spot will stay fishy, it's going on four months now. The longest anyone I've talked to can remember is six months, and that was many years ago. I'll keep you posted as the season winds down.

Hope you've been able to get in some more Berkshire Bonefish action before it all pauses for winter.

Bob Lane
President, Martha's Vineyard Surfcasters Association

Thanks for the report, Bob. I had the best time fishing with you this fall, and I learned a lot about fly rodding the open surf. I can see myself spending a lot more time at this kind of fishing in the future, because the potenial is there to catch big fish; plus it's just plain exciting!

I'm already looking forward to next season. Stay in touch, and I'll keep you updated on the Berkshire Bonefish action (I took twelve in one day last week, but I think it's about over)! Thanks again for everything!
-Chris

September 2, 1997
I wanted to know if you can tell me when is the best time to fish for 
False Albacore, and Bonita in the Rhode Island and Mass area? I have 
a friend who told me around Columbus Day. What do you think?
			Regards,

			John Sisco

August 26, 1997
Hi Chris,  
Thanks for the unexpected extras! The Sparkle body is
awesome, the pics on the internet don't do the flies justice!  Tied a
few sand eels for starters. Hope to have some good stories from the
Cape. Nice doing business with you.

			Mike Johndrew

Thank you, Mike! Everyone here at Saltwaterflies.com is wishing you an enjoyable trip to Cape Cod. Best of luck!
-Chris

August 20, 1997
Hi Chris,
I'm looking forward to getting the flies that I ordered from you. I had a
great weekend catching 2-3 kg skipjack trevally in the southwest of western
australia on light spinning gear, and think the sparkling leadeye minnow
would be very effective on them when i go swoffing (do you call saltwater
fly fishing that over there?) next time. Look forward to hearing from you.

			Thanks,
     			Chris King.
			Western Australia

Thanks for the e-mail and the linguistics, Chris. I've never heard the term "swoffing" but you can be sure that I'll be doing some extensive swoffing for false albacore, bonito, striped bass, and bluefish during September and October. Tight Lines!
-Chris

August 2, 1997
Hi Chris,
Just wanted you to know I had a great trip!  Bob, Don, Ed were all very
nice and hospitable.  I caught blues in the 25 inch range with spinning
gear at the Wasque rip and then thankfully christened my fly rod on 21
inch stripers from the North Neck side of the Cape Poge gut--really
exciting stuff!  It was your chartreuse and white deceiver that got 'em.
Please stay in touch so that we may hook up next summer when I return. 
Thanks again for all the advice, the flies, and the people to talk to.
			Tom Neess

Thanks for e-mailing, Tom. Glad to hear that you had a good trip. Bob Lane told me that you attended the Martha's Vineyard Surfcasters picnic! I'm glad that you found some stripers on the fly as well. I look forward to the time that we may meet on the Vineyard. Tight Lines!
-Chris

July 8, 1997
Hi Chris
Checked out your page - it looks great. Just returned from a trip to Long
Island, fished with Glen Mikkelson and Joe Blados. Best fish was a 34
incher, most fish in the 20-26 inch range, we also had some small blues.
The Catch and release tournament on the Vineyard was fun, Ken V. and I
fished the next night at Lamberts cove, thought we would try it for an
hour, got there at about midnight and didn't leave till 6:00 in the
morning, had fish all night 2 feet off the beach chasing sandeels, had
three keepers, 2 - 34's and one 35. When you get your link page set up 
would you consider linking my page to yours? My site is at
www.enhanced-designs.com/veverka/.

			Take care
			Bob Veverka

Thanks for the kind words, Bob. It feels great to hear from such a fine fly tier. Saltwaterflies.com surfers should know that Mr. Veverka is a tier of some renown, and that his work has appeared in a number of books of classic salmon flies and saltwater flies. Bob's flies appeared in Deke Meyer's excellent book; "Saltwater Flies, Over 700 of the Best", in which I also had the pleasure of appearing. Bob's patterns were also featured in "Bluewater Fly Fishing" by Trey Combs, a fantastic book about the extreme fly fishing to be found offshore. I urge everyone who reads this to check out Bob Veverka's website for more information.
-Chris

June 27, 1997
Chris,

Thanks for your note... it was great seeing you and even better fishing
with you.
Now for a true (really!!!) big fish story:
Charles and I went to the beach off Martha's Vinyard near Edgartown near
the little bridge.  We were told by an excellent source that there were
some monster strippers (or is it stripers)... there.  It's the fish I'm
talkin' about...
In the first hour or so after dark, we caught some nice fish... in the
20 to 22" range... nothing special, but still a lot of fun.  
I decided to walk down the beach about a half of a mile to a point that
comes out quite a way... the tide was somewhat low, so I could walk out
on the point and be only knee deep about 60 feet from the shore.
After casting for a while, I hooked into something big about 15 or 20
feet right in fron of me.  The line started comming right at me at what
looked like 25 MPH!... It's the first time in my life that I was ever
afraid of a fish... imagine, here I am 60 feet from shore, it's totally
dark - except for a little hazy moon - and no one's near me to either
offer moral support or just calm me down.  Anyway, the line keeps
comming right at me, and all I could think of was SHARK!!! da-dum,
da-dum it was Jaws in my head! 
Well the "monster" passed about a foot and a half away from me and
started heading in towards the shore... he probably didn't know that I
was on a point/flat and the shallower water was behind me.  I quickly 
got the line on the reel and watched the line shoot towards the shallow
water.... then he figured out that he was going the wrong way!  He
turned quickly, and I could see his girth and length... and I hope 
that was perspiration in my waders... that monster was a striper bigger 
than I've ever had on my line... I guessed his length at around three 
feet plus! Now, you know how good the fishing has been over the past 
few weeks at the Vinyard.  I must have caught 100+ fish... and few if 
any got me in to the backing... I have that new striper line that is 
100 feet long and I also have 150 yds. of backing....
Well, the monster turned and ran.... my drag was shreiking, I was still
hearing da-dum, da-dum... and my hands were jelly, and my 8 weight was
bent in half....
The fish ran almost the entire backing off my reel... so I started
palming... and .... and....and....the hook pulled out.....
Now I thought about this for quite a while.  If i had landed the fish, I
would have gotten braggin' rights.... but by NOT landing the fish, I
will have the memories for quite some time... and maybe that's even
better.
I hope you enjoyed this story as much as I did in the telling.

			Sincerely,
			Larry J. Newmark

Thanks for the exciting story, Larry. You're not the only one who's lost a big fish and lived to tell about it. Nobody ever forgets "the one that got away", so I'll be looking forward to hearing about this one again! I lost a big fish this year too, but since the story you told was so exciting, I'm not even going to try to describe that feeling one gets when the line goes slack. Oh, well...
-Chris

June 23, 1997
Dear Chris:
Just got back from Martha's Vineyard and very much enjoyed fishing 
with you, John, and Larry last Tuesday.  We fished "the bowl" at 
Lobsterville a couple of nights later, and I stopped counting after the 
thirtieth striper, all between 18" and 27" long.  By far the most 
effective fly was the Sparkle Body Eel.  While it was still fairly light, 
the Sparkle Body Squid tied over pink yarn was very effective.  It was 
also the most effective fly for day time fishing on the flats, which we 
did one day with superb guide Capt. Mo Flaherty.  See you when you 
get back.
			
			Charles Wohl

Thanks for the kind words, Charles. I enjoyed fishing with Larry, John, and you. It's always a pleasure to fish next to fine anglers, and you guys found the flies that were working before I did. Funny thing that they should be my patterns! Oh, well, sometimes it can be hard to see what's right in front of you. I look forward to fishing with you again soon. Glad to hear that you had a good time with Mo Flaherty as well.
-Chris

June 23, 1997
Chris,
	Thanks for all the info and the fly recommendations this week 
on Martha's Vineyard.  The striped bass fishing was more than what was
promised, and the bluefish were a big bonus.  Fly fishing at night,
though feared, worked out very well.
	You're right.  You develop a touch after a while, a feeling 
that lets you know when all is working right.  Or when it's not! 
	Appreciate your taking time out to tape a show for the American
Outdoorsman Radio Network, our Midwest network of 12 radio stations. 
It's an hour-long show, usually aired on Saturday mornings, and we plan
to run your segments on July 5-6.  In many parts of the country you can
hear the show on WLW-Radio (700 AM) in Cincinnati or WTAM-Radio (1100
AM) in Cleveland, a pair of 50,000-watt boomers.  Check in at 5:30 or 6
a.m.
	The newspaper article on fly fishing Martha's Vineyard will run 
June 27 in The (Cleveland, O.) Plain Dealer.  I'll send you a copy of 
the page.
	A great time was had by all.  Can't wait to get back to Martha's
Vineyard in August-September for the bonita, stripers and great fall
fishing.
			Thanks again,
			D'Arcy Egan

Thanks for the e-mail, and thanks again for the opportunity to appear on your radio show. I enjoyed our fishing together, and I look forward to our next meeting. Please say hello to Kevin, Tom, and Harold for me, and give them my thanks a well. My sincere wishes that you all may return to Martha's Vineyard for another trip quite soon.
-Chris

June 18, 1997
Dear Chris:
We met briefly at Narrow River in Narragansett, Rhode Island last 
year. I think. You were casting a six weight into a stiff head wind 
and doing pretty well. I still have one of your worm flies and hope 
to give it a chance soon. Striped bass and blues in Moriches on the 
South Shore are keeping me occupied.
Great web site. Thanks for the good work.

			Oliver Cope

June 9, 1997
Hi Chris,
	What a great trip I had out to Martha's Vineyard. Fishing 
for Stripers with a fly rod was so exciting. I still can't believe the 
sheer number of fish out there. I hope I can get back on the Island 
this fall to test my skills against the Blues and the Bonitos.
	That sand eel fly of yours was killer. Almost all the Stripers 
I caught were on that fly. Even though I was there for the worm hatch, 
that's the fly that worked best for me. Like your friend said about the
fish feeding on the worms, "There are a lot of sore lips and long 
memories." I guess those sand eels are something the Stripers just 
can't resist.
	Fishing way out on the sandbars into the deep canals was also a 
blast (as well as a bit scary). It was so beautiful out there. I felt 
like I was standing in a postcard as I watched the sun come up over the 
water. 
	It was a pleasure to meet all the other anglers on the Island. 
What a great bunch of people. And it was great to get a chance to fish 
with you. You certainly know how to hammer those Stripers.
	Well, I am turning my attention back to trout fishing, but I 
won't soon forget the great fishing I had on the Island. I can't wait to 
get back for more.

			Best regards,
			Morgan

June 6, 1997
Mr. Windram,
I have heard stories about forty fish days. Fishing with your guidance 
last Monday showed that even a mere mortal as myself could be in on 
the action. The fishing was great, the companionship even better. Tuesday 
evening the fishing was just as good but the catching wasn't. Thanks for 
your help.
                        Charles Harner

June 6, 1997
Chris,
Nice job on the web site. Good layout and flow. Heard from Page about
the big night at Tashmoo. Hope the action continued.
			Later,
			Peter Jenkins
			www.reel-time.com

June 6, 1997
Chris -
Just saw the Sparkling Crab recipe on the site. 
I've come up a variation of your Sparkling Sand Eel. Let's call it a
Sinking Sand Eel, for lack of a better description. Instead of using
barbell eyes, I tie a lead Twist-On strip to the top of the shank, 
folding over about about one-half inch or less at the head. This makes 
for a more uniform sink, instead of a dive-bombing Clouser, and the 
pattern sort of belly-bounces along sandy flats. Also, when you fold 
over the lead at the head, you create what amounts to a sculptor's form, 
making it a snap to just apply and smooth the Sparkle Body over the lead 
and hook. With luck, I'll have it up with photos by June 21.

I've also come up with something you might like to include: Using the 
Black Sparkle Body to make "eye-dots" in those Spirt River "Real Eye"
barbells. You know --  The ones with the recess that is "supposed" to 
be a perfect fit for stick-on prism eyes? It's a pain trying to get a
stick-on to fit right in the recess. Instead put a spot of the black 
in the recess, add a drop of Gloss Coat or epoxy when the E-Z Shape 
dries, and what you have is a "molded" barbell eye. Looks great. The 
recess "cups" the Gloss Coat, and because the eyes have a flat surface, 
the Sparkle Body stays put.

			Later,
			Frank Dalecki, Jr.
			Managing Editor,
			Nor'east Saltwater
			https://noreast.com/fly/salt.htm

May 13, 1997
Chris,
Made your Deep Sparkling Sand Eel and did a "one fly" with it. That is 
I took only that fly with me to the Cape on Wednesday. I stopped at 
Eastman's in Falmouth and they sent me to the beach adjacent to Waquoit 
Bay. There was lots of seaweed in the water but when the tide slacked off 
you could get a few clean strips in before the hook fouled. Your fly did 
awesome! However this time I am going to put some Super Glue on the threads
over the eyes before I put on the Sparkle Body. I got up to 9 fish with 
the first one I tied before the eyes got beat out of them by some hungry 
bass. If you have to wait for the ferry when you come down, there should 
be plenty of opportunity in the area of the terminal so be prepared.

			See you next Tuesday?
			Bob Lane

Thanks for the good words regarding the Deep Sparkling Sand Eel. Sure was a killer fly for me last year. I'll actually be down on the island on Monday! I'm looking forward to fly rodding with you again, my friend. See you soon!
-Chris

MAY 2, 1997

Chris,
Went back to my spot yesterday. Had more time, no meetings, and picked up 17 fish with the fly rod you gave me last year. I would have done better but I really needed a sinking line but only had a sinking tip. When the current slacked off I managed to start getting the fish. I knew they were there because the people using spinning gear were getting them one after the other. Ran into "The Don" out there. He was leaving as I arrived. He had been very busy and got plenty of fish, as usual.

Keep 'em tight,
Bob Lane

Nice to hear from you again, Bob. Great to hear that you caught some fish on that fly rod! I'll be out on the island soon to join in the fun. I've just invested in a fast sinking line for situations with lots of current; I'm sure that will be the ticket for some of those spots.
-Chris

April 29, 1997

Chris,

Yeah, your website looks great! Sorry if I make this short, I'm on my way out to my secret spot. Got 20 bass yesterday in a strong south wind with six footers slamming in. John Schillinger (the new guy at Larry's) took 100 fish there on Sat just after the pond was opened, one 28" keeper in the whole lot. Also, "The Don" took a bunch out at Wasque on Fri.

Keep in touch,
Bob Lane

April 25, 1997

Dear Chris:

I recently used your E-Z sparkle body crab pattern, size 6, on the flats of Long Island in the Bahamas. When all else failed, this is the one the bonefish really went for. I used both rubber legs (marked with felt-tip pen) and pheasant tail fiber legs. Both worked well, but the rubber legs tended to pull out after the 10th bone!

Tight lines,
Charles Wohl

Thanks Charles! Our friend Cliff Snyder called about the crab fly as well. His exact words were: "That crab fly pounded the sh*t out of those bones!" I guess you guys did pretty well.
-Chris

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