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Posts Tagged ‘Black stilt’

Restoring the Boat!

September 20th, 2023 No comments

I find it easy to start on a project if its small. Large projects can be a little daunting. Because of this I trick myself into large projects by doing a small part, convincing myself that that’s all I’ll do. Hence, I frequently don’t have ‘before shots’. By the time I think to take a few pics I’m already well advanced with the project so that ship has sailed. This is what happened with the boat recently. Initially it was just a little repair, which lead to repainting the repair. Then I thought I should repaint the cabin. Before I knew it I had many components taken off to allow for easy surface preparation and painting. Then I ordered non-skid paint for all the traffic areas – this had never been on the boat before. The whole job took me 2 weeks. It’s amazing how boat restorations absorb time. I almost did inside the cabin too but I managed to curb my enthusiasm just enough to not. It can wait. I did the roof inside alright because it needed it.

She always had a hatch on the cabin but it was damaged and didn’t stay on. I fixed that and also built a removable door so that I can close off the cabin for sleeping in or keeping gear dry in bad weather. I’ve been threatening sleeping in it for ages but still haven’t. No excuse now! She still doesn’t have a name by the way…

I’ve had the boat for 3 years and she’s had a lot of use. She’s been stored outside all that time. Mostly under a tarp but often not. Because of this she was in need of a tidy up, some repairs and a paint job. It’s done now! From now on she’ll have a roof over her head. Next up for restoration is Daltona. She will ride again (again).

It was good to get out guiding recently. Dan and I went to Mackenzie Country to fish the lakes. Late August. The fish were there in good numbers in 3 of the 4 places we went. They were not easy. Very spooky but not impossible. To me, this is perfect. Without some challenge it’s not that interesting. Fast, accurate shots made all the difference – especially when keeping the loop travelling low and fast over the water. Big open loops spook a lot of fish in calm water. I often side cast to ensure the loop stays low. Speed is such an underrated skill. It’s something a fella can practice. How fast can you get the fly off the hitch and in front of a cruising fish? This and other aspects of speed and accuracy were some of the things we worked on. We had some really good fishing where it all came together. Dan landed some really solid, fat trout up to 7lbs which is a top end fish on the Mackenzie lakes.

Also did a little uneventful exploring on the Clutha locally. Nothing to report from it. I had a few outings to some local river mouths – they were decent. Last but not least, Wesley and I (mostly Wesley) changed the bearings on the boat trailer. It was great to learn this skill from someone who knows what they’re doing.

That’s me up to date again! The season kicks off in a little over a week. Needless to say I’m looking forward to it. There’s a few gaps, not many but feel free to get in touch with any questions about availability. You can contact me ronan@sexyloops.com or visit my website. You can check out my Fulling Mill fly patterns here. Some of these have been tweaked and improved for 2024.

Tight Lines and a big Happy Birthday to Sexyloops! 25 today! Ronan..

Unmarked Browns…

May 17th, 2012 No comments
  • I’ve just had four 8% Bourbon & Cola’s and they work.
  • Speights now…

Last Thursday I drove to Fairlie to see Shotgun Kevin, his partner Freddie and their baby Macey. Fishing was also on the agenda and my truck needed a Warrant Of Fitness. I know a mechanic in Fairlie so it made sense to me to give the business to someone I know and trust.

Occasionally one may catch a Brown Trout with very few markings but it’s very unusual to catch a  Brown with no markings at all. A few years ago Kevin brought me to a place where it’s common to catch unmarked browns, a place where you can actually target them! The reason for the lack of markings is camouflage. This area, both river and lake comprises of a mainly sandy bottom so a silver colour and lack of spots helps the fish blend in. The strange thing is sandy areas in rivers and lakes are very common, particularly around river mouths as in this case but the browns are usually silver in colour but well marked with black spots. Not here!

The next day I had a crack on one of my favourite lakes on my way back to Queenstown. I had just one rainbow but it was worth the long drive down a dirt track!

Back to my Speights.

Ronan..

ps. Here is a short film by Abi Mackenzie from 2008 from the place I fished last weekend. Some of the browns are unmarked.