To The Gills.

Gift yourself “First Fire” 2/2 artist proof in 16×24 delivered to your door for $120, unframed.

All photos are printed locally by a small business ran by stray cats & pigeons.

 

 

You got it. Ultra fresh, wild caught limited edition artist proofs

in 11×17 at the going rate of 150$ framed. Rigged comes encrusted in salt & slime with appeal to sailorboys & girls. Truly for the axis predator.

in 5×7 matted for 30$. Cozy is beautiful any way you hang it. I suggest you change hang every few weeks for maximum enjoyment. She sits behind a green mat that accents the iridescent greens only visible in the flesh. This is a steal and there aren’t many left.

Thanks!

It’s that time again. Time to pack all my toys in my duffle bag and fly across the map. All to play in the water, chasing different fish, not better fish. Maybe I’ll dive under a waterfall and count the red spots of an obese brown trout who’s been suspended in the cut for years, fat and happy on whatever the plunge brings. Maybe I’ll paddle my little red canoe through the lilies, play poker with bullfrogs, catch a pumpkinseed and hopefully see some fire flies. Yep, I will do just that – then I’ll head down south and bake in the mangroves (in my other little red boat) try not to lose a toe to a hungry Pompano. Had a hard time leaving that last go around, all the mo’ sweeter to return. I’ll be back, God willin’ if the creek don’t rise up and take me away!

Tango and bossanova I take my fly rod everywhere I go, when I go around the city. Tango and bossanova life is hard but you can’t sit around and wallow in self pity.

   

 

Aboard my vessel, the F/V Towego – I am the deck boss, executive chef, fishing guide and captain of the S.S Little Buddy. We tend to seine, gillnet and troll fisheries out of Ketchikan, Alaska for the salmon season. Our run from town to ground averages 10-12 hours, so I must make proper use of that time to maintain the highest morale and generally just to crush every living second of the day. My favorite part of the job is the down time for skipper and I to board the Bud and explore whatever estuary we choose on the map – chasing sea run cutthroat trout, steelhead and the oddities. We don’t really get excited over the salmon.

 

Next in line is meal time at the “Sea Run Bistro”. Towego is equipped with a small Atlantic diesel stove that has a 20”x30” range top and a 12”x16” oven. I have all the time and freedom to experiment with new dishes and keep the meals specific to what we’ll be able to efficiently metabolize given the circumstances of the day. We eat predominantly fresh seafood, fruits and vegetables – never having room for empty calories. Recently on the menu is the gluten free fish burger “Wildest Dream” consisting of wild steelhead belly meat, smoked bacon, goat cheese, avocado, tomato, red onion, romaine and a drizzle of homemade/harvested salmonberry vinaigrette – sandwiched between baked, slim cut the long way potatoes. Chow! You are what you eat.

Harsh rules of survival apply upon the high seas and casualties often occur. Late one evening a friend gifted me a steelhead. Some say it’s a salmon, some say it’s a trout – to me it’s a sea going rainbow trout, that’s what I want it to be. Despite my distaste for the slaughter of that particular species I accepted. In commercial salmon fishing steelhead are caught and considered by catch because there is no sellable market for them (thank goodness). However they are delicious and shouldn’t be wasted – for in my honest opinion the intentional, careless disposal of a fish or animal should be punishable by death or karmic whiplash (especially a chrome opalescent turquoise wild trout of the pacific). If you catch something that turns out to be sick (wormy, toxic or you’re lazy) at least make use of it – Whether it be bait or garden fertilizer, don’t waste anything. Ever.

Still on the surface, never stagnant.

Cheers. Click “Store” and go buy a print – your purchase will be turned around in a way to bring you more of this goodness. TTGZ

 and

 

 

 

Salty Cutthroat

I woke one hopelessly awful morning and desperately needed to rejuice my wahoo. Roosterfish on the fly, from the beach was the only cure. Thought about the last time I attempted to flee to Baja and was corked by some yellow rat bellied bush pilot who couldn’t fly in a 25, thanks jerk. Well, not this time, accidental flight scheduling errors, money, lack of gear or the cops couldn’t even begin to stop me. I contacted Pursuit Anglers and instantly we were in motion – I had a plane to catch in 3 hours!

A day and 3 sleepless flights later I arrived at Casa Laguna. Josh Martz and his pointer Abbey greeted me with a Michelada and showed me around. My room was airy and the bed was like a cloud. Jetlag, sleep deprivation, nerves and the crashing Sea of Cortez had me a bit wiggly, but the fish like that. I grabbed a rod and began to cozy myself with it, casting a 10 weight with intermediate line and a 6 inch fly in the wind takes a second when you fish trout & salmon most of the year. I hooked up on 3 fish right away. It was on, I was feeling it.

The next morning Josh and I headed out to cruise the beach. I caught a fat palometa on my 9 weight and that thing was full of it, awesome fish. The skunk was off and it was time to find a Rooster. We spotted a few cruising and I definitely blew some incredible shots. Many things can go wrong, falling in holes while in full sprint, tangled line in your feet, dead birds or porcupine fish, timing your bad cast and trout sets are just a few of the perils I encountered. Its between you and the Rooster when she turns, combs up and charges your fly into 6 inches of water at breakneck speed – You’ve gotta light her up, make her eat and stick that strip set like the world is ending, after that you still have to fight and land her. My heart was in my throat with every shot, firemost intensity- best fishing I’ve ever done.

Then it all came together, planets collided, stars exploded and angels fell from the sky as I grabbed this surfer chicks tail. I felt a years worth of icy stress shatter.

Garri let me borrow her Cheeky reel and it handled each fish like a champ. Pursuit Anglers has top notch gear, everything I needed and then some. Loop, Hatch, G- Loomis – all the the good stuff. They also have environment specific shirts in case you forgot yours- made by Simms

Slap the ass and goodbye! First Rooster, first day – Muy buen’ mayne. Thanks Josh, you’re an incredible guide.

That next day I had a hot beach date with Justin Crump, you’ve heard of him. The guy is awesome and put me on this Jack Crevalle who had lunch on the beach. The speed of this fish was incredible, within seconds I was into backing.

Jack Crevalle Super Turbo (like a dog toy but with a squeaker)

From front to back, the trip was amazing. Going back next year. Great new friends, fish, food, drinks and the list of good is tremendous – so basically you should just get in touch with www.pursuitanglers.com and try it for yourself. Thanks!

More photos and videos will surface on this one, its a work in progress!