We are starting to really get ready for the Fly Tying Expo. If you want to tie a box of flies to donate to the Expo to be raffled off we have them here at the shop. Also we are signing up people for workshops, and selling Banquet tickets.The expo is an exciting time and seems to get everyone pumped up for the upcoming fishing season.
We got some new colors of fly foam in today. These new colors will be great for chernobyl ants, stoneflies, hoppers and other dry flies.
Jimmy’s is proud to introduce our own line of fly floatant. “Home Brew,” is a silicone based floatant that is temperature stable liquid. It is easy to apply and does not leave an oil slick. We also have a dry shake, and a classic floatant that resembles gink. Home Brew is produced in the basement of our very own fly shop. One would find these operations right next to the bobbers, dumbbell weights, swivels, and some old rusty Eagle Claw bait hooks. Unfortunately we are unable to give public tours due to industry, and trade secrets. Just trust us when we tell you that it is beautiful sight to behold.
We are continuing to get closer and closer to the 16th Annual East Idaho Fly Tying/Fly Fishing Expo and Banquet. This event will be held on April 17-18, 2009 at the Shilo Inn in Idaho Falls. This event is a really fun weekend. The expo features fly tiers from all over the United States and some from different countries. There are workshops, and classes that focus on tying flies, and fly fishing. They also offer a complete womens program on both days. Click here to go to the website and check out all the activities for the Expo. As always Jimmy’s will have a booth set up with our latest in fly tying merchandise. Be sure to come by and say hello.
Its been a busy day at the shop as we have had many folks in to buy licenses and other items for some early Spring fishing. The conditions on most streams that are open will be perfect for another couple of weeks. We are also keeping an eye on the reservoirs to the south of Idaho Falls and Pocatello and will let you know when the ice is gone.
Two new items have arrived from Rio. We have the new Suppleflex Tippet in 4X – 7X. Its a softer material for slow moving water and spooky fish. We also have the the Indicator Leaders that feature a medium stiff butt and a long level tippet for better drifts. The butt section is orange colored for visibility while the tippet is clear. They are 10 feet in length and come 1X through 6X.
Spring time is just around the corner. We have been experincing some nice warm days here in Idaho Falls. Most of all the snow is now completely melted and people are starting to get excited about fishing again.
With spring not to far away this is the time of year when we receive all of our new merchandise. We received our first shipment of spring orders from Simms! Simms has a lot of new products for the 09′ year. Probably the biggest change with Simms is that all wading boots will be changing over to a vibram sole by 2010. Simms has joined forces with Trout Unlimited to help prevent the spreading of aqautic parasites. We have the new Vibram sole wading boots in stock now. We also still have a great selection of felt soled wading boots in stock.
Simms has some new waders in there product line. Probably the most exciting new wader is the new and improved Freestone wader. It features the Simms zipper technology. Much like the high end G4 wader, the new and improved freestone offers all the convience of a waterproof zipper. This wader comes in at a great price of $299! Every Month from now until June we will receive a shipment from Simms with new merchandise with all of the great new gear. Of course we will keep you updated on all the new products. Feel free to come on in and grab a catalog and start making a wish list!
The weather looks great outside but the temperature still reminds us that it is winter here in Idaho Falls. Most of the snow has melted in town but there is still a lot of snow on the ground in the surrounding areas. Each day we get closer and closer to spring. I have noticed that the spring winds have started to blow on a more regular basis. If you are not familiar with the Idaho’s windy springs let me just say when the Idaho wind blows…man it sucks! No pun intended. Despite the high winds in the spring we have some awesome pre-runoff fishing. Call the shop for some up to date reports, or check out the latest fishing report our fishing report page.
We recieved two new tying books. Dave Hughs has published a great book titled, Nymphs for Streams & Stillwaters. This book has a very detailed description of nymphs and tying patterns. We also received a new book from Randall Kaufman, titled Fly Patterns. The Kaufmanns have put together a collection of patterns into a dictionary style book. This book has recipes and a color photos of almost every fly pattern invented. Kaufmann has published many fly tying books that are very informative. Come check out his latest!
Today has been a great day at Jimmy’s! We have got some new merchandise in for the upcoming spring season. Typically there are not a lot of dry fly hatches going on in the spring,.Besides the occasional March Brown’s and Blue wing Olives, we typically do a lot of nymph fishing. Fishing under an indicator has many different levels of excitement that vary from individual to individual. Whatever your level of love for indicator fishing, Jimmy’s All Seasons Angler can help you out! We are proud to announce that we now carry every type of Thingamabobber available. We recently just received a shipment of the black Thingamambobbers in all sizes. We will also continue to carry “glow in the dark,” and the additional assorted colors. If you haven’t had a chance to use these indicators you are missing out. These indicators feature a trapped air system that acts very similar to a balloon. Come down to the shop and we will be happy to show you a demo on how to use these great indicators.
We have also received three new colors of Thin Skin. Thins skin is now available in a “speck” pattern. We have clear, tan and olive available.
I want to remind you all that we have some special topics classes that have a couple spots open. Bruce Staples is teaching a Yellowstone Flies course, and Tim Woodard is teaching a class on effective South Fork patterns. These classes are designed to help you learn more patterns that will not only make you successful on the river, but teach you new skills and techniques that will help you make you sucessful at the tying vise. All of our special topics courses $25, and the instructor provides the materails to tie the flies for that course. We hope you will all get a chance to take one of these courses from our talented teachers.
After 17 consecutive weeks beginning in November today was our last Fly Tying Demo until next Fall. Boots Allen from Jackson, Wy was our featured tyer and showed us some great patterns that he uses both in Wyoming and Idaho.
We’ll have Boots back later this year for a book signing of his upcoming book about the Snake River being published by Amato Publishing. He has another book being published by Pruett Publishing, also later this year, about regional fly patterns that have been developed for this region.
I want to thank Bruce Staples of our shop staff for scheduling and coordinating this winters great lineup of demonstrations. It was the most well attended schedule ever. Thanks Bruce!
Two new materials have arrived this week. We now have ribbed tungsten scud/shrimp bodies in 4 sizes. You can tie the bodies onto either the shank or bend of the hook for different effects. We also brough in a new body materail for small nymphs and midges called mini sparkle braid. There are 12 different colors. It makes a great tag on steelhead and salmon flies too.
We have a lot of things going on at Jimmy’s right now. We have received some new tying material from Natures Spirit. Many of you who read this blog have heard me rant and rave about Natures Spirit before. There are many reasons why I continue to talk about this company. Bottom line, Natures Spirit produces some of the best tying materials available, period! We have received some new material here at the shop that made our jaws drop when we saw the quality of the material.
We have also received 4 new colors of Blue Eared Pheasant. This material is used as a replacement for heron feathers.
As are continuing to bulk up our tying inventory and offer you more and more different tying materials. As we do this we have started to put multiple colors of the same material on the same peg. If you have a hard time finding a color, please feel free to ask any of us in the shop. Also remember if we don’t have it, we can check to see if we can get it! Speacail orders are at no extra cost to you, and we happy to help you.
We got our Scientific Angler spring order in today. We have the new Sharkskin Saltwater taper line, and a new assortment of sinking lines. We have a carry a large selection of Fly lines in the shop.
Tomorrow Dan Hurzler is doing our tying demo. Dan is an accomplished fly tier and fly fisherman. In the summer Dan guides on the South Fork and he also puts together the Carp Classic that is held every Spring on Blackfoot resevior. Dan will be tying some of his favorite carp flies, and some trout patterns. You won’t want to miss Dans presentation tomorrow it will be a packed house for sure. See you tomorrow.