Loop Knot for Fly or Spoon / Spinner.

     
         
This is a simple knot that can give a fly or spoon more articulation / movement when fishing. When larger flies are fished tied directly to flurocarbon or mono sometimes they will lack movement due to the thickness of the line but a loop knot will give plenty of movement to the fly as it is not restricted by a direct knot, this is especially useful when using flies with short tails.

The Double Uni Knot with a twist.

   

        
Here is the Double Uni Knot with a slight twist, for all those anglers that want to try salmon fly fishing with a trout fly rod here is a great fishing cast / tippet that incorporates a running dropper on a tapered leader. Firstly i tie a tapered leader using 15lb breaking strain line tied to a 10lb breaking strain line with a double uni knot and then i tie a double over hand loop knot dropper and place it above the double uni knot that joined the two lines and loop it in place. The knot on the tapered lines will be the stopper for the dropper but it can slide back up the line towards the sink tip or fly line, this is a very handy system if using a net because the dropper will move up if it gets stuck or the main fly gets stuck which gives you time to react unlike a fixed dropper which will break off or even worse break the main line. In summer i use a small size 12 Wickhams Fancy or Thunder and Lightening trout fly as my dropper because i have found that salmon will take the smaller fly first before taking the shrimp pattern especially in the late evenings. I have used this system for many years incorporating it with 6ft ( salmon ) sink tips,  6ft intermediate  tips and tapered leaders. If using this system with a 6ft ( salmon ) sink tip i would use a 6 ft tippet tied in two 3 ft sections with the double uni knot again tapering the tippet down to 10lbs from 15lbs using either mono or flurocarbon, then putting the dropper on the top 3ft section above the double uni knot. When using a ( salmon ) 6ft sink tip i would never use a tippet more than 6ft long because then the fly's are fishing higher in the water column than the sink tip but when using  6ft ( salmon ) intermediate tips or tapered leaders you can extent out to one and a half times the rods length in total ( length of tip and tippet combined ) for better turn over and depth presentation. If using a 6ft ( salmon ) intermediate tip i would use a tippet of 6ft of 15lb line tied to  3ft of 10lb line thus giving you a better roll out and cast, they will fish better as the fly's have more life especially in slow pools.. If using a 10ft rod the ( salmon ) intermediate tip can be 6ft and using a 9ft tippet  (6ft of 15lb tied to 3ft of 10lb line) the total lenght is 15ft which is one and a half times the length of the 10ft rod but you can fish a little shorter if you wish it all depends what you length of tip and tippet you are comfortable with but i have found great success in these precise lengths. Having used this dropper system with both single hand and switch rods i haven't had any issues with casting or presentation but as with all fishing you must always check your  fly cast every few minutes just to make sure that they are all fishing well and not knotted up.

The Good, The Bad and The Unbelievable.

Having looked through my fishing clothing to see what needs to be replaced or repaired i decided to do a small write up on the gear that has been good to me in the past seasons. As all anglers we know the feeling of being cold and miserable on a wind swept January day fishing in waist high  freezing water with lashing rain beating against your fishing gear and if that gear isn't up to the job then not only are you going to be cold but your going to be wet as well. Here are the outer layers of fishing gear that i wear in all weathers.

THE UNBELIEVABLE.

The Simms Guide jacket is definitely my go to jacket for any weather conditions and i mean any weather conditions, i have been out in this jacket in storms, hail, snow and every weather that you can imagine and never got wet. This jacket is in its tenth season and only for a worn sleeve and slight wear and tear due to wearing a life jacket over it during my lake fishing it would still be perfect. Sadly i will have to go looking for a new Guide jacket soon and as they cost a few bob i will have to shop around. Just remember this when buying a jacket i got 10 years of hard fishing in fresh and salt water going through brush over fences and out in the worst conditions possible and the only thing that stopped this jacket was constant wearing against the velcro straps of my life jacket. If you put it all together i paid around 30 euros per year  (30 euros x 10 years ) for a jacket that kept me dry in all weather conditions and i see anglers buying jackets for 100 euros and still getting wet and having to change them yearly so next time your buying a jacket think long term and think comfort, spend on your jacket. As for the Simms Guide Jacket .... Unbelievable.

THE GOOD..

Having bought this Airflo back support belt last year it has definitely been one of my best buys for the season, it is great when deep wading and takes the strain out of casting  and fishing in high water conditions. I tried to get one locally but in the end had to get it from Fishtec in the U.K. but at only £19.95 it was a steal. I was out one day without the Airflo belt and i felt it in my shoulders the next day so it's always in my car every time i go fishing now. I remembered that i used to complain about the gorilla on my back after a long days fishing but those days are well gone now thanks to this buy.

THE BAD..

Having looked around early last year i bought these Sonik breathable waders and was hoping to get a few seasons from them but having gone wading deep during one of my fishing videos in May i found that there was a bad leak in the seam joining the legs together. Now i can only use them as a pair of thigh waders as i cannot wade deeper and as most anglers know you can't patch over seams, sadly i will have to look around this year for a new pair.