Posted on May 16 2023
While it certainly isn't time for another Wind Knots & Tailing Loops page, I'm still back home in Lafayette suffering from an intestinal malady which has required me to be not more than 15 feet from the loo.
Thought I would try describing the hook removal procedure which I rely on for removing hooks from various parts of my anatomy. Depending on the hooks location a second person is always nice to have around. To remove the hook you need a loop of line. The butt section of your leader is ideal and it's sure to be near by. Loop the line and slide it under the eye of the hook and gently pull it tight against the bend in the hook shank just above where it enters your skin. Next, you get the fly upright and press the eye of the hook down against your skin. Take a deep breath and give the loop a sharp yank straight back away from the eye of the hook. There is no pain whatsoever and if your leader is still attached to your fly you are ready to cast again.
Saw the hook removal method first performed on a salmon fly lodged in the tender skin just under the anglers nose and I was sold. Every removal I have tried has been a success on the first try EXCEPT for Mark's dad Tom who embedded a salmon fly in his wrist. The first two tries didn't hurt me a bit but were quite painful for Tom as I gave his arm two pretty good jerks. We decided the point of the hook was stuck in a tendon and that more force was needed. I can still hear the liberated salmon fly clanging off the tin shed ten feet away.
If you have doubts, give it a try on several different materials. I assume the hook would come out of most anything. I do know it doesn't come out of shirts if the barb has come out a second hole (use dykes).
A picture is truly worth a thousand words but I'm no artist. If this doesn't make sense or you are unsuccessful in your practice attempts, let me know and we'll try improving on the verbiage.
I keep checking back, hoping to see an update and that you are doing okay, 119. Return to good health soon, Sir.
Hope you feel better. Once had a client who fishes a lot get a really bad GI tract illness that took a while to diagnose but it turned out to be Giardia. Since you are on the water a lot figured I would mention it.
Fished upper WB Thursday. Caddis all day with fish readily rising to them then Hednrickson hatching afternoon. Not to brag but caught 20,17, 15 and 14 inch browns. All on my Go Pro as proof lol .Unbelievable day with plenty of missed hook ups. Got there 11AM but really dialed in around 2PM to 430PM-Get out there!
Angler119 Hope Your feeling better and can get back on the water this week
I’m sorry you are under the weather. This is unrelated to hook maladies, but I would really like your take on my two fishless days on the Delaware.
On Wed, I drove up despite the warning of high winds and fished the WB upper gamelands from about 5 until 8.. There were lots of bugs, the birds agreed swooping over the water feasting. There were Hendricksons, March Browns, a few olives and caddis, in short lots of reasons for the fish to rise, but there were very few risers and none that seemed interested in coming up more than twice. I was not the only one suffering the wind including the spinners which never showed.
On Thursday, I started on the WB gain, but from 11 to 1 there was little/no action. So I moved down to the mainstem near Stockport. From the moment I arrived, there were steadily rising fish. But what were they eating? In the beginning at 2 PM there were some light caddis and a few small mayflies in the air. I fished over rising fish from 2 until 5 PM with only refusals to show for my efforts, Somewhere in the middle of that, I seined for what was on the water and the only bug in numbers sufficient to account for all the rising fish was an green-olive caddis with dark wings in size 20 or 18. I did not have anything that matched that and despite getting multiple good drifts over rising fish got only last minute refusals. I changed flies multiple times to no avail. Others had similar issues with an occasional fish making a mistake but mostly frustrating angles, I counted 8 anchored drift boats and 6 wade anglers within sight. It wasn’t just my little spot that had fish! At least those close to me had a similar lack of success, with a couple fish hooked on an Isonychia, or an emerger (not sure of what ), but not what the fish were eating as a main course. In the last hour or so before exhaustion set in there were some March Browns floating by unmolested. I did something rare for me and waded out leaving rising fish behind as I was simply too tired to continue and faced a 3 hour drive home. A drift boat slid in where I had been standing and caught one fish, then proceeded to not get a look from any of the multiple risers within range while I rested on the bank for an hour..
In retrospect, I should have tried a size 20 olive emerger to see if that would work. I will be tying some olive bodied CDC caddis in size 18 and 20 as well as some size 18 and 20 soft hackles and pupa. I likely will not get up there again for 2 weeks and things will like have changed by then .
My Tuesday report for the WB agrees with Greg. Fished just below Deposit. Caddis hatch in the AM. Fish were on emergers. Later in the day, I didn’t see a big Hendrickson hatch, but they were mixed in with a big caddis hatch in the PM. Fish weren’t hitting them but sure loved my size 14 olive pattern. Got a bunch to the net, but nothing bigger than 16.
Wednesday was controlled by the wind. The fish would rise when the water wasn’t choppy….but it was blowing all day.
Get well A119!
Upper WB Tuesday caddis hatch 1030-1130 AM with fish aggressively taking. Hendrickson hatch covering the water 230-330? Could not get even one hook up, But wow some of those rising fish had dorsal fins a big as my hand- a sight to see!
Here is a nice YouTube video for anyone interest on the unhooking technique
https://youtube.com/shorts/52GLMQp52qg?feature=share
Get well soon!!!!!
I fished the upper West yesterday and had a nice evening. 4 came to the net missed 1 and had 3 refusals. Caddis and Hendricksons were on the water along with some olives.
Boy Your intestinal distress sounds really nasty. Hope you have a quick recovery. Thanks for the info on hook temoval
Feel better soon!