Fishing Oatka with Lucas Carroll

Lucas Carroll ties up in the morning light

Every once in a while you get that rare opportunity to spend some quality time with people you haven’t seen in a while doing some of the things you are both equally passionate for.

In my case it was fly fishing with my good friend LucasCarroll.

Lucas is one of those guys that you could sit around and talk with for hours and not realize it’s been hours. He also has a passion for fly fishing and fly tying which is one of the reasons that it probably never seems like we really ever spend that much time on the phone when we talk. Ideas on fly tying, techniques, hatches, bugs, timing the run, fish, etc, fly around the room like a super hatch just popped off the water. And even though it may seem chaotic at best to those who would be outside looking in on a conversation like this, it actually has a purpose – A purpose that is only fully realized when we are on the stream.

A recent trip back East from his newly planted roots in California not only gave us an opportunity to share in some great conversation and ideas, but even better, put them good use on the stream.

A golden wild brown nymphed up from the depths

We met up a little after nine, rigged up, and made the walk in to one of our favorite spots on one of our favorite WNY streams - Oatka creek. We talked about the recent fishing conditions, our families, and what was next for him on his upstate New York tour. The water was at around 2.8 on the gauge and we could see a few bugs coming off and even more starting to swarm just above the water – female Hendrickson spinners.

Lucas with his first of the day

Who needs a net when you have the hands of Lucas Carroll

As we watched and waited for the trout to respond we played around with some streamers and a few dry flies. And as time wore on, we began to lose out hope for an opportunity to fish the hatch/spinner fall. The bugs stopped and the fish never responded.

So we pulled out our plan “B” and went with it for the rest of the morning.

Another wild brown for Lucas

This fish was a blast to catch on the 2 weight

When all was said and done that day, Lucas had remembered how to fish small nymphs, we got to take some great photos of some gorgeous inland wild brown trout, and most importantly we spent time taking it all in while thanking God for all the wonderful opportunities we have in life.

Make sure to check out Lucas Carroll’s wonderful photographywebsite. He should have some amazing photos coming soon from his trip to WNY.

Safe travels Lucas……see you on the stream!

Raw Water Productions

I am pleased to introduce to you Raw Water Productions.

Adam Kryder, Lucas Carroll and Matt Smythe have turned a passion and a dream into a reality. They’ve taken their love for film, photography, writing, and fly fishing and rolled all into one - Raw Water Productions!

And the best part about this new venture is that it’s local. So please stop by their web site, take a look around and make sure to leave a comment and help support this new business.

Here is a video for you to chew on while you add this site to your list of favorites!

The beauty of inland winter trout on the fly.

I have had many opportunities to fish our fantastic WNY lake run tributaries this fall and early winter, and the fishing has again been amazing. But as the fishing slows down during the winter, I find myself going back to our equally amazing and fantastic WNY inland trout streams. It is an attraction that I cannot ignore!

The fish here are wild and rested, and more than that, they are a welcome change to the giants from the lake. And what they may lack in size they make up for in beauty. They also offer a different challenge. Precision drifts with ultra light fly gear while drifting small nymphs, midges, and scuds are a welcome change from fishing heavily weighted egg patterns and swinging big flies with big rods. And if the water is just right, I can have a blast trying to find some big inland fish on streamers. It isn’t a numbers game, it’s purely about getting bit!

So with all that said I hope to lure you in with some photos of the beauty that can be had from some of our finest WNY inland trout streams.

#18 pink scud and brown

Streamer caught brown

A big 18" inland brown that couldn't refuse a big streamer

A beautiful wild brown

A #16 red worm pattern does the trick

Lucas Carroll Photography

For those of you who have viewed my blog or my work on the JP Ross Fly Rod website, you will notice that I try to put some great photos along with my writing. A good portion of those have been contributed by my very good friend - Lucas Carroll.

Lucas and I have fished together for a while now, and I have had the privilege of watching him develop his craft in both fly fishing and photography. It started with a few photo competitions(several of those he has won!), and has grown into so much more! Over the past few years he has had many of his photos grace the pages of several fly fishing magazines such as: Eastern Fly Fishing, The Drake & the Fly Fish Journal. His images have also found a home at several fly fishing websites that include www.MidCurrent.com, and of course www.jprossflyrods.com

So please stop by his photography website www.lucascarrollphotography.com and look around. You will see fly fishing stuff of course, but there is also much more that will catch your eye. You can even order prints if you find something you like....so take a few minutes and enjoy!