Buckle Down or Up and GO!

Big plans for this weekend.  I've had some of the best days (most successful) during my recent fishing outings.  The freshwater bite has been red hot (it's a dry heat?), everyone who fished during this past Sunday's rain was probably rewarded with a frequent and consistent bite.  My fishing partner and I managed three double hook-ups while fishing trout on the salmon river during the heaviest rain periods, with a number of other fish caught to boot.  And opposed to popular belief, the lucky strike is not just coming out of my corner of the ring, reports from all over are all pointing to great fishing opportunities.  Check out Kierran Broatch's report for On The Water Mag. through this link -->  Connecticut and Rhode Island Fishing Report 4-26-2012

Night Bass

Two separate outings on local ponds using a spot-remover flat-headed jig with a reaction innovation sweet beaver has been the ticket during the daylight hours to an hour after sunset.  Casting to shoreline structure to deeper structure such as rocks or logs using light mono-filament and a medium action spinning rod has been giving me some of the best results with Large-mouth bass.  After dark, I've been switching to a rebel popper 3" no color preference but I did add a dressed treble hook, that the pickerel have since destroyed, and I just redressed it for this weekend.

Brook Trout

I had some boat trailer issues over the last month in terms of repairs and trying to locate parts for a 1970s trailer, or getting little to no help from suppliers.  I choose not to talk about this here, there might be children reading.  Anyhow, I replaced the spring shackles, hubs, bearings, wheels, tires, and bearing buddies and finished last night!  If you see a lot of white smoke later this afternoon, don't call the fire department it's just me burning off the fogging oil.  So Friday night will be the big splash for my boat.  Saturday, I plan on fishing trout early, then eat, then fish freshwater for bass during the day, then fish stripers at night in the river.

Double, (the one on the left is A ok fyi)

Sunday, I plan on fishing stripers again if I had success at night, or hopefully it'll be a continuation of the same trip... you know to save on gas.  If the stripers don't cooperate, I'll either change locations or return to the trout bite.  Ok too much talking, time to get the show on the road.

Get out and get hooked, the house chores can wait.
                                -Matt

Custom Lure Builder: Nick Kemps

Recently I had the pleasure of placing an order for custom in-line spinner baits through Mr. Nick Kemps of Lucky Shamrock Lures and Flies (LuckyShamrockLuresandFlies).  
A few months ago, I had joined a Facebook group called Home Grown Tackle; where custom lure builders across the country share what has been working/not working for them in terms of paints, mediums, terminal accessories, etc.  One day I saw a picture posted of a variety of custom in-line spinner baits and I told myself I need some of those. They were made by Nick Kemps of Lucky Shamrock Lures and Flies. I was already envisioning catching giant Northern Pike on them before ever casting one.

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Nick's customer service throughout my order was so exceptional I told myself I should interview him if he would allow it.  Nick granted me access into the mind of the wire-bending creator of these baits, and would like to share my interview with the man behind Lucky Shamrock Lures and Flies. 

Matt:  Nick, can you remember the first lure or fly you ever made, what was it and when?


Nick: I started tying flies at the age of 9, we were already doing a fair amount of fly-fishing in my family.  My first ones were out of necessity... Caddis fly hatches on the Yellowstone was what I was trying to imitate, and we used those flies with great success.


Matt: Do you recall the first fish you caught on your own lure? What was it and how did it make you feel?


Nick:  I remember fishing for Cutthroats one particular time, when NOTHING would so much as stir a fin... until I took out my vise at the cabin in Teddy Roosevelt Wilderness campgrounds in Yellowstone and created a wet fly.  That fly took Cutthroat trout the next four days we were there with reckless abandon.  It's my favorite memory of "Making fish bite," I was probably 12 years old.  Nobody else in the party caught fish until I tied those flies, everyone wanted a few the for the next day after they saw what I was doing to the Cutthroats with them.


Matt:  What do you think was the calling to start your own business?


Nick:  I believe the calling for me to start my own business was there since I was a young one, but growing up in a Catholic family as a child, we weren't always taught to think outside the box.  I was supposed to go to school and get a trade, which I did.  Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning was the path I chose... and boy do I hate that job!  I got straight A's in trade school, and went on to apply the trade for 10-12 years before I had enough.  I still HATE basements, and not because of the creepy crawly things that live in them.  Anyway, a few years went by after HVAC went by the wayside, and I got divorced.  I was free to think outside the box, and this was my chance!  So I began accumulating more equipment that I didn't already have and started stockpiling ideas.


Matt: What makes your lures different from the ones we see on the shelves?


Nick:  My lures and flies were all rooted in being tied or made out of NECESSITY rather than someones fantasy idea... I designed every one along the water, some in trout country, some on Musky and Smallmouth rivers, and some right here along the Mississippi river where I reside. Every lure I have in production has been extensively used by my friends and I, and with great success.  Or, I would never make them without field testing (my favorite job by the way).


Matt:  Are any of the components of the lures also custom?

Nick:  Many components I use are custom, as I get a lot of custom work requests.  Custom powder coated blades and parts.  Personalized spinners, a particular fly idea... they're all one of a kind pretty much.  I can replicate a certain pattern, but everything is done one at a time, so each pattern or spinner has its own unique quality to it, or I wouldn't be making them.

Matt: Off topic, what's your favorite beer?

Nick: I am a GUINNESS man.  My family's half Irish, and Ireland is always in my heart.  I've had a lot of other beers, but no sense in it anymore.

Matt: What is your go-to lure color?

Nick: Tough question, I've learned to read water since I was tiny, and I learned long ago not to limit myself as far as choosing a lure goes.  I let the fish tell me what they want...the weather conditions, time of year, water clarity, and water temps make most of my decisions for me easy.

Matt:  Good point I think far too often we get consumed in colors and glitz and forget about conditions, that being said, what's your biggest fish to date?

Nick: 48.5" clear-phase Muskellunge, approximately 32-35 lbs.  Released after photos.

Matt: Awesome Nick!  How about your order process, where are you deriving most of your business from.

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  Nick:  Pictures of that fish are around here...  For now, someone sees something they know will smash fish, and they send me a message on the computer regarding their interest.  I then try to make exactly what they were looking for.  Business is mostly done by Paypal keeping track of the money, so I can worry about what I am supposed to... making stuff that drives fish nuts.  I do accept some business by money order, but always secure business.  I have too small an operation to worry about getting bum-paid on a large order.
  
  
  Matt:  Are people mostly buying the color configurations shown on your Facebook page, or are you getting custom color/size combos as well?  Any pro-fishermen requests?
  Nick:  Many combination of baits that are currently on my Facebook page attract a lot of attention, and that's because I want them to. They catch fish.  If they didn't, I wouldn't want people buying them, as they would lose faith in my company.  I'll not HAVE IT!  I do get many custom requests of color variations on the designs I have done.  It's not what I like, it's about the consumer!  (My favorite Joe Dirt reference)  Many guides and Pros are using my lures, and I get special requests from people of the professional fishing ranks quite frequently.  I am not at liberty to say which ones, or what they are buying, keeping a good secret is an important part of the fishing game.
  
  
  Matt:  As a custom lure builder, what are your hopes for the business?
  
  
  Nick:  My hopes for the business are that it will grow exponentially.  I was made to catch fish and enjoy the hell out of helping others do the same.  I get a big smile after one of my friends makes a beeline to my door after a fishing trip to show me pictures sharing the wonder, that is fishing for me.  Never have I been more truly happy than doing this.  Now you know the story of Nick... the abridged version.
  
  
  Matt:  Nick, thank you for sharing your story, I wish you luck in the future! (LuckyShamrockLuresandFlies).
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  

  

  Feather dressed Trebles

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  Nick Kemps: Field Testing

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  What a fish!

Seeing Stripes & RAIN!

I just took a glance at the weekend forecast and the initial consensus is that we should expect to see some rain this weekend!  It's about damn time is all I can say.  On my recon trips to the Shetucket/Thames river last weekend, the Salmon river fish ladder and Mashamoodus park in Moodus, and the CT river all are incredibly low.  Looking at the train bridge south of the Arrigoni in Portland/Middletown speaks volumes of how low the water in the CT river actually is as the steel boat/debris bumper plates to protect the pilings are nearly 5'-6' out of the water.  Friday and Saturday should produce a good bite with a warmer air low pressure system moving into the area as it should hold-off the cold front descending from Canada.  By Sunday we should see the temps dip down a bit moving us into somewhat "normal" temperatures Sunday-on, but all of this is dependent on the track of the low-pressure system.  If that system moves more to the East we will not see as much rain.

Ok I'm done pretending to be a weatherman, not that it really matters, my guess and yours is as good as theirs.  If we do get this rain, and we absolutely need it, we should see the mass of bait that has been accumulating outside the river mouths begin their intended run.  Which means... STRIPED BASS!  Yes, there are reports floating around out there that keeper sized bass are being caught in the rivers, most consistently out of the Hartford area.  Eels, sandworm, and the usual imitations are all working, so I've heard.  This past Saturday I fished out of Wethersfield cove to the south on the CT river from 5:00am-12:00 without a bump, I did see carp, trout, and some unidentified fish leaping from the water which was the one thing I was clinging to for hope of a bite.

If you are not into Striped bass, the small ponds that remain open year round are producing well for bass, pickeral, etc.   Tuesday night from 6:30-10:30 my fishing partner Evan and I scored about 50 fish, from crappie, sunfish, LMB, and pickeral.  I coaxed 6 bass around 2.5-3lbs to take a sweetbeaver in green pumpkin and watermelon and meet me in the boat.  (I will spare the pictures because I had my camera set up for night shots and they were all overexposed)  After sunset disaster struck for both of us, first around ten o'clock my partner lost a large bass to his fly tippet breaking.  As he slumped down in the boat with his head resting in his hands with grief, the bass who was well-stuck with a popper tried repeatedly to remove the bait by crashing the top of the water.  Based on the size of the splashes this was a huge bass.  My turn came about 20 minutes later when after changing rod setups to a surface popper myself I set the hook on a bass around the same size only to have my braided line completely turn around the spool on my Stradic.  I lost the fish due to an ineffective hook-set and lack of tension on the fish since I couldn't do so.  Some fishermen we are.  After I got home, I took all the line off down to the knot on the spool and taped it in so that doesn't happen the next time.