This school has been in the works for too long.  Let's get kids involved in the sport we love!  Details below:

Youth Fly Fishing School
Ages: 13-18
July 7 and 11
Cost: $90

This exciting fly fishing school will focus on basic casting techniques, being safe on the water, knots, fly selection, rigging and FUN!

Evening on the Pond
Kings Bend Park – 170 Jefferson Road in Pittsford
Tuesday, July 7 – 6pm-8pm
We will discuss basic casting, knots, gear and fly selection. This time will prepare us for the full day portion of the school and give participants items to practice during the week.

Full Day on a Trout Stream
Canawaugus Park, on Route 251 in the Village of Scottsville
Saturday, July 11 – 8am-2pm
Reinforcing and fine-tuning the skills discussed in the evening session, participants will have ample time to practice casting, work on knots and rigging, insect identification, fly selection and lots of time to fish! 

Bottled water and snacks are provided. Participants are asked to bring their own lunch. Locations are subject to change depending on conditions.

Please bring the following:
NYS Fishing License (ages 16+)
Bag lunch
Gear list:
Fly rod and reel
Waders and boots
Sunscreen
Hat
Rain gear
Change of clothes
*Some gear available upon request

WSFF is hosting an Inland Trout School on Saturday, June 20.  Sure to be a lot of fun!  Details below:

Upper Genesee River
June 20 - 8am-2pm
Fee: $125
This all day trout school is designed to make you more of an independent angler. Skills to improve your fish catching ability will be introduced throughout the day. Items include bug identification, fly selection, reading the stream, gear, line management, basic dry fly and nymphing techniques, and a lot of fishing. Class size is limited to the first six participants.

Small groups will be established so instructors can focus on items that are important to you. Water and snacks will be provided, please bring a bag lunch. Location is subject to change depending on conditions.  Carpooling will be arranged as the date approaches.
 
Please bring the following:
NYS Fishing License
Bag lunch
Gear list:
Fly rod and reel
Waders and boots
Sunscreen
Hat
Rain gear
Bug juice if you stay and fish the evening
Change of clothes
*Some gear is available upon request

Contact me at [email protected] to register!

Been a slacker with the blog the past couple months.  Wide Sky had a very special fall and winter.  Here are some pics from the great season.  Spring run will pick up soon!

I've been able to get out a few times as of late.  Small streams are fishing well although the water is very low.  Good numbers of salmon still in the system.  Brown trout fishing is good and will continue to get better the next few weeks and through December.  Hoping to see more steelhead locally, but I'm not complaining.  Wide Sky friend Brian Bradfield with a nice fish.

We are now in the middle of summer, which brings selective fish and the longest mayfly hatch of the year – the TRICOS!  Tricos have a lot to offer.  Early morning outings, clouds of bugs, small flies and technical fishing…  I love it!

At the start of their hatch cycle, duns will come off very early in the morning and fall 2-3 hours later.  The spinner fall is usually complete by 9:30-10:30am, but can be as late as noon as we get further into summer.

This is a picture of a female trico. Females hatch after the males in the early morning and fall a couple hours later. Photo by Lucas Carroll.

Tricos are very small.  Usually size 20-24, but as small as size 26.  If you have trouble with small flies, try throwing a terrestrial like an ant or beetle.  You may also want to consider preparing your gear the night before.  Tie a couple flies on light tippet (make sure you have male and female duns/spinners) coil them, put them in a plastic baggie and make a go of it in the morning.

This is a great time to fine-tune your cast so work in some reach, mend and stack casts (plenty of videos on YouTube for this).  Use long leaders (9′-12′) and 6x-7x tippet.

The craziness is over in a few hours and you have the rest of the day to yourself.  Enjoy!

Tight lines,

Jessie Hollenbeck

Wide Sky is booking trico trips today.  If you are interested, please give us a visit at wideskyflyfishing.com or call 585-314-5089.

Very cool opportunity at Orvis Rochester next week.  At 1pm on March 22, Rochester native, 2011 Fly Rod and Reel Angler of the Year and Orvis Rod and Reel Marketing Manager, Tom Rosenbauer will be presenting information on small stream fly fishing and reading the water.  A question and answer period will follow.

Tom has fished many of our local fisheries and is always eager to share his experiences.  Tom has a great way of simplifying fly fishing in his podcast - Orvis Fly Fishing Guide Podcast - and his many books.  Hope you can make it out!

Visit the Orvis Rochester page for details.

We are excited to offer two fly fishing camps in 2014.  These camps are great for beginners, folks looking to get back in to the sport or maybe just need a refresher.  Very affordable and full of great information.

Please find additional details at Fly Fishing Chronicles.

Wide Sky will be partnering with the great folks at the Town of Victor Parks and Recreation Department.  Our Introduction to Fishing is designed to introduce beginners to the sport of fishing.  Of course, we think everyone should pick up a fly rod at some point, but we understand the beginning for many fly anglers is with a spin rod (and maybe even a night-crawler...).

See program description and details below:
Looking for a safe, fun and informative program for your children?  Topics include: gear, knots, safety, bait, lures, fish habitat, identification and regulations.  The class will conclude with a mini fishing tournament, where the participants will use the information they learned in class.  All registrants must provide their own gear (rod, reel, pencil/slip bobber, bait, lures, ball cap and sun glasses).  Instructor Jessie Hollenbeck is a New York State Licensed Fishing Guide (AHA First Aid, CPR, AED and ARC Water Safety Today trained).

Location: Victor Municipal Park
Date: October 13, 2013
Time: 9-Noon
Fee: $30
Ages: 7-12
 
Date: October 14, 2013
Time: 9-Noon
Fee: $30
Ages: 13-17

Please visit Victor Parks and Recreation at https://secure.rec1.com/NY/Victor-Parks-Recreation/reg.php to register online.

Wide Sky is excited to announce we are partnering with Craig Dennison on another Fly Fishing Camp.  The Camp will be held at Black Creek Park in Chili next Sunday, September 22 from 10am-4pm in the Pathfinder Pavilion.  Participants may register by visiting Chili Recreation Department.  The fee is $50 and is for ages 12 and up.  Please see camp description below:

Have you always thought it would be fun to try fly fishing? Fly Fishing Camp is a unique, hands-on program designed for the beginner or less experienced fly fisher. Enhance your fly fishing knowledge, improve your casting, identify aquatic insects/prey, understand tactics for various fisheries, learn new fly patterns, tie your own fly, determine what gear you need for fly fishing and compare notes with fellow anglers (program itinerary may change due to weather conditions). Time will be spent casting and fishing the pond at Black Creek Park (Pathfinder Pavilion). Some gear (rods, reels etc.) will be available, but we encourage you to bring your own. Also, please bring your own snacks and lunch.

Hope to see you there!

Shared some time on the water with Tom McDermott.  We were able to catch some fish, but the low water is making fish weary and difficult to put a fly in front of.

Tom was able to land this nice brown on a midge pupa under an indicator.

We saw some tricos, but nothing in great numbers.

This picture was from a couple weeks ago.  Seems as though the trico fishing has picked up since then.