NO BS ALLOWED!

    Fly Fishing on the Republican is as tricky as it is simple. I understand that sounds very contradictory but its true. This is not a large stream. As I've said its maybe 30ft accross at its widest. And sometimes only 5 to 7 feet during the hot summer months when local crop irrigation drops the water levels. Some streches are very windy with meandering curves every 50 feet or so and have heavy tree growth. And other parts are long, open and run through open pasture range with no trees for miles. Its because of these diverce conditons that picking ones gear carefully is so important. Don't get me wrong we aren't talking about Steelheading here. For the most part any ol inexpensive 4-6 wt fly rod will work, but one should put some thinking into it before they just grab a rod and start walking.  Here is some of the criteria that I have based my tackle on.
     1) Rods.   I actually have a few different rods for the job (not at the same time). Each one has a bit of a specific purpose. I have a Pflueger Medalist 8ft 7wt matched with a Scientific Angler  Medium Arbor reel. This is the rod I keep handy incase the day comes that I do find some carp. Its a rod I've had forever and its always been so good to me that I just can't bear to not use it for something. My newest rod is a Eagle Claw Featherlight Fiberglass 7ft 5/6wt matched with a small Okuma Sierra 4/5wt reel. I've only had it a few months and I'm totally in love. And last but certainly not least is my Custom made Japaneese bamboo rod. Its a 8ft 6wt matched with a beautieful old Pflueger GEM reel. I've had this reel since I started fly fishing roughly 22 years ago. Like I said before any old rod will work but I have choosen these three rods for a few reasons. First aside from the bamboo the other two rods are fairly inexpensive. So if something were ever to happen and one were to break I'm not going to have a heartattack. More importantly is the size of the river itself. I've tried a 9ft trout rod out here and it was awful. There is often a lot of overgrowth and tight corner to cast around. Shorter rods take advantage of that. On the other hand its the fish that steer me away from tiny ultralight gear. I've taken a 3lb bucketmouth bass out of this creek, I've pulled some mean little channel cats out. And I've seen pictures of 24 inch browns caught here. I don't want to mess around with any of those on a iddy biddy 2wt. This isn't just pocketwater with brookies. There is always the chance of running into a decent size fish.
    2) Line.  All my fly lines for this creek are Weight Forward Floating. I try and use the best quality line I can afford. But lets be truthful. This isn't the place to be wasting your money on expensive line. Good quality yes, High Priced no.
    3) Flies.  As I said in an earlier post the fly selection needed here isn't real big. My fly box contains a few Adams in size 12, and a handful of Elk Hair Caddis in size 12, but dry flies are not the rule here. Soft hackles and very simple nymph patterns are my favorites. When the panfish are on the prowl I really enjoy using a micro popper. Closed cell foam poppers in size 8. Bright yellow, and black are the two colors that really seem to work best. And lets not forget the good ol Mico Bugger. A wooly bugger tied on a size 8-10, in white and black. Carp flies can be as simple as a San Juan worm, to something more along the lines of a bonefish fly.
   4) Everything else.  I try not to carry a whole ton of gear when I fish no matter where I am. But I do like to carry a few essentials. A small container of split shot, some fly floatant, Clippers, Forecepts, pocket knife. A small fly box and a camera. I do have a small landing net and whenever I carry it I hate it cause its always getting snagged on weeds. And everytime I wish I had it I'm not carring it. There no winning with that one.
    I prefer a small back pack personally. I've tried a few hip packs over the years and just never really liked them. Vests have never been my thing. But the small back pack or better yet a small sling pack works great. My pack has some insolation in it for keeping a couple bottles of water (or beer) cold. I prefer flats wading style pants and wading shoes to actual waders. In the cold months there just isn't a good reason to need to cross the water and in the summer its just to stinkin hot. And polarized glasses. Like most fishing situations good polarized sunglasses are almost as important as your rod.
   Thats really about it. I always practice catch and release so I have never had use for a stringer or basket. Its really all about just having a rod and reel, a few essentials and a sence of adventure. This style of fishing is in my opinion the anti pretentious fly fishing that seems to go along with a lot of bigger colorado rivers. There are no fly shops out here on the plains. No Orvis sponsered guides with big fancy trucks and driftboats full of hi tech gear. This is Huck Finn approved fishing. All are welcome but leave your bullshit at the door type fishing. That's why I like it. .