International Panfish Appreciation Day

Well, it's been finalized. The second saturday of May will now be a holiday to all who are employed by the federal, provincial, and municipal goverments. Knows internationally as Panfish Appreciation Day or P.A.D for short  2012 will be the first year for this historic and well thought-out event.

And just look at this little guy! So bright and hopeful. It's truly a damn shame this holiday wasn't put into place years ago. BTC is a firm believer in promoting the active targeting of panfish because as some of you may know, they fight hard on light gear ( fly guys, give it a shot!) and they taste wonderful. Don't knock it until you've tried it

 

So whether you are in southern ontario, planning to put the hurt on some black crappie, or maybe high up in the muskoka's taking those springtime blues out on the local perch population, enjoy the day set aside for these worthy adversaries! And don't be afraid to put a meals worth in the livewell either!

Float Tube Blues.

Float Tubes. What a great friggin idea! Whoever came up with those excellent devices was a genius and we seriously owe some respect to that said individual! You get a good ol' fashion workout and can sneak into some out-of-the-way places with the fly rod that most people cannot.


The float tube can be used virtually anywhere. As the gentlemen that made the fly fishing film " Tampum " have clearly proven, the float tube is an under-rated weapon in the arsenal available to fly guys and conventional junkies alike. Check out Panfish Pat's bucketmouth below. This fish was caught on a lake where gas powered motors are prohibited and thus, the fish do not recieve much pressure from anglers other than around public access areas. The rewards for a 15 minute leg workout are well worth it.

If you haven't gotten an opportunity to fish from one of these, we here at BTC recommend it. It'll be some of the most fun you've had fishing in quite some time. We're willing to bank on it!

Until Next Year

As most of you probably know, BTC has been following the First Annual Heinz Skitzvelvet Invitational, which took place this past weekend from Friday 13th until Monday 16th. The Competition was fierce, as was the weather but the four anglers that made it to the event battled hard none the less.

Friday saw anglers duke it out for big panfish on light fly rods as walleye/pike season did not open until the following day. All four anglers found good numbers of big fish, some of fish were close to a pound in wieght. Dries, Nymphs, and small streamers - they couldn't go wrong!

Come saturday and sunday, the weather took a nose-dive. Cold temperatures and driving rain kept the fish down deep and scarce but our four competitors wastes no time changing tactics to keep bends in the rods. 

   " It was really tough out there on those two particular days. The wind was driving in from the north east, the temps plummeted, and the fish just weren't on the bite. I resorted to using Crystal Meth.....and I don't mean the fly pattern either.."  Said Mikey Fitzgerald in a recent interview with Forbes Magazine.

Monday was the last shot the four anglers had to get in some last minute fishing, and while only two of them made it out and no fish were caught, the damage had been done. Nick Donovan, from Trenton Ontario, was awarded the prize money and title as Heinz Skitzvelvet Invitational Angler Of The Year for his outstanding angling abilities, as well as number of differet species caught throughout the weekend. Behind The Cast cannot congratulate you enough Nick!

White Suckers

                                  Slender White Suckers, All In A Row
Slender White Suckers, Look At Them Go
Swimming Upstream With Sex On The Mind
Watch Them Closely And You Might Find
That They'll Take A Fly Among The Rocks And Roots
And Can Be Squashed Quite Quickly Under The Studs On Your Boots

Slender White Suckers, Spawning In Redds
Slender White Suckers, With Those Nasty Looking Heads
Sucking Up Steelhead Eggs Just Previously Laid
And Staying Quite True To Your Given Name
We Catch You And Hurdle You Into The Woods
Learn How To Fight, And Give Us The Goods!

Slender White Suckers Won't Give You Your Licks
Slender White Suckers Can Sometimes Be Pricks.
So Start Ripping Those Suckers Out Of Their Beds
And Start Smashing Those Suckers In Their Strange Heads.
Don't Be Afraid And Don't Have Any Doubts
When  It Comes To A Super Sucker Knock-Out

It's A Game That, As Anglers, We Can Readily Play
So Mash And Mangle Your White Suckers Today!


 WARNING: Consult your local conservation officer or ministry of natural resourses before conducting a super sucker slaughter fest.Check local bylaws and regulations. BTC does not embrace violence against white suckers. If you have violent tendancies towards white suckers, consult your family physician about your anger issues. Practice Catch And Release.

Opening Day Dreams

Hey to all you opening day fanatics! What are the two things you can pretty much count on when it comes to opening day for trout in southern ontario?

1.  Rain - It always has rained on opening day, and always will. That the universe shitting on us for being the way we are, which if you are a die-hard, is fine by all means

2. Crowds - They are unavoidable unless you fish for something other than steelhead, or have access to private land, but in these glory days we live in,
nothing is truly private anymore!

So how do we avoid both of these? Well the rain one is easy! Don't go out if it's raining or invest in good quality rain gear. Problem solved, but unfortunitely we can't do anything about the blown out river you are wasting you time fishing....sorry.

Now that we've taken care of issue #1, lets move on to #2.

Crowds...what a pain in the ass! Nobody likes them, and they're like that rash you got after a night of hard drinking with your buddies down at the club, and ended up taking that girl home.. and payed her in the morning....It's everywhere!

How do we avoid crowds? Tough question to answer...There is two ways of looking at this. Do you want to really avoid crowds, or CLEAR a crowd? If you're looking to clear one, nothing says " get the hell out of my run!" better than firing some warning shots into the air from down the bank. No need to send anyone home in a gortex body bag, but a few rounds aimed at the heavens will clear a run quicker than anything.

WARNING: BTC is not responsible for the imprisonment of any of its readers. Consult your local law enforcement before firing single shot, semi auto, or fully automatic weapons streamside.

To avoid crowds, we simply recommend taking a look at streams that are empty of steelhead, but perhaps have resident populations of brook trout or brown trout. They are a fun change of pace and take you to some beautiful rustic places. Sure, they're not steehead, but they usually come "crowd - free " which is nice.

Mike Fitzgerald

Mike Fitzgerald

Age: 22
Sex: Yes Please
Height: 5'7''
Weight: 154lbs.


When most people talk about all around nice guys, usually they are referring to Mike Fitzgerald. Known fly angling fanatic, he has accomplished more at the youthful age of 22 than most can in a lifetime. Visually stunning, charming, and clever, this magnificant specimen knows how to fish. He is credited with introducing Catch And Release to Northern Vietnam, teaching the Pope how to double haul, as well as being the record holder for the biggest fly-caught coho salmon on 10lb tippet, while casting from the wing of a C-47 in flight, just to name a few.

What Mike isn't recognized for, is being the Head Of Directors for the Heinz Skitzvelvet Invitation - the event which BTC has been following for the last week. Behind The Cast was able to get an interview with Mike before he dropped off the charts on another wild adventure.

BTC: Mike, we cannot thank you enough for sitting down for this interview with BTC. You're a truly incredible guy and the followers of Behind The Cast cannot get enough of you!

MF: Hey, it's really no problem. I've always got time to talk fishing with anyone. Just the other day, I was out on the water and I got a call on the ol' cellular telephone. It was my buddy Montel Williams. He wanted to know if the steelhead were on the bite. Such a classy guy!

BTC: So, you hold quite the incredible record. Care to tell us how it all came about?

MF: Oh, that whole C-47 thing? Meh, it was nothing really. The coho just happened to be in around the same time I was doing a Demo on casting from vintage world war 2 aircraft wings, and everything just sort of came together. Definitely wasn't expecting it though.

BTC: Incredible, simply outstanding! You're a national treasure sir!

MF: Really...it was no big deal.

BTC:  Good lord you are impressive.......(extended silence) So, you are also the head of Heinz Skitzvelvet Invitational. What are your hopes for this years 3 day event. Do you have certain expectations for yourself and the guests?

MF: Well personally, I don't know any of the other guests and when I decided that I to would compete, It was more of a public relations scheme than anything. I'm sure the guests attending are good guys, regardless of what I've read about them on your blog profiles. That Nick Dono...dono....that Nick, he seems kind of stuck up and close minded...but like I said, he's probably different. Never judge a book by it's cover kids!

BTC: Well on behalf of the blog, we'd like to wish you all the best at the first competition. How did you go about choosing the venue for the H.S.i

MF: My drinking buddy, Kieth Richards and myself chose it. We were throwing empties at strippers and wherever the first stripper to be knocked unconsious was originally born, that's where is was to be held. Veronica was born in Perth, Ontario, and although she's no longer able to use the left side of her body due to an unfortunite bottle accident, our thoughts are with her.

BTC: Dear lord, you always have the funniest stories!  Well Mike, that's all the time we have, but again, thank you for taking the time to talk with us! Good luck!

MF: No problem! Peace be with you.


Stay tuned to Behind The Cast as we reveil the rules about the Heinz Skitzvelvet Invitational!

Peter Louis Garcia

Peter Louis Garcia
43 yrs old
Business Analyst
170 lbs.

   Peter is a mad man. I fishing freak hell bent on causing chaos to anything with gills. This fishing machine from the Phillipines is committed to the chase of all things fly fishing, and an excellent addition to the roster of the Hienz Skitzvelvet Invitational. While getting an interview from him was next to impossible, what with Peter being so busy analyzing things and whatnot, BTC was lucky enough to get a few quick words over a phonecall. Here's that short interview...

BTW: Peter, this is Behind The Cast Blog calling, We'd
           like to ask you a couple questions about your
           participation in the upcoming Hienz Skitzvelvet
          Invitational!

PLG: I'm eating dinner with my family! I've asked you not to call here
           6 times, so PLEASE, stop calling this number! I've never even
          heard of your stupid blog! Leave me alone!!!

BTC: Thanks again Peter! Good luck at the Invitational!


 Wow folks! What a class act! If this is any indication of what's coming at the H.S.I, we can honestly say this is going to be an event of epic moments and a life-changing experience!