Things I Really Like Week: Headgear

Today's selection for "Things I Really Like Week" is something that almost every angler has but few think about, unless of course you forget yours on a hot sunny day. For a follically challenged angler like myself there are a few things I can do without on the water, but a good hat isn't one of them.

Aside from keeping my scalp from shedding its skin like a dried out serpent, a good hat is essential for keeping you cool or warm depending on the season. A good piece of head wear keeps the glare out of your eyes and allows your sunglasses to work better. The bill of a ball cap can even save you from the occasional fly embedded in the nose.

A good piece of head wear can make a break an angler's cred in the eyes his fellow fishers. For instance, I might wear a Indiana Jones style fedora on the water if the Editorial Trophy Wife would allow it, but she tells me the ball cap suits me better. I am a definitely a low profile guy and a few of my favorites on and off the water are my well worn Reel Pure glare proof lid and my UNC Tarheels cap. Both garner a lot of comments now that we have moved North of the Mason Dixon Line. The UNC logo says I can't wait for round ball season and the solo fly logo on the Reel Pure lid marks me as an unrepentant fly angler.

As you can tell from the stacks of them that I own. Fishing hats are one of the many things I really like.

Things I Really Like Week: Personal Pontoon Boats

For my second post of "Things I Really Like Week" I have chosen the personal pontoon boat. Mine is a Waterskeeter (and no the pontoons are not pink as some have suggested) but rather are burgundy. I spent less than $400 on this boat that basically fits into a duffel bag (a very large one mind you) and allows me to fish everything from tail races to still water.

The boat can go from fully disassembled to ready to fish in 15 minutes. It comes with two storage packs that hook and loop to the tubes, a rod holder, an adequate anchor system and a place for a small cooler. Once assembled, I can hoist the whole thing onto my back and carry it down to the river.

The boat handles like a dream in both still and moving water. Mine is more of a low water boat but I once got caught on a tail water with the several generators open and inadvertently took her through, what in my mind was, at least a class three rapid. I distinctly remember the view I had during the ride, water, sky, water, rock wall, sky etc.... I wouldn't recommend it because I have seen one of these boats flipped, but I managed.

The ease of assembly, the small size, and the fun of having a stable watercraft that I can take just about anywhere makes my personal pontoon boat one of the "Things I Really Like."

Things I Really Like: Orvis Helios Fly Rod

I have decided to dub this week, "Things I Really Like Week" here at FlyfishMagazine.com. As the name suggests, my posts this week will be all about fly fishing related gear (and other things) that I really like. By way of disclosure, most of this we purchased on our own. Some, like the subject today, were most excellent Birthday gifts from the Editorial Trophy Wife. Some of these things came in the form of schwag. Trust me when I say that an item's inclusion in "Things I like Week" has nothing to do with origins and everything to do with performance.

My Orvis Helios 9' 5 Wt fly rod is probably is hands down the most versatile fly rod that I own. I have used it to cast everything from size 22 midges to the three inch long dragon fly over a dropper that you see me casting in the picture above. It is light as a feather which means you can cast it all day without wearing your arms out. It has caught everything from bluegill and bass to trout. It came close to catching a massive carp once but the tippet failed me. It has bluelined, brownlined, and just about any other kind of "line" I could get it near.

My own casting issues aside, this rod casts like a dream and I have found that it really excels when trying to punch the fly into tight spaces under the cover of bushes or between boulders on a mountain stream. Owning a high end fly rod is something that I thought (almost swore) I would never do. However, since I got the chance to put the Helios through it's paces, I have found it difficult to pick up any of my other rods. The Helios has quickly become my go to rod for 5 weight quarry.

We all have our favorite things and as the title "Things I Really Like" implies, these are a few of mine. Feel free to share your own in the comments section. More of mine will be posted as "Things I Really Like Week" continues.