Fly Tying Expo - Houston, TX

Paul and I decided to check out the annual Fly Tying Expo held at the Holiday Inn on the SW Freeway - an hours drive for each of us. Tracy came with me and we arrived at about 9:30am. There were several tyers of all ages and some vendors.

We watched one guy for a while spinning deer hair and making an old fashioned bug. I didn't think Paul was going to move for a while - this guy was pretty good. I have to confess..... Paul is new to the game and since our initial trip to Bass Pro, an evening of fly tying in Needville, and several stops at the local fly shops, he is as hooked on the whole thing as I am. I guess the thought of heading to Utah for a winter fishing trip on the Green River doesn't hurt when it comes to fishing fever. I think I was convinced that he was fully hooked when he told me about stopping to cut the tail off a fresh killed squirrel on the way to the Expo.

I took some pictures of some of the flies we saw being made and tried to tie some later when I got home.

We picked up some odds and ends of dyed deer hair and some buck tails. We looked like a couple of drug dealers when we were dividing them up out in the parking lot. After lunch we decided to try some casting at a city park in South Houston. Luckily Tracy had brought some knitting and she hung out in the car while we went to the water.

I tied on a #16 pheasant tail bead head and hooked a small winter-stocked rainbow on the third cast. Paul wasn't sure he wanted to change what ever he had tied on and I must admit his catch turned out to be bigger and to have more fight than my little rainbow. (Catching a duck gives new meanng to the term FLY fishing) We had a good time casting and dreaming about rising trout on moving water. DJWB