Practice examples of MCCI questions

On Thu, Aug 21, 2008 at 4:40 PM, flysoup wrote:

Here are some more head scratchers on the Masters Level

1) When and how do you mend a line?

Mend as in repair - After you feed it to the prop. Use angled cut and fuse with pliobond, whip and seal with zap a gap. seal with heat shrink tubing and coat with love-my-nails. See Al Buhr's book for details.(Try to maintain the sense of humor)

Keep the humor in it, Gary !!!

Mend as in change layout.

Mend is effected by rod tip motion after the STOP.

ITA = In The Air mends - perform as Hump mend - lateral movement back to mid line . Earlier application falls further from caster.

Delayed application lands the mend closer to rod tip.

ITA's can be simple or complex.

OTW =On the water mends

After cast lies down. Rod tip movement to throw slack up current that enhances drag-free drift. Generally slack is designed to lengthen th edrift bt can also provide strategic slack to allow a fly to be motionless in slackwater.

Good ! I like this simple definition of a MEND :-

MEND : REPOSITIONING THE LINE AFTER COMPLETION OF THE CAST. ...... G.

2) What is the difference between a Glacier, Freestone, Spring creek ?

Glacier fed is nearly synonymous wiith freestone in North America.

Spring creek is similar to tail water or Limestome creek.

I would not accept the answer, above. Suggest spending time reading Gary Borger's PRESENTATION pp. 46 - 49 (One word is a misprint. See if you can find it !) Also, multiple entries from: Ernest Schwiebert's, TROUT, PP 107-108, 461-487, 204-211.)(Before I could find an affordable copy of my own, I spent many hours at the IGFA library studying this book in preparation for the MCCI exam.) G.

Definitions from the literature:

Glacial river/stream: Waters derived from a melting glacier.

Spring Creek: Waters coming from beneath the Earth's surface.

Freestone river/stream : Waters derived from overland watershed. Also from a non-glacial mountain or high ground lake.

Tail water : Water from beneath a large water obstruction such as a dam.

Limestone creek : Waters of high base (low acidity) from land watershed above or below ground washing limestone rock.

Freestones are noted for spring run-off and late year low flows with harsh winter air temperature. Salmonids are opportunistic, pretty aggressive and may leave their lie to pursue potential invertebrate food source. Often lower fish density.

Fishing set-up is larger flies, impressionistiic. Matched tippet to fly on average or shorter leaders. Generally, I like a wind-fighter rod in the Rockies. > 6 weight, medium stiff. 8-9 ft.

OK. G.

Spring creek or tailwater - Noted for even temp and abundant variety and numbers of invertebrate food sources as well. Fish hold in lies and need to be "coddled' with "hatch mathcer tactics - generally size of fly must be closer to inherent organisms and shape. In clear, slower zones - color may also be a factor. Generally need longer leaders, finer tippets and more precise placement and clenaer drag-free drifts than in freestone environs. While a foter rod and lighter line weight may be used, longer leaders, wadeless fishing, camoglaged outline, quiet approach, avoiding line-ripping, camoflage, soft footfalls, and pre cast scouting are the keys to stealth.

OK. G. (Tail water such as that coming from beneath a high dam may well be even colder than that of a spring creek.)

3) Where would you look for natural fish food, to be able to match, on a trout stream?

Nymphs, Rocks, fish bellies, sticks and submerged stems above waterline for cases of stoneflies, damsels and dragons,

Emerges, seine the foam line, look in back eddies, pools, stick dams

Hatching insects. Spider webs, air, foliage

Yes. G.

4) What are the three different rises of a trout.

Slurp , Sip, Pounce, simple, complex, compund, Gulp, jump, dimpling, nebbing, cruising, suckling, tailing, splashy, noisy, - I have seen up to a dozen described in traditional literature - (Ovington, Marinaro, Swisher & Richards, G. Borger, Jardine)

Yes, indeed. Numerous local descriptions, too.

Many different descriptions of trout rises in the literature ! Gary Borger writes about various RISE FORMS: # Dimpling rises, # Simple rise, # Compound rise, # Complex rise, # Cruising rise, # Gulping rise, # Sucking rise, # Jumping rise.

(Few have witnessed the true jumping rises of the Saratoga fish which I caught in the Billabongs of Northern Australia. These fish look a bit like tarpon.... but gold colored. They feed on hovering dragon flies over the lily pads. One can hover a fly over the fish whence the critter leaps out of the water and grabs the fly ..... hookup without the fly ever hitting the water ! )

(One form of this might be called the, "diving rise". I've caught arctic grayling in stream riffles in Northern Alaska where the fish somehow spots your # 18 dry fly bobbing on the surface, traveling down stream at a great rate. The fish leaps out of the water as much as six feet away and comes down unerringly onto the fly from a 3' height !!!!!!!!!!)

Check out: Gary Borger, PRESENTATION, pp. 93 - 101.

Also: Vincent C. Marinaro, IN THE RING OF THE RISE, pp. 5 - 9. (Marinaro offers actual photos of these rises and includes one which he names the, "SWIVEL RISE".) G.

5) What changes would you do in equipment and casting when changing from;

Saltwater Flats

to Mangroves - Stouter tippet to turn them from tangling in roots. Ohterwise regular SW flats set-up works. Side arm casts.

to Open lakes - longer leaders and maybe longer rods, stiffer rod to fight wind, Wide open casting style

to Small creeks - longer leader, lighter tippet to match smaller fly size vs flats/lakes stealthy casting, reduce flash, etc. ine tight casting without lining the quarry in all places.

Good ! G.

6) What can you tell us about the striking of

Redfish on a foam popper - Set as strip strike

Trout sipping a dry fly - gentle slip strike raising rod tip

Bass crashing deerhair bass bug - Set strip strike combined with side-sweep

bonefish on a deep running fly. - strip strike and then get the tip up to free as much line above water to prevent coral head cut offs

Permit on a crab fly - Strip strike then drive it hard into old rubberlips with side pressure to firmly embed the hook.

From years of personal experience with these species:-

Redfish will sometimes drive you nuts by coming up on your foam popper with a bow wave which pushes it out of his way while he's trying to get it. Once the fish actually takes, I'd agree with an aggressive strip strike. The mouth of that fish (especially the large ones) is tough ..... many lost after the strike if not struck well.

Trout are often best hooked as you describe. (Interesting that Lefty catches as many trout as anyone by NOT striking at all ! I have not tried that ..... but I can see how that might work when using tiny flies with modern chemically sharpened hooks.)

Bass : I agree.

Bonefish : OK for small bones. For large ones, I never strike at all ..... just raise the rod tip and he'll hook himself. If a large bone explodes after the take and this coincides with your strike, it will break any tippet you are likely to choose.

Permit: Many fine flats anglers do it that way. I wait until feeling the pressure with the bent rod, then simply let the pressure set the hook. This fish can explode, too with disastrous outcome. My best results come from, "reading the fish" as it approaches the fly, then handling the take accordingly. That, however, takes years of practice.

Gordy

This off the top of my head.

Gary Eaton