Rajeff Sports

For two years I have used this same set up for Steelhead with an Airflo Skagit Compact in the Winter and Scandi Compact in the Summer/Fall

It used to be you had a big winter rod and a smaller summer rod. Advances in fly lines made the way for the ultimate compromise to combine The big and little rods to do all the work. A 13 ‘ 7 weight was the middle ground.

It is so nice to just keep it simple with one rod for the year. My one rod has gone through it all and seen above average abuse. Thrown in the boat or the back of the truck countless times and wet for days….make that weeks on end, from constant days of guiding and playing. Scratched, mangled, and trampled it has stood the test of time and not broken!

It is fun to have a variety of rods though. Little sticks for those small “a” run summer steelhead and big trout. Long rods for those big rivers and “b” run fish. Casting a variety of line lengths and an assortment of rods has its challenges and I find a challenge pretty fun.

On the contrary to a challenge I also find easy, effortless, and simple to be quite pleasurable. It is just nice to be dialed in. I found by using this one rod 80% of my time spent on the river over the last two years has given me confidence in my approach. With that comes success, whether it be on the Sandy, Grande Ronde, Clearwater, Klickitat, Deschutes, Skagit, or John Day Rivers. My Echo Dec Hogan 13′ #7 weight has landed steelhead on them all! The best steelhead rod ever in my eyes. Guess I have to give the TR 13′ #7 a try. That is… if this thing ever breaks.

Been a while, and I wanted to stop in here and say hi.  Since my last post life has been full speed ahead. Spent a major amount of days on the Deschutes, Grande Ronde, And John Day guiding Steelhead! Every bit of free time has been a joy to spend with Mia and Tegan. We did some really fun cast and blast trips as a family. Mia out fished and hunted me again. We found a great top secret spot, that takes three days to float, and it has loads of wild Steelhead and Pheasants! Tegan turned a year old on December 7.  We had a super John Day Steelhead season! Check out the end of season report here! the Sandy River season has started with a bunch of high water and crazy storms. It looks like this week will be the opening kick off for us. I put together a 2009 Sandy River forecast so click it here to find out more.

Cheers,

Marty

I have a little time off. Wrapped up our John Day Bass season a few weeks ago. It was killer! Check out my report. http://www.littlecreekoutfitters.net/newsletter.php?letter_id=28&lettertype=&pageaction=browse

So I have been done guideing on the JD since the 22 of July but still have only been able to log a few nights sleep at home. Been on the go with Mia, Tegan, and Cedar between weddings, dog training, and doing a bit of steelheading on the Klickitat and Deschutes. Stopped by the Rejeff digs and that was awesome. Played with some lines with Tim and Jamie. (hey Tim, did you catch any sharks?) Took home some lines and the DH 4119. Loaded it up wth a 40+ wf6. I really want to put this baby to the test and land a summer steelhead with it. I hooked up and lost one after two jumps and the feel of this rod is simply sweet! You can feel every fin on the fish move! This is a true trout doubler hander! I cant wait to hit the bass with it too. The family and me are off to the Deschutes in the morning for a three day float. Good day all!

 Hey all! Nice work to the fellas at Rajeff sports. This is a great idea and I look forward to the interactive aspect of this format. I never have been a blogger, just a fishing guide. Before that I made my living in the ski (snowboard actually) industry. My parents probably wonder when I might get a real job  I just finished guiding for the season on the Sandy River here in Oregon. It was a great season that lasts from December through May. It was lots of fun as we had some good success this year out there. I swear as fly lines get better my job gets easier. The skagit compact from Airflow has increased my productivity as a guide for sure in the winter.  (check out my reports on my web site)

My wife Mia and I had our first child last December 7th 2007! We named her Tegan Loretta Sheppard and she weighed 6 lbs. 10 oz. going 19 1/2″! It is so great to come home after guiding to her sweet smile. It is always a joy to see Mias art come to life after being on the river a few days in a row. She paints Steelhead!

I suppose to make a name for yourself in this industry you must eventually learn to talk in front of a big group of people. From trade shows to slide shows  a successful guide must do a bit of networking to keep busy. I just got finished with my first “real” presentation. Every year on the Sandy River A large group of spectators show up to be a part of the biggest spey conclave on earth. This is a super good event that the Fly Fishing Shop in Welches, Oregon hosts. An estimated 400 to 500 people showed up with some traveling half waty around the world to be here. I was real nervous and things went really well after the initial butterflies wore off. The demo was on the water and my show was a bit on “techniques for local waters” I had been guiding and fishing with the Echo Classic7130 all winter lined with an Airflow 510 grain skagit compact . In my presentation I used a Echo DH7130 rod lined with the same 510 skagit compact . This was my first time on the water with this rod but knew I would be comfortable with doing a demo with any of the Echo rods. What a great rod that throws high line speed laser loops! I would like to try a 540 skagit compact line on this rod as I believe it would be better suited for bigger flies. I shall let you know how it goes. Thankfully my demo was first thing in the morning and I did not have to follow any of those “real” super star casters. It was nice to be the opening act and really get to learn and enjoy from the rest of the demonstrators. I even had a chance to witness Tim Rajeff give his program. For such a talent he is very humble! He had a very interactive show with the crowd. 

The Sandy River Spey Clave was great and a positive way to end my season guiding there. I am now preparing for a very busy summer guiding multi day camp trips on the John Day River for Smallmouth Bass. Talk about fun! They are a blast with tons of top water action. I have my Bass season fully booked with the exception of taking fathers day off. This will last until August and then I will resume the dream of guiding for Steelhead on the Deshutes, Grande Ronde, and John Day Rivers and finishing off the year full circle back to the Sandy River in December.

Cheers,

Marty