Transcript: Landon Mayer Drops In
Transcript
Marvin:
[0:04] Hey folks, it's Marvin Cash, the host of the Articulate Fly and our buddy Landon Mayer is back in town for another episode. How you doing Landon?
Landon:
[0:12] I'm great.
Marvin:
[0:13] How are you doing Marvin? As always, just trying to stay out of trouble in this time of year, stay cool. How's the fishing been in your part of the world?
Landon:
[0:20] Yeah, I hear you there. It's been good. Fishing's been good.
It's definitely timing is everything and fly fishing in life, right?
So it's been warm water, getting out early, staying out late in the evening, just trying to time the day to defeat the heat and most importantly, protect the resource and make sure the fish are living and swimming to fight another day.
So we've had warmer temperatures and reservoirs and rivers alike and just some amazing weather from hail storms to tornadoes to flash floods, we pretty much received it all.
The good news I'm happy to announce is we've stayed away from a lot of the fires that tend to play Colorado, so I'm thankful for that, but it's it's been a warm one for sure.
Marvin:
[1:03] Yeah, it's kind of interesting because I mean, I guess, you know, if you don't move and you kind of fish down in the valley floor, you know, I've been with you, you know, on the dream stream and there's not a lot of flow to that water.
So I'd imagine if you get really hot, that water spikes up pretty quickly.
Landon:
[1:18] Absolutely. Yeah, exactly.
A hundred percent. And yeah, you got to get back out, man. and that was a blast sitting in the dream with you and being able to do cleanups with you.
And it's 100% true, the water that we would normally have this time of year would be post runoff, but even flows as high as two, three, 400 CFS is pretty common for us.
And we're dealing with flows anywhere from 130 down to even 70 CFS on the dream stream.
And Cheeseman and Deckers have been plagued with some floods which was catastrophic event and very unfortunate.
So we've received rain, But instead of being a slow, easy rain coming in, it's been really harsh and direct and fast and furious.
So yeah, we're definitely looking for more water to be cooled off and some shorter days and some cooling evenings, but we're definitely enjoying some of the hatches early for sure.
Marvin:
[2:08] Yeah, and I guess, you know, I guess the magic number is right, you know, once you get above about 66 to 68, you really need to find something else to do, right?
Landon:
[2:18] Absolutely. I appreciate you bringing that up. But 68 is the number for sure.
If you're getting close to 68, you know, wait with caution, fish with caution.
And anytime it reaches that, it's best to just leave the resource and the fish to rest. And we don't want to fight lethargic fish or fish that are battling temperatures.
And one of the things I love to do is, you know, getting out early, you have a chance to be pre-hatched is a good way to think of it, where you're throwing the tractors or you're throwing flies that are going to be arriving to fish, even when when it's warm and you can't fish to them in midday hatches, the trout know that there's gonna be some midges and some trichos that are gonna be coming down the pipeline.
So you can fish those. And in the evening hours, some of the best caddis fishing can be found, you know, anywhere from five, six o'clock p.m.
Until dark. So you can have a chance to throw a larger caddis and larger dries, and that can be really productive as well.
So it allows you a chance to not only, while you're giving back and protecting the resource, a chance to fish some unique flies or even unmatch the hatch and get some of those fish to look up. So you can find some awesome rewards.
Marvin:
[3:19] Yeah. So have you been kind of juggling your guide days to kind of do half days and either take people out early or take people out late?
Landon:
[3:26] Absolutely. Yeah. Half days.
I've also targeted some of the reservoirs and deeper waters, taking out the fly craft, trying to hit some of the zone where there's drop ledges from three to eight to 12 feet or even beyond.
So that's worked out and also hitting different species, concentrating on carp, hitting some pike bites in the stormy afternoons.
And it gives you a chance to not only have opportunities for large trout and opportunities for hatches to chase trout, but you can do the same with the other species and still waters and rivers.
But definitely bouncing around and making it a half day adventure.
And I think the afternoon bite can extend a little bit longer than the morning bite.
So I think I've been really focusing on that and tend to do some of the early afternoons, you know, and the late evening hours can give you sometimes four or five, even six hours, depending on what the weather's doing.
Marvin:
[4:16] Yeah, and I would imagine, right, you're probably maybe stepping up on tip it a little bit so you can bring those fish in a little bit faster, even if you are kind of within kind of the high end of safe.
Landon:
[4:26] Exactly, finally have a chance to not worry about six or seven X game, and late in the afternoons towards the evening, you can get into the four X and even three X on the larger drive.
So it gives you the chance to not break fish off, to keep flies, you know, in the box, not in mouths, and also have a chance to get fish in a little bit faster and not overplay the fish. So that that definitely helps in a big way.
Marvin:
[4:47] Yeah. And are there options kind of in South Park or elsewhere for people to kind of go up to try to beat the heat to.
Landon:
[4:54] I think so. I mean, the reservoirs are the biggest draw, I think, for the warming days.
If you have some of the bays and edges of the reservoirs and three to five feet of water still get incredibly warm.
But once you start getting some of those deeper pockets and zones like Spinney and Eleven Mile provide for anglers, you can get down to 15, 20 feet and the fish remain really healthy.
And, you know, you've got temperatures that are remaining in the low 60s and the bite seems to be pretty active.
So it's nice to do that. It's not always a a top water game, but you can really concentrate on depth control and have opportunities that aren't always around and available. Those are some pretty deep still waters, especially 11 mile exceeding 100 feet.
Marvin:
[5:32] Yeah, there you go. And of course, if you didn't have enough to do, you probably have, I don't know how many yetis in your crawl space getting ready for clean the dream, right?
Landon:
[5:42] It's awesome. You say that I'm so excited for this year.
It's the eighth annual and as you know, you'd seen the process, you were kind enough to come out last year and support us Marvin and be here at the house with me and see how it all comes together and yeah Yeti's Yeti's goodies have come in.
We've got some great opportunities this year for trash removal.
We've got some really good companies on board and I I think in the long run you know we look at clean the dream it's it's nice because it really has become an annual event that a lot of anglers look forward to and it's it's nice for that to be something that I'm involved with and others are involved with Brandon Kramer and Scott Robertson his father, so many great people that are on board to help us out.
So it really it's made a big difference and it's nice to just give back to the resource and the communities too knowing we have that on board.
Marvin:
[6:27] Yeah and I guess the great thing too right is it's not just the you know the drain you're cleaning the entire watershed on that day.
Landon:
[6:35] It's yeah, it's incredible we have you know all of South Park You've got 200 miles in circumference and we've got three still waters Over 20 miles of public river systems and we literally did last year we accomplished it and you were part of that marvin We did South Park meaning 11 mile spinney and terror reservoirs We did badger basin tomahawk spinney swa and the drain stream and collectively I think it was 275 volunteers showed up and collected 1,200 pounds of trash and a couple notes on new sponsorship and something that's really we're excited about it couldn't believe this happened as Colin Dunn stepped up and was kind enough to reach out to us and and help us find a new sponsorship and that's with Michael Bukowski and Pikes Peak Forestry.
They're bringing up a 20-yard dumpster, they're going to collect the trash, haul it back to Colorado Springs, get an exact weight of it and dispose of it for us.
So they're one of the biggest sponsors we've had like Yeti for this event over the years.
And it's, we're just super excited to have them on board. In addition to all the other great companies that are there, Fishpond, Yeti, Scientific Anglers, Sims, so many have stepped up to help us out, but that's really something that we're excited about and look forward to that relationship for years to come.
Marvin:
[7:51] Yeah, that's pretty cool. And I think, didn't I see on Instagram too, that Adam Hortonberry is sending use some flies.
Landon:
[7:58] Yeah, Adam's stepped up. We have individuals stepping up to offer.
He offered $200 in his personal store for flies, and he's a wonderful man and a great fly designer and tire.
And yeah, just individuals doing what they can to make it something that they're very proud of.
And Lucas Farnham does the same. He owns the Blackbird Diner restaurants in Colorado Springs.
And he stepped up since the beginning as really our backbone financially to fund the food and the tools and bags and everything we need to collect all the trash within the valley. So there's some amazing individuals doing work as well.
It's pretty cool to see it.
Marvin:
[8:33] Yeah, and I think one of the neatest things, you said 250 people last year, but I think the amazing thing is the number of people that travel significant distances. I mean, they're not from the Denver Metro area to come out and pitch in.
Landon:
[8:46] It's amazing. I mean, from other states, people drive, people fly, people come out to be a part of this.
And, you know, when they go back home, It also spreads to their towns that they live in, their home waters.
They take pride in doing what they've done here, and I think show the same respect in their home waters and their local towns or cities and areas they live in.
You know, every individual counts, every piece of trash counts, and that's really the message we're trying to get across is just to protect these resources that we find love in, the resource that I find a career in.
And we wanna make sure that children and grandchildren, future generation of anglers can do the same thing and walk these beautiful banks and walk the still waters and know that you're not looking at trash you're looking at the pristine beauty that should be there from day one.
Marvin:
[9:34] Yeah absolutely and so let's kind of get down to brass tacks you know date and time and all that kind of good stuff.
Landon:
[9:41] Yeah, I appreciate that, Marvin. So it's August 26, Saturday, 8 o'clock AM. And it's on the Dream Stream, the section of the South Platte River, noted as Charlie Myers State Wildlife Area, below Spinney Reservoir.
And when you drive there, as far as location, there's a bridge parking lot.
It's the only bridge that crosses the river.
We all meet at the bridge parking lot at 8 AM. You can enjoy some orange juice, some donuts, some coffee, everybody waking up, gathering.
You get giveaway prizes just for showing up. Fish Pond with the packet out pods, other companies stepping up with a giveaway when you show up.
We give you trash. We have all the tools and utensils to be effective collecting trash. And then we come back after four or five hours. We have a great barbecue.
And then after that, we have this amazing raffle and it's just a giant celebration.
So all you need to do is show up at eight o'clock, bring your bug spray, bring some sunscreen, a hat, some shades. If you want to bring the waiters, please do. We're, you know, welcome to grab the waiters, pop in the still waters, pop in the river and help out or do it by land.
Bring the whole family, no age restrictions at all. We'd love to get the young kiddos in it, the people that have been in the Valley for numerous decades.
So it's gonna be awesome. I can't wait for that day to come.
Sooner than later, it's almost here.
Marvin:
[10:56] Yeah, and you know, another great thing maybe is to bring a pair of gloves if you got them, right?
Landon:
[11:01] Absolutely, gloves. We will have gloves available. We have pick up sticks, five gallon buckets.
Yeti's been producing the buckets for us and really stepping up to the plate.
Well, we do do those for giveaways every year, but yeah, gloves are a good thing to have.
And just anything you can think of when you're out there. I mean, a lot of the trash that we collect now is also micro trash.
So if you have any rakes or anything, you wanna bring up your own from home, it's always help out as well.
So micro trash, bigger trash items and gloves are definitely a big one.
And bug spray, I can't emphasize enough. We'll be in some marshy areas the trash can collect from wind blowing it all over the place, and that's a big one for sure.
Marvin:
[11:36] Yeah, absolutely. And no need to pre-register, right?
Landon:
[11:41] No, we've tried it in the past, and we found when people try to register, it's difficult because it really doesn't give us the tally and the market.
We want to provide an opportunity for people that don't even know about the event.
Let's say people are driving down the road and see this large gathering of people and the flags and the banners from the companies and smell the great food.
And they're like, hey, what's going on here? And those are the people that we also want to emphasize on and concentrate on giving back the information and knowledge to know that they can make a difference and they can join us every year to celebrate.
So, yeah, it's no registration required. Just bring yourself and any goods that you need with you and the good spirits and positivity and we'll all make a difference together.
Marvin:
[12:21] Yeah, and if folks want to either get more information or get a reminder of everything you just went through, where should they go?
Landon:
[12:29] I think the best place is you can find it on my website, the social medias, and, you know, a lot of the people that are spreading the word out there.
I'll have a couple posts coming up on my Instagram page, which is Landon Mare Fly Fishing. My Facebook page, Landon Mare Fly Fishing and Landon Mare both, the personal and the business page. Those are the best ones to find information.
And the poster really does give it away. But just remember, Claim the Dream, August 26th, 8 a.m.
At the bridge parking lot. And we'll have signs directing anglers in from every spot, from Highway 24 or even up County Road 23 or 59 from some of the back road entrances by 11 mile reservoir.
So you'll be able to find the flags and signs will lead you right to the parking lot.
Marvin:
[13:09] Yeah and do not speed in Lake George.
Landon:
[13:15] Yeah small towns they have they have a lot of sheriffs and state troopers that are looking at people rightfully so looking at people speeding but just remember it drops down to 35 40 each one of those towns even if you're blazing at 65.
Marvin:
[13:26] Yeah and speaking of speaking of blazing you know I've seen seen some of of your new bugs getting dropped on Instagram, what you got going on there.
Landon:
[13:40] Oh yeah, thanks for asking. It's been amazing. You know, I'm honored in being that I can wake up every morning and very, very thankful to be with these companies, work with the companies that I believe in giving back and believe in helping anglers succeed on the water.
And Unqua Feather Merchants is one of these great companies.
And my mentor, John Barr, and other great anglers, Russ Miller, Jacob Bursland, everybody I work with there, Brent Bauer, it's just awesome to see a company that produces flies that are allowing anglers to be successful and I never imagined fly design would be such a big part of my life and career and I knew that it was going to help out with guided trips but being able to reach past the anglers I fish with daily is something I'm truly thankful for and and this year I'm excited to announce we've got the Chubby Damsel out which is my first foam dry fly and damsels have been one of my favorite it hatches year after year and this thing floats like a mothership and hanging flies below or just individually through the chop and the waves it produce.
[14:40] The mini leech has been my standard, one of my beginning flies with Bruce Richardson from day one and I'm happy to announce that the big request from so many anglers is we need a hot bead on it.
We need an egg bead to make it an egg sucking leech. So we now have black and olive with the hot head leech.
So it's a hothead, many leaks that's available. And lastly is the Trident tube midge, a chironomid pattern with the orange wing bud with resin and four different colorations with green, red, black, and silver, red and black.
So we've completed that series and they're all in the pipeline.
They're all in house at Umpqua and I'm hoping those can be out in angler's hands sooner than later and help them out on the water.
Marvin:
[15:23] Well, there you go. You got, I know you're kind of working on this like everybody else kind of in the industry is, you know, anything you can tell people about where you're going to be during show season in early 2024.
Landon:
[15:34] Sure. Yeah, I'm looking, I'm hoping to do all the shows with the Fly Fishing Show, you know, it's been great year after year, and I know you're part of that, that circus is what we call ourselves the big traveling roadies, but it's awesome to be out there with, you know, Ed Engel and Jeff Currier, myself, Jason Randall, so many great people, but Foremski's do a great job with the show.
So I'm going to be at the Fly Fishing Shows this year. I'll be at Trout Fest in Texas, happy to be up there.
And it's been a while since I've been back to Texas to celebrate with the folks at the Fly Fishing Show.
All the great folks there and and hopefully in Virginia as well and have a chance to come up and hang out with you and Blaine and do some fishing before after the Virginia fly fishing festival as well.
So I'm looking forward to attending these events and seeing everybody during the winter season but before that man we're gonna keep cranking on the summer hatches and some of the fall bugs and migratory fish to come my friend.
Marvin:
[16:27] Yeah well there you go so folks if you want to you know not get left out subscribe to Landon's newsletter because that's the best way He'll send a blast out with all of his appearances and you know if you're in the South Park area Towards the end of the month for clean the dream you owe it to yourself to check out the event It's a lot of fun.
Just bring your sunscreen. I you know being a northern European descent person from the lowlands of the East Coast I got sunburn walking across the parking lot But you owe it to yourself and you know folks watch the heat and you know be responsible and get out there and catch a few.
Tight lines everybody. Tight lines Landon.
Landon:
[17:06] Thanks, Marvin. Appreciate what you do, buddy. Keep up the good work.