The Middle River Group, LLC

fly fishing, conservation and politics.

Gear

BioLite HeadLamp 200

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Most of my fly-fishing is in daylight. But experience has taught me that when you need a light you don’t want to fool around.

Since my search and rescue days I’ve always had a headlamp in my kit. They are essential gear for that and for most of my camping trips. Truth be told they are pretty handy for skunk patrol when Lily takes her evening turn around the backyard.

When I came across the BioLite HeadLamp 200 I was intrigued enough to buy one and give it a try. I’m happy I did.

Photo credit: BioLite

The BioLite HeadLamp 200 has a lot going for it.

  • First of all it is comfortable and extremely light weight (under 2 oz.) I wear it with a hat and hardly notice it.
  • The 200 lumen spotlight is very bright. At full power it illuminates a good distance (about 150′ +/-.)
  • The brightness adjusts easily if you want to conserve power or reduce the illumination.
  • It’s rechargeable via a USB. It’s a micro port so keep track of the cord.
  • The headband is super easy to adjust, making it quick and easy to accommodate my head or hats as need be.
  • The light has detents in four positions so when you set it it stays put.
  • There is a red light setting if you need to preserve you night vision while reading.
  • You can activate a strobe setting for both the white or red light. A good safety feature if you want to get attention.
  • It can be easily locked in the off position to prevent it from accidentally discharging.
  • It’s water resistant (IPX4) which means you don’t want to dunk it in the water. If it’s raining, I’d cover it from above. I wear mine under the bill of my ball cap and it pretty comfortable.

BioLite has an informative video showing all the features of the light.

The run time is listed as three hours at full brightness and 40 hours at lowest setting. I bought a BioLite Charge 40 PD as a backup power source to go with my backcountry kit. It’s a little added insurance and can be used for my iPhone, which I use for photos and navigation.

I like buying stuff from companies that do good deeds, BioLite is no exception. According to their website: “When you purchase an item from BioLite, a part of that sale is re-invested into our work in sub-Saharan Africa. Together, we have helped over a million people cook, charge, and light daily life with products that enable families to feel safe, nourished, and connected.”

Here’s to a bright future (I couldn’t resist.)

Disclosure: I paid retail price for these products. I did not get a pro-deal nor any form of compensation for this review.

Koala 2.0 phone harness

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The fact of the matter is I drop things.

One of the things I try not to drop too often is my phone but it happens. Various iPhones have bounced off floors, roads, and into streams more often than I care to admit. I’ve hard-cased them, and the new ones are water-resistant, and I’ve never lost one in water too deep to get it out, but it’s just a matter of time before I drown another one.

I’ve kept my eye out for a good way to keep my phone attached and the Koala 2.0 phone harness from Hangtime Gear looks like a winner.

Photo: HangtimeGear.com

The harness is made of heavy-duty silicone that stretches to grip your phone at four corners. I’ve got an orange one, so I can find it easily if need be. There are three other color options.

The tether is part of the harness and is 14″ from clip to case and stretches pretty easily to my arm’s length. It’s likely I will attach the whole rig to some orange paracord to increase the reach, making it easier to shoot pictures while I’m fishing.

It comes with two attachment options, a clip that closes with a cam mechanism rather than a spring and a small carabiner. Both are made of polycarbonate plastic. The clip has a burly grip (rated to 50 lbs.) making it easy to attach in various places, not just loops like with the biner. It’s an intriguing little item. Here is more detail on the clip from the Hangtime website:

“Certain locations offer a better grip than others. The best spots we’ve found are:

  • The edge of a sewn seam, like on your jeans pocket.
  • The edge of a zipper, like on the pocket of a ski jacket.
  • Nylon straps, like on a backpack.
  • On the other hand, some locations that aren’t quite as secure are very thin fabrics and fabric edges without a sewn seam.”

They also have an Instagram post showing how the clamp works.

The Koala 2.0 is guaranteed; if it breaks, they’ll send you a new one. Simple as that.

I’m adding this to my fishing and guiding kit this year. Juggling my phone in the field just got a lot less stressful.

Disclosure: I paid retail price for this product. I did not get a pro-deal nor any form of compensation for this review.

Give’r Gloves Pull Tab

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It’s the little things that make a great product.

Take for instance a small piece of leather on the 4-Season Give’r Gloves I recently purchased. As you will see in the photo below the leather tab is sewn into the glove on the knit cuff.

Why is that a big deal? Think about it. The knit cuff is there to keep dirt, snow and cold air from getting to your hands. Repeatedly pulling on the knit fabric leads to stretching and out of shape, less effective cuffs. That simple little tab keeps that from happening. Grab the tab when you pull on the gloves and you save the knit fabric, keeping the cuffs snug like they are supposed to.

The tab is not just sewn to the knit fabric either, It’s sewn to the leather cuff of the glove so it is sturdy and secure.

These are the simple kind of features that make for a quality product. Good for Give’r for doing it.

In case you are curious, I have the waxed version. I also used the recommended Oven Method for breaking the new gloves in. I heartily recommend it.

There are a number of helpful videos on the Give’r website. Check them out if you’re interested in learning more about their gloves and mitts.

As I write this I’ve had them for less than a week, worn them for a few chores and very happy with the way they are breaking in. As the weather here in the Valley keeps getting colder I know these gloves will be getting a work out.

UPDATE: NOV 29.: The gloves have broken in nicely. They are molding to my hands and continue to be warm and comfortable.

Patagonia’s Tough Puff Pants

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Here is the review I posted on the Patagonia website.

I know these pants are supposed to go under my waders, but I doubt they will stay there. Here in Virginia, we are fortunate to fish and guide year-round. Last year my go-to winter jacket was the Tough Puff Hoody. When I saw these Tough Puff Pants pop up on the radar screen, I figure they would be just the ticket for wearing under my waders. And, of course, they are. But, as soon as I put them on, I knew they were likely to see more daylight than the inside of my waders.

Here’s the deal. Winter weather here in the Shenandoah Valley is changeable. One day it’s 19 degrees at 6 a.m., and the next day it’s 30 degrees. Each morning, usually before sun up, I take my dog out for a stroll as the first cup of coffee is brewing. We go regardless of the weather. Not having to do more than pull on warm, weather-resistant pants (thanks DWR finish) is a joy. Truth be told, most of the time, I keep them on all day. They are not only comfortable, but they are also good looking, so I don’t mind running errands in them. The stretchy fabric means it moves when I do inside or outside of waders, enhanced by the gusset crotch and articulated knees. The durable face fabric resists snags and tears from working around the house or yard.

The deep from pockets are one of my favorite features. Deep front pockets mean things stay put and don’t go missing when you climb in and out of your vehicle or sit and stand up. If you have waders on, you will appreciate the opening’s angle; it makes access to whatever is in them when you do the contortionist thing when you have your waders on. If you know, you know. A few other things I like are the zippered back pocket to keep my wallet secure, the built-in belt to snug them up when loaded with stuff in the pockets, a zipper fly for when nature calls and tapered ankles, so they slip into the waders or boots without bunching.

Can’t think of anything I’d change. They work as advertised.

Rio’s InTouch Technical Trout Fly Line

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Fishing to selective trout is hard enough, don’t make it harder.

Spring time in the Valley. One of the most exciting times for trout fishing. You have survived the winter doldrums, tied flies, organized gear and looked at the maps to refresh your memory. You hear the stories filter in, bugs are hatching and fish are looking up. Time to get out there.

Did you look at your fly line? I mean more then a cursory look to see if it was dirty or cracked. Are you using a plan vanilla weight forward line that is “fine” for every day use? Think you are good to go?

Of course, you can use whatever it takes to get the fly to the fish. But, what if the next time you are out you can give yourself an edge with those spooky bug sippers, would you take it?

Fly lines are tools as much as rods and reels are. If you think “good enough” is good enough then you are handicapping yourself. The wrong size screwdriver may be “good enough.” But if you have ever stripped the head on a screw because you didn’t use the right sized screwdriver, you know what I mean.

Just like there is the right screwdriver for the screw, there is the right line for the fishing you are going to do.

Are you using the right one?

InTouch Technical Trout line

Here is how Rio describes the line:

The line features a long, fine front taper for the lightest of presentations and delicacy and is the ideal choice of line when fishing dry flies, nymphs, soft hackles and emergers to tricky eaters at distance. The line has a long head and back taper to increase loop control when carrying long lengths, and for making precise casts to rising fish, while the weight distribution makes it easy to turn over long leaders for technical feeders at range. The ultra-low stretch ConnectCore provides incredible levels of sensitivity when casting and fishing.

Now put yourself on the bank of Mossy Creek or Dry River and visualize the rise form you see on the water. You have the right fly, you know where you want to put it and you know the rod can make the cast. But how about your line? Will it do what the one described above will do? If not, you just made fishing harder than it needs to be.

Specs and technical stuff from Rio

  • ConnectCore ultra-low stretch core (maximum 6%) provides incredibly sensitivity and control when casting and fishing.
  • MaxCast hydrophobic coating repels water, ensuring lines float higher, shoot farther, stay cleaner, and last longer.
  • AgentX dual layered fly line has a high floating inner coating made with more buoyant microspheres covered by a tough outer coating for maximum durability.
  • MaxFloat Tip technology high float coating floats more than twice as high as regular fly line tips, without any increase in diameter
  • Triple color line marking system makes it easy to gauge distances and load, with a quick glance.
  • Printed line marking system that allows anglers to quickly and easily identify each line.
  • A neat, bulletproof loop welded at the front and back of the fly line for fast rigging to a leader and the backing.

The InTouch Technical Trout line is available in WF3F through WF6F. Order one from Mossy Creek Fly Fishing’s online store HERE.

Umpqua's innovative packing material

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I am always on the look out for companies that do what they can to remove plastic from the waste stream and when a recent shipment from Umpqua Feather Merchants arrived I was delighted to see the were an innovative packing material.

My friend Brent Bauer director of product at Umpqua explained how it came to be:
“we have long had a policy against re-using boxes for shipping orders and would just recycle old boxes.  A few years ago a supplier offered a machine that would turn our old boxes into packing material so now most of our used boxes end up inside a box.“

The scourge of plastic waste is daunting, but when companies like Umpqua look for, and implement alternatives to plastics they deserve applause and support.