by duckdog » August 6th, 2009, 3:48 am
my name is mike and i live in oceanside, ca. when i first got on this web site i tried to post a bio. twice , when i hit submit they just went away, where, i have no clue. for all i know i sent them to some little old man in china and he's wondering , "who this duckdog , and why he think i care!" being a 1 finger typist i just gave up. third times the charm, maybe. i was raised on the south shore of long island,n.y. the 1950's and 60's were a great time to be a kid there. great south bay was still alive and you could actualy eat the fish w/o risking your health. i don't remember a time when i didn't fish. my dad didn't fish, but his brother did and he got me hooked. i'll alway's be greatfull. i can remember being 4 or 5 years old and wanting to fish so bad that i would get a stick, string, a christmass ornament hook, a berry off a bush in our yard, and fish the puddles at the curb in front of our house. what a little dope. there are day's when i feel like i'm still fishin that puddle. i started fly fishing by the time i was ten, don't know where that came from, nobody around me did it. started tying flies then as well. the first few years were filled w/ 10-12 inch stocked browns and brookies. then the little criminal in me came out, there was this private club on the connetquot river about 1 1/2 hr bike ride from my house. i had heard stories, and had to take a crack at it.OH MAN , it was to good to be true. if you have a copy of mike lawson's book "spring creeks" look on pg.7. for the next few years i'd leave the house very early so i could get there well before daylight, be on the river throwing baitfish patterns, catching some of the biggest trout of my life, and gone before the members showed up. the old game warden eventualy nailed me and took me into the clubhouse to face some of the members. after threats to call the sherif and take my gear they let me go with the old "if we ever catch you in here again" ringin in my ears. i tried to go back to the small stockers, but it just didn't cut it. jaded at the tender age of 16. i started surfing,and flyfishing just went away. surfing became my life's passion and i started building surfboards when i was 17 and it's how i earn a living to this day. surfing led me to so.cal. in the mid 70's ,{ i got tired of my hair freezing surfing in n.y in the winter}. got married to the love of my life in 1980 back in n.y. and draged her out here. then in 1984 i was in the waiting room of my doctors office and i picked up a fishing mag. and there was an artical on the owens river,now i hadn't really thought much about flyfishing for some time, but it was like there was some flyfishing sleeper cell in me that had been cut loose , because all of a sudden going to the owens and flyfishing was all i could think about. i still had my old tying stuff in a box in the closet, got it out , picked up a few supplies , tied some flies, and went fishing.it was great,the lower o. will always be special to me because it got me back into flyfishing,and hunting. i split my time between fishing and running my two german short hairs on quail , pheasant and ducks.well , actually THEY don't like duck hunting, too much sitting in one place. sitting still is not a short hair thing. the name duckdog is for my dog ruby, cause she's my little [reluctant] duckdog.-well , time to hit the submit, hope that guy in china's ready.