Twelve Days Of Christmas....Five Golden Rings

Sunday and Monday, December 12 and 13 only.

All remaining inventory Simms Pursuit Sandal 40% OFF!!

Even More Messing With Nature

Damn! More Tarpon Video

We Love Tarpon from Mike Gifford on Vimeo.

Twelve Days Of Christmas...On the Fourth Day

Friday, December 10th and Saturday, December 11th only.....

Buy One Simms Water Bottle and get a second of equal value for 50% OFF.

Getting Ready To Travel - First Aid Kit

Second instalment of these posts... Some items you may not have thought of but can save your trip:

The first aid kit:

One thing before we start...don't go overboard with your kit. Old medications you haven't used for years, duplicate or redundant medications,etc. all lead to more weight and space and more importantly, in some foreign airports it can lead to severe delays.

- Everything gets stored in a little Pelican 1050 case. Even though I don't normally take this in my boat/skiff bag I prefer the sealed cases.

-Personal medications/prescriptions that you're currently taking.

- Tylenol or equivalent pain medication.

- Sinus/cold medication/ night time cold medications are good as they knock you out and you can get a good nights sleep.

- Cipro (trade name for Ciprofloxin)...have to ask your doctor for this one. Should you get a GI bug from bad water, food, etc. this one will save your trip. I've only had to use mine once but I'm glad I had it. Have had to give to others a few times, works every time. Not supposed to go out in the sun when taking but it's never done anything to me ( ha ha!).

- Bandage Kit...few different sizes of band-aids as well as moleskin. Obviuos but it's amazing how many people forget. And the moleskin can keep you out on the flat if you get a booty blister.

- Polysporin...if you get cut in certain parts of the world infections can be a problem. Coral scrapes can be really bad as well. Always put Polysporin on before bandage. And re-dress every day.

-Immodium...another "must have". If you don't know what it's for, go to the drug store, read the box, it will come to you fairly quickly.

- Nasal Inhaler....If you come down with a cold it's nice to have. vicks is a good one. Also, some people react badly to air conditioning in their rooms in the tropics. This will clear you out for a while.

- Spare Lip Balm...It still amazes me how many people run out of this stuff on a trip. ever had sunburned lips? I have, never again!

- Cough drops...obvious use. In combination with cold medicine. Also has very interesting effects when combined with most brands of Rum.

- Everything packs neatly in it's place back in the case. Goes on every trip with me. I am often called upon to give out some of these items as well as use them myself.

ALWAYS MAKE SURE YOU MAINTAIN AND REFILL KIT WHEN YOU GET HOME. DON'T PUT IT OFF!

Twelve Days Of Christmas...On The Third Day

Three French Hens...and between now and December 24, any purchase over $500 enters your name in a draw for a guided day on the Bow with Mike Gifford and Kevin Peterson.

Top 5 Christmas Gifts

There seems to be a bunch more people out Christmas shopping. The big favourites this season so far for under the tree:

Simms G3 Guide Wallet: The perfect wallet for the fly fisher.

Rivershed Cardigan: The new color in black seems to be a big hit.

Sage DXL Typhoon Boat Bag: Awesome! That's all we can say. Take a look, you'll see.

Waterwoks Lamson Litespped Reels: Maybe the best reels for the money made today. Even suitable for saltwater and Spey (without breaking the bank).

Patagonia R1 Pullovers: Superb layering item. very wicking, very breathable, great looking.

Twelve Days Of Christmas...On The Second Day

Instead of two Turtle Doves (no one seems to know what they are any way). Until December 9, buy a pair of Simms Guide Boots, get a set of Simms Guard Socks at no charge.

Christmas Island

After a couple of years off, Country Pleasures is doing another trip to Christmas Island.
We took a little break when there was no jet service to the island but all is back and running.

This is a very reasonably priced trip compared to a lot of others around the world and is a very "target rich environment" for Bonefish and Trevally.

The trip will be at Christmas from November 8-15, 2011. This will offer us the monthly cycle of the largest Bonefish coming up on certain flats following the full moon.

CP first started going to Christmas Island in 1986 and no shop in Canada knows this destination better than we do!

Perfect for the seasoned flats angler or the first time flats angler!
Give us a call or send us an e-mail for more information.

Christmas Island Slide Show from Mike Gifford on Vimeo.

Spring Steelhead in Terrace BC

While most think of steelheading on the Skeena as a purely fall pursuit, the spring season on the Skeena tributaries is possibly my favorite.Here's a few reasons why.

.You get to fish some REALLY cool water: A lot of the tiny coastal streams do not see a fall run of steelhead, and thus do not get the publicity of the famous rivers. On the lesser known rivers, you may never run into another angler for weeks at a time, and still have the best fishing of your life. The scenery will blow your mind as well.

However, the fish in these rivers (and creeks) can be some of the biggest of the year, and are typically very aggressive to the fly. There is also no commercial fishing at the time on the Skeena, and thus increasing your odds.

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. Hot fish. Most of the spring fish are in and out of their spawning streams in relatively little time, and aren't traveling hundreds of kilometers before you encounter them. They fight as hard as any we've encountered.

Did i mention COOL water?

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You might just run into one of these guys. The vast majority of the Skeena's monster kings travel to the Kalum river, and are a welcome bycatch to steelhead.

Nicholas Dean runs out of the Yellow Cedar Lodge. We've been lucky enough to spend a few nights here, and it is an absolutely stunning locale and operation.

There are a few openings for some dates in April at Nicholas Dean, and they are very affordable. This is a perfect place to introduce yourself (and become addicted) to steelheading.

Give us a shout if you want some more information.