♫ Rain, rain, go away, come again when the rivers are running at 30 cfs and we need rain badly...♫ (what, too many syllables?) Creedence Clearwater Revival says it the best...

The short answer is yes. From an environmental standpoint, felt has a much greater chance of devastating an entire watershed by introducing non-native species. Most folks would agree that felt possesses more gripping capabilities than any other sole. The difference between the two in terms of gripping power and stability does not differ as much as one would think.

On Sept. 14, 2008, Simms announced that they would phase out felt soles on all of its wading boots, sandals and shoes by 2010. Now, Simms has ousted their felt soled boots and replaced them with Vibram Technology. Simms teamed up with Vibram, a company headquartered in Albizzate, (in the province of Varese), Italy to produce Simms StreamTread soles. Vibram is well versed in developing some of the best soles for fisherman, hikers, rock climbers, watersports enthusiasts, and the such.

I quickly discovered the difference between the two when I took the first step into a frigid and ice-laden South Toe River in late December. The amount of grip the Vibram soles offered was perfect. Treading over slippery rocks was a breeze. I have been wearing felt soles for as far as I can remember, so Vibram soles and I were just acquaintances.  We're now best friends. Frankly, I was just awaiting the day my old Simms Freestones were worn out enough to make the switch to Vibram.

On my most recent trip, I had the opportunity to really put the Vibram soles to the test. A short hike, and plenty of boulder hopping and climbing tested their capabilities. Walking up and down steep rocks was a snap. Felt soles are like Sea Lions. They're excellent in the water, but on land they have some issues. Felt will stick to the slipperiest of underwater rocks like glue, but when walking on land (especially on hills) you better be ready to catch your fall. If you're a big hiker who likes to hike into backcountry streams, Vibram soles are perfect. I'll push them to the limit when bluelining in the warmer months.


So what's the big deal with felt?

Invasive species. Didymo (Rock Snot), Whirling Disease, and New Zealand mud snails (just to name a few) are all capable of being transported from watershed to watershed through felt soles. They also can be moved to other watersheds via boats, waders, and other equipment that has come in contact with the river, stream, or lake. The soles on your boots come in contact with the river bottom much more frequently than any of your other gear. That means they have a far better chance of coming into contact with species such as Didymo, which thrives on the rocks you wade upon. To make things worse, felt is absorbent. Water will be absorbed deep into the felt, making it much harder to clean them. Within that water, harmful invasive species could be present.

A stream bed covered in Didymo, or "rock snot."

Cleaning Soles

Albeit they're much easier to clean and maintain, always remember to clean your Vibrams and check for any hitchhikers. While felt transports invasive species more effectively, you're still not guaranteed to be hitchhiker-free when wearing Vibram soles.

For non absorbent soles (such as Vibram soles) clean them by either:

A) Detergent- soak or spray all surfaces for at least one minute in 5% dishwashing detergent or (2 cups (16 oz.) or 500mls with water added to make 2.5 gal. or 10 litres); OR
B) Bleach- soak or spray all surfaces for at least one minute in 2% household bleach (1 cup (8 oz.) or 200mls with water added to make 3 gal. or 10 litres); OR
C) Hot water- soak for at least one minute in very hot water kept above 140° F (60° C) (hotter than most tap water) or for at least 20 minutes in hot water kept above 113° F (45° C) (uncomfortable to touch).
D) Freeze the boots solid.

Next time you upgrade to a new pair of wading boots, go with Vibram soles. I'm definitely sold soled. Who else has used Vibram soles? What do you think?

Picture and article courtesy MSNBC.com.

The new crayfish should not have been easily overlooked, as it is huge — twice the size of other species, the team at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and Eastern Kentucky University reported Wednesday.

But the crustacean is also quite rare, they report in the Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington.

"This isn't a crayfish that someone would have picked up and just said, 'Oh, it's another crayfish,' and put it back," said University of Illinois aquatic biologist Chris Taylor, one of the researchers.

"You would have recognized it as something really, really different and you would have saved it," Taylor added in a statement.

Taylor and Guenter Schuster of Eastern Kentucky University found their first specimen of the new species under one of the biggest rocks in the deepest part of a commonly explored Tennessee creek.

The new species, called Barbicambarus simmonsi, is about 5 inches long and has antennae covered with a sensitive fringe of tiny, hairlike bristles, called setae.

More than half of the 600 known species of crayfish in the world are found in North America, Taylor said.
"This thing had not been seen by scientific eyes until last year," he said.

"We spend millions of dollars every year on federal grants to send biologists to the Amazon, to Southeast Asia — all over the world looking for and studying the biodiversity of those regions," Schuster said. "But the irony is that there's very little money that is actually spent in our own country to do the same thing. And there are still lots of areas right here in the U.S. that need to be explored."



It's incredible that a creature of this size has gone undetected until now. So, maybe this guy in the video below is telling the truth about Sasquatch... GIT!

Today is the last day of winter, tomorrow, at 7:21 PM, the first day of spring.  To celebrate, I packed the gear into the truck and high tailed it to the mountains. Initially, brookies were the planned target. One of my favorite WNC bluelines, which sits at about 4,500-5,000 ft, is slowly returning to spring. I decided to stay in the lower elevations and give the higher elevation wild streams time to rejuvenate. The brookies have had a long and harsh winter, but most of the time they're masters at surviving them.

Stone Mountain was the destination. I was greeted to a deserted parking area on the East Prong, which told me the pressure has likely been somewhat minimal. Maybe everyone's at home watching the Madness (Go UNC!). The water was slightly higher than normal, but nothing substantial at all. You have to be familiar with the river to conclude that it's slightly above normal flows. It was clear as well. Fish were refusing flies on 5x, but took the same fly when I switched to 6x. Those fish being several browns. No rainbows, no brookies. The state has stocked much higher numbers of browns. They've also stocked much larger fish in some waters. Some of the trout that were stocked in Wilson Creek are in the upper 20's and even 30" range according to some credible reports. That is substantial. Even on the behemoth laden Davidson. I didn't see any fish that pushed 12" today though. The fish are spread out big time as a result of the heavy rain. Some pools contain a decent amount of fish, some don't. Fish that haven't spread out, will soon learn that they're no longer contained in concrete raceways.

In addition to some decent fishing, the hatches were in full force today. Especially the Little Black Stones, which I'll probably find in my hair, in my shirt, and in the fly pack. They were relentless. The Blue Quills were hatching by late morning and then the Quill Gordons hatched after noon. Right now, the QG's are the big dogs. You can't miss them. They're like B-52 Bombers. #12 mayflies fluttering around like drunken bats. Funny to watch!

Without further ado, here's some pictures of the trip:

Finally had the opportunity to test the new 2wt out.

Widow's Creek Falls

Who else took advantage of this picture perfect Saturday?

Redfish, speckled trout, and stripers are now going to potentially be classified as gamefish here in the Tar Heel State. It's about time! Check out the article over at Capt. Gordon's Fishing Reports. Contact your state representatives and senators of NC to support this bill and launch it into action!