Vagabond Fly Box Project

After seeing someone's post on Facebook the other day, an idea sparked. So, the mad fly scientist Terry Edlemann and I began figuring out the odds and ends of a way to get flies all around the world, and document their progress with pictures and stories. We honed down all of the finer points, and here's what we have. You can follow the progress on this blog, on Terry's blog http://fisheadsfliesnlore.com, and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/home.php?sk=group_171306019583210&ap=1 Be a part of something bigger than fishing, bigger than us all...

Tracking the journey of fly boxes around the nation and world.
Vagabond Fly Box Rules....... "
Well I thought we better start with some simple rules....rules are important because they keep thing simple, fair and structured...without rules there would be no damn wild Steelhead left ! I think that is reason in and of itself to make sure we start this tracking blog with some basic rules......rule number one is there are no rules...HAHahahaaa OK just kidding..little "Fight Club" humor. Rule Number ONE: The boxes are starting with 12 Barb-less flies each. TWO boxes from me and TWO boxes from a better man than me named Joe Kayafas http://www.whatsajob614.blogspot.com/......The boxes are both signed by the sender with a permanent marker and the flies are then photographed and their names recorded accompanied by pictures in the original Blog, TWO on mine and TWO on Joe's. Rule Number TWO: There are to be 12 barb-less flies every time the box is sent to another person. If a fly is lost then the person in possession of the box is to replace the lost fly with another barb-less fly. The newest fly information and photograph is to be sent to the tracker of that specific box and blogged with the persons story......This insures we are able to track the flies. This is important because Where they go, what fish they catch, who has the box, how flies are lost and chosen are all parts of this story that will make it fun and interesting. Rule Number THREE: The box is to be signed in permanent marker neatly and relatively small leaving sufficient room for many signatures. Rule Number FOUR: Each person who receives the box is required to have a Facebook account so they may update all of us when they receive the box. This is also helpful when sharing what its condition is, what they intend to fish etc.... as well as having direct contact with the original sender for tracking purposes. Rule Number Five: Individuals with their own blogs, company blogs, shop blogs, Twitter, Blogger, Vimeo, YouTube, magazines, news contacts, Television, radio etc..are encouraged to write their own Blogs and stories while in possession of the Vagabond Fly Box. However we ask that you link any related media to Facebook for all to view and we encourage you to work with the original trackers so we may keep accurate information. Rule Number Six: After a person has had the box long enough to make a story and share some photos the box should be sent on to another Random person. Random because this is not a club or some private fly swap...fly swaps are different. Please maintain the integrity of the Vagabond Fly Boxes by supporting these rules. When a Vagabond Fly Box has finally reached its limit for signatures it should be directed to the nearest fly fishing museum where the original blogger will share the history of the box so it may be enjoyed as a box well traveled, with a very good story. There is a great power in numbers and Facebook has a huge fly fishing population. Our Blogs have interpreter programs to bridge the gaps of written and spoken language. Everyone who holds a fly rod in their hand is aware the importance of wild, natural, sustainable fish populations world wide......so this is the last rule.. Rule Number Seven: Every person that comes in contact with the box is asked to write about their local conservation efforts and the importance of that conservation. This could be as simple as asking the local paper to recognize the Vagabond Fly Box has arrived in your area or maybe Sharing the story with a local school or club.... somehow delivering the message, this box of flies has traveled from elsewhere in the world and that it brings with it 12 sharp symbols of global awareness..... This will make a difference, This will be fun.... "
Box #2 & #3
I did it a little different than Terry on this one. I decided to do the same 12 flies for each box. Considering that one is to be passed around nationwide, and the other worldwide, I figured they shouldn't cross paths. They contain in order from top to bottom left to right: bead head prince nymph, green wire flashback soft hackle nymph, bead head olive flashback hare's ear, bead head red flashback pheasant tail nymph, wiggle har'es ear, wiggle prince, wiggle pheasant tail, wiggle stonefly, and on the bottom row are 4 bead head flashback copper john variations tied on scud hooks. They are black/green, black/yellow, black/red and black/blue. Here's what They look like...