Fellow VFB'ers: With great eagerness, I signed up for the chili pepper swap having been intoxicated with all the talk about how successful these flies are. I even managed to get some of the copper chenille that Tony Spezio recommended.
At the same time, I found some really attractive crystal tri-lobal hackle made by Cascade Crest Tools and so I came up with a version with some of this as an ingredient. I made them bead-headed and tied on a fairly large hook as I want to be the first person to catch a salmon on a Chili Pepper! I sent in my flies and awaited somewhat impatiently for the swap flies to arrive - and awaited and awaited. Checked and checked again my US Postal Services PO Box just across the border in Blaine WA once but alas no flies showed up. I had completely given up, when the swap-master Chris Chapman sent me an e-mail a couple of weeks ago offering to send a second set. Last Wednesday, I checked my PO Box and there was a note inside my PO Box advising that the article was too large for the box. Upon retrieving the article at the front counter, lo and behold there was a package containing the Chili Pepper swap flies. When I say "package" it was the original brown envelope that I had sent in for the return mailing, but folded up and with an elastic band around it. On the front of the envelope written by hand was "received unsealed @ Blaine". The envelope was never sealed. (Did you run out of lick Chris?) How the flies didn't fall out I don't know nor where the package has been since January 8, 2007 the date of mailing! I would like to sincerely thank Chris for his gracious offer and for mastering the swap. Now I have to wait until the next salmon run! Neville (Nev) Gosling Greater Vancouver B. C. Canada
