As mentioned in an article last week, In Search of Cicadas, this year's periodical cicada emergence has turned out to be a highly localized affair. Still, fishermen that have sought out these big bugs have sometimes been rewarded with epic days of top water fishing. Although cicada fishing is winding down in some parts of the east coast, time to enjoy this rare opportunity still exists for many easterners, especially those in the northern range of the Brood II emergence. Should you venture out in search of cicadas, and we highly recommend that you do, make the most of it by fishing your cicadas fast.

While out for a couple days of cicada fishing this past week, both on the same stream that is characterized by long stretches of flat or slack water punctuated by relatively short riffle sections, I was struck by how literally every single one of the dozen or so other fly casters I enountered were fishing cicadas through the slack water areas. Me, on the other hand? I barely touched those areas, sticking solely to fishing foam lines and seams in the riffles and runs and only casting into slow moving water when it overlaid a deep hole that looked too good to pass up.

Yesterday, Sage announced two new series of fly rods. The first was the new ultra-fast METHOD series. The second was an entirely new series of saltwater fly rods designed, according to Sage, to make salt-specific fly gear more accessible to the growing ranks of fly fishermen looking to chase saltwater fish.

Sage's new budget-friendly MOTIVE series of saltwater rods.

The MOTIVE series features an all new taper designed to deliver fast line speeds and, perhaps more importantly, load quickly -- often a must when sight fishing for saltwater species where expending precious time picking up line and false casting is a no-no.