The salmon fly hatch is surely one of the West’s most famous and sought after hatches. Anglers from around the globe flock to the few
While “to tightline or suspension nymph” may at first appear to be a binary question, it is not intended to be so. Each of these
Over the last ten to fifteen years, the fly line industry has manufactured its lines with a loop at the leader end. There is no
We’ve reached the stream, and to our disappointment, there are no bugs in the air. Except for spring and early summer, when healthy trout streams
After a bit of a hike, we reach our stream. As rods are being assembled, the first question is usually “What fly are you going
I think it’s fair to say that most anglers don’t pay much attention to fly rod grips. They purchase a rod, and accept the grip
Since the advent of fly fishing, fly fishers have had their demons. The summer trico hatch is mine. Through the ages it has frustrated fly
It has been said by many, that effective subsurface fly patterns have two necessary attributes. They must look a little like many bugs, and they
Last month, in “Fly Fishing the Subsurface, Suspension Nymphing“, I began a series of blogs reviewing techniques used to fly fish the subsurface for trout.
Virtually every fly fisher loves to fish a hatch. It’s hard to beat the pleasure of targeting a rising trout, selecting the right fly, presenting
Learning to cast a fly rod is easy, right? We’ve all read or heard descriptions of the casting motion, “speed-up, stop, and pause”. Or, “ten-to-two,
When I take newcomer fly fishers to a stream, one of the first questions asked is where to cast the fly. Teaching newcomers to read
As leaves begin to turn from green to crimson and gold, trout anglers begin to think of fishing streamers. While streamers can, and probably should,
Summer is finally here! With it comes the eagerly anticipated summer hatches. On many streams, the early morning trico hatches and spinner falls offer the best
When I began fly fishing for trout, I was fortunate to be living in Virginia. The Blue Ridge mountains in Virginia boast over 2,000 miles
Fly fishing is becoming ever more popular. Most people try it once or twice, while a few make it an annual event for a week
Before I retired, I tried to fish two or three times a month. Working Monday through Friday and sharing a weekend on-call schedule, I couldn’t
Over the past several years, I have written separately about the four seasons of fly fishing for trout. Done in this manner, I think it’s
In the past few years, Euro nymphing, or tight-line nymphing, has become all the rage. It has been hailed as a new, and very effective way
Although I have previously written in more detail about many of the topics below, it seems that most fly fishers prefer their information drilled down
Many’s the occasion that I have been asked how many flies I fish with at a time. In truth, I fish with as many as regulations allow, which in
Most trout anglers who take up fly fishing get their start by fly fishing small streams. What is it about small streams that attracts us?
Almost every fly fisher loves to fish dry flies when the opportunity presents itself. The game is of course to see a surface-feeding trout, and
Like so many things in life, the ideal fly rod length has evolved not in a straight line, but rather, in a full circle. Today, the
Due to the manufacture of floating fly lines with welded loops, the nail knot is not used as frequently as it once was. While I
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