Eight flies, one tournament. May the best fly win
The final eight: how to tie some great trout flies
Inspiration
Fishing lore, wisdom and humor are an antidote for troubled times.
When overdoing it is a good thing
Tying flies through the outbreak Like a lot of anglers who endeavor to tie their own flies, either out of economic necessity or simple hubris, I tend to overdo it sometimes. I was scheduled to take a trip at the end of the month to the marshes and beaches of south Alabama (yes … check … Read more
Surf candy
Fly fishing on both coasts for striped bass wouldn’t be the same without Bob Popovic’s Surf Candy. It’s one of the best patterns anglers can use for stripers that are crushing bait in the salt, and even for fish that are migrating upriver en route to spawning water. Above, Tim Flagler ties up a new, … Read more
The spey cast, part three
How to avoid the collision loop
The spey cast, part two
On the whole, the spey cast looks a lot harder than it really is. But there is an art to it, and RIO’s Simon Gawesworth has mastered that art. For a good spey cast to occur, a lot of little things have to come together, and if you’ve never spey casted before, it likely looks … Read more
The spey cast, part one
For some of us long-time trout anglers, the idea of spey casting on trout water used to seem kind of pointless. Who needs to throw that much line, for crying out loud? Well, honestly, you do. And so do I. So, if we don’t know how to spey cast, it’s time we learn, right? The … Read more
Postcards
I didn’t fish the opener of the winter steelhead season this year. Apparently, I have a thing about symmetry as I didn’t fish the close, either. A combination of real-life factors kept me off the water on these dates. I found solace in a petition to the Steelhead Whisperer for on-the-water reports. Thus it was … Read more
Want more Gunnison River? Pass the CORE Act
Tying with bucktail
When I first started tying flies, I would avoid tying with bucktail altogether—it was unwieldy and my flies never seemed to come out the way I liked them. But, when I started fishing bigger water, and when I started chasing fish in saltwater, I had to get my head around tying with bucktail, and now, … Read more