Trout tips
Bone-cold fishing in the face of winter
Cold fingers sting back to life, pressed firmly against the vent as warm air, fresh from the engine block, puffs on pink digits
Lesson from the guide: cover the water
I’m a “freelance” fly fisher by trade. Even on new water, I tend to look for what appears to be familiar. Long, deep runs. Structure. Riffles. Tailouts. Rising fish. And when I see the latter, I become somewhat laser-focused. Rising fish are feeding fish, and...
How to stay safe while fishing in the winter
This time of the year is a great time to be out chasing trout. Winter doesn’t have to get in the way of that
Introducing ‘Tying One On,’ with TU’s own Nick Halle
Like a lot of us, his passion is fly fishing, and, like a lot of us, he ties his own flies
How to practice a straight cast
With all the perceived nuances to casting among new fly fishers, it can sometimes seem daunting to cast straight
Tying the Douglas Salmon Camp Swinger
Articulated streamers are quickly becoming some of my favorite patterns to tie at the vise
A day on Yellowstone’s storied Firehole River
The Firehole River above Firehole Falls was once a fishless ribbon of water sourced largely from hot springs, geysers and primordial seeps that pushed to the surface from the bowels of the planet.
Blues and fly fishing: two intertwined pursuits
How are the blues and fishing intertwined? Check this out
Tying the Sweet Pea
Try a double-nymph rigs, using a heavier bug as the lead fly and trailing behind it a smaller fly
ACE Act a big win for fish habitat
This week, anglers across the nation are celebrating the passage of a sprawling conservation bill, the American Conservation Enhancement Act (H.R. 925), or ACE Act for short. Earlier this month, the package was approved by the U.S. Senate, and on Wednesday, it passed in the House of Representatives. The ACE Act now goes on to President Trump for his signature. He is expected to sign it
Put on your mentor hat and take someone fishing
By Jim Strogen I love to catch fish, but helping others be successful with their first fish or teaching them new fly fishing techniques is just as much fun for me. We all have home water where our knowledge of a particular lake or stream can tip the scales for someone...
Tying the Black and Tan jig
Fall across North America generally means low and clear water, particularly on freestone trout streams where flows aren’t manipulated by upstream dams. And that means wary trout in skinny conditions. Chasing fall trout during low water can be a lot of fun for...
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Tying a simple baitfish pattern
‘Tis the season for baitfish patterns. See Matt Callies of Loon Outdoors tie a simple baitfish pattern
Tying the Franke Shiner baitfish imitation for migrating browns
Baitfish imitations work great in the fall, particularly where migrating brown trout are found. As these fish move out of lakes or upstream from big water to spawning habitat, they just get more and more aggressive
Tying small dry flies using UV resins
I’ve been using UV resins on my flies for several years now, all with the intent of making flies last longer on the water
Tying the Travis Para-Ant for later-summer trout
The first couple weeks of September are usually pretty great dry-fly weeks as things cool off a bit and trout look up for big bites of protein
Use dubbing to make a solid base
Certain materials, when tied to a hook shank, just don’t take well to being secured with thread. The lack of friction between the material and the metal of the shank makes it very easy for some tying materials to spin, even after multiple wraps and efforts to tightly bound them to the shank
Terrestrial bugs offer great dry-fly fishing on small creeks
Late summer and early fall offer some of the season’s best dry-fly fishing on small creeks in the east. This isn’t hatch-matching fishing. It’s terrestrial season
Fly fishing doesn’t have to be hard
I love to cast a long line, but it doesn’t happen often. If I do, it is ideally with no false casts. The longer my fly is in the air, the more likely it will be caught by a bush. Fewer false casts also means my fly is in or on the water in front of fish longer
How to use shanks for articulated flies
There are a few choices when it comes to choosing which shank to use for the flies you’re tying, but, generally speaking, the idea is the same: shanks let you make longer fly bodies and then hang a “stinger” hook off the rear of the fly
How to tie the Yellow Humpy fly pattern
As attractor dry flies go, the Humpy is near the top of my list. Tied to imitate nothing in particular, but still incredibly “buggy,” the Humpy is a great high-floating searching pattern for trout in backcountry settings
Deet and your fly line
Chad quickly reached into a pocket in his sling pack and pulled out a little bottle of bug spray. He quickly doused in his exposed arms in the oily concoction and then passed it around. Johnny did the same — a few pumps and then he handed the bottle to me.
The ethics of the dropper
The ethics of fly fishing can get pretty sticky, or at least I’m gleaning that from social media, where some folks aren’t afraid to scold fellow anglers for teetering on the edge of angling impropriety, whether that impropriety is real or perceived
Prospecting blue lines
A trail generally follows the stream on its gentle course to Shoshone Lake. If you walk the trail, you might occasionally see a tiny brook trout finning in a deep, dark corner of the creek. More likely, if you’re not an angler and staring keenly through polarized lenses through clear water isn’t really your thing, you might notice a fish dart for cover as your shadow crosses the stream
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