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What’s your vote for America’s ‘national fish?’
The author's choice? The smallmouth bass. USFWS photo. It’s a silly question, but it’s fun. And it’s Friday. If you were to vote for a national fish, what would it be? The brook trout currently holds the title of most revered freshwater “state fish” with nine states—including Michigan, Pennsylvani and New York—making it their choice.…
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Tying the After Hours Stonefly
It's later in the season, but not too late for stoneflies. Below, TU's Nick Halle ties his After Hours Stonefly, a solid "tweener" of a bug that could be seen by trout as either a smaller Yellow Sally or even a larger, nocturnal stone. Even more likely? This pattern, at least this time of year,…
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Light the pilot for a young angler and share the craft
I look back on my fishing life, and I can play certain moments in my mind like black-and-white highlight reels. That first snout of a brown trout sipping a grasshopper fly I cast in the right spot along the riverbank. That first tarpon jump, that made my knees knock as the silver king splashed down on…
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When the weather breaks and the rains come
Photo by Mark H. Anbinder A group of friends had meticulously planned a big float of the upper Henry's Fork from Big Springs to Mack's Inn this past weekend. It's been a hell of summer — we went the better part of a month without rain and here in Idaho Falls, we went through the latter…
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Playing the numbers game isn’t a sustainable strategy
If we don’t at least talk about how anglers pressure fisheries, is habitat work just window dressing? Numbers. That’s the word that pops to mind when I see this image. I asked you all what you thought yesterday. Many said “bobber.” (OK. I think most of can agree that “strike indicator” is a bit over-cooked).…
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Toughen up your small dry flies with UV resin
I took to finishing these small flies with the smallest dollop of thin UV-reactive resin I could squeeze out of the bottle
I’ve always been something of a ham-handed fly tier, and, generally speaking, the bigger the fly, the easier it is for me to tie. I’m a big guy at six-foot-five, and my hands correspond to my height. They just aren’t meant for detail work. But I live in eastern Idaho, and during fall and winter,…
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Go higher to beat the heat and catch wild trout
Brook trout are wild in many western high-country streams. When water temperatures start to rise in the summer, most of us know to stop fishing. And if you didn't know before, you do now. Rivers across Colorado have voluntary closures and hoot owl restrictions have been in place in Montana for most of the summer.…
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