ARTICLES
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The Good Wader
The good wader keeps moving, believes in traction, casts in rhythm and makes no excuses. The good wader becomes the good angler . . .
Simplicity and Fishing
. . .The fact is, keeping it simple only works when trout agree to your narrow terms.
. . . All those adjustments sounds complicated, right? What happened to simple? Well, it didn’t work so well. And it might actually be simpler (or at least more efficient) to make a few leader adjustments than to fight with dragging dry flies and short drifts all afternoon.
PODCAST: Fishing With a Camera — S9, Ep8
This one is about taking photos and videos on the water, about camera gear, about keeping that gear safe but available, and even a few tips on taking a good fish selfie.
In this episode, we share some history with these places and discuss what connects us to these moving waters.
STORIES
Winter Welcome Home
Winter is a quiet ghost.
When he days are dark and at their coldest, the woods are barren — void of life, save for the chickadees and a few eager squirrels. Most of the mammals hunker down in burrows, inside hollowed out trees and underneath hemlock bows. You might miss all this if you don’t slow down, find a log and just sit for a while to listen to the silence. It’s different.
The forest is a widow in the winter wind.
What to Trust
Of the good fishermen I know, one thing I see in all of them is how easily they can reach conclusions about fish habits. They have a knack for knowing what to trust and when to trust it.
The damned thing about a river is that it changes every day, and the habits of trout follow. If you’re observant enough to see the dynamics of a river, you can predict how the fish will respond, just by correlating their behavior patterns with the changes in water level, clarity, food availability, etc. Often, though, that’s a big leap to take. And it requires trusting in your observations enough to act decisively on them . . .
Mid-Season Form
Sawyer isn’t afraid of the cold. He’s like a polar bear in waders — doesn’t even wear gloves on his paws. And I don’t get guys like this. I don’t understand where their warmth comes from. Is it a higher tolerance for pain or a motor that just runs hotter than most? Who knows, but Sawyer’s always up for anything, and he’s fun to fish with.
The first batch of winter roads had people a little skittish on Tuesday morning. Even the plows and salt trucks showed some unusual caution. Later in the season, they’ll be cutting close lines and motoring at top speed, plows laid flat, shooting sparks with bare steel on rock. Before long, they’ll be in a mid-season rhythm. But at 7:30 am on Tuesday morning, the highway traffic formed a line behind the yellow diesel beasts, and everyone unanimously and silently agreed to be a little extra careful. So I was late.
When I finally stepped out of line and steered left onto the winding creek side road, I was eager to accelerate. So I took my new freedom with some aggression, pushing snow with my 4-wheel drive and generally driving the way a ten-year-old boy rides a sled. You gotta love fresh snow . . .
TACTICS
The Pulley Retrieve (with VIDEO)
What I call the Pulley Retrieve is a smooth and efficient method of recovering line. It’s useful for both fly line tactics and with a Mono Rig in hand. It’s an ingrained habit for me, and I use it every day that I’m on the water. Recover more line, and recover it smoother. Why not, right? Sounds good . . .
Podcast Ep 13: Big Trout From Pennsylvania to Montana — With Guest, Matt Grobe
In this episode, I get together with my long time friend, Matt Grobe, for a candid, entertaining, fun and technical discussion about wild trout, big trout, and the differences between the fishing cultures and opportunities available in two of the meccas for trout fishing in the states — Pennsylvania and Montana.
Matt has lived and fished hard in both states, and he’s been fortunate enough to live a life on the water, not just chasing wild trout, but chasing the big ones. He’s always had a knack for turning over the next top tier fish. And in our conversation, Matt offers some great tips for targeting big trout and consistently putting them in the net.
Fly Fishing in the Winter — Something is Always Gonna Hurt
Sure, sunny winter days invite the fair weather angler who dabbles in the extended season. But stack up the wind, snow, dark clouds and cooling temperatures, and what it takes to overcome these elements becomes more than most fishermen are willing to sustain. Because even if you’re dressed perfectly, something is gonna hurt . . .
NYMPHING
The Dorsey Yarn Indicator — Everything you need to know and a little more
The dark truth is that upgrading your fly fishing gear rarely catches you more fish. Rods, reels, fly lines, expensive tippet and overpriced hooks hardly improve your catch rate. And the marginal improvement you might see is probably a result of confidence and concentration rather than the performance of new gear.
The Dorsey yarn indy will catch you more fish.
Here are the details . . .
Stop the Split-Shot-Slide
Why so much hate for the split shot? Guys grumble about attaching it to the line, bitch about removing it and snarl when it slides. That's too much hate for such a timeless and effective tool. Sometimes, using split shot just makes the most sense. In a variety of...
Fly Fishing Strategies: Tags and Trailers
Sometimes trout are feeding so aggressively that the particular intricacies of how nymphs are attached to the line seem like a trivial waste of time. Those are rare, memorable days with wet hands that never dry out between fish releases. More often than not, though, trout make us work to catch them. And those same particulars about where and how the flies are attached can make all the difference in delivering a convincing presentation to a lazy trout.
Two nymphs can double your chances of fooling a trout. But there are downsides. Here are some strategies for rigging and getting the most from two fly rigs.
STREAMERS
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ANGLER TYPES IN PROFILE
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BIG TROUT
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NIGHT FISHING
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