I’ve been fortunate to catch many big fish on a fly rod in my lifetime. Even still, for as many that have found the bottom of my net, just as many have won the battle and left me heartbroken. Every time I tangle into a heavy trout I have to slow things down in […]
Hooking and Landing Big Fish Read More »
When I tied on my first J:Son fly, I felt like I was tying on a real bug. Everything about them is realistic, from their body shape and proportion to their wing positioning and style. The detail in each fly makes it as much a work of art as it does a tool to
J:Son Flies – Imitations Come to Life Read More »
I’ll admit, I’ve caught the fever. I’m obsessed with big brown trout, and there’s no better time to catch them than in the fall when the majority of people have turned their attention to hunting or sitting at home watching football. But don’t forget fall fishing. This is when brown trout spawn, after all.
Fly fisherman often ponder, “What is the most effective fly ever invented? If I had to fish with one fly for the rest of my life, what would it be?” Well, I know what my answer would be. I’d choose the Woolly Bugger. Whether fishing for musky, bass, bluegills, steelhead, or trout, Woolly Buggers tied
The Amazing Woolly Bugger Read More »
Recently, I had the opportunity to join a team of biologists from the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission (PFBC) as they surveyed the headwaters of East Branch Tunungwant Creek in McKean County. Although the main stem was designated Class A wild trout waters back in the early 1990s, the tributaries that converge to create
Stream Surveys Shed Light on Coldwater Resources Read More »
Looking at the Allegheny River near Pittsburgh, it’s hard to imagine that several hundred miles upstream, that same body of water is small enough to jump over. It’s rare that a river of that eventual magnitude has such modest beginnings. Take the Ohio River, for example, which is formed by the merging of the
Fishing the Upper (Upper) Allegheny River Read More »
It’s not often that nobody complains about bugs in their hair, but that was the case on First Fork Sinnemahoning that evening. Huge clouds of Gray Fox mayflies floated in the twilight above the stream. They flitted and landed on my arms, got caught in my hair, and occasionally I even swallowed one. The
I’ll never forget our first night spent in a tent on the fringe of the Gettysburg battlefield. Around three in the morning, I heard a series of cannon-like booms in the distance and what sounded like screams. Not just any screams, though. These were screams of agony, and unlike any I’d ever heard before. I
Gettysburg Battlefield Trout Fishing Read More »
I first checked out the book The History of Fly-Fishing in Fifty Flies from the local library, but I enjoyed it so much that I bought my own copy. Fly fishing is both a nostalgic and an artistic pastime. Often, the flies we use are elevated above standard trout fare. As a result, a
The History of Fly-Fishing in Fifty Flies Read More »
In a sport that values aesthetic beauty, fly fishermen have no shame when it comes to flies. Take salmon egg patterns, for instance, which are sometimes referred to as Glo Bugs in an attempt to make them sound more sophisticated. Or sucker spawn, which is a piece of yarn on a hook meant to represent
Three Flies to Use When Nobody’s Watching Read More »