Last year, I decided I was done with my tight-lining ways and decided to go all-in on Euro nymphing. Of course, that meant buying a fly rod designed specifically for Euro nymphing. Yes, to some degree, you can still effectively Euro nymph with just about any fly rod, but the heavier fighting butt and more […]
Review: The Cortland Nymph Series Rod Read More »
When I was a kid living in Western New York, I remember a news report about the Cuyahoga River in Ohio, a tributary of Lake Erie, catching on fire. Even to an elementary schooler, the idea of water being aflame was pretty fantastical. Back then, the vast Lake Erie was biologically dead. Thankfully, the Cuyahoga
Ohio Steelhead: Fat Fish in Skinny Water Read More »
This could get confusing if I don’t first explain that the Au Sable River in upstate Michigan is 700 miles from the Ausable River in New York State. Notice that the river in Michigan is correctly spelled with a space left between the u and capitalized “S”, whereas the similarly named river in the Empire
Michigan’s Au Sable Brown Trout After Dark…On Dry Flies! Read More »
The Micro Mayfly did not make my initial list of confidence flies. Nevertheless, it is just too effective to leave off. As with the Frenchie and Shop Vac, the Micro Mayfly is one of my go-to tag patterns. As a matter of fact, fishing the Micro Mayfly is identical to fishing the Shop Vac as
How to Fish and Tie the Micro Mayfly Read More »
Fall fly fishing can be both picturesque and productive. Learn which flies you should carry in your fly box to catch more trout this fall season. This article discusses 15 of our favorite patterns.
Best Flies for Fall Fly Fishing for Trout Read More »
Summertime wild browns love eating the Green Weenie. I will never, ever be caught dead on a Class A brown trout stream in July, August, and September without a dubious quantity of Green Weenies in my fly box. In fact, both limestone and freestone wild browns crush the Green Weenie in the summertime when fished
How to Fish and Tie the Green Weenie Read More »
Other than a standard Walt’s Worm, the Shop Vac has likely taken more small limestone spring creek fish for me than any other fly. This is a Western pattern from West Yellowstone, MT, also introduced to me by Grumpy Dave. He discovered this nymph on a fishing trip to the Madison River. Let me tell
How to Fish and Tie the Shop Vac Fly Read More »
I admit that I was fed up seeing endless online videos of fishers making thundering, yet elegant, two-handed Spey casts with ginormous fly rods across big rivers to wild chrome-colored salmon and steelhead moving up to spawn. I wanted to do that. (Spey cast–not spawn; I’ve three kids already…) So, I got my hands on
Book Review: Modern Spey Fishing by Rick Kustich Read More »
Earlier this spring, upon taking off my boots and stripping free of my waders, I discovered my wool sock was quite damp. I didn’t think too much of it because I do sweat a lot and the mid-May days were quite warm. As I spent additional days on the water, my right foot continued to
How to Repair Leaky and Torn Waders Read More »
The Frenchie is the first Euro nymphing-specific pattern that I ever encountered. As a matter of fact, the Frenchie fly is so similar to Frank Sawyer’s Pheasant Tail Nymph that only the addition of a hotspot and heavy weight really separates it from the original. From what I’ve read, Lance Egan developed, or introduced this
Fishing and Tying the Frenchie Fly Read More »
