News On The Fly
Machines in the Wilderness
Posted on January 19 2004
Pete Bodo writes a summary of issues regarding snowmobile and jet ski access to wild places in this New York Times article. When I worked to get jet skis banned from the Great White Heron and Key West National Wildlife … more
Recovering the Blackfoot
Posted on January 18 2004
Monte Burke, a senior reporter at Forbes, writes about the successful effort to protect and recover the subject river of Norman Maclean’s famous book. The article includes photographs by the excellent outdoor photographer Tom Montgomery. In Gray’s Sporting Journal.
"Tasteful Little Dries"
Posted on January 17 2004
More on the pleasures of casting small flies and the coincidental necessity of throwing such monstrosities as the “marabou newt.” James R. Babb in this month’s Gray’s Sporting Journal.
Fly Tying 101
Posted on January 13 2004
The first in a series of articles by Lynn Burkhead called “Fly Tying 101,” on ESPN.com. One bit of good advice: “There is no substitute for having 15 minutes with somebody standing over your shoulder who knows what they’re doing.”
Duffer's Guide to Scottish Salmon
Posted on January 06 2004
Good introductory piece by Bill Drew on Forbes.com about salmon fishing in Scotland. The character of gillies as described makes them sound faintly similar to some Florida Keys guides.
Trout Town USA
Posted on January 02 2004
This vignette of Roscoe, New York in the New York Times describes this western Catskills town as a last, best place two hours from Manhattan. Besides being home to respected fly tiers Mary Dette and Poul Jorgensen, it sits astride … more
Del Brown Tribute in San Francisco Chronicle
Posted on December 29 2003
The Chronicle names Del Brown as one of the Bay area notables that will be most missed. ” “In the arcane world of fly fishing, Delmar E. Brown was Barry Bonds, Cal Ripken Jr. and Ted Williams all rolled into … more
A Scot's Take on the Miramichi
Posted on December 27 2003
A well-written piece by Scottish author Charles Duncan describes the Miramichi and the need to imitate Canadian Atlantic Salmon protection in Scotland.
The Letort's Legacy
Posted on December 23 2003
A very interesting piece about the history of the Letort River in southern Pennsylvania, the river’s role in helping shape the thinking of America’s fly fishing pioneers (including Charlie Fox, Vince Marinaro and Ernie Schwiebert), and a debate over whether … more
New Guy de la Valdene Novel
Posted on December 19 2003
I remember Guy de la Valdene as part of the original troupe of Key West hippies — including Tom McGuane, Jimmy Buffet, Jim Harrison and Richard Brautigan — who made a classic, unreleased movie about tarpon fishing in the 1970s. … more
Why Tonkin Bamboo is Best
Posted on December 17 2003
This article about rod-maker Doug Kulick in the Reno Gazette-Journal Online mentions why Tonkin bamboo from Guangdong Province of China is the preferred bamboo of split-cane rod builders: “…the distance between leaf nodes, the high point or bump between the … more
Fly Fishing the Mediterranean
Posted on December 16 2003
Ran across this link on the Fly Fishing Forum to a site that covers fly fishing the Mediterranean and surrounding countries. There’s a suprising amount of information here on an otherwise unpublicized resource. For example, here’s a piece on fishing … more
Dude Fishing the Lower Florida Keys
Posted on December 12 2003
Guy Martin records his quest for a grand slam (tarpon, permit, bonefish) in the Marquesas and off Little Torch and Howe keys in the lower Florida Keys. Despite getting his geology a bit wrong (the Marquesas is not an atoll, … more
Aldo Leopold on Gadgets
Posted on December 11 2003
Almost 60 years ago, Aldo Leopold remarked on something all fly fishers are now familiar with. “Then came the gadgeteer, otherwise known as the sporting-goods dealer. He has draped the American outdoors man with an infinity of contraptions, all offered … more
LIE Calculator
Posted on December 10 2003
Scott Butner of Richland, WA developed this LIE (“Length, Inch Equivalent”) tool a couple of years ago. It’s quite a hoot.
Guiding vs. Sex
Posted on December 08 2003
Guiding vs. Sex #20: You can’t get drunk and guide, period. #19: Limp rods have no place on the boat. #18: You do have to hide your fishing magazines from your friends, or at least laugh about how wrong the … more
Myths of Midge Fishing
Posted on December 04 2003
Tom Rosenbauer contributed a piece to Field & Stream on the “Mighty Midge” and included lots of tips on using this highly productive pattern.
Muerte Deportiva
Posted on December 02 2003
Loosely translated, the “sportsman’s death.” That’s what the Club de Yates de Veracruz will apparently give Xavier Molina, who falsified his recent 6-lb. tarpon record. The reason: “To impress a woman.” According to Mr. Molina’s confession, the fish was actually … more
Powell Rod Company History
Posted on November 29 2003
I found this link to a rather detailed history on the Powell family and their involvement — and disinvolvement — with the Powell Rod company. It’s a story marked by strong personalities and by the acrimony over the Schwab assumption … more
Orvis's Leigh Perkins
Posted on November 29 2003
It’s telling, in my opinion, that a man like Leigh Perkins, who — in part thanks to his mom — has had every opportunity to pursue varied sporting interests for more than half a century, would make a remark like … more
Guide Tackle
Posted on November 25 2003
This piece in Forbes includes what I think is a valid test for any guide: they should own more tackle than you and two other friends own. About encouraging employees to skip business meetings… well, sounds like something a guide … more
Perfect Bait Storms
Posted on November 24 2003
John Waldman writes in the New York Times about feeding frenzies on the open ocean and what a terrific spectacle they create. It reminded me of fly fishing for king mackerel once in the Gulf of New Mexico and watching … more
The Midge Cult
Posted on November 22 2003
Does everyone in West Virginia have incredible eyesight, or just members of the midge cult? This snippet in Field & Stream about anglers on West Virginia’s Elk River makes me want to schedule an emergency visit to the ophthalmologist.
Ed Rice on the Smith River
Posted on November 21 2003
Tom Stienstra on SFGate.com writes about Ed Rice fishing northwestern California’s Smith River for salmon. I tried to catch Ed his first permit back in July of 1994, but Ed wanted to make it challenging and popped off two fish … more
Bonefishing the Seychelles
Posted on November 12 2003
This article by Jack Otter in SmartMoney magazine recounts a first bonefish trip, to the Seychelles islands in the Indian ocean no less. Quoting the article, “‘The bonefish in the Seychelles are less expensive than in the Bahamas,’ says Chris … more
John Gierach on Nonpredatory Moods
Posted on November 12 2003
A lyric piece by John Gierach in this month’s Field & Stream, describing how noodling along a road and looking at a river can excite a fisherman to test himself, even as a long season of trying fishing is behind … more
Cornell's Bird Site
Posted on November 07 2003
Of interest to even a casual outdoorsperson, Cornell’s Lab of Ornithology Web site is a treasure trove of bird info. Especially valuable is the extensive Online Bird Guide, which allows a taxonomic or alphabetic selection of species details (including confirmation … more
Photographer Charles Lindsay
Posted on November 05 2003
If you haven’t seen Charles Lindsay’s and Tom McGuane’s book Upstream: Fly Fishing in the American West, you are missing a unique artistic perspective on flies, rivers and fly fishing. From this notice of a new exhibit opening at the … more
Fly Tying: Trout Fly Tutorials
Posted on November 01 2003
As Harry Mason says on his Troutflies.com Tutorials page, “A balance, if any, between overkill and presenting just the right amount of information in each tutorial is a real problem.” Here are some of the most detailed step-by-step instructions on … more
Abel X-Stream Rod and Reel Combo Kits
Posted on October 30 2003
On December 1 Abel is introducing a new series of reels and matching rods that are lower priced than their standard series. Called the X-Stream series, the kits are available in 4 different configurations (3 different rod/reel sizes: 5-weight, 7-9-weight … more
Fish Pain and Fish Release
Posted on October 29 2003
John Randolph’s stoic defense and Paul Schullery’s clear-spun interpretations of catch-and-release in the September issue of Fly Fisherman magazine remind me again of the inscrutability of the sport, and to quote Mr. Randolph quoting Walton: “That’s which is everybody’s business … more
Montauk Bass
Posted on October 26 2003
Peter Kaminsky writes of October striped bass and albacore fishing off of Montauk Point on the northeastern tip of Long Island. Along with a description of preparing the fresh-caught bass at Daniel restaurant, in today’s New York Times.
Fly Rods: The Korean Connection
Posted on October 22 2003
John Merwin writes an intriguing piece in Field & Stream about the role of Korean manufacturers in the budget-priced fly rod market. There’s also an interesting comment from Rick Pope, president of Temple Fork, about the value of “Internet gossip” … more
Catskill Fly Fishing Center and Museum Inductees
Posted on October 21 2003
The Catskill Fly Fishing Center and Museum in Livingston Manor, New York, inducted Ray Bergman, Stanley Bogdan, William “Catskill Bill” Kelly, and Nick Lyons into their Hall of Fame this year. This article in the Times-Herald Record offers short biographies … more
Trout Lookup
Posted on October 21 2003
It’s quite helpful that James Prosek posted many of the prints from his Trout: An Illustrated History on his Web site. If you want to know the distinctive markings of a Volcano Creek Golden Trout, this is the place to … more
Saving Russian Salmon
Posted on October 19 2003
James Prosek writes a nice piece about how Peter Power, an Englishman, is singlehandedly saving three of the best Atlantic Salmon rivers in the world with — what else? — his own money. In today’s New York Times.
Rajeffs OLN Fly Fishing Masters Winners
Posted on October 17 2003
Steve and Tim Rajeff’s four trout (the maximum number allowed) from Depuy’s Spring Creek in the Paradise Valley south of Livingstion, MT, measured a total of 62 inches. They were caught on #22 Baetis and midge imitations using 7X tippet. … more
The Beauty in Cormorants
Posted on October 16 2003
My friend Simon Becker — one of the finest guides working, in my opinion — claims to have found something admirable in cormorants. When I dragged him out on a busman’s holiday last spring, he remarked that their eyes are … more
Manhattan Weird
Posted on October 14 2003
Granted, to be weird in Manhattan, as in Key West, you need to extend yourself a little. But hang out a tackle shop? Apparently Capitol Fishing Tackle is a magnet for tackle junkies of all kinds. Jonathan Miles in Field … more
Presidential Retreat for Sale
Posted on October 12 2003
I first saw a piece on this in a smaller newspaper about a month ago, but the Washington Times put out a story today on the planned auction of Trout Run, a secret, private fishery not far from Camp David … more
Fall Steelhead from the Great Lakes
Posted on October 10 2003
Bob Salerno in the New Britain (Connecticut) Herald describes the techniques (“chuck and duck”) and strategies (“first water”) for fishing steelhead arriving out of Lake Ontario tributaries. A brief but comprehensive lesson.
Stripping Baskets for Trout
Posted on October 01 2003
Zach Matthews put together a nice commentary on using stripping baskets on small waters. Why not?
Nine-Foot Nails
Posted on September 30 2003
Surely fly tying takes us to surprising destinations — including the cosmetics aisle for trout bead colors. Casey Ressler examines his inner beautician in the Wasilla, AK Frontiersman. A good-humor piece that reminds me of my one-time embarrassment at buying … more
Bamboo History
Posted on September 26 2003
A nice piece by Dewey Hildebrand on his love for all things bamboo. Among the details, that one of the first bamboo culms used for construction of fly rods was Calcutta cane, and that the commonly used Tonkin cane is … more
The Yucatan's Sian Ka'an Biosphere
Posted on September 25 2003
The Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve is one of the more remarkable areas of the world, and wraps itself around some of the finest saltwater fly fishing there is, particularly for permit. Since no new access roads are allowed there, the … more
Lightweight Fly Rod Reviews
Posted on September 22 2003
A well written series of three- and four-weight rod reviews, from GearReview.com.
Houseboating South Florida
Posted on September 17 2003
Peter Fong delivers a good read about his houseboating and fishing experience in Florida Bay and the upper Florida Keys in the New York Times. This is one of the best pieces by Mr. Fong I’ve read.
Ireland's Moy
Posted on September 17 2003
A fascinating piece about the salmon and surrounding culture of Ireland’s Moy river, which left me wishing I was there to partake of the “craic.”