Techniques

After a long sunny season of leaving your rods, flies, and waders in your car—ready in case you come upon some juicy looking water—the idea of storing it all for the winter has a feeling of finality. As the first frosty days rear their icy heads, your fly fishing stuff goes into the garage or basement with a gentle pat and reassuring word that you'll...

Question: Been fly fishing spring creeks for years, but lately I’ve been thinking a lot about light tippet. While part of me wants to keep chasing that perfect technical presentation, I’m wondering if I’m being selfish. Are we putting too much stress on the fish? Answer: There's something deeply satisfying about fooling a selective trout with 6X or 7X...

Question: I keep losing nice fish because I can't decide whether I should get them on the reel or just strip them in by hand. One morning last week I bungled a solid rainbow, and that left me in a bad mood for the rest of the day. Are there any rules of thumb for making this decision? Answer: We've all been initiated into this club: Your dry drifts...

There are a lot of things in this world that don't make sense, yet somehow work anyway—like the placebo effect, cold fusion, or how a cold beer is refreshing after a long day on the water while still managing to dehydrate you. But perhaps the biggest mystery of them all is why we try to catch pike and musky on a fly rod. It just doesn't make sense. Fly...

Question: I was reading through a recent MidCurrent newsletter and noticed the "Hippie Stomper" pattern being featured. It got me thinking about other fly names that seem needlessly crude or carry negative social connotations. Isn't it time our sport moved past these kinds of names? I can't imagine they help make fly fishing more welcoming to newcomers...

Question: I picked up Euro-nymphing last fall and now I'm catching way more fish than I ever did. Don't get me wrong—it's fun, but it feels almost too effective to be real fly fishing. Like using a cheat code or something. Am I the only one feeling like this? Answer: If you've hung around enough fly shops lately, you've probably heard the grumbling. Some...

As an avid steelhead angler, I love swinging flies on a Spey rod. The calm serenity of the casting, the hypnotic rhythm of the swing and step, all interrupted abruptly and violently when you get a grab. I honestly can't get enough of it, but the reality is there's only so much steelheading a person can do. The fish are only in certain rivers at specific...

Question: Last week during a solid BWO hatch, I was going nuts switching between different shades and sizes while the guy next to me was crushing it with a basic Parachute Adams. Made me wonder if I've been overthinking this whole match-the-hatch thing. How much does exact matching really matter versus just getting a good drift with a reasonable pattern...

Every one of us wishes for the occasional “easy button.” That small or big thing that acts as a sort of cheat code to make a difficult or trying task quicker and easier. These little “life hacks,” as they’re popularly known, exist in almost everything we do, including fly fishing. Fly fishing itself is a complicated angling style where we add a...

No matter how, where, or when you like to trout fish, nymphing is almost always the most productive method. You’re not asking the trout to rise to the surface, chase down your fly, or come to you in any way. Rather, you’re drifting a delectable looking morsal down past a trout’s nose. And like a labrador with spilled kibble, they can’t help but...