Commentary

I spend a lot of time working with beginner fly anglers, and one thing almost all of them share in common is a bit of "paralysis by analysis." That is, they let the amount of options and choices in fly fishing (how should I rig this fly? What's the best way to cover this run?) paralyze them into inaction. I wonder if that same problem doesn't afflict us...

In a recent story over at Field & Stream, Joe Cermele and Miles Nolte take turns debating which fly anglers are better: those from the West, or back East? It's a tongue-in-cheek discussion, of course, but you might find a bit of merit in their meanderings. If nothing else, it's an entertaining look at the stark differences between the two largest...

Brian Bennett, who currently works for the Wild Steelhead Coalition, recently wrote an article for Fly Fisherman Magazine arguing in favor of ecosystem based fisheries management (EBFM). The opening paragraph to his story sums up that concept: "Think about all the things involved with planning a fishing trip. Experienced anglers consider many...

The removal of all dams on the Klamath River has made it the largest project of its kind in the world. While there's still work to be done to help the river, and its fish, regain former glory, this is a monumental achievement for conservationists across the world. The final dam - the Iron Gate Dam - was recently removed, meaning the Klamath flows from...

My aunt still can't wrap her mind around the idea of catch-and-release fishing. I don't blame her, because the idea of going through all the trouble to catch a fish, just to let it go, is on its face, ludicrous. It's a vital tool for conservation, and ensures we have great fisheries for years to come, but it's hard for non-anglers to understand the...

The relationship between good trout fishing, light, and temperature is something that takes anglers a while to figure out, in my experience. Realizing how big of a role those two factors play in making a day of fishing great or mediocre, however, will change how you approach your fishing. That's the idea behind this recent story from Chris Hunt in Hatch...

If you spend any time in the fly fishing community on social media, you've probably noticed there are two groups of people. The first closely guard their fishing spots, going so far as to blur the background of any pictures they post, lest someone find a landmark and identify the fishery. The second group is free with place names, telling people to fish...

Fighting and landing big fish on a fly rod is a skill many anglers hone over time, but they often learn it the hard way. There are a few things you can do to make landing big fish more effective, which is especially important now that we know so much more about how fish recover from catch-and-release. That's why it's important to read this story from Kent...

George Daniel recently put together a great piece on getting started chasing bowfin on the fly rod. Bowfin are a unique, prehistoric fish that are on my personal bucket list, mostly because they're so different from any of the trout I have to play with here in the Rockies. Daniel's story details a trip he took with guide Drew Price, of Masterclass Angling...

I just spent the last week in Alaska, fly fishing my way from the Kenai Peninsula up to the interior. That's a dream trip for a lot of anglers, and that was certainly the case for my best friend, Lander Crook, and I. The trip came together last-minute, but we had lodging lined up, and should've been on the Kenai at the tail end of the sockeye run. In...