Welcome to another edition of the OrvisNews.com Friday Film Festival, in which we scour the Web for the best fly-fishing footage available. This week’s collection is super trouty, with just a couple of tarpon videos to break it up. From New Zealand, to England, to Wisconsin and Montana, there’s a ton of great footage in this week’s festival. There are also plenty of lessons for anglers and travelers alike. One of the best parts of watching all these videos is seeing how other fly fishers do things, whether it’s rigging, fly presentation, or transporting their gear. This week’s FFF also contains one of my favorite deadpan guide comments of all time (in response to a tarpon making a big splash on the surface): “Something died.” Remember, we surf so you don’t have to. But if you do stumble upon something great that you think is worthy of inclusion in a future FFF, please post it in the comments below. See you next week with a fresh set of films!
Nothing beats a fly-fishing road trip with a bunch of good buddies. These guys head to the Driftless region of Wisconsin, where they discover several beautiful streams filled with trout. The fish aren’t big, but that doesn’t seem to diminish the magic of the experience. Right on.
Poonin’ 2011 Feb-July from Catalyst Charters on Vimeo.
I don’t know about you, but I can’t really get enough of great jumping-tarpon footage, and there’s plenty of good stuff here. The comments from the guide are priceless, as well: “Stick ‘im, baby!”
HIDDEN WATERS by Wychwood Fly-Fishing Tackle Design from Wychwood Game on Vimeo.
Here’s a stunningly beautiful video about fishing the remote tarns of the English Lakes District. It offers a vision of fly-fishing in England that seems quite a long way from the tweedy guy casting upstream on the River Test. And some of the browns here are truly lovely.
October Rock from Yukon Goes Fishing on Vimeo.
Ivan from Yukon Goes Fishing is back with another in his series of “Seasons of the Rock” videos, shot on Montana’s Rock Creek. It’s the stuff we’ve come to expect: cool angles, gorgeous fish, beautiful scenery, and a great soundtrack. Check out Ivan’s blog to see his fly-fishing goals for 2011 and how many he’s accomplished.
More tarpon goodness, with some cool action from Capt. Tommy Locke and our friend Aaron Adams (also a captain), research scientist for the Bonefish & Tarpon Trust. I love the flatwater shots, where you can see the tarpon moving and striking.
Okay, this one’s in French, so most folks won’t be able to understand anything but what the guide says. But we all understand this equation: New Zealand + remote rivers = awesome brown trout. The language barrier doesn’t matter when one of those monster trout takes to the air at the end of someone’s line.
Brown Trout on Streamers from Jeff Mueller on Vimeo.
This Go-Pro self-shot video does a great job of making you feel like the rod is in your hands, as trout hammer streamers. There’s a bit of really good how-to info here, as well. Watch how the angler uses mends, rather than stripping the line, to move the fly through the water. This is a great way to give a fly some action, while keeping it in the strike zone longer. And it’s obviously effective here.
Finally, here’s a really cool piece of archival footage from the 1930s, which shows a bunch of guys enjoying the outdoors in the Cascades of Washington. They ride into the backcountry on horseback, set up camp, and have a blast while fly fishing on some gorgeous rivers. They didn’t have all our high-tech gear, but it didn’t seem to bother them one bit. Have a great weekend!
Just wanted to congratulate Orvis on their use of podcasts to help build brand loyalty. I have two T-1 rods and visit Orvis stores in Boulder and Yorktown, IL. Tom and his guests do an excellent job, and their PR benefits to Orvis are just fantastic!! Please, we need one every week!
Bob Wanzel