Fly Fishing

As I walked up to the office yesterday morning, I saw the guys from the rod shop carting long cardboard boxes to the picnic table on the lawn. I knew that this could mean only one thing: a morning rod-testing session.

The product developers, others in the Rod & Tackle division, and the folks who actually. . .

Alec Kauffman shows off a Rogue River steelhead, while his younger brother mugs for the camera. Hey, if you don’t have a fish of your own, it’s your only option, right? photo by Zac Kauffman

EDITOR’S NOTE: Zac Kauffman—the Outdoor Operations Manager for Morrison’s Rogue River Lodge in Merlin, Oregon—sent us this story by his 14-year-old son Alec, who had written it for Ms. Coleman’s 6th period Language Arts class. As Zac wrote, “It does seem to capture the child’s excitement about fishing.” We couldn’t agree more.

Saltwater action on the Atlantic Coast is heating up, so it’s time to stock up on baitfish patterns for stripers, bluefish, and false albacore. Perhaps the most famous fly for the salt is the Clouser Deep Minnow–created by Susquehanna River icon Bob Clouser, named by Lefty Kreh, and mutated into hundreds of forms by other tiers. This version, by New Jersey angler and tier Brad Buzzi, is fairly beefy and durable and should work for. . .

After a year of trying, guide Rob Snowhite finally landed his snakehead on a fly. photo Courtesy Rob Snowhite

I have wanted to catch a northern snakehead (Channa argus) since I first heard about their introduction into the Potomac river around 2004. I didn’t give much thought as how to go about catching one on a fly or even think it was possible until I saw a photo of one caught during the 2010 shad run by Trent Jones–who works at Orvis Clarendon and is a fellow member of the Tidal Potomac Fly Rodders, our local Federation of Fly Fishers club. From then on, I was dedicated to catching one of these elusive fish.

Steve from Elizabethton took this great shot that captured an array of colors, both of the trout and the rocks and water. What’s the most beautiful fish you ever caught?

You’ve waited all winter to fish again. You’re finally on the water when you realize… your fly box is pretty darn thin and you don’t have that one pattern the fish want. The only thing more excrutiating than having trout rising near you (or bonefish tailing; or bass foraging) but not having the right fly they’re taking, is your buddy having that right fly and slaying the fish right in front of you. No one wants that. That’s why we’re having our Giant Fly Sale the month of June.  100+ flies are on sale now. Just $1.50 for most trout flies and $2 for saltwater flies and big ugly trout flies. Baetis, PMDs, Adams, Hare’s Ears, WD-40s, Disco Midges, Pheasant Tails, Elk Wing Caddis,  Prince Nymphs, Silver Sides, Albies, Zug Bugs, Flashback Emergers, Brass Ass, Flats Minnows, Woolly Buggers, Ants, San Juan Worms, and many more. Get the picture? Great flies. Cheap.