Few topics can start an argument among fly tiers faster than a discussion of the proper proportions of a Catskill-style dry fly. Should there be three wraps at the head or just two? Should the wing be 1/3 of the way down the shank, or should it be 5/12ths? And on and on. One thing is for sure, though: Catskill dry flies should be sparse. Much of the style’s elegance comes from its slender profile and dainty. . .
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Tuesday Tip: How to Double-Haul
Welcome to our seventh installment of “Ask a Fly-Fishing Instructor,” starring our own Peter Kutzer, who works at the Manchester, Vermont, Fly Fishing School. A couple months ago, we asked you to
post some questions about your biggest casting problems. Reader “Bill E.” wrote,
How about some help with hauling and double hauling?. . .
Read MoreFly-Fishing Week in Review
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Welcome to our new weekly roundup of news from across the world of fly fishing. Every Monday morning, we’ll bring you up to speed on interesting stories, new records, important conservation news, and anything else we think you should know about.
Read MoreThe Vanishing Salmon of California’s Bay-Delta Estuary
The San Francisco Bay Delta is formed where the San Joaquin and Sacramento Rivers join in Northern California. The delta is an important resource for both fisherman and farmers. However, as with many rivers systems, far more water has been diverted from these rivers for irrigation than is needed for the farming, and the fish populations are being devastated. In this compelling video by the NRDC, we learn that salmon populations dropped from 1.4 million to 39,000 between 2002 and 2009, a 90% collapse. But action is being taken, and awareness of the problem is being raised, in part by videos such as this one above.
Read MoreFriday Film Festival 07.29.11
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 has got it all: freshwater, warmwater, and saltwater action. From the chilly northeast of Norway to the marlin-filled waters off the coast of Australia, anglers continue to produce high-quality footage for the rest of us who can’t be there. But it’s not just entertainment: there’s educational value here, as well. Did you ever want. . .
Read MoreFly Fishing for Bonefish in Cuba
Ok, so the video isn’t the best quality we’ve ever seen, and the narration is in Italian. But we all know the language of fly fishing the flats and that surge of a bonefish when it takes off and the reel sings.
Tying a Simple Gartside Gurgler
The Gurgler, invented by the late fly tier and iconoclast Jack Gartside, is one of those all-around useful patterns than will catch everything from panfish to tarpon. It’s sort of the topwater version of a Woolly Bugger, and like the Bugger, it can be tied in many different sizes and colors, with a variety of materials and accoutrements. Gartside wrote about his creation: . . .
Read MoreTuesday Tip: Casting Angles
Welcome to our sixth installment of “Ask a Fly-Fishing Instructor,” starring our own Peter Kutzer, who works at the Manchester, Vermont, Fly Fishing School. A couple months ago, we asked you to
post some questions about your biggest casting problems. Reader “griffjc” wrote,
From all the advice I’ve gotten on casting, the rod has only ever been described in a forward-and-back motion. Is there ever a reason to cast slightly to the side or even at an extreme angle, . . .
Read MoreFriday Film Festival 07.22.11
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 mostly amateur footage, but there’s no shortage of great action and gorgeous fish. There’s plenty of backcountry action, from Montana to New Zealand, as well as a group of college students who may well turn out to be future FFF stars if they build on what they’ve learned. . .
Read MoreJoan Wulff: Fly-Fishing Pioneer and World-Class Fly Caster
Joan Wulff is a legend in the fly fishing industry – she blew away her competition in fly casting tournaments starting at the age of 11. I had the opportunity to watch Joan cast at the Graceful Rise Women’s Symposium held at the American Museum of Fly Fishing back in June and was simply awed by how effortlessly, and precisely, she casts. Check out this video for some shots of Joan’s tight loops!
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