Museum Piece: A Fine Piece of Wedding Cake


Fin-Nor’s “Wedding Cake” reel, designed by Gar Wood, was one of the first fly reels specifically
created to handle the rigors of catching large saltwater fish.
Photo by Sara Wilcox

The American Museum of Fly Fishing is located right next to the Orvis Flagship store in Manchester, Vermont. The folks from the museum will be sharing many of the. . .

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Museum Pieces: Anglers-in-Chief


President Eisenhower launches a cast on a mountain pond.
Photo courtesy AMFF

In honor of Presidents Day, we are featuring some of our most important fly-fishing Presidents. Because the Presidents took longer time off, sometimes up to three months, the opportunity. . .

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Museum Pieces: Five Go-To Streamers for Fall

Written by: Peter Nardini, American Museum of Fly Fishing


One of the first saltwater bucktails, the Gibbs Special is forefather of many modern striper flies.
Photo courtesy AMFF

One for the Salt: Harold Gibbs Striper Bucktail
Harold Gibbs is considered the father of modern striper fishing in the Northeast. Originated in the 1940s, the Gibbs Bucktail (above) was one of the first attempts at suggesting a specific forage. . .

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Museum Pieces: A Fly-Fishing Icon’s First Reel


Lefty Kreh improved his line drag by cutting a thumb insert in his first fly reel, this Pflueger Medalist.
Photo by Sara Wilcox

In the photo above, you can see Lefty Kreh’s very first fly reel, purchased in 1947, the year Lefty discovered fly fishing while guiding legendary angler Joe Brooks. Here’s the story as he told it in. . .

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Museum Pieces: The Sun and Planet Reel


P.D. Malloch’s innovation was in creating a reel whose knob could be used as a brake.
Photo courtesy AMFF

Peter Duncan Malloch (1853-1921) was born in Almondbank in Methven Parish, Perthshire, on July 15, 1852. He followed in his father’s footsteps as a bleach worker until 1872, when he. . .

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Museum Pieces: Oh, The Horror!

Written by: Peter Nardini, American Museum of Fly Fishing


The Horror was the precursor to many of today’s most famous and productive bonefish flies.
Photos courtesy AMFF

The Director of the Bermuda Fishing Information Bureau, Pete Perinchief, designed The Horror pattern in the 1950s after a frustrating trip to the Florida Keys with Joe and Mary. . .

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