News

Written by: Kubie Brown When I first started tying flies, I thought I was a genius. Instead of spending hundreds of dollars on individual flies, I was going to tie everything I could ever need without spending a single cent in a fly shop. I figured that with just a bag of basic materials and a few good hooks, I could set myself up with flies for life. Of...

About 10 years ago, a young girl named Maxine McCormick shocked the fly-casting world by beating adults at competitions. (See the great video about her below.) Now, a youngster from Florida is making similar waves: [Elias is] even competed in casting games against adults, including a trip to California to compete with the American Casting Association. While...

On Monday, we posted about some dire predictions for summertime water conditions in Montana, and now Yellowstone National Park has announced afternoon closures for several of the rivers on the western side. The Madison, Firehole, and Gibbon rivers and all tributaries will close daily from 2 p.m. to sunrise: Water temperatures in select rivers and streams...

Last week, we posted about how conservation organizations are raising alarm about Senate Republicans on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee releasing a proposal to sell between 2 million and 3 million acres of public land. A summary and analysis of the the bill by The Wilderness Society includes a map of lands that could be on the auction block, and...

This week’s Tying Tuesday features three patterns that don't imitate a specific insect or baitfish, but which have a profile and action that trout will surely respond to. We kick things off with a great-looking terrestrial pattern from Steve Cullen, a guide in the English Midlands. Is it an ant or a beetle? Who cares because it's buggy, with a hint of...

Stream gage data is already registering temperatures and flows that normally don’t bedevil Montana’s rivers and tributaries until mid-July, prompting state fisheries managers to issue early warning signals on Wednesday that anglers should anticipate restrictions and closures this summer. “What that means to us as far as a prognosis is … if it’s...

Fly fishermen have plenty of larger and more glamorous fish to choose from, but arguably none as eager to take a fly as bream and bass. Indeed, these warmwater species seem tailor-made for the fly rod. But there are times when these normally eager fish can frustrate even the most skilled fly angler. On slow days, consider trying a "popper-dropper" rig...

Happy Father's Day to all the dads out there. We hope you're having a wonderful day, which perhaps includes time on the water. Last month, we invited you to submit photos for our “Fly-Fishing Dads” Photo Contest, and we received some great entries.  Last Monday, we presented you with 10 finalists for the contest’s prizes. The voting was close, with...

A gorgeous new series from Swedish angler and filmmaker Rolf Nylinder explores the meaning of the word "wild" when we're talking about rivers and landscapes. Very often, what looks like the natural order of things is actually the result of man's intervention—whether it's from altering the course of a stream or replacing a diverse forest with monoculture...

A backcountry fly-fishing trip in North Carolina's Pisgah National Forest turned scary for Zain Shah and Kevin Foley, high-schoolers from Chapel Hill, when Zain was bitten by a rattlesnake along a riverbank. Two miles from their car, they recognized that they were going to need help, and Kevin was able to reach a 911 operator who talked them through...