Bucket List Angling & Adventures

Everyone remembers the first fish they caught on a dry fly. They remember the pool, surrounding circumstances, and of course the fly. And for me, that fly was a size 16 black ant. For the next few seasons that followed, I turned to the ant more than any angler should. Cold weather Hendrickson hatch … Read more about THE EASTERN ANGLER’s WEAKNESS: TERRESTRIALS

As I’ve written about before, when heading west I typically start at base camp on the Missouri River. It’s a great and steady dry fly river, that gives you a nice option to jump right in after getting off a plane and getting into some big fish on dries. And this year you could say real big thanks to … Read more about WESTERN TAILWATERS VS. FREESTONES: TWO VERY DIFFERENT BEASTS

Fly-fishing is fly-fishing. We use a rod that uses a heavy line to propel our imitation, rather than rely on the weight of the lure to accomplish same.  You would think that learning how to fly cast, and fly fish generally would be a skill that translates amongst most species, but that is … Read more about A FRESHWATER ANGLER’s ATTEMPT TO BECOME SALTY: AN ENJOYABLE STRUGGLE

The social norms and characters of fly-fishing have always been interesting. That’s one thing that has never changed. There was always a social pecking order, and process one had to go through in order to get veteran anglers from a given river or region to talk to, let alone respect them. Today that … Read more about Characters in Fly-Fishing

Each season is enjoyable and you take something from it. While the end of each season is dark, its fair to say that the excitement that each new season brings exceeds that darkness. And on an early season, that excitement is real, because the fishing can be legitimately good. The more seasons you … Read more about SECONDARY WATERS AND SEASONAL ADJUSTMENTS

In flyfishing, you often hear of the “4 phases” of the sport that include (1) wanting to catch a fish (2) wanting to catch a lot of fish (3) wanting to catch big fish (4) not caring anymore about catching anything and simply enjoying yourself. While I agree generally with these phases. I think as … Read more about FAILING MORE THAN YOU SUCCEED: A SIGN OF GROWTH OR REGRESSION?

I started fly-fishing like most other people do, driving around in my car pulling into parking lots or just downright blocking the road before running down a hill to get to the stream in waders. I did that for between 5-10 years, and somewhere around the early 2000's, I started to notice more drift … Read more about THE MANY USES AND ABUSES OF A BOAT WHILE FISHING

The world has become smaller. International fly-fishing has now grown to a point that people wanting to explore “far off” places encounter an almost cookie cutter market for now well-known destinations for specific species. Gt’s in the Seychelles along with permit that have some yellow fins.  Golden … Read more about IF ITS NOT UNIQUE THERE IS NO RUSH, AND IF THERE IS NO RUSH ITS NOT AN ADVENTURE: NEW ZEALAND REVISITED