Articles

New 2016 fly fishing gear: Standout rods and reels

Rod and reel highlights from IFTD in Orlando

by Chad Shmukler - Tuesday, Sep 8th, 2015

Each year, in the weeks and months following IFTD/ICAST in Orlando, we get to hear a lot about the products that walk away with "best of" honors at the show. This is with good reason. These often innovative and superbly crafted products captivate and excite. But they're not the only show in town. Hundreds of products debut each year at the show, many of which get significantly less time in the spotlight.

Hendricksons

You don't think about this shit when you're younger

by Steve Zakur - Friday, Sep 4th, 2015

Photo: Matt Shaw Creative

At some point I stopped being concerned about getting older. I was probably just shy of 60 when the feeling of creeping doom receded. Over the course of a few years, everything that could ache began to do so. The accumulated baggage of the aging process had gathered in one large sack of decrepitude. In spite of this, I began to care less about the parts that didn't work quite right. Ibuprofen helped. So did Bourbon. However, like all phases of one's life there are surprises, most of which aren't pleasant.

Gear trend: stronger leaders, tippet for 2016

Coming soon: fewer lost fish

by Chad Shmukler - Wednesday, Sep 2nd, 2015

RIO's new tippet and leader material is 20% stronger than its predecessor.

If you're hip enough to find yourself in the midst of a conversation about monofilament manufacturing, you'll likely hear a quip that goes something like "it all comes from the same three factories in Japan anyhow!" In reality, this isn't the case. Monofilament manufacturers operate factories in Japan, China, India, here in the USA and lots of other places. That said, it is true that many major fly fishing brands, such as those highlighted below, work with some of the leading Japanese manufacturers of nylon, copolymer and nylon monofilament.

Keeping it dry

Three solutions for keeping your camera dry when on the water

by Mike Sepelak - Tuesday, Sep 1st, 2015

It was a frustrating Catch-22. I finally broke down and upgraded my SLR to a fantastic (that is to say, expensive) new full frame camera, capable of capturing stunning outdoor/fishing photos, and then balked at taking it out into the field. It cost too much to take the risk, right? Insurance? Of course I got some. But just the same...

So, for a while, I regressed to carrying my point-and-shoot and cursing my timidity.

The under-appreciated caddisfly

A closer look at caddisflies from Paul Weamer's 'The Bug Book'

by Paul Weamer - Monday, Aug 31st, 2015

Caddisflies are perhaps the most underappreciated aquatic insect family. To many non-anglers, they look like little moths. Adults have wings shaped like a tent, segmented bodies without tails, and antennae that give a moth-like appearance. But unlike moths, caddisflies spend most of their lives living in the water as larvae, which look like little worms. Most, but not all, caddisfly larvae live in some type of case that they build from rocks, sand, plant material, or even their own silk.