Articles

Angry

When hidden places become found
Photo: Chad Shmukler

He sat comfortably in his favorite camp chair, perched above what he always called “the swimming hole,” a deep pool formed by a sheer granite cliff that pushes the creek north into a sprawling meadow. He didn’t move or make a sound. Instead, he just watched.

It was meditative. Super chill. And he sat there for what seemed like hours. Just watching. Not moving much.

Whither the double taper?

Why are so few anglers fishing double taper fly lines?
Casting a double taper fly line on the Firehole River in Yellowstone National Park (photo: John Juracek).

While scanning the internet recently, I happened across an article titled “Why Fish Double-Taper Fly Lines?” A website reader wondered what these lines were for, noting that he didn’t know anyone that fished one. The article’s author then opined that he himself had never fished a double-taper either. Seeking an answer, the question was passed on to some other folks.

River Rules

How to avoid unforced errors when fishing
Photo: Todd Tanner

Doug and I were visiting the Elk River in British Columbia last weekend when a fellow in a drift boat opted to ignore the open channel on river right and float down the small side channel I was fishing. I was a little bummed — the oarsman could see me standing mid-channel from quite a ways away — but I assumed that he’d have the angler in the bow stop casting when they got close, and that they would slip behind me and scoot downstream a fair distance before they started up again.

Nope.

Fly out Alaska

Chasing trophy trout and more in the Bristol Bay wilderness
A Bristol Bay rainbow trout (photo: Earl Harper).

In the battle to protect Alaska’s Bristol Bay from the horrors of a vast, open-pit mining operation which would have put the world’s largest sockeye salmon run in peril, I was, at best, one of the good soldiers who loaded the cannons.

The 10 Commandments

For beginner trout anglers
Casting lessons at The School of Trout (photo: Todd Tanner).

Most new fly fishers have a hard time telling good advice from poor. Sadly, the internet is full of questionable guidance from people who portray themselves as experts yet lack the requisite skills and knowledge. If you only fish a few times per year, or if you’re relatively new to the sport, it’s not always easy to know who to trust. With that in mind, I’d like to share ten tips that our instructors at the School of Trout offer on a regular basis.

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