Fly Fishing, Pre-Internet

Remember the fledgling days of the internet? Everything was AOL, chat rooms, and dial up. Slow, slow dial up.

In the  past few years, have you considered how techno-deficient life was  in 1997? You weren’t going to be buying anything online, that is for sure. Watching movies? There were no VHS slots in computers… even really fancy Gateways. Between the speed of the internet and the meager dot-com offerings available, you’d be better off getting your news and weather from AM radio.

Surprisingly enough, fly fishing wasn’t on the bleeding edge of the world wide web’s progress. There were message boards and listings on eBay, but the information just wasn’t there. If you wanted to know stream conditions you had to call a fly shop. If you wanted to buy a fishing license you had to go to a Wal-Mart. If you wanted general information about the streams in a particular region you had to go the library and check out a book.

Or, if you were like me, you owned the “Trout Fishing Sourcebook.”

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Podcast Ep. 48: Beauty & Chaos in Fly Boxes

By the time Fall rolls around, most fly fishers’ fly boxes are looking pretty rough.

Truth be told, many new anglers also have chaotic and bizarre collections of fly patterns.

Although it might not be for everyone, I have a concept that I’ve tried to implement in how I fill and maintain fly boxes. In this episode of the podcast, I talk about one of my methods for fly storage/usage. I also go above my pay grade and discuss tying and fishing cress bug patterns.

Listen to the episode below, or on your favorite podcast app.

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Mario, Tetris, & a Trout 14 Feet Down

Even in the 21st century, fly fishing and technology have a loose relationship. These days deep sea fishing and high energy bass angling rely upon the latest and greatest in electronics. These devices can do amazing things, and they carry staggering costs. Their use has become so seamlessly integrated into those styles of angling.

Fly fishing feels so far from that – so analog. The only digital intrusion comes from the ubiquitous camera/cell phone. Even that is optional. It is nice to have, but not necessary.

Do you know what else can be placed squarely in the “not necessary” category? The Game Boy Pocket Sonar.

Yes: Game Boy. Yes: Pocket Sonar. Yes: A fish finder that you threw out into a pond and plugged into your portable Nintendo; which you would be wearing around your neck in a waterproof pouch.

Watch the full review here:

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Come Meet Mr. Chestney

It probably isn’t normal for a teenage fly fisher to consider streams two hours away as his home waters. Yet living in Northern Virginia, I grew up fishing and dreaming of fishing on the cold, trout-filled waters of South Central Pennsylvania. The Yellow Breeches, Big Spring, and The Letort were where I fished. There were plenty of opportunities to catch fish close by. But by my estimation: why settle for second best?

The fishing was good, but part of the allure was the legacy of the region. My local library had a number of volumes written by Pennsylvania authors such as Vince Marinaro, Charlie Fox, and Ed Koch. I was learning fly fishing, and I was learning fly fishing history. Specifically, I was soaking up the history of the Cumberland Valley.  I’d check out, read, and reread everything about the spring creeks around Carlisle cover to cover. Wondrous battles with trout of mythic size and intellect were digested and meditated upon. Photographs from the ’50s were analyzed to try and ascertain locations.

What quickly became my favorite book is titled Limestone Legends. Collecting the papers of the Fly Fishers’ Club of Harrisburg, the stocky paperback was a treasure trove. It was the angling history of my home waters, in the words of the men who fished it in its heyday. The library didn’t have it, but the local bookstore did. I’d sit in the aisle and read selection after selection. Eventually I wanted it for my own bookshelf. I received it for Christmas.

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Podcast Ep. 47: 3 Fly Fishing Things I Wish I Knew Then

Contrary to popular Hollywood tropes, you can’t go back in time.

However, others can learn from your mistakes. And hindsight can also help you make better decisions going forward.

All of that is true in the big, important parts of life. It is also true in fly fishing. In this episode I talk about three things about fly fishing that I wish I knew when I was younger. More accurately: these are things I knew about when I was younger, but I should have actually done them.

Listen to the episode below, or on your favorite podcast app.

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Can You Get Away From Everything

Many people head into nature, be it for fly fishing or some other pursuit, to get away from everything. Everything, of course, is relative. You’re not getting away from the woods. You’re not getting away from fishing. And you’re certainly not getting away from yourself.

And no one is wrong for using that turn of phrase. Everything is normalcy. Everything is the suburbs. Everything is Monday to Friday and commuting and email notifications and go go go. All that is the everything you’re getting away from.

Getting away is good. We were made to rest. We were made to rest daily through sleep. We were also made to take an extended rest on a weekly basis. Whether your worldview is built upon divine revelation or materialism, scripture and science agree that your mind and body need rest. Rest isn’t just laying down with our eyes closed. Rest means stopping our normal, routine, everything and doing something different and rejuvenating.

You could say that when you get away from everything you’re purposefully getting into something.

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Don’t Fly Fish with More than You Need

Most fly fishers might be surprised by how little gear they actually need on the water.  Regardless if you’re targeting mountain trout, farm pond bass, or cruising flats fish, there are truly only a handful of things you’ll reach for on a recurring basis.

Personally, combining trail running with fly fishing has caused me to pare down what I carry and what I consider essential. It has caused me to assess what I use and why I use it. I’ve found that I don’t choose gear based upon weight or size. What I carry is what I absolutely need. Usually, that ends up being small enough and light enough to allow me to move quickly.

Here is one of my go-to fly fishing checklists. It is what I gather together if I’m going to be running/fishing.  But it is also all that I end up using on most of my fishing trips, regardless of  where I am. Here is the what and the why of my minimalist approach to fly fishing:

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Podcast Ep. 46: European Trout-cation

I could hear it. It was coming closer. And there I was: alone in the woods, halfway across the world, holding only a fly rod.

It wasn’t even that great of a rod.

10 years ago I went to Italy. There was culture, cuisine, and an ill-fated fly fishing adventure. Hear me talk about the fish, the fishery, and the fishing guide that made it such a bizarre story. Also, learn how I escaped  the aforementioned, tense situation.

Listen to the episode below, or on your favorite podcast app.

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Rusty Flybox: Autumn

Autumn might not be everyone’s favorite season, but it might be the most popular of the four. For fly fishers, as long as you are able to keep thoughts of the impending winter at bay, it can  really be special. The cool midday air, the brilliant ambiance, and the relative solitude are all reasons to fish in the fall.

Still, there will be some necessary changes. You are going to have to prepare differently. The local rivers may be inhabited by new fish. Even the aesthetics of the season will alter your angling.

Below are three articles hand-picked to help you think about these changes.

  • What should you wear in the fall, and why?
  • How do the Great Lakes tributaries become even greater in September?
  • Why should a fly fisher care about leaves?

Read each article by clicking on the image or title below:

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Get a Few More Years from Fly Fishing Gear

Most fly fishers enjoy getting new gear. However, it is most enjoyable when it is on your terms. Having something fail or break unexpectedly is frustrating. It is beyond frustrating when it happens on the water. While manufacturers don’t get a total pass on quality control, in the 21st century most reputable companies produce and sell pretty good equipment.

And it is never the rod builder’s fault when you step on the thing.

Even if your gear has a warranty you should take care of it. No company is going to send a new reel via drone while you’re standing in the river. Even if your gear was really expensive  you should take care of it. No list of space-age features will defeat abuses like salt, heat, or moisture.

Below are three simple ways to think about keeping your fly fishing gear safe, a brief piece of advice for either end of the economic spectrum, and an explanation of the picture above:

A place for everything…
Generally speaking fly rods come in cases, reels come in pouches, and waders come in bags. Use them. And the gear you don’t have storage solutions for? Buy something. It doesn’t have to be expensive, and it doesn’t have to come from a fly fishing catalog. I have free tote bags  and duffels from conferences that keep extra fly boxes and spools from rolling around my car. I bought a  shallow plastic container for $15 that holds everything I need for a trip and keeps it all visible. Nothing gets lost, nothing gets accidentally crushed.

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