Currently browsing… Fly fishing
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Finding ‘lake mode’ out of angling necessity
I'm not much of a lake guy. Don't misunderstand that statement. I like lakes as an idea. Fishing them, though, is problematic, mostly because the lakes I would relish fishing are well off the beaten track — I'm only willing to tote a float tube so far before I lose interest, and I'm only willing…
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Long live the Gila trout
Seven of us pierced the Gila wildlands that day, and, despite the best efforts of a clueless pot-shotter, all seven of us made it out without holes in our hides. We never figured out who was shooting or what they were shooting at
Huddled as close to the fallen tree as we could get, Kirk and I looked at each other, our eyes wide with surprise and a touch of fear. The bullet had missed us by a wide margin, but the fact that we could hear it as it zinged overhead after the ricochet was unnerving. "Wait…
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New year’s pledge: Plenty of time on the water
There's nearly no better way to kick off a new year than on a river. It’s a great way to set things right, forget what happened in the previous year and daydream about fishing adventures to come. A few years back, I attempted to catch a trout on a dry fly every month of the year. For some…
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We are TU: Heidi Lewis
We care about clean water, healthy fisheries and vibrant communities. We roll up our sleeves to volunteer, we sit on our boards, and we strategize as members and leaders of staff. We want you to join us. For a discounted first-time membership, click here: https://gifts.tu.org/we-are-tu The aim of this blog series is to highlight our friends, in…
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Use UV resin to keep small flies from unraveling
Eventually, I got to where I could place just the right amount ahead of the hackle and behind the hook eye before I whip-finished the fly
I’ve always been something of a ham-handed fly tier, and, generally speaking, the bigger the fly, the easier it is for me to tie. I’m a big guy at six-foot-five, and my hands correspond to my height. They just aren’t meant for detail work. But I live in eastern Idaho, and during fall and winter,…
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Up in the high country where the native trout swim
I learned to fish in the creeks and beaver ponds of Colorado’s high country, pulling nuggets of wisdom from willing grandfathers who believed time spent with their grandchildren should be time spent outdoors. These two men introduced me and my brothers to the wonders hidden high in Colorado’s mountains. Together, they wandered with us through…
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Check out Thin Air Angler for great fishing in Wyoming
You may know him as a fly-tying savant. His reputation there is solid, and if you’ve ever watched him at a fly-fishing show, you can see immediately that it’s deserved. He makes hard things look easy. Bob Reece is a professional in every sense of the word. He’s one of America’s best at the vise.…