Trout Rising but Refusing Your Fly? A Step-by-Step Troubleshooting Checklist
Rising trout refusing every fly? Read the rise form, fix the drift, then change size, stage and tippet - the checklist that ends refusal evenings.
Featured post
Alaska Will Change Forever: Go Now
Alaska, a land renowned for its wild, untouched landscapes and abundant wildlife, offers some of the most spectacular fly fishing experiences in the world. But with increasing popularity and looming...
Fly Fishing Insider Podcast Blog
Dry Fly Dead Drift: How to Get a Clean Float Every Cast
A clean dry fly dead drift comes from putting slack in the right place. Here is how I read micro drag, build the leader, and cast for a drag-free float.
When to Move the Fly: Induced Takes vs the Perfect Dead Drift
Dead drift or active drift? How to read refusals, time the Leisenring lift, and add the movement that turns following trout into hooked trout.
Six Reasons Trout Refuse Your Dry Fly (and the Fix for Each)
When a trout looks at your dry fly and swims away, it is telling you something. Here are the six fixes for dry fly refusals, in the order I check...
Fishing Dry Flies Downstream: The Fly-First Approach for Spooky Trout
Spooky trout refusing your dry fly? Fish it downstream: fly-first delivery, built-in slack, and the low hook set that turns flat-water refusals into eats.
Identifying a March Brown Hatch
The March Brown opens the dry fly season. Why the sparse trickle works in your favour, the two different insects sharing the name, and how to fish cold spring afternoons.
Identifying a Green Drake Hatch
The Green Drake is the hatch anglers plan their year around. Why big trout change their behaviour for it, when it peaks, and how to follow it up the valley.
Identifying a Hendrickson Hatch
The Hendrickson reopens the eastern season. The 50-degree rule that tells you when it starts, the Red Quill confusion, and why afternoons beat mornings.
Identifying a Mayfly Hatch
Upright sail-like wings, a tapered body and two or three long tails mean mayfly. How to spot the hatch, read the rise form, and pick the stage the trout are...
Mayfly - Stages of an Insect
Mayflies pass through four stages that matter to an angler — nymph, emerger, dun and spinner. What each one looks like, how trout eat it, and the pattern that covers...