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.
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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
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 Trico Hatch and Spinner Fall
Tricos hatch overnight and fall spent by mid-morning. Reading the clock, why size 22 on 6X matters, and how to fish the spinner fall that makes the whole event.
Fishing Terrestrials: Hoppers, Ants, Beetles and Crickets
Terrestrials do not hatch, they fall in. How wind, bank grass and time of day decide where trout eat hoppers, ants and beetles through the hottest part of summer.
Identifying a Salmonfly and Golden Stone Hatch
Stoneflies hatch on land, not on the water. Why that single fact means fishing the banks, when the salmonfly peaks river by river, and how to fish golden stones.
Identifying a Pale Morning Dun (PMD) Hatch
Pale Morning Duns are the defining hatch of a western summer. How to identify them, when they emerge by region, and why trout eat the emerger instead of your dun.
Indicator, Long Leader, or Straight Down: Three Ways to Present a Lake Fly
Once the fly is at the right depth, you still have to decide what it's doing down there. Three deliveries, three depth ranges.
Bonefish on the Flats: How to See the Fish Before You Cast
Nervous water, tails, and pushes — the flats skill that has to click before your casting matters. Plus the lead, the shrimp strip, and the strip-set.
The Pantyhose Trick That Turns Any Dry Fly Into a Trailing-Shuck Emerger
A simple pantyhose trailing-shuck trick that turns any standard dun dry fly into an emerger pattern the moment trout start refusing your fly.
How to Tie the Black Lightning: A Bull Trout Streamer for Winter Water
Learn to tie the Black Lightning, a blue-and-black streamer that covers bull trout, coho, and steelhead when the water runs cold and dirty.
Poly Leader vs. Standard Leader: What Actually Matters
The real difference between poly leaders and standard fluorocarbon leaders, plus the one taper rule every fly fishing leader needs to follow.
Why Your Fly Cast Isn't Really a "Loop" — And Drills That Will Fix It Anyway
A forestry scientist's unconventional wave theory of fly casting, and practical drills — casting in wind, casting silently, casting in the dark — that sharpen your stroke.
Nymph Depth and Presentation: The Real Keys to Catching More Trout
Ryan Jarvis of Monic Fly Lines breaks down why depth and presentation beat fly selection every time, plus the aerial mend and jerk-strip tricks that put more trout in the...
How to Catch Fish on Technical Water: The Dry-Dropper Nymphing Trick
A Delaware River guide's approach to picky tailwater trout: presentation, the reach cast, and a dry-dropper rig fished upstream like a grid.
Stop Punching Your Cast: The One Fix That Saves Your Fly Presentation
The number one reason fly casts collapse is punching the final stroke. Here is how smooth acceleration to a stop fixes it.
Blood Knot vs. Triple Surgeon's Knot: Why I Build Leaders with Blood Knots
Blood knot or triple surgeon's knot for joining leader sections? Why one seats cleaner, sheds tags, and causes fewer wind knots.
How to Tie a Bounce Rig Leader for Nymphing Skinny, Slow Water
How to build a Provo-style bounce rig leader step by step — butt section, tippet rings, tag placement, and why small split shot beats big ones.
The Rapala Knot Explained: A Better Loop Connection for Streamers and Dry Flies
A simple loop knot for streamers and dry flies, plus a bonus quick loop knot for small flies — tied step by step from a recent tip-of-the-week.
7 Euro Nymphing Techniques That Catch More Trout
Euro nymphing has revolutionized fly fishing over the past decade, and for good reason—it catches significantly more fish than traditional indicator nymphing in most situations. I was skeptical at first,...