Articles

5 more books for fly anglers

February reading for fly anglers

by Chris Hunt - Sunday, Feb 19th, 2023

Photo: Chad Shmukler

I suffer from fly-fishing book fatigue at times. While I love a good yarn now and then, it seems that our chosen craft attracts more artists and writers than, say, something a little more technical, like aviation mechanics.

Every year or so, a gaggle of new scribes (or old ones, for that matter) are so inspired by the long rod that they can’t help but push out new compilations of fishing stories that they hope will resonate with the angling masses. (Full disclosure: I’m as guilty as anyone, but it’s been a while since I’ve gone the essay/memoir route in book form.)

Heavy snowpacks to offer relief from 1200 year Western drought

Above average snowfall throughout much of the American West bodes good tidings for the coming fishing season

by Chris Hunt - Thursday, Feb 16th, 2023

Photo: Joi Ito / cc2.0.

Western trout anglers hoping for a little relief from a drought that’s well into its third decade can take heart in the fact that snow data collected by the Natural Resources Conservation Service looks good for the first time in a long time.

And that’s especially true for the southern reaches of the Rockies, where the drought has drained reservoirs, raised water temperatures and left some stretches of the most iconic trout streams in the country utterly unfishable.

Review: Redington Trailblazer fly rod

A great-casting rod in a small package

by Spencer Durrant - Sunday, Feb 12th, 2023

Photo: Redington

Fly rods are many things, but one thing they aren’t is convenient for air travel. You need a special case to haul them as a carry-on, and I know few anglers who have enough faith in baggage handlers these days put a few thousand dollars worth of rods, reels, and line in checked baggage.

Simms to donate $50k to ongoing Yellowstone flood recovery

Sales from special edition Watershed waders will help fund park recovery work

by Hatch Magazine - Thursday, Feb 9th, 2023

Photo: NPS

In early June 2022, floodwaters ravaged the northern tier of Yellowstone National Park, destroying roads and bridges and wreaking havoc on communities from Gardiner Mont, north through Paradise Valley and beyond the fishy little town of Livingston.

Giving fish the finger

An alternative fly casting grip to consider

by George Daniel - Tuesday, Feb 7th, 2023

Photo: George Daniel

What is the best fly-fishing grip? The simple answer is: the grip that feels and works best for you. Period. Though there may be no fly fishing topic that earns the ire of internet fly casting trolls, also known as the “casting police,” most of these individuals live in an echo chamber where they preach about the One Way to fly cast. What these individuals fail to understand is that no single fly casting style is best for everyone. While there are certainly tactics that work best for the masses, there’s always a minority in need of another approach.