Articles

Dry flies need slack

So give it to 'em, George Harvey style

by Domenick Swentosky - Friday, Jun 30th, 2017

Photo: Josh Stewart

Drag kills drifts. On the surface or under, it’s an enemy to every fly fisher, destroying the elusive dead drift and turning good presentations bad. Luckily, the right leader, tippet and casting stroke can beat drag long enough to trick even the fussiest fish.

Imitating a naturally drifting insect is at the heart of fly fishing and for many is the baseline approach. Let’s set aside swung wet flies, nymphs and streamers for a while, and deal with the roots— the top water game—the foundation of modern fly fishing.

Trump, Pruitt surprise exactly no one by doing what they said they would

Adminstration continues its efforts to eliminate protections on our streams, creeks, ponds and wetlands

by Chad Shmukler - Thursday, Jun 29th, 2017

EPA administrator Scott Pruit (photo: Gage Skidmore).

As part of Trump’s clearly stated, ongoing mission to rollback regulations that stand in the way of increased fossil fuel and other industrial development, the administration yesterday revealed more about its plans to eliminate rules that protect our nation’s streams, creeks, rivers, ponds and wetlands from pollution.

America's best fly fishing restaurants: #1

Laughing Horse Lodge, Swan Lake, Montana

by Todd Tanner - Wednesday, Jun 28th, 2017

Photo: Todd Tanner

If you happen to live in New York City, San Francisco, New Orleans or Los Angeles, you may well think of Montana as a culinary cul-de-sac, with great angling and awesome scenery but very little in the way of epicurean delights. And if you’ve ever found yourself settling for a dozen highly suspect chicken wings or a frozen pizza after a great day of fishing on a beautiful Big Sky stream, I understand why you might consider Montana a black hole when it comes to restaurants. But that’s only because you have not yet visited one of the West’s most iconic eateries, Laughing Horse Lodge.

What I learned from beach snook

Lessons taught by one of saltwater's premier gamefish

by Mike Hodge - Tuesday, Jun 27th, 2017

Photo: Mike Hodge

As June bleeds into July, it’s hot in Florida. The heat rises from the earth, hour by hour, as if you stepped into a sauna. Relief comes early or late, before the first cup of coffee or an after hour after the last glass of iced tea, as the sun eases below the dunes.

I measure the seasons by my fly-fishing calendar. Each season brings a new species. It’s now too hot for redfish and seatrout. Pretty soon, the tarpon and snook will arrive.

Loaded for gar and other toothy fish

A look at Scientific Angler's extensive lineup of bombproof wire leaders and materials

by Johnny Carrol Sain - Monday, Jun 26th, 2017

Photo: Johnny Carrol Sain

Gar hold a special place in my angler’s heart. The connection stretches back to humid summer nights of catfishing with my dad on Arkansas River sandbars.

Cats were our target, but gar were frequent nibblers of our hooks stacked with minnows or slices of shad. Dad could always tell if it was a cat or a gar that had come-a-calling by watching the rod tip. Cats often stuck with ferocity—sharp bows in the rod that sometimes dislodged it from a forked driftwood prop and even sometimes drug the whole outfit into the churning river.  