Articles

Good riddance, August

I hate August. But there is a cure.

by Tom Hazelton - Monday, Sep 16th, 2019

Photo: Tom Hazleton

August is a tough month. By the time it arrives, I’ve already had a full summer, starting with early turkey-hunting trout trips — or trout-fishing turkey trips — in Minnesota’s Driftless and northern Michigan. After that are the the big bug hatches, hundreds of winding river valley miles, too many late nights and bug bites, and a comprehensive collection of the Upper Great Lakes’ mayfly and caddis species pasted to the bumper of my truck. Then musky season starts, with its early mornings, sore arms, two-stroke smoke, and well-seasoned sea legs.

Trump admin finalizes repeal of Clean Water Rule

WOTUS rollback reverses protections on millions of miles of streams

by Chad Shmukler - Thursday, Sep 12th, 2019

Quartzville Creek in Oregon (photo: BLM).

As part of an effort begun only minutes after Donald Trump took office in 2017, the Trump administration today released its final rule repealing the Clean Water Rule. The Clean Water Rule, otherwise known as WOTUS (the Waters of the U.S. rule), was to anglers perhaps the single most important piece of legislation in existence.

Alaska's Tongass is in peril again

The Trump administration is seeking to bring back unprofitable, destructive logging to one of the world's greatest salmon fisheries

by Chris Hunt - Wednesday, Sep 11th, 2019

Photo: Chad Shmukler

My father once told me that “home is where you hang your hat.” I believed it, for a time, at least. I mean, as a young boy, who was I to argue with the wisdom of a grownup?

I’ve come to realize, though, that “home” is where everything seems to fall into place just right. For me, it’s where things make sense. Where the pieces and parts of the world interact just so, and they work together to manifest something approaching perfection.

These are the people of the Abaco Islands and they need your help

Hurricane Dorian has wreaked unimaginable havoc on the communities, people and economy of the Bahamas

by Chad Shmukler - Wednesday, Sep 4th, 2019

Abaco Lodge guide Travis Sands (photo: Chad Shmukler).

Four days ago, the eye of Hurricane Dorian made landfall on Great Abaco Island in the Bahamas, lashing the island community with sustained winds of 185 mph and gusts of over 220 mph. Storm surges of 20-25 feet were reported on neighboring Grand Bahama.

Girls on the water

Brands, conservation organizations and others are diligently working to increase fly fishing diversity

by Chris Hunt - Tuesday, Sep 3rd, 2019

Photo: Justin Miller

In the fly-fishing industry, men have called the shots for a long time. While there have certainly been women of note in the craft—Joan Wulff was certainly a pioneering woman and proof that the long rod didn’t care about the gender of the individual casting it—the vast majority of fly-fishing “celebrities” have been men.