Articles

Quick takes: 12 trout fishing tips

A dozen digestible tips on everything from flies and reading water to rods, reels, and taking fish photos

by Todd Tanner - Thursday, Feb 17th, 2022

Photo: Chad Shmukler

Those of us who came of age in a different era can find it disconcerting to live at a time when knowledge and expertise frequently take a back seat to marketing hype and fact-free perspectives. Still, fly fishers will always benefit from accurate information and informed opinions. Here are my thoughts on various aspects of fly fishing for trout. I hope they’ll prove worthwhile …

Lyme and other tick-borne diseases are on the rise. But why?

The complex interplay of ticks, their habitats and hosts — along with changes in land use and climate — may be enabling the spread of the pathogens they carry

by Ula Chrobak - Saturday, Feb 12th, 2022

Photo: Fort George G. Meade Public Affairs Office / cc2.0

On a warm spring day, disease ecologist Daniel Salkeld is hiking the hills of coastal scrub and chaparral of Marin County, north of San Francisco. It’s his favorite spot to collect ticks.

Musky maxims

In the world of musky fishing, there are certain well-held truths

by Tim Schulz - Thursday, Feb 10th, 2022

Photo: Mike Sepelak

During my first night at Legacy Lodge in Winter, Wisconsin, an oracle appeared in my dreams. “You will catch one musky—and only one musky—sometime over the next three days, but the day and time will be a surprise.” Bonafide oracles are infallible, and mine resembled a famous one named Pythia. I wanted to give her the benefit of the doubt a genuine oracle deserves, but her proclamation seemed like a puzzle with a missing piece. So I remembered how an old Professor of Logic from my freshman year in college—Dr. Martin van Nostrand—taught me to untangle puzzles like this.

Review: Snowbee Prestige GX-S SW fly rod

Snowbee's brand-new saltwater flagship rod is a surprisingly light, responsive performer

by Chris Hunt - Tuesday, Feb 8th, 2022

Photo: Hatch Magazine

Sometimes, it’s fun to live dangerously. You know … like when you cast a fly over a fish you’re probably better off leaving alone, for the sake of your gear, if not for the ire you might incur should something go wrong.

Like when the magazine editor who assigned you a fly rod review watches as you intentionally swap out your bonefish rod for your barracuda rod, and he realizes you’ve geared up the only fly rod of its kind in North America for some rough-and-tumble popper fishing for a toothy ‘cuda that’s harassing a school of bones.

Florida's bonefish are on drugs

A new study reveals how prevalent and dangerous prescription medications have become in Florida's waters and the species that swim in them

by Hatch Magazine - Friday, Feb 4th, 2022

Photo: Bonefish & Tarpon Trust

According to a three-year study by Bonefish and Tarpon Trust and Florida International University, Florida’s bonefish are on drugs. Lots of them. Researchers analyzed tissue samples collected from a large geographical area along Florida’s coast, ranging from Biscayne Bay near Miami to an area west of Key West, testing for the presence and concentration of commonly prescribed pharmaceuticals. Every fish the researchers tested contained at least one pharmaceutical, with one fish testing positive for 17 different prescription drugs.