News On The Fly

Work on the Orvis Fly Fishing blog began in April 2010, and the first post appeared on September 20 of that year. For more than eleven years, it’s been a mostly solo effort, but I’m happy to introduce our first assistant blog editor, Evan Jones. He comes to . . .

The post Meet the New Guy: Evan Jones appeared first on Orvis News.

During the course of our #WesternTroutChallenge series, I’ve spent a lot of time in great fly shops across the West. While I do my best to make it a genuine give-and-take, I have to admit I generally walk away with a lot more than I can offer (generally only . . .

The post Story & Photos: Bull Trout, Conservation, and the Value of Discretion appeared first on Orvis News.

This week my guest is Sascha Clark Danylchuk [1:05:54], executive director of Keepfishwet.org and a fish biologist who has intensively studied the science of releasing fish in a responsible manner. We've talked a lot about trout lately in the podcast, so this one is on recommended release techniques for bass, panfish, pike, bonefish, redfish, and tarpon--plus a little on cold-water releases of trout.

In the Fly Box this week, we had an unusually good collection of questions and tips--maybe because I was out of the office for a couple weeks so I had a lot to choose from.
I want to write a fishing book. What do you suggest?
What is the proper etiquette when I see other people on the river?
I need a Yellowstone cutthroat to complete my Utah cutthroat slam. They are only found in a small stream. How should I go about approaching this stream and what techniques should I use to make sure I complete my Slam?
Why is wet-fly fishing often called a "lost art"?
Why do I have trouble landing small brook trout on barbless hooks?
Why do the trout in France bump my hopper flies and not always eat them?
How do you approach a situation where insects are hatching but you don't see any trout feeding?
How can I catch large trout rising infrequently in a very slow pool?
A tip from a listener on how to get more fly-tying time
Do lakes and ponds fish well in the rain?
Some great advice from an Orvis-endorsed guide on fly-tying tips for beginners.
Why don't fly-rod manufacturers use foam instead of cork for rod handles?
How can I land large trout feeding on small flies?
A tip for using a common kitchen product for cleaning cork handles on rods.
Do modern ferrules still need wax?
Is it possible that the large rainbows in Colorado reservoirs could be fall spawners?

Welcome to the latest edition of the Orvis News Friday Fly-Fishing Film Festival! Every week, we scour the Web for the best fly-fishing videos available and then serve them up for you to enjoy. This week, we’ve got an eclectic mix of 10 videos that will . . .

The post Friday Fly-Fishing Film Festival 09.10.21 appeared first on Orvis News.

The folks from The Flyfish Journal released a stellar film this week that checks a lot of boxes off for me starting with carp on the Columbia River.  Please PLAY and enjoy this one...

You can see and read more on this on The Flyfish Journal with their Millhouse in PDXexclusive and if you don't receive this magazine in your mailbox every few months, you should consider...

Welcome to the latest installment of the Wednesday Wake-Up Call, a roundup of the most pressing conservation issues important to anglers. Working with our friends at Trout Unlimited, Backcountry Hunters & Anglers, the Theodore Roosevelt . . .

The post Wednesday Wake-Up Call 09.08.21 appeared first on Orvis News.

Late summer into early fall is a great time to fish beetle patterns for trout, bass, and panfish. The big hatches of summer are usually over, and the fish know that terrestrials provide a lot of nutrition. In this great video from Tim Flagler of Tightline . . .

The post Video: How to Tie the Turbo Beetle appeared first on Orvis News.

It’s Day 7 of our “20 Days in September” Photo Contest, and since “thirty days hath September,” you could start today and still complete the challenge. How are you doing so far? I’m in good shape, having fished every day but one so far, focusing on . . .

The post Photos: Week One of This Year’s “20 September Days” Contest appeared first on Orvis News.

If asked what piece of gear that has changed the way that we travel most, the PAKMULE would undoubtably top the list.  It has fundamentally changed how we plan and pack for trips, and both our ORIGINAL and RIDGELINE makes for additional space for gear, keeps items we need most accessible back the back of the vehicle, and gives us a "work station" of sorts for tailgate meals.

As with a lot of things...

Welcome to the latest edition of the Orvis News Friday Fly-Fishing Film Festival! Every week, we scour the Web for the best fly-fishing videos available and then serve them up for you to enjoy. This week, we serve up 11 killer productions that will take . . .

The post Friday Fly-Fishing Film Festival 09.03.21 appeared first on Orvis News.

Over the next few weeks, Congress will debate the scope and priorities of the the America Jobs Plan, one goal of which is to “Maximize the resilience of land and water resources to protect communities and the environment.” In detailing the need . . .

The post Orvis Joins Conservation Groups Urging Congress to Pass Funding for Everglades Restoration appeared first on Orvis News.

The Clouser Deep Minnow—created by Susquehanna River icon Bob Clouser and named by Lefty Kreh—is perhaps the best-known saltwater fly. But over the years, the pattern has proven its effectiveness in freshwater, as well, catching everything . . .

The post Video: How to Tie the Freshwater Clouser Minnow appeared first on Orvis News.

Although meteorological summer doesn’t end for another three weeks, the kids are heading back to school, summer hours at work are nearly over, and the nights are growing increasingly crisp. It’s a time to reflect on how well you spent those longest . . .

The post The 2021 “20 Days in September” Contest Kicks Off Today! appeared first on Orvis News.

Gel-spun polyethylene (G.S.P.) thread is incredibly strong and slick, which makes it perfect for spinning deer hair, but it can be a huge pain in the butt to use. In this great video, Tim Flagler explains the benefits of using GSP thread and shows you how to . . .

The post Video: How to Tie with Gel-Spun Thread appeared first on Orvis News.

Welcome to the latest edition of the Orvis News Friday Fly-Fishing Film Festival! Every week, we scour the Web for the best fly-fishing videos available and then serve them up for you to enjoy. This week, we’ve got ten classic productions with a focus . . .

The post Friday Fly-Fishing Film Festival 08.27.21 appeared first on Orvis News.

The folks at Tom Morgan Rodsmiths continue to celebrate the 25th anniversary of TMR and the legacy of Tom Morgan.  In this video, Joel Doub sat down with famed bamboo rod builder, Per Brandin.

Sit back and enjoy this one.

Visit the Tom Morgan Rodsmiths website, check out the 25th Anniversary Collection, and then follow along with the latest shop news on Facebook and Instagram....

I always get a kick out of Rolf's films.  I hope that you do too.

Dive down a rabbit hole on his YouTube channel and on the Rolf Nylinder website.

Subscribe in a reader

Fish love to hold in places where they are safe from predators or where they can hide before ambushing prey. That often means you need to drop your fly under an obstacle–a tree branch, some mangroves, a dock, . . .

The post Video Pro Tips: How to Make a Skip Cast to Get Your Fly to Hard-to-Reach Fish appeared first on Orvis News.

Last week, Tim Flagler of Tightline Productions offered a primer on how to trim spun deer hair, and today’s pattern is a classic bass bug on which you can try these skills. Tap’s Bug was the creation of H.G. “Tap” . . .

The post Video: How to Tie Tap’s Bug appeared first on Orvis News.

A weedguard makes it possible to fish patterns such as bass poppers through heavy cover without having to clean off the hook after every retrieve. Even some trout streamers can benefit from such a guard, . . .

The post Video: How to Make a Monofilament Weed-Guard appeared first on Orvis News.

Welcome to the latest edition of the Orvis News Friday Fly-Fishing Film Festival! Every week, we scour the Web for the best fly-fishing videos available and then serve them up for you to . . .

The post Friday Fly-Fishing Film Festival 08.20.21 appeared first on Orvis News.

This week’s podcast guest is especially exciting to me, as he is one of my literary heroes. John McPhee is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author (Annals of the Former World, 1999), and in his numerous other books, he . . .

The post Podcast: Author John McPhee and His Favorite Fish appeared first on Orvis News.

This week's podcast guest is especially exciting to me as he is one of my literary heroes. John McPhee [24:10] is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author (Annals of the Former World), and in his numerous other books he has written about such diverse topics as nuclear energy, the merchant marine, basketball, Alaska, bark canoes, oranges, continental drift, flood control, tennis, farmer's markets, and many other eclectic topics. Whether or not you are interested in a subject, you can be sure you will be when you finish reading one of his books you will be fascinated. John has also been a staff writer for The New Yorker since the 1960s. In our interview, he talks about his two favorite fish to catch on the fly rod--the American shad (which he wrote an entire book about, The Founding Fish), and the chain pickerel, which he did not write a book about but did pen a short essay on in his collection of stories The Patch. (I doubt is anyone in the world who would count those two fish in combination as their favorites--but he is never conventional.) I hope you enjoy the interview as much as I enjoyed talking to him. In the Fly Box this week, we have some great questions and tips: A reminder from a listener that I wrote an encyclopedia of fly fishing Some great tips from a listener on using tippet rings A question about what constitutes a watershed when concerned about transporting aquatic invasives A suggestion from a listener on ways to offset your carbon footprint when taking fishing trips Which is a better rod for fishing the surf and jetties--a traditional 9-foot 9-weight rod or a two-handed rod? Do you always recommend using a net? A listener calls me on the carpet for my flippant remark about manhandling carp. A great thought from a listener that sometimes taking photos of fish hinders the moment.

There will be many fine tributes to Leigh H. Perkins written in the near future, as he had a larger-than-life influence on the worlds of fly fishing and habitat conservation. But I’d like to share more what he was like . . .

The post Tom Rosenbauer on His 45-Year Relationship with Leigh Perkins appeared first on Orvis News.

Welcome to the latest installment of the Wednesday Wake-Up Call, a roundup of the most pressing conservation issues important to anglers. Working with our friends at Trout Unlimited, . . .

The post Wednesday Wake-Up Call 08.18.21 appeared first on Orvis News.

Over the past couple of years, Tim Flagler of Tightline Productions has showed us how to tie the Intruder Leech and the Pine Squirrel Trout Spey Streamer, both of which make use of a shank and a trailing . . .

The post Video: How to Tie the Two-Tone Intruder appeared first on Orvis News.

There's been some talk on T.F.M. recently about the introduction of the Beaver Meadows S-Glass and we're seeing it "in the wild" in this shortie film by JP Ross Fly Rods.



The "talent" in this shortie film is author Mark Usyk and you can hear his story on the latest In the Seampodcast. JP Ross has been doing this podcast for awhile and I continue to be impressed with his knack for...