Your Fly Fishing Information Center!

My version of the parachute ant (my buddy Ray actually gets credit for turning me on to this fly) became my most used dry fly this summer.  Over and over I found that it would fool picky trout.  From Spring to Fall this is an amazing fly to try along brush lined river and stream banks.  In fact, you may be surprised how well this fishes all year round.  Many fly anglers forget how important terrestrials are to a trout's diet.  The profile of the parachute ants seems to be more effective than regular ant patterns.  This is the fly that landed me all those Golden Trout I went after recently.  They couldn't get enough.  Tie some up and keep a bunch in your fly box.

I love my iphone and I've been waiting for a fly fishing app for some time.  I always imagined the first fly fishing app would be a game that would compete with the other fishing games.  Maybe you've played them.  If you use a spinning rod or chuck bait those games just might help you pass the time.  I was bored by them very quickly and had hoped someone might dream up an app that might cater to my fly fishing desires.  Cory Pratt and Brisk Studios have come up with a much more functional fly fishing app that has potential for all of us techie fly slingers.

Fishing Aquatic Insects *

Match The Hatch

Every book on fly fishing, every instructor on the sport, and every experienced angler who fishes for trout with flies will tell you:  Match the hatch.  The successful fly fisherman figures out what the trout are eating and presents them with a fairly accurate imitation.  This is called matching the hatch.

Fly fishing requires more knots than most other forms of fishing where, generally, if you can tie your line to the hook you are golden.   In fly fishing, you need to connect your backing to the reel, then you need to connect the fly line to the backing, then the leader to the fly line,  then the tippet to the leader, and then you can tie your fly on the end of the tippet.  In the instructions for each knot, you will see why each one is vital for a specific purpose.  It is important to be able tie all of these knots, however, it is not necessary to memorize all of them.   I will explain the hows and whys of each knot and a little practice goes a long way.  There are several more knots that you can add to your arsenal, but the ones I have here will do just about everything required for fly fishing.  Most of these knots I've learned from a handy tool called The Fisherman's Ultimate Knot Guide by J.E. Sherry.  The man who taught me to fly fish insisted I purchase this folding, light weight knot guide and it has been in my vest for years.  Get one, you'll thank me later.

Product Review:  Venture Fly Reels

Made by:  G Loomis

These days, everyone is trying to maximize their dollar.  As I've mentioned in other articles, it has been a hard life lesson to learn "You Get What You Pay For."  Now, I still look for a deal, but  the quality of the product is just as important as the bottom line purchase price.  In fly fishing, faulty equipment equals lost fish.  The larger the fish, the more critical your fly reel is for the task.  At $100, the Venture fly reel by G. Loomis is the perfect reel for the budget minded angler.  It is inexpensive, but not cheap. 

Since fly fishermen use artificial flies to catch trout, it is vital to understand what and how trout eat.  There are several species of trout and they all have very similar diets.  However, their feeding patterns and diets vary enough to make note of what species you will be fishing for.  Trout and Salmon belong to the same family Salmonidae.  True trout (Brown, Rainbow, Cutthroat, Golden and Steelhead) belong to genus Salmo.