How To
How to buy your first fly fishing rod
There's one mistake I want to help you avoid when you buy your first fly rod.
Latest
How To
The ultimate guide to fly fishing knots
The do's and do-knot's fly fishing knot tying. Find out what you need to know, what you don't, and how to build your skills and have confidence in your fly fishing knots
How To
Scouting 101: Keys to finding great fly fishing spots
Scouting fly fishing spots can be a major challenge for beginners. It depends on combing through lots of sources of information to find places where you might find great water, then verifying those hunches in real life.
Meditations
Finding your Home Waters with the Big Here Quiz
Start your journey to find your home waters by grounding yourself on your home planet.
Meditations
Setting your fly fishing intentions: The CFS Check In
Check in with your goals and set new fly fishing intentions as spring starts creeping up
How To
Essential fly fishing gear for beginners: What you need (and what you don't)
There are only four pieces of essential fly fishing gear you really need to get started.
How To
What is fly fishing? Why do we fish? A very short introduction
For as long as humans have lived near rivers and oceans, we’ve fished. And I’d argue that fly fishing is the closest to how our ancestors did it. Read on for a broad introduction to the sport, the differences between fly and bait fishing, and more.
Meditations
My life story as told by water
Who I am, and how that's shaped my fishing life
How To
Five reasons to start fly fishing
Nobody fly fishes because it’s easy. So why do they do it? Here are five reasons why I fly fish, along with two anti-reasons.
Books
Icons: Percival Everett
On trout fishing and the truth: "For all the aggravation a trout can cause, it cannot think and does not consider you. A trout is very much like truth; it does what it wants, what it has to."
How To
Streamers and triggering trout aggression
Here are two examples of videos depicting the most visible and dramatic types of eats you'll ever get: territorial brown trout going after streamers.
Dispatches
If These Walls Could Talk: Fly-Fishing Guide Wisdom on the Rogue River
Proof that fly fishing guides have gotten no less droll and cynical over the years.
Books
Stepping inside the Angler's Club of New York
If you get a chance to visit the Angler's Club in New York City, take it. It's the nucleus of the sport's North American origins.
Meditations
River time: A manifesto
For me, a river is a sacred place. Any old river will do. It's a nice bonus if trout live there. For when you step into a river, you step away from false time, and surround yourself in what's real.
Books
Icons: William James Lunn, River Keeper of the Test
Lunn's extensive restoration and reclamation work on the Test is a must-read for anyone interested in the practice of taking care of a river.
Conversations
CFS Chat: George Daniel on Dynamic Nymphing
We were lucky enough to get some time with George (in between the Green Drake blitz, even!) and had the chance to ask him a few questions about his approach to the book.
How To
Public access and the ethics of fishing trespass
If a trespass happens in the backcountry and leaves no trace, does it make a mark?
How To
Dapper Don: Stalking large browns with a long rod
Inspiration on moving to a more sight-fishing, patience-oriented trout approach.
Industry
Somerset in January: Reminders of Fish
It's always a nice thrill to get to break out of the winter doldrums for a day and get to feel some good fishing vibes.
Dispatches
Lawfully Wadered: How to have a fly fishing wedding
Here's a "Top 10 things to remember when planning or attending a fly-fishing wedding" list. Because, one day, you too might wind up at one.
How To
That great fraternity of fishing idiots: Why fly rod warranties matter
There are more ways to break a fly rod than there are to catch a fish. A warranty can help get you back out on the water, but there are nuances to what they cover.
Weekly Update
Congrats Piscator: Happy Birthday Izaak Walton
Happy 418th birthday to Izaak Walton, the first (and Compleat-est) angling blogger. Give his masterpiece a leaf through if you haven't before—there are some great carp recipes in there.
How To
Adding movement to your fly, wet or dry, with the Leisenring Lift
It's never a bad idea to try to impart some motion in your flies. The Leisenring Lift is a great way to accomplish just that, whether you're using a wet fly, a nymph, or dry fly.