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About 10 years ago, a young girl named Maxine McCormick shocked the fly-casting world by beating adults at competitions. (See the great video about her below.) Now, a youngster from Florida is making similar waves: [Elias is] even competed in casting games against adults, including a trip to California to compete with the American Casting Association. While in California, Elias won his division in two events and placed in all…

Fly fishing on the Madison River in Yellowstone National Park. Photo: NPS / Neal Herbert On Monday, we posted about some dire predictions for summertime water conditions in Montana, and now Yellowstone National Park has announced afternoon closures for several of the rivers on the western side. The Madison, Firehole, and Gibbon rivers and all tributaries will close daily from 2 p.m. to sunrise: Water temperatures in select rivers and…

Click here to view the full, scalable map. Via The Wilderness Society Last week, we posted about how conservation organizations are raising alarm about Senate Republicans on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee releasing a proposal to sell between 2 million and 3 million acres of public land. A summary and analysis of the the bill by The Wilderness Society includes a map of lands that could be on the…

This week’s Tying Tuesday features three patterns that don’t imitate a specific insect or baitfish, but which have a profile and action that trout will surely respond to. We kick things off with a great-looking terrestrial pattern from Steve Cullen, a guide in the English Midlands. Is it an ant or a beetle? Who cares because it’s buggy, with a hint of flash, and floats well. It’s also easy to…

An angler fishes the North Fork of the Flathead River on Sept. 15, 2024. Hunter D’Antuono | Flathead Beacon Stream gage data is already registering temperatures and flows that normally don’t bedevil Montana’s rivers and tributaries until mid-July, prompting state fisheries managers to issue early warning signals on Wednesday that anglers should anticipate restrictions and closures this summer. “What that means to us as far as a prognosis is ……

 Fly fishermen have plenty of larger and more glamorous fish to choose from, but arguably none as eager to take a fly as bream and bass. Indeed, these warmwater species seem tailor-made for the fly rod. But there are times when these normally eager fish can frustrate even the most skilled fly angler. On slow days, consider trying a “popper-dropper” rig. Similar to a “hopper-dropper” rig, a “popper-dropper” rig…

For this wonderful shot, Tim will receive an Orvis Clearwater Fly Rod Outfit. Happy Father’s Day to all the dads out there. We hope you’re having a wonderful day, which perhaps includes time on the water. Last month, we invited you to submit photos for our “Fly-Fishing Dads” Photo Contest, and we received some great entries.  Last Monday, we presented you with 10 finalists for the contest’s prizes. The voting…

 A gorgeous new series from Swedish angler and filmmaker Rolf Nylinder explores the meaning of the word “wild” when we’re talking about rivers and landscapes. Very often, what looks like the natural order of things is actually the result of man’s intervention—whether it’s from altering the course of a stream or replacing a diverse forest with monoculture. As Rolf puts it, “This film is not just about fishing, it’s…

A backcountry fly-fishing trip in North Carolina’s Pisgah National Forest turned scary for Zain Shah and Kevin Foley, high-schoolers from Chapel Hill, when Zain was bitten by a rattlesnake along a riverbank. Two miles from their car, they recognized that they were going to need help, and Kevin was able to reach a 911 operator who talked them through temporary treatment and called in a helicopter to airlift Zain to a…

Last night, Senate Republicans on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee released a proposal to sell between 2 million and 3 million acres of public land in Alaska, Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Nevada, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming. From the Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership: While the House version put forward land sales to approximately 500,000 acres in Utah and Nevada, the Senate proposal would accelerate land disposals across…

By Rick Mikesell Scientific Anglers has introduced the Magnitude Clear Trout series—a purpose-built family of floating fly lines designed for the most technical trout situations. According to SA, this new offering is tailored for stealthy, precise presentations and gives anglers the confidence to use a shorter leader and still deliver the perfect presentation to even the pickiest fish. The series includes two models: the Infinity Clear Float and the Trout…

This week’s Tying Tuesday contains none of the elegant, artistic patterns that are often featured on the covers of fly-tying books. Instead, you’ll learn to tie oddball—perhaps even unattractive—flies that will catch fish. We kick things off with the relatively handsome Renegade, a classic attractor pattern that works almost anywhere trout rise to bugs on the surface. It’s not pretty, but super easy to tie. Enjoy the AI narration, as…

  Many North Americans would love to catch brown trout in their native environment, and most of us think of the UK or France or Slovenia for wild, native brown trout. But, Spain has a long history of fly fishing in the Pyrenees—Hemingway called this region “the closest thing to heaven”—and for the traveler, there are many rivers with public access. Spain has small freestone mountain streams, lakes, and tailwaters…

A fascinating article by Jules Silverman and Brad W. Taylor in Fly Fisherman looks at why and when trout react to certain insects on the water. Two trips to the Missouri River to fish the Trico hatch left Silverman perplexed about why trout would eat the spinners one week and not at another. Rather than just chalking it up as one of the mysteries of the sport, he decided to…

A new bill introduced in the closing hours of Alaska’s legislative session seeks to expand protection for the Bristol Bay region, home to a prolific wild salmon fishery that produces over $2.2 billion in economic output and supports over 15,000 Alaskan jobs. The bill, introduced by Speaker of the House Bryce Edgmon (I- Dillingham) and Representative Andy Josephson (D- Anchorage), would ban metallic sulfide mining, also known as hard-rock mining,…

Illustration: María Alconada Brooks/The Washington Post Here’s one from the “Uh-oh, where is this headed?” files. Writing in The Washington Post, Ashley Fetters Maloy details how the fashion industry has recently latched on the fly fishing for inspiration. As Vogue‘s descriptions of “fly-fishing baskets” and “hand-carved[?] bamboo fishing rods” below make clear, these fashionistas aren’t bothering to actually learn anything about the sport they’re ripping off . . . ahem…

This weekend is a great time to explore new rivers and lakes. Photo: Bill Bullock Have you always wanted to try fishing in a nearby state but weren’t sure if it was worth the license fee? Now’s your chance, as more than half of U.S. states will allow anglers to cast a line without a license this weekend. The folks at TakeMeFishing.org have put together a handy list to help…

 Forest Station—a bluegrass band with angling roots in both Bozeman, Montana, and Jericho, Vermont—recently release a new song that any fly fisher can relate to. (Lines such as “I tried new flies a dozen times, and none of them seemed to work” might hit a little too close to home for some of us.) “White Whale” is about what motivates anglers to continue to stoke their obsessive fires.

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This week’s Tying Tuesday features three patterns that aren’t focused on imitation, but offer bright, attractive silhouettes that will make fish take notice. We kick things off with a classic pattern from Barry Ord Clarke, who walks you through the steps for tying Lee Wulff’s legendary White Wulff. It’s easy to tie, easy to see, and floats well even in rough water. Next up is another simple, yet effective pattern:…

Striped-bass fishing is heating up along the East Coast, and the folks from Trident Fly Fishing in Portland, Maine, have shared their Top 10 flies for the new season: “Whether you’re chasing striped bass from the surf, a boat, or in the back bays, these flies have proven to be the most effective patterns for getting hooked up this year. We cover a mix of classics and innovative new designs…