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Jimmy Carter is the oldest living former president (he just celebrated his 100th birthday this year) and there’s been a host of new stories, books, and other media recently produced about him. One that has flown relatively under-the-radar is a new book by Jim Barger titled Jimmy Carter: Rivers and Dreams. It details just how important fly fishing has been to the former president, the personal connections it has forged, and the…

Hardy Fly Fishing, the renowned maker of reels and rods in the United Kingdom, has partnered with Trout Unlimited to create a new reel. The Limited Edition Trout Unlimited Tealweight Fly Reel is designed for 3 and 4-weight rods, and only 300 have been built. For every reel sold, Hardy will donate $100 to Trout Unlimited. The Tealweight is available right now online and through your local Hardy dealer. These…

For this week’s Tying Tuesday, we have two new fly patterns, and a video about different fly tying lights. Picking up a good light can make a huge difference in how long, and effectively, you’re able to tie flies. The one I have is some of the best money I’ve ever spent. After that, you’ll get treated to a nice midge pattern and a fun streamer! We start with this…

Photo: Josh Darling, courtesy of Dom Swentosky/Troutbitten We often hear about fly rods being more accurate than ever before, and while that’s partly true, has it translated to anglers who are more accurate? And not just accurate with our fly placement, but also where the fly line lands? That’s the question Dom Swentosky asks in his most recent article at Troutbitten, and it’s one I think is worth answering. As Dom writes,…

Photo: Bruce Tuten/Flickr Four years ago, a group of sixteen kids filed a lawsuit against the state of Montana, alleging the state has violated its constitution by prioritizing fossil fuel development over the health and safety of Montana residents. According to Hatch Magazine, that case made it all the way to the Montana Supreme Court, where the justices ruled in favor of the kids. This ruling affirmed a previous lower-court ruling that…

I’ve had the pleasure of documenting many cutthroat restoration efforts over the past decade, mostly in Utah, where I grew up. But this recent story from Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) is one of the most interesting cutthroat conservation tales I’ve ever heard. Rachel Gonzales wrote the story for Colorado Outdoors, and I highly recommend you read the entire thing. What she builds up to is the first treatment of…

Photo: USFWS Mountain-Prairie/Flickr Fly fishing show season is about to get underway! Attending one of these events is a great way to get out and involved in fly fishing, even in the dead of winter, when many of us just can’t be on the water. We’ve put together a list of consumer-focused fly fishing shows starting in January, which you can browse below. You’ll get to put your hands on…

In reporting on recent legislation passed by the United State Congress, Kirk Deeter, over at Fly Lab, questions whether this new bill is perhaps the biggest environmental win ever for trout anglers. Deeter makes this claim about the recently-passed Good Samaritan Remediation of Abandoned Hard Rock Mines Act, which was approved in “the House by voice vote, indicating near unanimous bipartisan support.” According to Utah representative Celeste Malloy (R), who was one…

This week’s Tying Tuesday features an interesting array of patterns, and in particular, one of the more unique flies I’ve seen in a long time. The Super Mottle nymph from Tim Flagler looks like something I’ll tie a lot of this winter. Up first this week is the latest installment of the Fly Tying Skill Builder series from Fly Fish Food. In this video, you’ll learn about a few different…

Photo: See1,Do1,Teach1/Flickr According to the Wild Fish Conservancy, Washington state is “on the verge” of permanently banning and removing net pen aquaculture from Puget Sound. Net pen aquaculture is the practice of raising fish in pens in the ocean. For years, it was seen as a way to keep robust populations of endangered fish from going extinct (alongside hatcheries located on the mainland) and of course, as a “sustainable” source…

Tom Rosenbauer sat down with Pete Kutzer, a renowned casting instructor, to talk about the basics of getting started in trout spey. This is a style of fishing that I think is underutilized here in the West, and it’s something I’d like to learn more about myself. Pete and Tom are very knowledgeable on the subject, and this podcast offers a wealth of information you just don’t want to miss….

Photo: James St. John/Flickr Places like Ennis, Montana; Durango, Colorado; or Roscoe, New York regularly make the lists of “best trout towns in America.” These are places to move to and fish if you’re an aspiring trout bum. The trouble is, those places aren’t secrets anymore, and they can start to feel a bit crowded with drift boats, guides, and fishing dogs. There’s one town that flies under the radar,…

Photo: Alex Stulce I love fly fishing in the dead of winter. The quiet and solitude are hard to beat, but the biggest stumbling block I hear about from folks who haven’t fly fished with snow on the ground is staying warm. My answer is always the same: ditch the cotton and go for wool. Heck, I’d even suggest folks stay away from the synthetic base layers (mostly polyester-based) as…

Photo: Megan Coughlin/Flickr According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the Arctic tundra is becoming a source of carbon dioxide emissions. NOAA says that the Arctic has stored carbon dioxide in frozen soil for “millennia.” As the Arctic tundra burns more frequently during the summer, that frozen soil is melting and releasing that trapped carbon dioxide. This is happening as the Arctic tundra already acts to absorb “record…

We’ve got an interesting group of flies for this week’s Tying Tuesday. Of particular note is the most interesting Pheasant Tail variation I think I’ve ever seen. There’s also “the simplest parachute mayfly pattern” and a fun bugger, as well. Have fun tying, and stay warm when testing out these flies! Up first is a fly from Tom Jarman Fishing, who I don’t think we’ve featured on Tying Tuesday before….

Photo: USFWS Midwest/Flickr Thanks to funding from president Joe Biden’s America the Beautiful Challenge, a tri-state initiative in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and New York will benefit native brook trout throughout the upper Delaware River watershed. According to Zoe Read from WHYY, this group will get just over $3 million to help “federal and state environmental agencies, as well as local environmental groups, improve water quality and habitat for at-risk native…

Photo: Louis Cahill Louis Cahill, over at Gink & Gasoline, just wrote up an interesting story about steelhead mortality. Now, his story is anecdotal (the information he shares was shared to him by a friend) but it passes the smell test. It goes like this—is it possible to kill a steelhead without knowing you were the one who dealt the fish its final blow? To understand how that’s possible, you…

Photo: U.S. Department of State/Flickr Tom Bie, editor and publisher of The Drake, recently wrote a story on the magazine’s website about a potential new national monument. It’s become common for presidents to designate national monuments on their way out of office, and with Joe Biden leaving in a little over a month, Bie thinks this presents an opportunity to permanently protect a unique area in the West—the Owyhee Canyonlands. Located not…

Photo: Alaska Region US Fish and Wildlife Service/Flickr Salmon Beyond Borders, a conservation group focusing on maintaining and sustaining wild salmon populations in Alaska and Canada, has voiced its opposition to a new gold mine. New plans have been filed to develop the New Polaris Gold Mine Project in the headwaters of the Taku River system, which flows into the Gulf of Alaska just outside of the state’s capital, Juneau….

The folks at Patagonia were kind enough to send over some new gear just in time for the cold weather to hit here in the Rockies. I’ve had the chance to test out their R2 TechFace Pullover, Capilene Thermal Hoody, and the Nano Puff Fitz Roy Trout Hoody. R2 TechFace Pullover I didn’t expect to like this piece very much. It’s a half-zip hoody, and I prefer either full or…