Fly Fishing in the Winter – Getting in the Routine
I’ll be the first to admit, that the first few cold fronts of the year negatively effect my angling morale. Those initial cold fronts are always a sobering reminder that winter is quickly approaching, and the warm days of the summer and fall are long gone. Yes, this is the time of year that I find it harder to get out of bed in the morning. My snooze button gets quite a bit more love from my index finger, and I’m forced to brew my coffee extra stout. As I loosen up in the shower, with my morning stretches, and warm water hitting my back (as us old folks are plenty familiar with), I think about my next objective of the day, which will be to de-thaw my frozen waders and boots. I left them laying in the back of my truck, and yes, I know, I should have brought them inside. I respectfully ask you all to turn your cheek because it always takes me a few weeks before I wise up to the cold season. That’s why, if you peak into the window of my truck this time of year, you’ll probably find me driving around with my waders and boots on the floorboard of my truck, with my heater set to high, and blasting on my feet.
Read More »Sunday Classic / Slowing Down and Casting Easier Can Improve Your Fly Cast
Read the title of this article and try to live by it.
It’s my attempt in “one sentence”, to help fly anglers quickly improve their fly casting, and it’s made me twice fly caster and fisherman I am today. There’s lots more to fly casting than slowing down and casting easier, but if anglers focus on doing both together, they often will find that it can greatly improve their overall technique and control. Ask any professional sports athlete how they maximize their performance and potential, and almost all will reply with excellent technique. It’s no different in fly casting. If you want your fly casting to reach its full potential, you have to first build a strong foundation of fly casting mechanics and principles that you can consistently live by on the water. I’ve found personally that when I take the time to slow down and cast the fly rod with less power, it’s much easier for me to focus on the most important element of my fly casting, my technique.
Let your fly rod do the work
I’ve noticed a great deal of fly fisherman over the years cast with a tempo that’s too fast (rushing their cast), and they also often apply far too much power during their casting stroke. The majority of fly anglers that fall into this category are usually intermediate fly casters. They’re generally skilled enough to fish multiple types of rigs and cast their flies close enough to their targets to catch fish, but they’re approach has them expending far too much energy in the process. Furthermore, this style of casting usually yields a casting stroke that is slightly out of control, creates loops that are inefficient (sloppy) and presentations generally suffer. Put all these negatives together and you’ve got a fly rod that’s not able to perform its job effectively. Remember to always let the fly rod do the work, don’t try to be the power house. It will only work against you in the long run.
Why slowing down and backing off the power will help your fly cast out
First, by slowing down and
Saturday Shoutout / Chrome
Some of my favorite folks have come together to deliver an important message about steelhead.
Tom Rosenbauer, Tim Romano, Kate Taylor Dylan Tomine and Todd Tanner take you to the river for some beautiful scenery, great steelheading and a sobering call to action. This trailer for “Chrome” the new film from Conservation Hawks is as riveting as sobering. If you love steelhead, take the time to watch the film and get involved.
You can see “Chrome” at this year’s F3T.
Read More »The 2016 G&G Fly Fishing Photo Contest Is On
It’s time to share your best fly fishing photos from 2015 and win some great gear!
This year’s contest is going to be even cooler than before. In addition to the contest here on G&G we will be running a parallel contest on Instagram, where the people decide the winner. So dig into the 2015 photo library and get your entries in today!
PLEASE PAY CLOSE ATTENTION TO THE SUBMISSION GUIDELINES. WE WILL NOT BE ABLE TO ACCEPT INCORRECT SUBMISSIONS.
All submissions must be in by midnight EST Sunday January 24th.
PRIZES
1st – Sage MOD single hand fly rod
2nd – Redington Hydrogen fly rod and ZERO reel
3rd – RIO InTouch Line Gold fly line with Powerflex Plus Leader and Tippet
People’s Choice Award- Fishpond Thunderhead pack
THIS YEAR’S JUDGES ARE:
Greg Thomas
Photographer, writer and Editor of Fly Rod and Reel Magazine and Angler’s Tonic, Greg is a hard core angler with more than a little media experience.
Tim Romano
Tim is one of the hottest shooters in fly fishing. In his spare time he writes for Field and Stream and is the Editor of Angling Trade Magazine.
Robert Rostic
Robert is an advertising photographer and educator with over 30 years experience. He operates a photography school in Tampa FL. trgphoto.net
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES
HERE’S ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW TO GET IN ON THE ACTION.
Read More »Fly Fishing Patagonia: Video
Justin and I have a small part in this beautiful video.
Our trip to Patagonia last year remains the coolest trout fishing trip I’ve ever taken. We were fortunate to be on the water with Pablo Saracco and get a little screen time on his project for Andes Drifters.
This film features some of the most mouth-watering trout rivers on the planet. Watching the takes and jumps of the wild Patagonian trout takes me right back there. I know you’ll appreciate it too.
I’m hosting a group for this same trip again in February. If you’ve been thinking about it, now’s the time to pull the trigger. We’ll be wrapping it up soon. It’s an amazing experience and a real bargain as destination fly fishing goes.
You can get all of the details HERE
And an itinerary for the trip HERE
ENJOY THE VIDEO!
Read More »Can Anglers and Trout Have Mutual Admiration?
WHAT COMES TO MIND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THIS PHOTOGRAPH?
This photograph reminds me of the blissful feeling I’m overcome with, just before I release a big beautiful trout back into the wild. There’s something very special about the last few seconds that an angler spends with his/her prized catch before it’s released. Everything seems to slow down, almost as though God is making sure we have time to capture the splendidness of the moment. I like to pretend that when our eyes lock, we feel mutual admiration for each other. I respect the trout for it’s majestic beauty and the thrill of the hunt. The trout in return respects me for my angling skills and belief in catch and release.
I’ve often thought about what it would be like to come back as a trout in my next life. I joke around with buddies that if I was a trout, I’d be one of the first one’s to be caught. After all, I’m always saying, “If I was a fish, I’d eat that fly.” In the off chance that there is such a thing as reincarnation on this planet, and some of us do go on to become trout in our next life, it would make sense that some trout would already know being caught is inevitable. As depressing and unpleasant as it must be for a trout to be caught, I wonder if there is some sort of similar blissful-like feeling that a trout is overcome with, when it looks out of the net after being landed, and sees
Read More »Sunday Classic / Flats Fishing is not All Sunshine
I was in The Fish Hawk picking up a few things before heading to the Florida Keys for my first ever week of flats fishing. My friend Gary Mariman asked me where I was going. When I told him he gave me a piece of advice that saved my trip.
“Take a fleece,” were the first words out of his mouth.
“Really?” I thought. It was already warm enough in Atlanta that I wasn’t carrying a fleece. “You’ll freeze your ass off,” he insisted. Gary, the creator of the Tarpon Toad, knows a thing or two about flats fishing so I took his advice and he was right. I’d have died without that fleece.
It’s tempting to think that it never gets cold in the tropics but I have fished in the Bahamas in two layers of fleece. That was highly unusual but I’ll never go down there without one. I’ve fished in the Keys in April when the temperature never made it to seventy. Even if it’s not uncomfortable to fish in shirt sleeves, running in the boat can get chilly.
The big couplet is water. If you get caught in the rain or splashed by spray you can get hypothermic on a chilly run. You never want to be on a flats boat without rain gear no matter what the weatherman says. The spray from the ocean is just as wet as the rain. Carry a good rain coat and a pair or rain pants that you can get into quickly.
If you’re planning a trip to some tropical paradise to do a little fishing, remember
Read More »Saturday Shoutout / Stalking Your Rights
Dangerous precedents are being set in the New Mexico State House which could effect angler access everywhere.
In another great, and important, piece from Matt Copeland of Stalking The Seam, we learn that tide of anti-democratic sentiment has stripped New Mexico state residents of rights which are clearly granted in their constitution and upheld by their Subprime Court.
Copeland writes-
“Is it unconstitutional to bar New Mexican anglers from wading their rivers? Probably. The Attorney General and State Supreme Court have said as much. Does that make a difference if John and Jane Q. Public can’t afford to prove it? Nope, not one bit. Have fishing access opponents added that up? You bet they have. And at the moment, the calculus looks pretty solid from their perspective.
New Mexico Wildlife Federation Executive Director Garrett VeneKlasen sees the debate from a different angle.”
“Passing laws to remove rights is the essence of anti-democracy,” he said. “You may or may not care about stream access. But you have to care about the precedent of the statehouse removing your rights. If we don’t stand-up together, we’re going to lose our incredible heritage in a single generation.”
LEARN MORE, INCLUDING HOW THIS EFFECTS YOU, AT STALKING THE SEAM.
Read More »Scott Meridian Fly Rod: Video
Fly Fishing: Belly Crawling My Way to Big Beautiful Trout
I know what you’re probably thinking, “Come on Kent, you wrote another freaking post about the importance of stealth for spooky trout? Yes, I did, but this isn’t your average stealth post. Most of us already know spooky trout require anglers to move slow and quietly. We understand how important it is to pay attention to our shadows, to work fish with our leader and fly only, and that delicate presentations are critical. Last, but not least, we’re smart enough to realize that even when luck is on our side, all we’re probably going to get is a couple good shots before the game is over.
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