It appears that budget shortfalls and emphasis on belt tightening may have exposed the soft white underbelly of the “put and take” fishery. With both federal and state budgets being carved of fat, and desperate to avoid too deep cuts to the remaining muscle, a combination of license hikes and the systematic redirection of conservation [...]

I told him, “ …when I debuted the Sixth Finger I spared no expense … fly fishing being no different than most male dominated sports, with fellows claiming they’re reading when they’re hoping for a picture of sweat-soaked flesh with a come hither gleam. Sex sells, so I hired Gertrude “The Grip” Mapplethorpe, whose hands can [...]

Big changes destined for the Lake Tahoe basin has California legislators scrambling for dollars to fund the Lake Tahoe Restoration Act of 2010, which will no doubt end up as “California Pork” inside some other piece of legislation… Responding to a recent study produced by UC Davis, which suggests 50% less snow for the Sierras, [...]

Being the only book of its kind might tip the scales somewhat, but I was hoping for a bit more. I purchased a copy of A. K. Best’s, “Dyeing and Bleaching Natural Fly-Tying Materials” and spent last week intent on learning some of the differences in style and cautionary information the author has for prospective [...]

Last night’s thunderstorm had scrubbed the Little Stinking as clean as I’d ever seen it. I woke Sunday expecting to see more of the same, but all the weather was at a distance and I had a large chunk of blue sky to make a mad dash for the creek. Enough time to get muddy [...]

I figure all the talk of “extreme” went to the lad’s head, and eager to jumpstart his fly tying materials collection he knocked over the natural history museum as an act of “extreme feather collecting.” At the time of the theft it was postulated that one of the markets these rare birds carcasses might be [...]

Now that researchers in Australia have discovered that hatchery trout can be raised in the ocean – with a growth rate three times faster than freshwater, we can all rejoice … “For trout to reach 2 kg in fresh water would take about two years, but in salt water it is only eight months,” he [...]

I always wondered just how much the fishing angle would play if I strode up to the voting booth and was faced with the unenviable choice of Tweedledum, “I love the out of doors, some of my best friends live there” – and Tweedledee, “I love the out of doors, I fly fish there often.” [...]

I’ve always fought shy of naming fish, mostly because it can mark the angler as a bully, some small indication that camping on known water might be preferred to something new or unknown. That’s not the same thing as a pool within feet of some cabin, where the fish are known so well simply due [...]

Deep down I’ve always postulated the source of fly fishing’s elitism stems from the lack of goo on our fingers. Professional Bass fishermen use artificials and barbless hooks just as we do, only they spatter and paint their offerings with everything from tobacco juice to the Scent of a Thousand Nightcrawlers. Scent being the Unclean [...]