The Orvis Fly-Fishing Podcast

My guest this week is Cameron Mortensen of The Fiberglass Manifesto [51:24]. Cam is one of the most knowledgeable anglers when it comes to fiberglass fly rods. I know a lot of listeners are curious about glass rods, and so we can to answer the questions: What is the history of fiberglass rods? How do modern ones compare to the older styles? What are the advantages of fiberglass rods? What are the drawbacks of fiberglass rods? What are the new 4-piece Orvis Superfine Glass rods like? If you've been curious about trying a fiberglass fly rod, I hope this podcast answers some of your questions. In the Fly Box this week, we have some thought-provoking questions, tips, and complaints, including: What are the benefits of a strip set, and what is happening at the end of the line? When should I use the strip set? Should I buy an 8-weight or a 9-weight for a combination of saltwater and largemouth bass? Why do largemouth bass follow my fly and not take it? Why don't people use duck-quill-wing wet flies anymore? A listener takes Tom to task for making fun of Tenkara fishing A guide makes a plea for clients to practice their casting before a day of fishing. I have some 50-year-old flies that look to be in good shape and the hooks are not rusty. Do you think the hooks are still good and won't break? A listener asks for advice between a 7- or 8-weight rod for bass and carp. If the mono in my poly leader gets too short, should I cut back the coating to try to expose more of the core? A tip on using crushed material from inside desiccant packages for a fly flotant Do some fly tiers get royalties on the patterns they designed? I see bass splashing up against the shore and logs. Are they chasing baitfish, and if so, how do I catch them? How do I get the curl out of my leader when fishing big flies?  I had two 9-foot, 5-weight rods break in the same place, a half inch from the tip. What do you think happened? What does Tom do when he gets frustrated and his casting mechanics break down?

This week, my guest is guide and author Matt Supinski [51:36], one of the most innovative thinkers in fly fishing with a long history in the business. The topic is selectivity, which Matt wrote an entire book about a few years ago. What is selectivity in fish feeding, is it always operating, why does it happen, and how can we use it to our advantage when fishing? It’s a fascinating topic and one Matt and I explore in depth. In the Fly Box this week, we have some great questions and comments, including: Do longer rods roll cast better than shorter ones? And do slower rods roll cast better? Can I use one of those yarn practice rods to fine tune my double haul? Why can I only find lead split shot? Isn’t it bad for the environment? Who were your “media heroes” when growing up? Do the vibrations from car-top rod carriers damage rods? A listener takes me to task for suggesting people use a throat pump to see what trout are eating. Why do trout sometimes not respond to heavy hatches? The smallmouth bass in my local streams are quite small. Why don’t they grow bigger? How can I catch trout in a small stream that runs into a local pond? What can I do to make stripers on the flats take my flies? They keep following but don’t commit. Why do fly shop employees get paid such a low wage? Does green-colored tippet material offer any advantage? How can I improve my dexterity and efficiency when tying knots on the water? Can I use a reel suitable for an 8-weight line on my 5-weight rod?

This week, my guest is captain Drew Price [56:13], an expert on fishing large, multi-story, multi-species lakes. Drew has pioneered methods of catching unusual and fascinating freshwater fish like bowfin, gar, and freshwater drum. He also loves to fish for trout, bass, and carp but there are days on his home water, Lake Champlain, when those popular fish may not cooperate. And it's fun to fill your life list with new species, some of which may live in your own back yard. If you're looking for a new challenge, want to escape summer's crowded trout rivers--or if your rivers are too warm--learn about how you can fish large lakes for all kinds of cool fish. In the Fly Box this week, we have lots of thought-provoking questions, including: What should I pack for my trip to Alaska, and how should I pack my waders? Why did they use heaver stuff, like size 8 wet flies and 3X leaders, back in the 1930s through 1950s? Why am I missing brown and rainbow trout striking my leech pattern? Why am I missing small cutthroat trout on my dry flies? I see large brown trout very close to me in a heavily fished river, but they won't take any of my flies. Are they spooked? Tips from a listener on how to store rods and other tackle Why do some rods not have hook keepers? What fishing fiction do you recommend, beyond Big Two-Hearted River and A River Runs through It? For fishing hopper patterns, should I go long and fine or short and heavy with my leader? I caught some big rainbow trout but also saw some huge suckers in the same river. How can I catch those suckers on a fly? Where is the best place to set down your rod and reel when switching flies or leaders? If I see some debris on my nymph, should I clean it off? How does the hard-sided Orvis stripping basket compare to collapsible mesh versions? When I release trout, should I try to feed them mealworms or something to make up for them losing a meal?

This week, my guest is Capt. Benny Blanco of Islamorada, in the Florida Keys [37:38]. Benny talks about his life in the Keys and about how he came to realize that the fishery on which he made his living was threatened--and how he learned to make a difference. The Everglades will never be completely pristine again, but with people like Benny involved, it can regain much of its former glory. And it's not only the Everglades. Restoration of the entire watershed will also help the world-class fisheries in Florida Bay, the health of the St. Lucie and Caloosahatchee estuaries, and the drinking water supply of the 9 million people in South Florida. It's a study in best practices that people in any part of the world can learn from to protect their treasured resources. In the Fly Box this week we have some lighter topics: How long does it take for a fish to remove a hook that has been left in it? Is there much of a mortality rate? How do you fish with friends on a small stream? Great tips from a listener for making sure you don't leave any gear behind on a trip What parts of my fly gear can be damaged in a hot car? Have you ever tried a "dry dropper" arrangement with a popper when fishing for striped bass? Why are most imitations of mayflies so small? If I am used to fishing small streams, how can I read the water in a big flat piece of water in a big river? When fishing multiple flies, should I use a weaker knot on the droppers so I don't lose my entire rig? How do I set the hook when stillwater fishing? When fishing three flies at once, I foul hook a lot of trout. How can I prevent that?

This week, my guest is longtime guide, fly shop owner, journalist, musician, and all-around great guy Jim McLennan [40:26]. Jim is a thoughtful fly fisher who always has solid tips on fly-fishing techniques, and this week we talk about mayfly spinners—their mysteries, how to identify when they are active, and how to target trout feeding on them. Mayfly spinner falls are some of the best opportunities to catch large trout on a dry fly because trout gorge on them and sometimes get stupid, so it pays to have some intelligence on taking advantage of these opportunities. And this is a timely podcast because in most parts of the country, we are about to get into the prime season for the tiny Trico spinners. In the Fly Box this week, we have some intriguing questions and tips from listeners, including: Why can I do to prevent my mono eyes from breaking on my tarpon flies? How do I clean my saltwater flies after a trip so they aren’t all mangled? Can I use more than one subsurface fly with a dry-dropper rig? How can I fish a deep plunge pool with a dry-dropper? I have broken a bunch of rods in the past couple years. Is it due to my bad casting? Some great tips from a relatively new angler on where to get the best help and advice. What is a good way to enjoy a fly-fishing trip with a young family? How can I break into writing stories and poems about fly fishing? Is using a stomach (throat) pump unethical, and is it looked down upon by other fly fishers? A tip for using neoprene socks when wet wading In the short and long term, what do you expect the results of the Yellowstone flood will be?

You may have never heard of redeye bass or seen one. Yet they are a wonderful fly-rod fish. They live in spectacular, clear mountain streams and take a fly very well. They’re mainly found in the deep South, particularly in Alabama, so they’re a great fly-rod target in places where you would not ordinarily think of fly fishing. They’re a native species that deserve more visibility from the fly-fishing community and my guest, Matthew Lewis [44:27], is perhaps the world expert on fly fishing for them. In the fly box this week, we have some interesting questions and great tips from listeners, including: What percentage of the time do trout in lakes feed on the surface? What is a go-to fly for late summer fishing on small streams? What can I do to prevent foul-hooking so many fish? And when I hook a trout in the belly, is it sure to die? Do oils from our hands harm trout? Do you have some general rules of thumb for how rain affects fly fishing? I am using wide gape hooks and missing a lot of small brook trout. Is it the hook that’s my problem? I saw some large brown trout in shallow water around spawning season and could not get them to take a fly. What can I do? What do you think of the Double Davy Knot? A listener shares a killer nymph pattern he developed. When I practice casting, why does the end of my leader fray and my fly line loop come apart? Do you ever guide? I fish a stream with rainbow trout, and for the first six months of the season I can’t find them. Where do they go? How much less backing fits on a spool when I use 30-pound backing instead of 20-pound? Are the natural materials we use for fly tying from ethically treated animals?

This week my guest is Paul Bruun [39:50], a legendary figure in fly fishing who has been involved with the fly-fishing world even longer than me. On Thursday, June 30th, he received the Izaak Walton Award from the American Museum of Fly fishing for a lifetime of contributions to our sport. Paul is a guide, writer, newspaperman, and he developed the famous South Fork Skiff, which has recently been resurrected and redesigned by the famous Adipose Boatworks Company in Montana. Paul is a wonderful storyteller and he tells us about what it was like to learn fly fishing in South Florida in the 1960s—not an easy task! In the Fly Box this week, we have some great questions and suggestions from listeners, including: I am too slow in striking to small mountain trout. Is there a way I can fix that? A listener alerts us to a water issue on an Oregon tailwater A listener is confused by the differences in pound test and diameter on leader butts and wants to know if there is a rule-of-thumb for the correct leader butt section. Do you think the studs on my wading boots are spooking trout? Do trout in different micro-habitats in the same river choose different insects? How small of a river is too small to use trout spey equipment? And should I use a Scandi or Skagit setup? Is it useful to be able to cast with either your right or left hand? I see larger fish suspended a foot from the surface over deep water. What are they doing there? A listener suggests that a previous question about not being able to hook rising trout during a caddis hatch may have been due to mountain whitefish, which have a much smaller mouth than trout. I am getting lost flies and a pigtail at the end of my leader when using a clinch knot. What should I do? Is there a better knot? What is the best way to store fly rods in their tubes?

My guest this week is Timbre Pringle of Faceless Fly Fishing  [46:26] and the topic is small stream fly fishing, particularly in the Rocky Mountains. Timbre has some great tips on fishing dries, dry dropper combos, and streamers in small streams, and the differences between the different species of trout in small streams. She also gives some great tips on avoiding encounters with bears, something that can be an issue when certain areas of the Rockies once you get away from the road. In the Fly Box this week, we have some seasonally appropriate questions and some good tips from listeners, including: Four good tips on storing tying materials from a listener When do you use a dubbing loop, and when do you use the standard noodle method instead? How do I avoid the numerous small steelhead parr on my local river? Why did I miss 20 fish in a row when fishing a dry fly during a caddis hatch? A listener takes issue with the advice of using heavier tippets to play fish quickly Do trout get full and not rise when there is an over-abundance of bugs? Why can I catch fish on dries and not on nymphs? A listener asks my thoughts on nymphs with a bobber vs. a dry dropper rig. A listener tore a small piece of the jaw off a trout because he forgot to pinch his barb. He wants to know if that hole in the trout’s jaw is a death sentence. How should I get set up to swing flies for smallmouth bass? How can I intercept a hatch? What features should I look for if I want to try to wait on the bank for a hatch to appear? Should I avoid putting flotant on the bodies of foam flies?

My guest this week is Brian Grossenbacher [42:45], one of the finest fly-fishing still photographers in the world. You’ve seen his work on the cover of many magazines and in Orvis catalogs. (Brian and I recently collaborated on a book entitled, simply, Trout, with his images and my essays. ) Learn how Brian’s career changed from being a full-time fishing guide to a professional photographer and glean some tips on how to go pro yourself—or at least improve the quality of your own images. Along the way, Brian tells a couple stories that had me in tears of laughter as I was recording this. In the Fly Box this week, we have some interesting questions and great tips from listeners, including: What impact does bug spray have on fish and the tackle we use? My Elk Hair Caddis dry flies land on their sides. How can I prevent this? Should I grease my leader when fishing with a dry-dropper rig in fast water? I want to try carp fishing. Should I put my money into a better reel or a better rod? A tip from a listener on how to keep materials out of the eye of a fly you just tied, and how to keep your hands warm in cold weather. A tip from a listener on how he greatly improved his casting with all rods when he went from a 4-weight rod to a 9-weight rod. What would you do if faced with three days of 25 mph winds and dirty water when on a saltwater trip? Does cold weather make fly rods brittle? I came up with a killer fly pattern that is unlike anything out there. Should I share the pattern on social media? I am having trouble with carp. What fly patterns do you recommend, and how can I tell when they take the fly? What tips do you have for making those quick deliveries when sight fishing in salt water?

My guest this week is well, me. I recorded a podcast and the file got corrupted and I couldn’t get my guest back in time to do a makeover. So this week is just the Fly Box. In the Fly Box this week, we have some interesting questions and tips, including: Do I absolutely need a full sinking line and a stripping basket to fish in the surf? Do you pinch the barbs on flies for all saltwater species? Will streamers and bucktails work throughout the summer? Can I go heavier than 6X on smaller flies to get fish in quicker and stress them less? Why do I catch many fish in a small stream and then see none on the next trip? Any advice on tips for setting the hook when using a long cast? Should I pursue traditional fly gear or just use Tenkara? Should I use a 6-weight for a light saltwater outfit? How can I get the hackle on my Parachute Adams to look better? When would someone replace a dry fly as an indicator with a standard indicator in small streams? What is the best way to attach 80 lb. shock tippet to a 20 lb. class tippet? What is the best material for shucks on emergers? What is the largest trout Tom ever caught? If you are switching back and forth between tippets and modifying your leader, does it matter that you are using the same butt section and midsection all the time?