The Orvis Fly-Fishing Podcast

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?

This week's podcast is fun to listen to, even if you don't need any tips on how to get a friend into fly fishing. Charlie Berens is a talented writer comedian with a midwestern flair (check out his You Tube videos) and Adam Greuel is a musician with the band "Horseshoes and Hand Grenades" and also has a number of solo albums. Adam recently introduced Charlie to fly fishing and their experiences are both valuable and funny [42:20]. As a bonus, we've included a song they did together at the end of the podcast. In The Fly Box this week, we have some great questions and tips from listeners, including: Sometimes I see trout from a bridge, other times I don't. Is this unusual and why? What is the difference between a $100 fly rod and a $1000 fly rod? A suggestion on how to arrange your flies and droppers to lessen tangles A suggestion on how to instill better etiquette on our waters I keep losing fish once they are hooked. Do I need a better hook-setting strategy? A great suggestion from a listener on how to tie a weedless bass fly—and techniques for fishing it. If you find nothing is working for you on a trout stream, what do you do? What is the best way to fish plunge pools on small streams? What is the difference between a slow rejection to a fly and a splashy one, and what can I do when a trout rejects my fly?

I get a lot of questions about how fly rods are designed and I think there are a number of misconceptions about where that new rod, like the Helios Blackout series, came from. Where did the idea come from? How is the design created? If you want a 9-foot, five-inch 5-weight rod, do you just add five inches to an existing rod design? I think you'll be surprised at what goes into a new fly-rod design, and think you'll enjoy peaking under the hood with a rod designer [41:04]. In the fly box this week, we have some great comments and questions, including: A great explanation of the spirituality of fly fishing When I move from one tailwater to another, my techniques don't seem to work. What should I change? My small stream fished well last year. This year the water is colder and higher. What should I do? Is it OK to cut my fly line back if it's cracked? What would you do if you see trout in shallow, clear water and they are not rising? Do you have any suggestions for detecting carp strikes in cloudy water? Is there a largemouth fly that is as weedless as a rubber worm? What flies do you recommend for bonnethead sharks? A cool suggestion for adding a dropper fly What organizations do you recommend if I care about climate change and the environment?

You may wonder why I've done a podcast about beavers. You may be greatly surprised by the beneficial interactions between beavers and trout habitat—I know I was after talking to Ben Goldfarb author of the book Eager: The Surprising, Secret Life of Beavers and Why They Matter, [43:26]. Beavers have a much more positive effect on trout streams besides just making deep pools, and they don't present any problems to migrating fish. And, yes, we do talk about how to fish a beaver pond, and how to find a good one. I think all fly fishers and nature enthusiasts will learn something new in this podcast. In the Fly Box this week, we have some interesting comments, questions, and tips, including: The state stocks big rainbows in my wild brook trout stream. What are your thoughts on this issue? I saw large trout jumping out of the water during a caddis hatch and could not catch any. What do you think they were doing? What are the advantages of a double-taper over a weight-forward fly line? A great story about how an injury caused a fly fisher to re-think priorities What size leader butt should I put on my saltwater lines? And should I use the permanent loop in my fly line for big fish like tarpon? How have Vermont trout streams fared after hurricane Irene? If I pinch the barbs on my flies with forceps, am I legal in places that specify "barbless hooks only"? A comment from a listener on how a generic description like "fly fisher" is also inclusive of people who identify as non-binary A comment from a listener who believes that encouraging women to fly fish will cause our rivers to become too crowded. A story from a listener who cautions us to be careful about sinkholes along the banks of trout streams. A great tip for practicing your cast before a big trip. What can I do to keep my large dry flies from twisting my leader?

I've been asked to touch more on the spirituality of fly fishing in my podcasts, and honestly I'm not very good at that. So I asked a thoughtful friend and author, Dylan Tomine [32:54], to touch on these aspects of fly fishing. I don't think we got very spiritual, but we do ramble on about the other aspects of fly fishing we enjoy besides catching fish, casting, and tying flies. It's mostly about the people. In the Fly Box this week, I had some great questions, including: I am going backpacking and want to travel light but fish some streamers in the middle of the day. What should I take for lines? Will my 6-weight Helios rod be too heavy for fishing Slough Creek in Yellowstone Park? How do you decide when to give up when fishing a small stream? For fishing the banks of small ponds, will my 6-weight Pro line be OK or should I try a Bank Shot line for roll casting? Can I use straight level fluorocarbon for a leader for lake trout and small mouth bass? My polarized sunglasses don't work well for spotting trout. Are all polarized sunglasses equal in terms of seeing fish? What line should I use on my 9-foot, 8-weight Encounter rod when fishing 10 to 15 feet of water? What do you do when switching from nymph fishing to fishing a hatch? What about furled leaders? I keep losing large rainbow trout when they jump. I am indicator nymphing. Am I doing something wrong?

This week, my guest is Thomas Larsen [45:47] from the Orvis Outfitters team. Thomas is a stillwater expert and gives us some great tips on how to find trout, and how to target them, when you don't have the benefit of a watercraft. Maybe you don't have a boat, can't afford a raft, or backpack to high mountain lakes—this podcast is for you. In the Fly Box this week, lots of good comments and questions as I have been gone for a couple weeks so the mailbox is filling up. Thanks from a listener to turning him onto the Griffith's Gnat dry fly Euro nymphing seems just too efficient for me. Am I being irrational by fishing less effective indicator rig? A customer relates a great trip he had with Orvis-endorsed Brown Trout Flyfishing What are the five or six "must have" items (after getting a fly rod outfit) you suggest for someone new to fly fishing? Please give me five or six recommended flies for starting out. I had a snapping turtle eat a trout as I was landing it. What effect do catch and release fishing efforts have on fish populations? For fishing the beach and canals and creeks in Florida or the Carolinas, what is the best all-around fly line? I want to tie my own leaders. What sizes of tippet do I need? And can I tie my entire leader with surgeon's knots? Is a wire shock leader too much for lake trout? And what flies should I use? How long does it take trout to recover after a spell of warm water? If I can only catch trout on Rapalas and crankbaits but not on flies, what other types of flies should I try? Great advice from a beginner on how much he learned about fish behavior by fishing dry flies If fish can always see tippet, why is there a difference in effectiveness between tippet sizes? What should I do if my fly line is cracked? What is the difference between a standard clinch knot and improved clinch knot? Why, when I catch multiple fish out of the same run, is the third or fourth fish often bigger than the first ones? A guide attached my leader to my fly line loop with a clinch knot and the coating on the loop cracked. Should I cut off the loop and put my leader on with a nail knot?

This week, my guest is author, You Tube personality, and author Tim Cammisa [34:00]. We have a spirited discussion on fly patterns—which of the most common ones are untouchable, and which do we modify with different materials and techniques. And are they even the same fly if we modify them? In the Fly Box, we have some great questions this week, including: For streamer fishing for smallmouths, should I use my existing 6 weight or should I get a 7-weight rod? Is the 10-foot 3-weight Euro nymphing rod the same as a 10-foot crappie jigging rod? If not how is it different? And is Euro nymphing really fly fishing? Where do you use split shot and where do you use tungsten putty? Or is it purely personal preference? I have been tying clinch knots by pulling on the tag end and it seems to be very strong. Do you think I am doing it the wrong way? Can I use a Duncan Loop to attach a leader directly to a fly line? Should I use a sinking line for streamer and nymph fishing? How can I improve the durability of Dragon Tail flies? Do striped bass prey on trout in freshwater rivers? If I use a Berkely Gulp on my fly rod, is it technically a fly? I am fishing for tiger muskie from shore. What type of line do I need? Our rivers in Tennessee have an abundance of non-toxic salamanders. Do you think trout eat them, and if so how can I develop a fly to imitate them?