The building at BC West with the most soul is, without a doubt, our clubhouse. It’s an old building with rustic log rafters, and yeah, every once in a while the roof leaks. But there’s no better setting for evening fish tales. This year a whole bunch of fish stories got told in the clubhouse,…
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Archives for September 2010
Deneki Outdoors in Angling Trade
Angling Trade is the primary source for news and commentary about the fly fishing industry, for those of us in the industry. We were pretty honored when Kirk Deeter, the editor of the magazine, asked Bruce Smithhammer to interview your fearless editor for the magazine. The interview is out in the current issue, and it’s…
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Why They Call ‘Em Leopards
One of the coolest features about the amazing rainbow trout that we chase at Alaska West is their spotting. Patterns and coloration vary wildly, but it’s the massive number of spots that have earned these fish the ‘leopard rainbow’ nickname. We’ll take it. More on Alaska West Rainbow Trout Mike Mercer Caught One When to…
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Switch Rods and Heads – Sage TCX and Rio Steelhead Scandi
Last weekend at IFTD we told you a little bit about two new products in the world of spey – TCX switch rods from Sage, and Steelhead Scandi heads from Rio. We thought they were both pretty interesting, so we asked George Cook, Pacific Northwest angling stalwart, to make a few casts at the spey…
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10 Cool Things About Fishing in Chile
In no particular order. Entire rivers to yourself. On your fearless editor’s last trip to Chile West, we first saw another angler on day 9 out of 9. Cantaria beetles. They’re big and crunchy, and trout of all sorts go nutty for them. Bangin’ the banks. It’s action packed and it selects for bigger fish….
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Welcome to the Bahamas
Mr. Crabby is awfully excited about the fact that our season at Andros South starts up again next month. Like the very eager bonefish on our island, he welcomes you with open arms. He’d love for you to get in touch with us to talk about your plans for bonefishing this winter. More on Culture…
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4 Things to Learn About Trout
4 Things to Learn About Fishing Alaskan Rainbows From This Picture They like banks. There’s plenty of structure right along grass and tundra banks. Banks are undercut much more than you would think – giving trout a great combination of cover underneath the bank and access to food in the current. They like ledges. Same…
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Nalca
There are some weird plants in Southern Chile! One that’s particularly memorable is the Nalca or Giant Rhubarb. The Nalca grows in dense rain forest areas. With its impressive broad leaves and long stems it makes for a great makeshift umbrella or parasol. In the spring, the young stalks can be eaten raw, and they’re not as…
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Airflo Skagit Switch Heads
We’ve told you in the past about how to cut back Skagit heads to match your switch rods – something we’ve had to do to get a good casting setup for rods like the Scott Fiberhammer or the Sage 5110-4 Z-Axis. Modern Skagit heads (with a real front taper) just weren’t available in lengths that worked well…
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Diablo Paddlesports
We saw a really cool boat at IFTD yesterday. It’s a unique concept by a company called Diablo Paddlesports. The boat is a ‘Hybrid SUP-Yak’ called the Adios. What the heck is a Hybrid SUP-Yak? It’s a cross between a stand-up paddleboard and a sit-on-top kayak that’s purpose-built for fishing. OK, so what does that…
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