Today, you’re humble editor is throwing away not one, not two, but roughly ten dozen marabou tube flies. Why exactly? Because he failed to practice the universal fly fishing tip of drying out your gear, leaving a season’s worth of flies matted, smelly, and a vibrant uniform color of grayish-brown.
Waterproof fly boxes do a good job at keeping water out, but they also do an equally good job at keeping water in as well! So, don’t be like us and take care of wet flies like so..
- Open your fly boxes to dry after EACH outing. Let ’em breathe!
- Separate soggy flies. Particularly those tied with absorbent materials like marabou or rabbit.
- Use the ‘Mothership System’. Keep all your flies in large ‘plano style’ boxes, but don’t take it with you on the water (unless storing in a boat, waterproof bag, etc). Take only what you need to fish with for the day from your ‘mothership,’ leaving the majority of your flies away from the elements. At the end of the day, simply dry out only what you have used before returning to the mothership. Not sure what we mean? Check it out, here.
- Try a Silica Packet. The ‘do not eat packets’ found in beef jerky and other dried foods can work wonders for keeping flies dry. Store one or two in your mothership box to remove moisture while the lid is closed.
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