Most premium fishing pliers these days are built to withstand a lifetime of abuse (such as these, or these). However, it seems like we’re always scrounging around for replacement lanyard bungees to keep our pliers from falling into the drink. So, today we present you with a super clever way to make your own lanyard bungees,…
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Tips
Bonefishing – Point Your Rod
When fishing for bonefish from a boat, it’s really important to be on the same page as your guide. After all, being situated on an elevated platform, odds are they’re going to be the first one to spot the fish. Time is of the essence, and when your guide does spot a fish, you want…
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Fly Tying Tip – Cheap and Easy Bodkin Cleaner
There’s a lot of different fly tying tools out there, but if you’ve spent any time at all hunched over the tying vise, odds are you own a bodkin or two. You know, that little needle like tool. The bodkin might be the simplest tool of all time, but nonetheless its pretty handy for everything…
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Hickman’s Fish Taco – Tying Instructions
Yesterday, we kicked off our 2015 season at BC West. Therefore, we thought it would be appropriate to present you with a step by step of one of the more commonly used steelhead patterns at our lodge over the last few years, Hickman’s Fish Taco. The Fish Taco was developed by Alaska West alum and steelhead guide, Jeff Hickman,…
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Popper Fishing – The Retrieve
When the massive run of silver salmon come pushing past our camp each year at Alaska West (that’s late July through August in our neck of the woods), one of our favorite ways to target them is with poppers. That’s right, the same type of poppers you may have chucked near the lily pads on your…
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Stu’s Egg Intruder – Tying Instructions
Our buddy Stuart Foxall is back with another great step by step! Whether you’re fishing for steelhead, trout, dolly varden, or the like, this is one killer fly whenever spawning salmon are present. Stu’s Egg Intruder – Tying Instructions I came up with the idea of the egg intruder 5 or 6 years ago when swinging…
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Fighting Bonefish – Don’t Wrap the Rod Butt
Okay, you made your cast, fooled your fish, and set the hook with a good, long strip-set. Your prized bonefish takes off at lightning speeds in the opposite direction, about to battle the well engineered disc drag of your fancy new fly reel and.. Pop! He’s off. What happened? Odds are your fly line has…
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Trout Spey Techniques – The Bobble Dredge
A couple weeks back, we ran a post titled, Active Swinging, where we highlighted some of the techniques we use when spey fishing for trout that go beyond the classic downstream and across swing. However, most of these techniques are limited to slower gradual runs, those most characteristic of a swung fly. As spey anglers, most of…
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Take the Sting out of Stinger Hooks
Articulated and stinger-style flies are all the rage these days, and for good reason, they work! Flies designed with a ‘trailer’ hook offer a number advantages over classic long-shank style hooks. First and foremost, the addition of a trailer hook allows for the use of shorter shanked hooks that are far less likely to lever-out…
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Strip Setting Keeps You in the Game
If you’re a regular to our humble little blog, you’re probably aware that every once in a while we like to remind our readers that when fishing for bonefish, it’s crucial to set the hook with a long strip set rather than raising the rod. Why do we keep telling you this? Because its really, really important…
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