Spencer Dixon guides for Alaska West during the summer months. During the winter he guides out of Cascadia Fly Shop in Oregon – and he’s writing a series of posts for the Cascadia blog about his preparations for the summer at Alaska West. He started with this post – 65 days before his departure for…
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Search Results for: fly tying tips
Jason Rivers’ Grayling Rig
If there’s a mecca for Alaskan grayling fishing, Fairbanks has to be it! Jason Rivers manages Big Ray’s Fly Shop in Fairbanks, and he was kind enough to put together his go-to grayling rig for us. Thanks, Jason! Grayling Rig Introduction Fairbanks, Alaska would not be the first place you would find water to use…
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Twitching Skaters
Fishing a dryline and skater for steelhead rules. Hitched muddlers. Bombers. Big foam creations—whatever. Love it all. There’s just something magic about the way our big, hot, Dean steelhead respond to the dry and the fact they tend to absolutely crush them makes the whole business of surface fishing even better! For those who agree,…
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3 Good Articles
It’s time for another round of “three recent articles we think you’ll like if you like fly fishing.” We didn’t write any of them. Fishpond Nimbus Guide Pack Review. Michael Gracie reviews an XL fishing pack. Tying the Saltwater Loop Knot. Tom Larimer gives some detailed video tips on tying this very versatile knot (a.k.a…
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Bruce Chard’s Barracuda Rig
Bruce Chard teaches bonefishing schools at Andros South – but even though he’s a master bonefish angler, he always takes some time to throw flies at South Andros Island’s incredible population of barracudas. When Bruce has ‘cudas on the brain, this is the rig that he reaches for. The Summary Ross FW 1090 – 9…
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Leader Length and Bonefishing
One of the cool things about running fishing lodges is that we get to fish in some amazing places with expert anglers who know those fisheries like the backs of their hands. Another cool thing, though, is that between hosted trips, press trips, schools and more, we also get to fish with expert anglers in…
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Fishing Dropper Rigs
What’s a “Dropper Rig”? Maybe you know and fish them all the time, but just in case you don’t… “Dropper” is the term for a nymph pattern that’s fished in combination with a dry fly. The nymph pattern drops in the water and floats below the dry fly, so it’s called a “dropper”. Simple, right?…
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Rigging Stinger Hooks
Tube flies and stinger hooks are very popular with anglers who chase salmon and steelhead with fly rods, for a few reasons. They allow you to change your hook without changing your fly. They allow you to fish a big fly without fishing a hook with a long shank, which helps you land more fish….
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The Intruder
Warning: this is a very technical post about fly tying. If you’re not interested in the subtleties of tying one of the most influential modern steelhead and salmon patterns, click here to look at a bunch of pictures of fish. Jerry French may not have a household name in the world of anadromous angling in…
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Mr. Hankey
Jeff Hickman knows rainbow trout. He spent a bunch of years guiding at Alaska West, and during that time he came up with a really popular mouse pattern called Mr. Hankey that’s now available from Idylwilde. Jeff now combines his Larimer Outfitters guiding with conservation work with the Sierra Club’s Hunter and Angler Heritage Program. He…
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