I must admit, I have a slight obsession with Barracuda. The Bonefish will always be the flagship species of the Bahamas but no trip to South Andros is complete to me without at least targeting a couple toothy predators. Barracuda have a weird reputation in the fly fishing world. This might be because of how…
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Search Results for: fly tying
Timeless Tips: Fishing Tandem Streamer Rigs
While targeting trout, anglers tend to fish multiple flies. Fishing 2 or even 3 nymphs under an indicator has been practiced for years. Fish one large attractor pattern followed by a smaller more specific imitation. This covers multiple food sources and depths in the water column. Next in the world of tandem rigs came the…
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Going from Freshwater to Salt
The transition from freshwater fly fishing to saltwater does not need to be an intimidating one. While the gear and target species may be different, you can use a lot of the knowledge and skills you have acquired freshwater fishing to help establish a saltwater foundation to build on. One of the major differences you…
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Gear Hack: Attach a Split Ring To Your Fishing Pliers
It’s been a while since we’ve presented you with a super cheap, embarrassingly simple, yet remarkably helpful gear hack. So, today we right that wrong. Years ago, your fearless editor attached his favorite pair of fishing pliers to a standard bungee lanyard with a sturdy, yet super simple, split key ring. That’s right, the same…
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Steelhead Flies: Modern ‘Spins’ on Classic Patterns
We recently received a great request from one of our readers (thanks, Ray!) for a fresh step by step post on how to tie some of our favorite ‘smaller’ fly patterns for summer and/or winter steelhead using modern materials and techniques. Naturally, we reached out to our good friend and arguably one of the most…
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Timeless Tips: Tag Your Split Shot
Way back in 2011, Alaska West alum and trout guru, JEB Hall, gave us the details for his go-to rig when slinging beads for big leopard rainbow trout. It’s still as current as it was six long years ago, so if you haven’t checked it out, be sure to hit the link to give it…
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Alaska Silver Salmon Flies – Our Favorites (Updated)
Our summer seasons in Alaska and British Columbia might be winding down but that doesn’t mean our massive run of silver salmon has! In fact, our silvers actually continue to push long after the end of our season. We have a feeling that might the case in your neck of the woods too, so whether…
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Popper Fishing for Silvers – Tie Direct
It’s silver season in our neck of the woods, and when it comes to fly fishing for silver salmon, there’s no way we like targeting them more than on the surface! To elicit top-water coho takes, the majority of our guides prefer foam, deer hair, or hard-bodied poppers over more traditional ‘pollywog’ or skater style…
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5 Ways to Land More Silvers
Our run of silver salmon have just began their annual return to our home river at Alaska West. What does that mean, exactly? It means it won’t be long until our river is teeming with hyper-aggressive, hard-fighting, chrome bright, acrobatic coho that readily take flies. Sound good? It should. Those who have experienced silver madness…
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Guide Poll: The Difference Between a ‘Good’ and an ‘Elite’ Angler
We pride ourselves on the experience and know-how of our guide staffs at our lodges, many of whom have extensive guiding and/or fishing experience from all over the globe. That means we’re extremely fortunate to pull from a huge braintrust of uber-fishy people to consistently bring you the latest and greatest in fly fishing. With…
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