This week’s podcast is all about snook. I have never done a full podcast just on snook fishing, but it is the most popular gamefish in Florida so I figured it was high time. I enlisted Captain Dan Andrews as a guest. Dan, besides being a lifelong snook chaser and guide, is also executive director of Captains for Clean Water, a great organization that Orvis strongly supports. In the Fly Box this week, we have questions on occasional risers, whether you can handle a 22-inch trout on a 10-foot, 3-weight Recon, smelly head cements, targeting walleyes on the fly, pulling trout out of deep, slow pools, casting weighted streamers on a 5-weight, and some tips for steelhead anglers on the Great Lakes. There is also a story on a most unusual animal that took an angler’s mouse fly—but I won’t spoil the surprise here.

This week’s interview is with Steve Galletta of Bighorn Angler in Fort Smith, Montana. The Bighorn fishes well all winter long, and with Steve’s many seasons on the river he shares his tips on how to catch tailwater trout all winter long. Even if you don’t plan on fishing the Bighorn any time soon, Steve’s tips will give you valuable intel on how to fish your local tailwater. In The Fly Box, we have questions about the effects of fly flotants on knots, disappearing brook trout, releasing fish in fast water, using switch rods on lakes, why streamers work well in the fall, using UV resins for fly tying, fishing mouse patterns on lakes at night, keeping track of tippet rings, smells on carp flies, and how to apply techniques learned in one fishery to other species and places.

This week we get a special peak behind the curtain about how fly rods are developed. How long does it take to design a fly rod? How many prototypes are built? How are they tested? How are materials selected? And where do the ideas come from? Shawn Combs takes us into the depths of the Orvis skunkworks and tells us a few secrets (and withholds just as many) about how his team of engineers and technicians develop Orvis fly rods—specifically the new Helios 3 series. In the Fly Box this week, we talk about fishing emergers subsurface, the perils of using the wrong super glue on casting cuts, how long to let a bass popper sit, water temperature guiidelines for trout, fly fishing for crappies, a tip on keeping the trailing hook of a tandem out of the way when tying, leader lengths for stocked trout ponds, species-specific leaders, correct water depth for setting indicators, and how to fish multiple-fly rigs when the flies are barbless.

This week’s guest is Joe Cermele, fishing editor of Field & Stream magazine and the one-man-band behind the terrific web series “Hook Shots” (if you have not seen his videos they are always fun and offbeat). Joe is wild about fishing big flies for big fish—regardless of species. Our interview is about mousing for trout, a sorta-night-fishing, sorta-streamer-fishing technique that has become popular in recent years. But it’s not about fishing mouse flies for wilderness fish in Alaska or Kamchatka, it’s about fishing them in local, heavily fished rivers. Mousing is a great way to avoid the crowds and catch one of those big trout you seldom see during the day. As usual in The Fly Box we have a wide variety of topics: missing strikes on topwater bass flies, the difference between a desiccant and a flotant (again!), finding tailing carp, fishing streamers and high-stick nymphing in spring creeks, fishing bamboo rods for larger trout, tying with peacock eyes, questions on rod models, when to buy multiple reels as opposed to one reel and an extra spool, trout that disappear in early spring, correct depth for setting your indicator (there isn’t one), deciding which fly-tying tools to put most of your budget into—and finally what is that white rod Pete Kutzer uses for his casting videos?

This week Jeremy Kehrein from Orvis Travel joined me to share his knowledge of travel planning and packing tips. Most people know how to plan travel (just call up our Travel Department!) and know how to pack a suitcase, so we focus on what travelers often forget—what questions do they forget to ask when calling a travel agent, guide, or lodge, and what do people often forget when packing for a fishing trip. Arriving in a remote destination without an essential doodad can, while not exactly spoiling a trip, make it less enjoyable. In the Fly Box this week there is an extremely helpful tip from a listener that can benefit every angler—of all ages and all genders. I won’t spoil the surprise by telling you want it is. There are also questions on building a 7X leader that won’t collapse, how to land very large trout on a 3-weight rod and 6X tippet, how often multiple anglers can fish a single riffle, a recommendation for a good book on small-stream trout fishing (guess what that is?), studded boots making noise in the water, how to imitate a Rooster Tail, how to catch snotty whitefish, and how to keep a foam fly floating all day long. There is also an excellent tip from a listener who is a personal trainer on the right exercises to prepare yourself for fishing.

I get repeated questions about switch vs. Spey: people interested in two-handed fly fishing but not sure which setup they need. Even though I think I have answered this question before, I thought it was time for a fresh look so I asked the incomparable Pete Kutzer, YouTube star and Orvis casting instructor, for his advice. Pete is a very serious two-handed angler and just got back from a couple steelhead rivers on the West Coast, so the topic was fresh in his mind. I hope it helps to answer some of your questions. In the Fly Box this week, questions are wide-ranging--casting accuracy, dropper flies tangling, flashing trout, Atlantic salmon guides, and trout short-striking streamers. Plus an interesting tip on what may be an interesting way of sharpening hooks.

This week I interview Captain Aron Cascone of Westerly, Rhode Island for his tips on finding stripers on foot along the New England Coast, and then choosing the right fly, the right tide, the right time of day, and the right retrieve. Aron is one of the fishiest guys I know and he’s spent a life on the water. I learned a number of good tips despite fishing for stripers with a fly rod for over 30 years—so I’m sure you’ll learn some good stuff as well. In the Fly Box this week we answer questions on fly reel choices, making a presentation so that the fly passes over the fish before the leader, suggested camera gear for fly anglers, how to keep cleats from coming out of your wading boots, and how to make a simple saltwater leader. Plus suggestions from listeners on lubricating knots with fly paste and how to carry a second rod to the river.

This week’s podcast is an interview with Orvis VP Steve Hemkens about why he took a trip to Washington. The podcast may raise your hackles or it may give you hope for the future. You’ll have to listen to find out why he went to our nation’s capital and why someone responsible for the sale of fly-fishing products and responsible education in the outdoor world would want to meet with politicians. On a lighter note, the Fly Box this week covers a diverse group of questions, including targeting Texas redfish, repairing a severed fly line (hint—don’t), how to find a place to fish if you don’t know anyone, finding feeding trout in the weeds, the difference one tippet size makes, minimalist bass fishing, how to kill and clean trout, and how to a Get Drunk and Disorderly to stay under water (that sounds like cruel and unusual punishment). There is also a great suggestion from a listener on how to keep EP Fibers in line, and how to use the Fly Trap for storing dropper rigs.

This week, I take a break from interviews and do a podcast like we did in the old days by interviewing myself. It’s a shameless plug for my newest book, Hatch Strategies, published by Rizzoli/Universe. I call it Twelve Tips on Fishing Hatches That Might Surprise You. I’m sure that many of you agree with most of the tips, especially if you’ve spent any time chasing trout when they are feeding on insect hatches. But I am willing to bet there are a couple you may not have thought of, that run contrary to what you have heard in the past, or might even think that Rosenbauer guy is full of fish feces. If you don’t agree with me, I’d love to hear about it, which may produce some interesting podcasts in the future. In the Fly Box this week, I answer (or try to answer) how to fish small streams with a 9-foot rod, the use of tippet rings, how to avoid spending a fortune on hackle, what percent of the time you should be hooking fish that rise to your dry fly, whether to fish for steelhead in a river where they are threatened, the use of scents on flies, how to avoid foul-hooking trout, the use of loop knots in trout fishing, and delicate dry-fly presentations at short distances. There are also a couple of great letters from listeners with comments—one on angling ethics and another on how to move from trout fishing to saltwater fly fishing on the West Coast.

This week Chris Wood, president and CEO of Trout Unlimited, visited us in Vermont and we got to pull him aside for a great podcast (and take him fishing for brook trout). Chris is a master at distilling complicated environmental issues down to their essence in the way anglers can understand them, and he enlightens us on some current issues like Pebble Mine, the Clean Water Rule, and western water laws. And it’s not all bad news! In the Fly Box, questions range from requests to have me MC a rehearsal dinner for a wedding (not gonna happen) to switching from trout to other species to getting another season out of a pair of waders. Plus questions on Village Idiots and herons and redfish and fishing diaries. Plus a couple of cool tips from listeners on fly tying.

This week we have a timely podcast—fishing for large brown trout in the fall. Noah Parker from Land of Enchantment Guides in New Mexico tells us how they fish for large browns in the fall, and they use some techniques in northern New Mexico and southern Colorado that are different from what most of you probably do. In the Fly Box, questions come up on catching fussy trout in small streams, gel-spun backing, swinging nymphs, fishing 4 people at once, what the Copper John imitates, and some great fly-tying tips from listeners.

***This is a Backcast Episode from March of 2014. Tom will be back from vacation with new episodes soon!*** This week we have what I feel is one of our best podcasts ever—an interview with Colby Trow of Mossy Creek Fly Shop on his advanced tactics for catching smallmouth bass. I learned a ton in this podcast and it makes me want to head south to chase some right now. And in this extra-long podcast there are plenty of fly box questions: Using a stomach pump on trout, how to keep your indicator from sliding, whether bright silver and gold beads are a thing of the past, how to find secondary feathers on a goose wing, and good substitutes for deer hair on a Comparadun wing.

Tom is on vacation this week so we are bringing you a video this week. Want more videos? Let us know at [email protected]. Welcome to another installment of “Ask an Orvis Fly-Fishing Instructor,” with me, Peter Kutzer. In this episode, I demonstrate how to make aerial mends in your line, creating an upstream or downstream mend before your line touches down on the water. This is a great technique for when you’re casting across varying currents, and it will help you achieve better and longer dead drifts. By making the mend during the cast, you avoid having to break the surface tension to move the line, as you would with a traditional mend. An aerial mend is quite easy to make, but there are two parts that will require some practice: the size of the mend and where it occurs along the line. By simply drawing a “C” or a “D” with the rod tip, you can create the belly required for a mend. The size of the letter you draw determines the size of the mend. How long you wait after the rod stops on the forward cast determines where that mend will occur. If you want it to be far out near the tip of the line, draw the letter right after the rod stops. To make a mend closer to you, wait a bit before drawing the letter. With a little practice, you’ll get a feel for both the size and the location of the mend. Good luck!  

OK, get ready for this—it’s a long one! I figured since I had not done a podcast in a couple weeks I would give you your money’s worth, and this podcast includes a long interview with Will Benson, noted permit guide and film maker. As you’ll hear, Will has strong passions for many things—permit, guiding, people, and the environment—and I had trouble cutting this one off. But it was a fun and educational interview, and very inspiring for me. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. And furthermore, it’s a longer Fly Box than usual, with questions on finding a guide school, big fish getting off the hook, Clouser Minnows riding sideways, catching big stripers form shore, remembering Mel Krieger, catching carp in North Dakota, a recommended outfit for Atlantic salmon on the Gaspe peninsula, fishing caddis egg-laying events, and where and how to go fly fishing in the Greek Islands (spoiler—I have no idea).

This week I have an interview with an old friend, Joe Demalderis, of Cross Current guide service in the Catskills. Joe knows the Delaware system about as well as any human, and has a common-sense approach to fishing hatches that I love. We talk about how to fish hatches from a drift boat or other craft, which at times can be more difficult than fishing hatches while wading, but at other times can reach fish in water that is too deep of otherwise inaccessible to the wader. In the Fly Box, we range from questions on getting droppers ready before you go fishing, caddis pupa tactics, fish rising to tippet rings, brook trout on streamers, the effect of heat on tippet material, shirt colors on trout streams, and suggested bonefish books.

My guest this week is guide David Mangum, renowned tarpon guide, filmmaker, still photographer, fly tier—and well the guy is just incredibly talented. In the interview he gives us some fascinating tips on presenting a fly to tarpon, and you may be surprised at what this seasoned guide recommends. He also gives tips on presenting the fly to other species—no surprise that accuracy, not distance or power, is the most important factor. And prior to the interview, in the podcast we answer questions on why you don’t need to change leaders every time you hit a different water type, handicapping fly anglers, sunken hoppers, fishing a new landlocked salmon fishery, nymphing for bass, playing fish on Euro-style nymphing rod, setting the hook on the wet fly swing, diversity in fly fishing, stinky hackle, and attaching backing to fly line.

This week I have a more-or-less black diamond podcast with Josh Nugent of Out Fly Fishing Outfitters in Calgary. With the peak of hatches upon us, now is the time to tune up your sight-fishing game, and Josh provides with some meaty tips (As well as The Seven Deadly Sins). In the Fly Box, I have a couple listener follow-ups on questions from other listeners. One is on freshwater drum from James at the Orvis store in Royal Oak outside of Detroit. The other is from gentleman in Canada who relates his experience with using loop knots on dry flies (hint—don’t). And I answer some questions on obtaining feathers for tying soft hackles, best boxes for large bass flies, how to rig for tightline nymphing, leaders for smallmouths, and whether a graphite rod can fatigue after a day catching more than 10 carp from 10 to 20 pounds in weight (no one is feeling sorry for that guy).

I don’t know why redfish have the reputation of being easy to catch. Every one I have ever cast to was spooky and suspicious. I’ve also found that when casting to redfish, especially in the fascinating times when they’re tailing in shallow water, accuracy is key. And I don’t mean in the general area. You need to place the fly in exactly the right spot based on which direction the fish is facing. Want to find out more about gaining accuracy on redfish? You’ll have to listen to this week’s podcast, where I interview Orvis Saltwater Guide of the Year Lucas Bissett of Slidell, Louisiana. In the Fly Box this week, I try to answer questions on tides and currents in salt water, color of leader material, an old fly dressing formula, the Hopper Twitch, feather clippings, and how to reconcile the feeling of getting skunked (my wife and fishing buddies will tell you I don’t do this well).

In this week’s podcast I have the pleasure of chatting with John Gierach, probably the most popular fly-fishing writer in the world (based on the fact that all 18 of his books are still in print!)  It’s likely that most fly fishers have read John’s work, but it’s a pleasure to hear his voice and some of his thoughts on today’s fly-fishing world.  In The Fly Box, we have some thought-provoking questions this week:  whether it makes sense to use a loop knot on a dry fly, whether a three-turn blood knot is enough, how to keep a bass leader from twisting, another cool trick with a rubber band, how to keep your emergers floating properly in the surface film, how to catch freshwater drum, and what kinds of fly lines you need for fishing a Canadian lake in midsummer.

This week’s podcast is a tour of the wonders of the Midwest’s Driftless Region, where small trout streams abound, trout are plentiful, and public access abounds. What could be better? Guide Mat Wagner tells all in this podcast that helped me vicariously enjoy his region (it’s at the top of my wish list). In the Fly Box, we had some particularly interested questions this week: Using night vision goggles for trout fishing, how to keep a record of streamside insects you find, disappearing brook trout, fighting big fish, catching sea trout on a fly, and the effectiveness of fishing bait using a fly rod.

In the fly box this week we have questions on making your own braided leaders, boorish behavior on trout streams, the effect of melting snow on fishing, how to test a new fly, the ethics of using a guide to find a spot and then fishing it on your own (don’t do it), and a mystery caller at the end. This week I also share an interview with Jeff Skelding, executive director of the Friends of the Upper Delaware River (FUDR). This is a very effective regional conservation organization that after years of difficult relations with local public officials, state and regional water authorities, and highway departments, has gradually formed very effective partnerships with them. We can all learn from their advice and experience when it appears that conservation and property seem to be at odds. It does not have to be a zero-sum game.

This week I interview Chris Dombrowski, author, poet, and fishing guide. Chris's book Body of Water is one of my favorite fly fishing books--even though it is more about people than fishing. Learn how a guy with the rough hands of a fishing guide and the soul of a poet thinks about our crazy world. We have all listener email this week as the phone calls I had were not the types of questions I can answer in this podcast (where should I fish, etc). WE do have some great questions on rod and reel maintenance and weather, nymphing, how much are "collectors'" flies worth, chemicals in fly-tying material and more.

This is a bit different from regular shows. This is the audio from a Facebook LIVE video show Tom did last week about Orvis' new snips and he also takes questions on various topics. The sound quality is not as high as other shows. If you want to skip the snips presentation, skip ahead about five minutes. You can see the video version and other videos at https://www.facebook.com/pg/orvisflyfishing/videos

In this week’s podcast, I was honored to have Felipe Rodriguez in the studio. Felipe is the head guide for the Orvis trips to Cuba, and is one of the most highly respected guides in Cuba, both for his knowledge of the fishery and for his education efforts with the younger generation of Cuban guides. He had never seen snow before, and arrived in Vermont and New York City in the middle of our biggest snowstorm of the winter. It was an exciting time for us and for Felipe. Also this week, in the Fly Box, we talk more about Mop Flies, basic saltwater patterns, wrist braces for fly fishers with tendonitis, UV and fluorescent materials, and advice for the younger generation of fly fishers.

In this week’s podcast, our guest is the very savvy guide and writer Landon Mayer from central Colorado. Landon is the author of four books on fly fishing, numerous magazine articles, and you may have caught one of his presentations at a fly-fishing show. He’s also a hard-working guide. Landon gives us his special tips for taking advantage of the high water of spring runoff—something most of us try to avoid but with Landon’s guidance you might welcome these conditions. In The Fly Box, we talk about casting practice, the use of two indicators, fishing for landlocked salmon in lakes, Woolly Buggers for steelhead, and a heartwarming story about catching a steelhead despite adverse conditions.

In this week’s podcast, I have the pleasure of picking Pat Dorsey’s brain on winter and early spring midge fishing in tailwaters. Pat is one of our foremost experts on small fly fishing, and is known far and wide as a guide, writer, fly tier, and presenter. Plus he’s just a cool guy. In the Fly Box this week, we have a surprise guest talking about an infamous bumper sticker, the difference between tippet material and regular fishing line, estimating how big trout get in small streams, a couple of dubbing techniques, how to find seam leaks in waders, avoiding tangles in two-fly rigs (don’t expect any brilliant ideas), and using stripping baskets with Spey rods.

Hi- This is Jamie Hathaway. I produce both the Orvis fishing and hunting podcasts. I thought you might like to hear Reid Bryant's interview with Tom over on the Orvis Hunting and Shooting Podcast.  Subscribe to the Orvis Hunting and Shooting Podcast on iTunes or at www.orvis.com/podcasts! Reid Bryant shares the booth with Orvis legend and avid hunter Tom Rosenbauer. Best known for his fly-fishing books, fly patterns, and host role with the Orvis Fly-fishing Podcast, Tom is a wealth of knowledge about Orvis and the sporting resources of southern Vermont. Reid and Tom discuss, dogs, ducks, and the symbiotic nature of being a fly angler as well as a bird hunter.

Orvis CEO Perk Perkins gave Tom an important job and Tom is excited to show him the results.  

This week’s podcast interview is with John Rickard, Orvis-Endorsed Guide with Wild Waters Fly Fishing in Shasta, California. Our main topic is winter steelhead in California, but John also gives us some helpful insights on California trout fishing as well. In The Fly Box, we ramble through topics like when to anchor a drift boat and when to keep moving, packing your gear for trips, weighting flies, Softex vs. epoxy, the difference between switch rods and long single-handed rods, and the importance of white nymphs. We also get a stern warning on road-killed songbird feathers—spoiler—even possessing them is a federal felony. Yikes!

One of the most common questions I get on this podcast and in person is "how can i take my fishing to the next level?". My new book, "Fly Fishing for Trout--The Next Level" is out and I'm really proud of it. I made this video to tell you why I wrote the book and how it can help you have more fun on the water. I hope you check it out!

I am betting that this week’s podcast will be one of the most popular of the year. Entitled “Rare, Unusual, and Under-Utilized Fly Tying Materials” it’s an interview with superb videographer and fly tier Tim Flagler of Tightline Productions. As typically happens with us, we go off on some crazy tangents but it’s all about fly tying and it gets a bit geeky. Which I have found that lots of our listeners enjoy. And if that’s not enough, the Fly Box covers carrying a second rod on the river, picking hackle capes, DT vs. WF lines (again!), fall-spawning rainbows, casting leaders with heavy flies and weight on them, midging trout during the winter, night-fishing tips, and fluoro vs. nylon for tippets.

We get many questions about tactical nymphs, tactical fishing, and tactical hooks. What do we mean by this? Listen this week as we talk to Jesse Haller, resident Orvis Tactical Master. We’ll be talking about tying tactical flies and using tactical hooks. And Jesse will give up his go-to fly patterns and tell us how to tie them. Also in the fly box this week we explore fly fishing for largemouths and smallmouths, swinging flies for big brown trout, winter fly fishing, how to measure leader sections, how to pick a trout net and how to use it, and whether “western” fly patterns can be used in the East.

In this podcast Stefan Woodruff, Orvis-endorsed guide with Ellensburg Anglers in Washington State, reveals (some of) his secrets to catching steelhead, plus an overview of ths steelhead opportunities in his state. Trout anglers will also enjoy his tips on fishing the Yakima River, tips that should work anywhere. In The Fly Box we range from tying gel-spun backing to fly line, how to fish with a friend and really fish together, what to do if you get snagged on a small stream, hooking fish on fiberglass rods, identifying jumping fish, what materials to save for fly tying from hunting trips, how to avoid drag when fishing to fish in a slow pocket on the other side of fast current. I also decline to give marital advice to one listener.

This podcast is an interview with an old friend and fishing buddy, Mike Connor of Bullsugar.org. Mike is a fishing guide whose livelihood has been threatened by the inaction and foot-dragging of politicians on the Lake Okeechobee/Everglades water issues, as Mike’s home waters are at the mouth of the St. Lucie River. We don’t like to talk politics in the podcast but unfortunately this issue, one of the biggest environmental issues in the United States, needs a political solution as the science has been completed, the funds have been approved by voters and Congress—but somehow not much has happened. Of course we also talk lots of fishing in this podcast, with a clarification on what the Tactical Fly and hook series is, why few flies are colored white, the five easiest but effective trout flies to tie, lots of discussion on head cements for fly tying, more on sight-fishing for trout, casting off to the side,—and other earth-shaking issues.

This week I interview Chuck Hawkins, one of the most experienced Great Lakes steelhead guides, who also travels the world in search of trout and other species when he’s not guiding steelheaders. As usual when talking to such an experienced guide, I discovered many cool tips and tricks I had never thought of. I’m sure you’ll find this podcast educational, whether you fish for steelhead in the Great Lakes or on the West Coast—or even if you fish for non-migratory trout with nymphs and streamers. Lots of these techniques translate well. In the Fly Box, we answer questions on deeply-hooked trout, straightening tippets, casting on grass, sight-fishing for trout, avoiding crowds, bite tippets for pike and pickerel, fishing in the middle of the day, and other little tidbits.

This week I have a delightful interview with the energetic Jen Ripple, publisher of Dun Magazine. She has some exciting news about her magazine that you’ll discover in the podcast. But the podcast is not about magazines, it’s about urban fly fishing, specifically Midwestern urban fly fishing. Jen is well versed on this subject, and I know you’ll enjoy some of her wild stories and you’ll learn a bunch about how to seek out these gems in the middle of heavy industry. Also in the Fly Box we discuss loops on fly lines, whether fly fishing is better than spin fishing, what to do with poorly tied flies from your earlier attempts, how to target big brook trout, how to avoid spooking trout, when it’s OK to reel your line-to-leader connection inside your guides, how to avoid foul-hooking fish—and lots of other tidbits.

This week’s podcast is on Great Lakes steelhead fishing, in particular the tributaries to Lake Erie. Damon Newpher, longtime Orvis-endorsed guide, gives us some advanced tips on some of the techniques he uses, which should work on all Great Lakes tribs. You’ll be surprised at some of the techniques he uses, including a dry dropper rig, nymph rigs, and of course his secrets for swinging flies. Also in the fly box this week we tackle questions like tips for fishing nymphs deep in weedy waters, drift boat anchors, how to cast a large fly on a relatively light rod, migrating trout, fishing near redds, weed guards on flies, cigarette smoke and trout, and the dreaded mop fly.

I’m just back from a wonderful trip to Cape Cod fishing for false albacore with my old friend Captain Tony Biski (http://www.orvis.com/p/monomoy-fly-fishing-capt-tony-biski-ma/8c91 ) and have been wanting to do a podcast with Peter Jenkins from The Saltwater Edge in Newport, Rhode Island. Since he’s an albie expert, it seemed like the perfect week to talk about these wonderful fish. Peter and I don’t agree on all aspects of albie fishing—but that’s what makes fly fishing interesting and fun. In the Fly Box, we have questions about snorkel observations of trout streams, suggestions on how to tie on a fly in fading light, a mystery about losing a potential monster trout, when to lose the shot and indicator when nymph fishing, a bunch of questions about what fly rod to pick, and the strongest backing-to-fly-line connection. Plus a touching story from a listener in the UK.

I always enjoy doing podcasts with Dan Frasier. He’s always upbeat, often very funny, and is one of the most insightful carp anglers I know. He’s also the author of The Orvis Beginner’s Guide to Carp Flies http://www.orvis.com/p/the-orvis-beginners-guide-to-carp-flies/2ef7 , which I think is a misleading title because his book is THE authority on carp flies and is a favorite with many expert carp anglers. Dan talks about how potentially the best carp fishing of the year lies ahead of us, something I was not aware of. I always thought carp fishing was best in the heat of summer, but you’ll discover in this podcast that you have a lot more to look forward to—and Dan will tell you how and why. And of course we have an installment of the Fly Box, covering such esoteric topics as fishing with dogs, trout in Mexico, jumping trout, sinking lines for trout, and how to fish a difficult tail of a pool.

Tom takes your questions in his first live show on Facebook!

Where can I legally fish and where am I trespassing? What is considered navigable water? Who owns the water and the fish in it? These are all questions answered in this week’s podcast by Land Tawney, CEO of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers, based in Missoula, Montana. What you’ll learn is that these answers vary with every state, and thus you must learn a new set of access laws every time you cross state lines. Also in the Fly Box this week we talk about how to fish a streamer, why dry/dry dropper rigs work, shelf life of fly-tying thread, underwater fish photos, tipping guides, the use of class tippets in salt water, whether you can put backing away wet, and other fun stuff.

In this week’s podcast, I tackle the subject of “Ten Hot Tips for August Trout Fishing”, and I think there will be things for both beginners and experts in there. In the Fly Box, we discuss such diverse topics as deer hair choice in fly tying, 7-piece rods, rubbing flies in the mud, imitation jungle cock, tippet ring setup, moving from Tenkara to conventional “Western” rods, spooked trout, jumping carp, and how to pick the right guide.

In response to requests for more advanced podcasts, this week I have an interview with Tom Brown, a master at technical trout fishing, long-time fishing manager in our Roanoke retail store, and now a member of our Outfitter Team (the great people who answer your technical fly fishing questions via phone, e-mail, or chat). Also in the fly box we cover whether a 3-weight is OK for an all-around Rocky Mountain rod, whether the absence of small fish in a pool indicates a big trout nearby, treble hooks for tube flies, switch rods from SUPs, the best sinking line for streams, terrestrials early in the season, and a bunch of other interesting questions.

This week’s podcast feature smallmouth expert Paul Caldwell with his tips on finding and catching stream smallmouths on a fly rod. Paul is a specialist in the Outfitter area in our Roanoke customer service department, and handles technical questions for guides, dealers, and all anglers who have questions on tackle—or just plain fishing questions. As you’ll hear, we have a talented staff in Virginia with first-rate anglers manning our phone, e-mail, and chat lines. In the Fly Box this week, we talk about spooky brook trout, how much pressure a small stream can take, how to wash your waders, why stocked trout have banged-up fins and jaws, how to decide angling tactics based on habitat or trout species, ways to test your hook-setting abilities, and how to play a trout with a long leader.

This week we have a loooong stillwater podcast, for those of you who have been requesting one.  Because the British are so more sophisticated in stillwater fishing than most North Americans (with the exception of anglers in the US Northwest and southwestern Canada) I turned to an expert from across the pond, Steve Yeomans, an expert stillwater guide and angler.  Steve goes into detail on how to find fish in lakes, gearing up, casting tricks, lines and leaders, retrieves, and of course flies.  It’s chock full of solid information.  Also in the fly box we discuss the best length for saltwater fly rods, trout fishing in rain and fog, landing trout that sulk in deep pools, landing trout on smaller hooks, parachute posts, and beads vs. cones on flies.  There are also two great suggestions from listeners and I re-answer one question where I thought I heard the caller say “tube flies in salt water” when he actually said “two flies in salt water”

This week I had the pleasure of talking to Daniel Galhardo of Tenkara USA, who did a basic Tenkara podcast last year when he was visiting us. We get into a little more detail on Tenkara, especially the use of sinking flies and all the ways you can manipulate them with this method. If you are curious about this method of fishing I think you’ll enjoy it. In The Fly Box this week, we had a wide range of topics, like how to hook snakehead on a fly, which sling bag to pick, how to fish streamers, a tip on curing UV resins, whether the flex or action of the rod affects your hooking ability, and which direction salmon face when they are returning to the ocean.

In this podcast I tell a story about getting caught playing Hendrickson hooky by two owners of the Orvis Company. Plus various assorted Fly Box questions like keeping rainbows on the hook when they jump, how to remove flies from deep in a trout’s mouth, how Eastern and Western waters differ in early season, fly fishing alongside spin-fishing buddies—plus the main podcast, in which Paul Moinester of Keep ‘Em Wet and I talk about best practices for releasing fish.

This week we visit with Captain Dave Pecci about early spring fishing in the Charlotte Harbor area of Florida. WE also talk once again about the current water quality issue in Florida. You may all be sick of hearing about it, but other than climate change the Everglades issue is one of the most serious immediate threats to both our freshwater and saltwater ecosystems. But don?t worry, we also talk about catching redfish, speckled trout, and snook. In The Fly Box this week we cover a broad range of topics, from the Eastern Green Drake hatch to small-stream steelhead tactics to the advantages of fiberglass rods.