• Back to the Fly Tying Vise

    After slacking off at the vise for the last two weeks, I just returned yesterday from our trip to Argentina. It will take me a little while to sort through the images before I share them here, but I need to get back to the fly tying vise and complete a couple of fly orders….

  • Bergman’s Watsons Fancy

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is Ray Bergman’s Watsons Fancy. It’s been a while since I featured a classic Ray Bergman fly. Watson’s Fancy is simple wet fly listed on Plate No.9, page 254 of Bergman’s Trout (1940 – fourth printing). As I’ve mentioned many times, I enjoy highlighting a Bergman wet fly because it forces…

  • My Fly Tying Room

    Where do you tie flies? If you are like me, you might have had a variety of fly tying stations over the years. I thought I’d share my journey and give you a peak at the latest iteration of my fly tying room. The image above is several years old and shows the portable fly…

  • Ray Bergman’s Winters Wet Fly

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is Ray Bergman’s Winters wet fly. It’s been a while since I featured a classic Ray Bergman fly. Bergman’s Winters is a very simple wet fly that is listed on Plate No.9, page 254 of Bergman’s Trout (1940 – fourth printing). As I’ve mentioned many times, I enjoy highlighting a Bergman…

  • Denny Rickards Stillwater Bug

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is Denny Rickards Stillwater Bug. If you are a stillwater fly fisher and live in Oregon, you know who Denny Rickards is. If not, you should! I picked up this fly from Denny’s booth at a NW Fly Tyer and Fly Fishing Expo a few years ago in Albany,…

  • Taylor’s Fat Albert

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday fly is Taylor’s Fat Albert. The fly was created by Brent Taylor in 2001. Brent guides in the Dillon, MT area and Chile, which is where the fly was initially used to imitate Cantaria beetle. I recall being introduced to a black/red version on a trip to Chile in 2005….

  • Charlie Card’s Cicada

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday fly is Charlie Card’s Cicada. I recently tied a few of these flies for a customer, which is why I’m posting this fly today. I wanted to know who was behind Card’s Cicada. Charlie Card is a well-known guide on Utah’s Green River, which is where this Cicada fly pattern…

  • Tying and Fishing Foam Flies

    I finished a fly order recently for a customer which included a couple of fly patterns utilizing foam and it made me think about tying and fishing foam flies. Most of the foam patterns I tie are used to imitate terrestrials or stoneflies. A new-to-me fly is this Card’s Cicada. It’s a variant as I…

  • Denny Rickards Shiner Minnow

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is Denny Rickards Shiner Minnow. Denny offers these flies in different colors, including Golden, Silver, Olive, Blue Back, Rainbow, and Yellow. I purchased this fly a few years ago at his booth during the NW Fly Tyer and Fly Fishing Expo in Albany, OR. Here’s what Denny writes about…