• Puyans A.P. Muskrat #2

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is Andy Puyans A.P. Muskrat #2. André “Andy” Puyans (1935-2005) was born in Garden City, NY and began tying flies at the age of seven. He moved to San Francisco, CA in 1958 to tie flies for Abercrombie and Fitch and eventually opened his own fly shop, Creative Sports…

  • Polly’s Muskrat Nymph

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is Polly’s Muskrat Nymph. A couple of weeks ago, I presented Polly’s Fledermouse Nymph and thought since I had used muskrat, I’d highlight another nymph utilizing the same material. It’s a simple fly to tie with the most difficult aspect is locating the natural materials of muskrat and beaver. This…

  • Tying Very Small Flies

    I finished a fly order recently, tying very small flies which challenged my fly tying skills. The order was for flies in sizes 18 to 22. Tying small flies is difficult if you don’t tie a lot. You feel like you’re tying with two thumbs! Trust me, I’ve been there! I remember a statement I…

  • PMD Time

    It’s PMD time again! I always look forward to this hatch. It begins in late May and will continue through September. Many hatches are in full swing now on my local waters in Central Oregon. Besides PMDs, there are Salmonflies, Green Drakes, and Caddis. It’s a wonderful time of year! PMDs, otherwise known as Pale…

  • Mike Mercers Poxyback Green Drake

    This week’s Throw Back Thursday Fly is Mike Mercers Poxyback Green Drake Nymph. I’m tying this fly to complete a fly order and thought Mercer’s Poxyback Green Drake nymph was a great candidate for a TBT post. I found this fly pattern several years ago in Mike Mercer’s Creative Fly Tying (2005) book. Mercer writes…

  • March Brown Mayflies are Coming

    It won’t be long before fishing season begins for many fly fishers. That’s because March Brown mayflies are coming soon. This is the first of the larger mayflies trout will see in the coming months and an emerger or dry fly is a lot of fun to fish. Western March Brown mayflies (Rhithrogena morrisoni) are in…

  • BWO Fly Box

    In mid-December, I wrote a post about Choosing a Fly Box. I still need to fill a fly box with BWO flies, so it’s timely for me to highlight a few important flies I plan to place in the fly box. I’ll provide some of my favorites to help you create your own BWO fly…

  • Winter and Blue Wing Olives

    Thanksgiving is only a few days away, which means winter is right around the corner. Do you know what that means? Blue Wing Olives will be the mayflies I plan to imitate. Gone are the bigger mayflies. What will get me through the next few months are hatches of BWO’s. So are you ready for…

  • Callibaetis Mayfly Life Cycle and Fly Imitations

    I’ve talked recently about how impressive the Callibaetis hatch and fishing has been at East Lake this year. I decided to re-post information about the Callibaetis mayfly life cycle and fly imitations I use to help you lake fly fishers.  Callibaetis mayflies are known as the speckled duns because of their mottled wings. Two wonderful sources for more…