Guide flies, a slang thrown around in the fly fishing realm. Simply put, a guide fly is anything that is quick to tie and usually a great fish producer. Things like, mops, San Juan worms, pheasant tails, hares ears, sexy walt's worms, the list goes on. With the warmer weather and more of us getting out to the river, we wanted to share some of our favorites with you for the San Juan River and beyond. For Freestones https://youtu.be/4-6lbiDUdf8 For Tail Waters https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2r8Fd8lIKVY ..read more

Norm Maktima working a run Euro nymphing on the San Juan is not only possible but an excellent way to fish the river. The San Juan offers a diversity of water types and a large trout population, you truly are only limited by your imagination. We're going to keep this blog short and sweet and give a quick outline of how we like to fish and guide the river with euro set ups. Flow: While the San Juan is very wade accessible, flows can fluctuate through the year when they call for water for irrigation. Wading flows are generally 300-1000cfs. Be careful as the river climbs up to the 1,000cfs range ..read more

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BgoUerfqag8 While the bulk of what we do here at About Trout happens on the Quality Waters, we wanted to shed some light on another section of the river, "The Quantity Waters". Also referred to as the bait water, the stretch of river from Crusher hole to the Village boat ramp is often overlooked by fly anglers. Anglers are allowed to harvest trout in this section and fly anglers are definitely in the minority. With that being said, most of the bait fishing and harvesting happens in a couple concentrated spots (the ones closest to parking lots) leaving the vast m ..read more

(30 Inches of brown trout, curtesy of a red larva fished deep in the water column) Spring has sprung here in Northwest New Mexico and it's one of the goofiest times of year on the San Juan. The water is dirty and the fish seem to change their mind about what they want to eat and where they will be every other day. While some dislike the the "spring roulette", others embrace the chess game. Do not fear the dirty water or the seemingly stubborn trout, spring can be one of the best times of the year to fish the good ole San Juan. Here are some things that keep me sane during the guide day, I hop ..read more

A rainbow trout from a not so secret spot on the Sacramento River One of the greatest things about fly fishing is the people. I have been blessed to fish all over the US and abroad and if one thing stays the same, it's all the amazing folks who have this sport in common. Recently, I found myself in Northern California in the boat of my friend, Luke Geraty. We laughed, we cried, we got into 2 boat ramp brawls, and fish were netted. Okay, the crying and fighting was obviously a joke but we did have ourselves a grand old time on two of Nor Cals primer rivers. Northern California is unlike anywhe ..read more

Fall fishing on the San Juan is one of my favorite times to guide, but it can also be incredibly technical. I wanted to write this blog to share my favorite tips for when it feels like you can't get read on where the fish are and what they're eating. Fall fishing can be all over the map. Flows are changing depending on irrigation needs and air temps are fluctuating wildly throughout the day and season. Both water flow and air temperature impact where the trout can hold as well as effect bug activity. With more water, there's more spots for the fish to spread out and settle into, the inverse i ..read more

As someone who spends the majority of their time in the desert, sometimes you desire a cooler and greener setting. It has been a very busy and hot season here on the San Juan river in Northern New Mexico and we have all been feeling the heat. Over the last few years, I have made it a point to take some time to beat the heat and get up into the high country. Trading roadside access for some solitude, #26 midge patterns for large dry flies, and picky tail water trout for less pressured cutthroats. If you have never hiked into an alpine lake, I encourage you to do so, a short drive and hike can ..read more

Love them or hate them, mop flies work. A cream colored mop has become a staple when guiding the Chama river below El Vado reservoir. A robust cranefly population makes this fly a staple. At least thats what I tell myself to sleep at night fishing this atrocity. Hook: FullingMill Jig Force #10 Bead: 3.8mm Tungsten Slotted in White Thread: UTC 70 Brown Body: Piece of Mop from Rain X Mop Ball Collar: Shrimp Pink UV Ice Dub + Swishers X Dub in a Dubbing Loop. Enjoy! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OgYUSHDyeMk ..read more

Part 1: A fly box from scratch We're back. Lets get this out of the way first. When building a nymphing box one of the most important considerations is diversity of bead size. Whether you're using suspension rigs or euro nymphing, having a good representation of weight will help you dial in the perfect drift. While split shot does have its place, it seems most anglers have shifted to using weight built into their flies. Whether I'm guiding or fishing personally, usually the first consideration I make when selecting a fly is bead size. I have shifted exclusively to tungsten beads so I can bette ..read more

The fly box. The contents inside, like a good journal, tell stories, hold memories, and bring us back to hopefully happier times.  In our early angling careers, most of us rely on the help of Grandpa, the local fly shop, blogs or a good book to aid us in choosing our confidence flies. My Grandpa is from the Middle East, which isn’t exactly a hotbed for fly fishing. Unlike our favorite fictional character from “Salmon Fishing in the Yemen”, the Maayteh family didn’t have the funds to pursue a multi million dollar pipe dream, they were shepherds on the Dead Sea, which you can probably gues ..read more