I work part-time at an Orvis fly shop, and was told that the new Helios fly rods would arrive in early March. It was hard to imagine that they could be much better than the H3 rods, Orvis’s best selling fly rod ever. But Orvis was touting the new Helios The post the Helios Fly Rods appeared first on Simpson Fly Fishing ..read more

Over the years (? centuries), what makes nymph patterns effective has been a moving target in the minds of anglers. G.E.M. Skues, generally regarded as the “father of nymphing”, incorporated the elements of dry fly imitations in his initial patterns. In his 1921 book, “The Way of a Trout With The post What Makes Nymph Patterns Effective? appeared first on Simpson Fly Fishing ..read more

Roughly twenty-five years ago, I acquired my first REALLY GOOD fly rod, a 905 Thomas & Thomas (T&T) Paradigm. I say acquired, because I won it at a TU fundraiser auction. At the time, dry fly enthusiasts worldwide fished this rod. I absolutely loved its feel and hidden power. For The post Return of the Thomas & Thomas Paradigm appeared first on Simpson Fly Fishing ..read more

This August, fishing buddy Reid and I decided to go to the St. Joe River in the Idaho panhandle. I had previously read about the St. Joe in the Flyfisher’s Guide to Idaho, by Ken Retallic and Rocky Barker. But it was an article by Henry Ramsay in the June/July The post Fishing the St. Joe River in Idaho appeared first on Simpson Fly Fishing ..read more

Montana’s Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks (FWP), has documented a steady decline of trout numbers in its famous southwest streams since 2011. Hardest hit are the Big Hole, Beaverhead, and Ruby rivers, which have reached historic lows, especially of brown trout. While studies are ongoing, no readily reversible causes The post Should Montana Become a Smallmouth Fishing Destination? appeared first on Simpson Fly Fishing ..read more

Orvis released a new wet-wading boot this spring, the Pro Approach Hiker. I don’t enjoy fishing with crowds, so I spend most of my time walk-wading, i.e., hiking a good distance. While breathable waders offer a vast improvement over the old neoprenes, they still get hot and heavy when hiking The post Product Review: A New Wet-Wading Boot appeared first on Simpson Fly Fishing ..read more

For fly tiers, Dr. Slick has introduced a new tool, the bead tweezer. For years, I have struggled to find an easy, reliable way to slip a bead onto a hook when tying beadhead nymphs. Tweezers, fingers or table top all failed to provide a stable target for my hook. The post Product Review: The Bead Tweezer appeared first on Simpson Fly Fishing ..read more

Cutthroat trout have a reputation for being “pushovers”. The word on the stream is that all you need do is float a big, bushy fly over them to get their attention. That works some of the time, but it leaves a lot of fish untouched. Cutthroat are native to western The post Are Cutthroat Trout “Pushovers”? appeared first on Simpson Fly Fishing ..read more

Many (? most) fly fishers obsess over their fly selection. They carry more than a few boxes of flies at all times, and spend a good deal of the day changing flies. But I think there are four skills that have more to do with putting fish into the net The post Is it Fly Selection? appeared first on Simpson Fly Fishing ..read more

  If you are looking for a good read that intertwines fly fishing with the storyline, then you should consider the novel “Ruin“, by Leigh Seippel. The storyline is one of financial ruin and escape to the rural Hudson Valley, where Frank and Francy, the main characters, try to put The post “Ruin”- a Book Review appeared first on Simpson Fly Fishing ..read more