Category Archives: Techniques

The most experienced fly fishing guides have spent years on the water. For a fly fishing guide who can catch trout in any condition and on a variety of fly fishing rivers, they've often been there and done that. To catch fish consistently, and to catch big fish consistently, certain skills come into...

Even the most experienced angler will tell you that one of the biggest appeals of fly fishing is that there is always something new to learn or a new place to fish. In our area, we’re lucky to have abundant access to both float and walk-and-wade fishing options, and many of these waters offer both...

What does it take to be a great angler? Is it a 10-pound trout on 6X? Catching two permit in one day? Or, matching the hatch when a trout is sipping size 24 dry flies on a spring creek? Accomplishing all three of these--however rare or amazingly difficult they may be--doesn't necessarily make...

Seeing is believing, right? If you can see a fish, you should believe you can catch it. However, oftentimes, if you can see a fish, it is also likely that the fish can see you. Whether you are fishing a crystal clear spring creek in Montana’s Paradise Valley or casting to pods of rising trout on the...

The legends of the fall fishing season in Montana are rooted in tales of large brown trout. Once the leaves change, the morning frost becomes common, and many anglers head for the hills to chase four-legged game, the possibility of landing the largest trout of the year exists on every cast. During...

Known as one of the most voracious predatory gamefish on the planet, fly fishing for peacock bass in the Amazon River system is a fly fishing trip everyone should consider. If there were a fish to match the grandeur and vastness of the Amazon, the peacock bass is ideal. With aggressive takes...

Ask a veteran Montana fly fishing guide about going fly fishing in Montana during the month of October and most likely their face will light up in excitement. They will have several stories about big brown trout chasing streamers, head-hunting to trout rising to Blue Winged Olives or smashing...

Standing in a river and waving a stick is just one of the ways renowned angling author John Gierach described walk-and-wade fishing. We could also add to his sentiments the following statement: “And, you’re trying to fool something that eats bugs and has a brain smaller than a pea.” Fly fishing...

Large trout--we're talking fish over 20-inches long--do not come easily. They require a unique combination of being in the right place at the right time, a varying level of angling skill, and often fishing with a patient and knowledgeable fly fishing guide. Landing a truly large wild trout is a...

Gather up some of the most experienced Montana fly fishing guides and although they may not all agree on the best streamer or the best grasshopper pattern, they can all agree on the importance of efficiently tying strong knots. The logic is simple--why would you spend well over a thousand dollars on...