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Many moons ago we hosted Bob at the annual meeting of the Hawkeye Fly Fishers Association and he told one of my favorite fly fishing tales. It seems he was demonstrating how to tie his deep minnow for a group when one of the observers stood up and declared that he was tying it wrong. Apparently...

I picked up a 50+ pound grass carp on an olive woolybugger many years ago. It dragged my canoe around for 45 minutes before it came in. I would declare myself a stellar fisherman but was targeting bass at the time.

When I was a kid back in the middle of the last century we used to get syringes just like that for treating dairy cows with mastitis. They contained antibiotics that were injected into the cow’s teats. My cousins and I used to covet the discarded syringes as squirt guns. David

A friend of mine had this rod. A group of us tried it and decided that it was the best 8.5’ 4wt we had ever casted. I tried for a couple of years to find one but never did. Someone has a chance to get a great rod.

I find these reviews from Trident Fly Fishing to be about as good as they go. David

One fishing platform for us old guys that has not been mentioned is the Adirondack style “Pack canoe.” The one I have used for years is the ADK from Northstar. It is 12’ long and weighs a bit under 20 lbs. They were originally designed to carry between small lakes while fishing and camping in...

It is ironic that with retirement while time and funding makes it possible to fish more, physical limitations steal away so many opportunities. Twenty years of yoga may have helped with balance issues but have not made it possible to wade safely or scramble along stream banks any longer. So...

You might find this site of interest https://coldwatercollectibles.com/. I have bought and sold rods and reels through Coldwater Collectibles for years and have had only the best interactions. If nothing else their photos of fly reels (classics as well as modern) will green you up with envy if...

Couple suggestions in the used reel market. I have always liked the Orvis Battenkill midarbor reels and used them on my 3 and 4 wt rods. They came in silver. A real favorite is the Hardy Marquis. Over the years I gathered some Hardy-made clones - the LL Bean silver guide series and the...

The older style drags had a pressure fit spool that pops off as shown here. The newer style reels have a screw on knob on the side opposite the drag knob. The knob unscrews and the spool drops off. The knob is small and flat and needs this small plastic tool to grab it. David

Lamson seems to use two different drag systems. The one they have used the longest is their “Conical” drag and the new drag they use on some lines they call the “Cobalt” drag. Both are sealed and therefore okay for salt water and most users seem satisfied. I have an older Litespeed that has...

Do you know if any outfits guide that stretch of the Pend Oreille for fly fishing? David

While I have been rather happy with my Sage rods I am rather disappointed that their “lifetime warranty “ did not refer to either my lifetime or that of the rod but rather to the lifetime of the company ownership. Oh well, maybe Loomis will do better.

If you have ever used an antique fly reel you will see that they are (always?) set up for right hand wind and not reversible. The standard in the days of bamboo rods was to cast and wind with your right hand. I remember reading in an old article that the logic was simple. The two most tiring...

Unfortunately balance issues have forced me to retire my road bikes. Now three wheels are essential. It does allow me to do 100 miles per week.

It looks like the Sage ONE was introduced in 2012. It is a rare thing for us old farts when something is younger than we think it is. It is not a rare thing for us to be wrong.

Your best source of information might be the Gig Harbor fly shop. Their website has some information but for me they were best in person.

Have you noticed the Orvis Recon rod with a Sage Domain reel and Rio line on the for sale section of this website? It looks like a great deal on a complete 8 wt outfit.

Rod makers have tended to focus their best designs on their most popular rods, 5 wts and 8 wts. As a result there are a lot of great 8 wts out there and a lot of reviews on these rods. I find the ones from Trident Fly Fishing really good although Red’s Fly Shop and Mad River Outfitters have...

I have interacted with Brian from Mad River Outfitters for years and he is convinced that the Redington bass outfit is the best of these “all in one” products on the market. It includes one of Redington’s best selling reels, a quality Rio fly line and apparently a very good rod. Here is Brian’s...