Innholdsfortegnelse for April/May 2025 i Fly Fisherman

WHEN FLY FISHERS THINK OF YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK THEY OFTEN CONJURE IMAGES OF NATIVE YELLOWSTONE CUTTHROAT TROUT. BUT BOTH WESTSLOPE CUTTHROAT TROUT AND FLUVIAL (RIVER-DWELLING) ARCTIC GRAYLING ARE NATIVE TO SOME PARK WATERS. IT’S BEEN SEVEN YEARS SINCE YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK’S FISHERIES BIOLOGISTS BEGAN IMPLEMENTING THEIR PLAN TO ELIMINATE NONNATIVE RAINBOW TROUT, BROOK TROUT, AND ADFLUVIAL (LAKE-DWELLING) ARCTIC GRAYLING FROM THE UPPER GIBBON RIVER AND ITS HEADWATER LAKES—GREBE, WOLF, AND ICE LAKES. THIS IS PART OF AN AMBITIOUS PROJECT TO RESTORE WESTSLOPE CUTTHROAT TROUT AND FLUVIAL GRAYLING TO AT LEAST 20 PERCENT OF THEIR HISTORIC RANGE. The intention is to create a survival zone for native fish in the face of a warming climate and dramatic population declines caused by the introduction of rainbow trout, which were first planted in…

IN THE PREVIOUS ISSUE, I DISCUSSED THE NATURE OF ACCELERATION. NOW I’LL BUILD ON THAT BY LOOKING AT AN ESSENTIAL FEATURE OF ACCELERATION WHICH, FOR CONVENIENCE, I’LL SIMPLY TERM “ROTATION,” ALTHOUGH WE COULD CALL IT “PIVOTING,” OR SIMPLY “TURNING.” Since casting involves kinesiology—the mechanics of body movements—rotation is really an intrinsic part of acceleration, and occurs simultaneously. It is not a separate or additional move that turns over the hand at the end of the cast. The hand starts turning the instant it begins moving, and just as the hand accelerates, moving ahead faster and faster, it is also turning more and more until that instant stop. Observe your hand, and the rod shaft, when you grasp a rod grip and very slowly move your hand by bending at the…

HIS NAME IS CARLOS ANTONIO SANCHEZ CARDENES. WITH A NAME LIKE THAT, HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN A BULLFIGHTER, CLASSICAL GUITARIST, OR THE PATRON OF AN ARGENTINE ESTANCIA COMPLETE WITH CATTLE, SHEEP, AND GAUCHOS. BUT INSTEAD, HE WAS THE TAXI DRIVER TAKING ME FROM LOS CABOS TO LA VENTANA, BAJA CALIFORNIA. IT WAS A TWO-HOUR DRIVE THROUGH VAST EXPANSES OF THORN BRUSH AND CORDON CACTUS DESERT AND ALONG THE MOUNTAINS THAT SEEMED MYSTERIOUS AND MAGICAL. THEY SEEMED CLOSE ENOUGH TO TOUCH—YET SIMULTANEOUSLY OUT OF REACH. Looking out the window of Antonio’s SUV, I absorbed the sights of the wild landscape and silent villages, which we passed through so quickly that they seemed to fade and blend in my mind, like dreams. Each town had its own wandering packs of small friendly…

OMEKO “MEKO” GLINTON IS NOT WHAT YOU PROBABLY THINK OF WHEN YOU CONJURE UP IMAGES OF A FLY-FISHING GUIDE. HE’S GOT A CONTAGIOUS GLOW OF POSITIVITY. HE’LL VERBALLY MASSAGE YOUR CAST WITHOUT TALKING DOWN TO YOU. HE’S ENDLESSLY FORGIVING OF MISSED HOOK-SETS, GENUINE, RESILIENT, AND A BEACON OF HOPE FOR A FAMILY AND COMMUNITY WHO HAVE SEEN MORE THAN THEIR SHARE OF TRAGEDY. HE’S BEEN GRANTED GAME WARDEN STATUS BY THE BAHAMIAN GOVERNMENT. OH, AND FLIP PALLOT ONCE CALLED HIM ONE OF THE TWO BEST FLATS-FISHING GUIDES IN THE WORLD. You might’ve already heard of Meko—a powerful film by Pandion Creative (Harrison Buck) is due to premiere soon, he was lauded in Chris Dombrowski’s beautiful book Body of Water, and he was featured on the Florida Sportsman website for landing…

THE LITTLE CESSNA BANKS HARD OVER THE MILE-DEEP CANYON, FILLED THIS MORNING WITH THE PUNGENT SMOKE OF A HALF DOZEN NEARBY WILDFIRES. BELOW ME, THE WINGTIP POINTS ALONG THE SERPENTINE COURSE OF THE MIDDLE FORK OF THE SALMON RIVER, ITS SURFACE TINTED ORANGE BY THE SMOKE-STAINED MORNING SUN AND PUNCTUATED WITH IVORY PATCHES—WHITEWATER RAPIDS—AND PLENTY OF THEM. TWO DAYS’ WORTH OF RIVER MILES ARE FRAMED BY THE DUSTY WINDOW OF THE OLD PLANE—TWO DAYS OF THE SIX I’LL SPEND WITH A GROUP OF FRIENDS FROM MINNESOTA, RAFTING AND FLY FISHING IN THE 2.3-MILLION-ACRE FRANK CHURCH-RIVER OF NO RETURN WILDERNESS, THE LARGEST FORESTED WILDERNESS AREA IN THE LOWER 48. WILD & SCENIC Few rivers in America evoke the wonderment and awe we feel at the vastness of the wilderness and the…

ON A COOL MORNING IN THE NORTH GEORGIA MOUNTAINS, BIRDSONG FILLS THE AIR AND MINGLES WITH ANOTHER KIND OF SWEET-SOUNDING MUSIC: THE VOICES OF CHILDREN EXCHANGING EXCITED WHISPERS AND GIGGLES. It’s early, but these kids are attentive as they huddle around the campground. They have trekked to the headwaters of the Chattahoochee River to take part in the Becca Sue Klein All Kids Fish program, where many will dip their toes into the invigorating world of fly fishing for the first time. Passionate fly angler and conservationist Becca Sue Klein first envisioned the program while working as the development director for Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, an environmental nonprofit based in Atlanta. Across 20 years as a leader in clean-water nonprofits, Klein recognized the need to foster inclusion within the sport of fly…

CENTRAL VALLEY STEELHEAD WERE AT ONE TIME AMONG THE MOST PROLIFIC RUNS OF SALMONIDS ON PLANET EARTH. THESE FISH HAD GREATER VARIANCE IN LIFE HISTORY STRATEGIES THAN JUST ABOUT ANY OTHER FISH. HISTORICALLY, THEY HAD THE WIDEST DIVERSITY OF HABITATS WHERE RAINBOW TROUT (ONCORHYNCHUS MYKISS) LIVE, AND NUMEROUS OPTIONS IN HOW THEY EXPRESS THEIR LIFE STRATEGY THROUGHOUT THESE VARIED HABITAT TYPES. Today, Central Valley steelhead are classified as threatened under the Endangered Species Act due to low numbers compared to historical abundance. In the past 170 years we have thrown just about every obstacle imaginable at these fish. This includes the loss of more than 95 percent of their historically accessible habitat due to dams, levies, other barriers, and highly altered hydrographs in just about every Central Valley river. Humans…

SOMETIMES I GET IN A SLUMP AND GET TIER’S BLOCK TRYING TO PRODUCE SUBJECTS FOR THIS COLUMN. PICKING THE FLY TO WRITE ABOUT IS THE MOST DIFFICULT PART, AS IT MUST BE SOMETHING THAT IDEALLY SHOWS SOME NEW OR UNUSUAL TECHNIQUE, IS INNOVATIVE AND, MOST IMPORTANTLY, COMPELLING TO ME. AS USUAL, I SEARCH FAR AND WIDE, PERUSING NEW PATTERNS FROM ALL THE FLY MANUFACTURERS, GOING THROUGH MY OWN FLY BOXES, AND ASKING AROUND IN THE SHOP, SO IT MAKES ME FEEL PARTICULARLY DUMB TO HAVE OVERLOOKED MAX BEAUCHENE’S NEW MESS MAKER PATTERN, WHICH HE CAME UP WITH A COUPLE OF SUMMERS AGO. In the interest of full disclosure, Max works with me here at Charlie’s Fly Box and came on board about two years ago. He’s a lifelong angler, but…