Fly Fishing

Most fly shops would have a hard time selling this fly to the right — one of several gold-ribbed

The first time I used wading boots with felt soles it was like having my feet glued to slimy rocks that previously were indeed a slippery slope. During the next 30-plus years — with the exception of summertime wet wading — I've always used waders with felt soles.

Driving home from a meeting the other day I was pleasantly surprised to see most of Lake Superior's tributaries flowing in the big lake. The open water got me thinking about how many bugs I still have yet to tie in preparation for the upcoming season. This thought wasn't settling realizing how few hours I can put aside from marriage and work to get my fly box to a to a respectable state. Prioritizing patterns to be tied is a must at this point, starting with the most productive and versatile. With that thought in mind streamer patterns like the egg sucking leech, wooly bugger and the muddler minnow will be on top of my list.

If you're of one of those fly fishers who packs away the gear at the first sign of snow, you're missing out on a very special type of fishing. Unknown to some fly anglers is the fact that, during the winter months, there is a secret hatch of tiny insects that can make the long winter loads of fun for fly anglers.

The other day I was talking to an old friend about fly fishing in general and flies in particular when we got around to the question that has plagued fly anglers ever since the second fly was plucked off the vise
That being: If you could use only use one fly, which would it be?

When my mind drifts back to memorable hatches I've fished, none can compare with the tiny Blue-Winged Olive or Baetis mayflies. There were days when the Olives emerged so heartily that trout fishing dreams became reality. I even fished a tremendous grayling rise once on a plunging northern Saskatchewan river where the smoky-winged Olives emerged by the thousands on a cold, shower-swept day.