I love tying flies.  I have never found another activity that I can lose myself in like tying flies for trout. Self taught at first but then studying under a mentor for some time really helped expand my skill, technique, and creativity. Learning how different material can help create a near perfect representation…not to the angler…but to the trout. I tie flies for trout, they may not look pretty enough for the bin, but trout don’t care about that…flies look very different to trout than they do to angler. 


Size, silhouette, shape, and to some extent color are the things that run through my mind before I throw feathers and thread to hook. Right now it’s Golden Stones. The skwalla rides low, is slow, and small, I tie a non foam pattern for it because those bugs are damn near sunk during the hatch. For salmon flies I tie big flies with moose main because it’s super buggy and floats like a cork. It also does a good job of making the fly look all twitchy without having to actually twitch the fly. Salmon flies are like big chinook helicopters, and when they crash in the water…they make a huge mess of themselves. They are clumsy as all hell. 

Golden’s though, they dance and jump like a mayfly when they hatch, they float high, and they move a lot. I tie foam for Golden’s, use moose for a dark flat good floating wing, and throw six silly legs on there to give the fly movement. I use yellow gold foam and color it with a sharpie, and I use a larger hook gap because fish like to play with Golden’s so a wider hook gap usually helps with fish that don’t get the large fly in their mouth. 


When I tie flies, all I think about is fish eating them. With every thread wrap another fish is tricked and netted and released. It’s like pre drinking before a party, warming up before the big game, or studying before a big test. Either way it’s a good way to prep before a trip. 

Anyway, I’m going fishin, hope to see ya out there. This season is gonna be amazing. 
Tamarack

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Published by tamaracksguideservice

I have been fishing the Yakima River and its surrounding tributaries, creeks, and lakes for 10 years. I have been tying flies specific to this river for 10 years as well. I have guided not only the river but also many of the hiking and mountaineering trails in the area and fished some of the more remote lakes and streams. I love to fish the Yakima River and have been running my driftboat here for 5 years. I guide a little differently than the other services here and have a slightly different philosophy on guided fishing trips. Its all about the experience, and while I can't promise there will always be cooperative trout, there will always be good times. I learned from some of the greatest anglers the Yakima has both on the water and at the vise and I guide to share and pass on that knowledge and expertise so others can enjoy this river as much as I do. I love to teach people to fish, I love to teach people how to read the river, and I love showing people the beauty and art of fly fishing. My service is a bit cheaper but that is because I have no shop taking a percentage. I use a lot of my own fly designs and patterns that no other guide has and have spent the past 10 years fine tuning my tying and patterns specific to this river. I have flies, leaders, tippets, and fly rods and reels, and always welcome anglers to bring their own gear. If you need waders and boots I can arrange for a rental. I support my local fly shop for my trips as well as it is important to me that our local shops stay open. When you take a trip with me it all about fishing and the experiences that happen along the river. I love getting my clients to have great moments with our trout here. Ask me all the questions you can, I want to teach as much as you want to learn. Whether you are an experienced angler or brand new to the sport I love sharing this river with people. I guide the Yakima River and many other secret waters in the area. When you give me a call I will ask you lots of questions as I want to make sure you have the best experience possible while chasing the trout we have here. Whether its a guided river float or a hike and fish, or a walk and wade to the secret places, I can help make your fly fishing experience memorable and fun. Give me a call today and lets set up a time to go fishing.

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