A satisfying day on the river – what makes one fly fishing day better than another? In this first episode of Season 2, we narrate the key moments of a satisfying day on the river while fishing in the Minnesota Driftless. The amount of trout we caught was average, but the overall experience was one …

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This completes a year of weekly episodes from 2 Guys and a River. In Episode 52: Fly Fishing Observations from a Year of Podcasting, we discuss what we’ve learned from the weekly task of putting together each episode. The size of the fly fishing industry, the complexity of fly fishing for beginners, the importance of …

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Tie your own flies? Some might say you can’t be a real fly fisher unless you do. Well, we differ on the matter. Steve ties his own, and Dave doesn’t. In this episode, using a point-counterpoint approach, we discuss the age-old question of whether you should tie your own flies. Listen to Episode 51: Should …

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Unlikely places to catch trout are good places to drift your fly. We’ve caught fish in shallow riffles, drainage ditches, grassy side channels, and trickles of water that could be barely be classified as a stream. Listen to “Unlikely Places to Catch Trout” and then post on our blog about the most strange places you’ve …

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Which leaders and tippet work best with a size #8 beadhead woolly bugger? No matter how many articles an aspiring fly fisher reads, he or she has to learn the hard way. It’s nearly impossible to sling a big streamer with a 6x tippet. You really need at least a 3x or 4x tippet before …

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Fly fishing brands are everywhere: Sage, Winston, Orvis, Patagonia, Temple Fork Outfitters, Fishpond, Simms, Loomis, and many more. It’s a noisy, cluttered marketplace. It’s hard to make a rational decision. When selecting a fly fishing rod or waders or a sling pack, how do you make the best decision for you? In this episode, we …

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The fly presentation – it is the most challenging aspect of fly fishing. Especially when dry fly fishing or nymphing, perfecting the dead drift demands a mindset of continual learning and a ruthless critique of each cast. Improving your fly presentation is the art and skill of fly fishing. Listen to Episode 47 now! Listen …

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Ever have a magical day on the river? Of course you have. But such days tend to be less common than we imagine. In this episode, we recount a magical day on the river that we know will never be repeated. Three of us fly fished a stretch of water on a warm August day …

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There is no joy like the joy of fly fishing with hoppers. Period. It’s a little like learning how to play the guitar. Every newbie guitar player begins by learning how to play Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama.” And every aspiring fly fisher should begin by fly fishing with hoppers. It’s crazy fun. The flies …

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The ability to identify trout lies in the river or stream may be the single biggest predictor of your success. This is as basic for an aspiring fly fisher to learn as casting. Not all places in a stream or river hold trout. Spotting a trout lie, especially when fish are not rising, is a …

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