Loop to Loop

When people see the wild location and see fly fishers wading with sharks and giant trevally in the film "The Shoals" (now available on YouTube) they invariably ask "where is that?!" and also "how did they get that shot? In this episode, Fly Fisherman editor/publisher Ross Purnell and filmmaker Ben Annibali recount the making of the film, the highs and lows of fishing and filming in a high-pressure situation, and how they got live-action dialogue in the windy surf zone with a drone in the air. If you've ever wondered how those fishing films get made in difficult locations, perhaps no place is more difficult than St. Brandons. Ben and ross@flyfisherman are going back to St. Brandon's Oct. 19 - 29, so if you are interested in a wild adventure near the equator, send an email.

Anita Coulton found her calling to be a guide over a decade ago and hasn't looked back since. Navigating the most technical dry-fly fishery in the East, the fabled Upper Delaware river, she pursues its notoriously difficult wild rainbow and brown trout. She works as an Orvis Endorsed Guide for Cross Current Outfitters alongside the legendary Joe Demalderis. She and editor Ross Purnell discuss the prolific hatches of sulphurs, blue quills, grannom caddis, Hendricksons, Isonychias, and more in the proverbial "bug soup" of the Delaware's West Branch tailwater. She dives into her admiration and respect for Cathy Beck and how she inspired her to be a guide, her involvement in the film "Legacy: The Story of Cathy and Barry Beck," and how women are shaping the future of fly fishing. When she's not in her drift boat she hosts trips to Mexico, Patagonia, and the Amazon.

Neil Sunday hails from the historic Cumberland Valley of Pennsylvania. He is a former Olympic snowboarding coach and a full-time guide and owner at neilsundayflyfishing.com for trout, smallmouth bass, and the potamodromous fish of the Great Lakes . An active conservationist with Cumberland Valley Trout Unlimited (pacvtu.org), he organizes and leads the FITS crew (Feet in the Stream) to clean and rake spawning beds for spawning wild brown trout in the famous LeTort Spring Run. Learn about the Limestone legends Vince Marinaro and Charlie Fox, their contributions to fly fishing and how their conservation ethics and teachings have been passed down to the new generation of stewards like Sunday.

John Arway is a scientist by training. In 1984 he graduated with a Master of Science Degree in Aquatic Biology in 1984. He dedicated his entire career to carrying out the mission of the PA Fish and Boat Commission and for 20 years was chief of the Environmental Services Division after which he became the Executive Director of the Commission until 2018. As Executive Director, John steadfastly promoted a "Resource First" and "Protect, Conserve, and Enhance" fisheries conservation approach in leading the agency. Ross Purnell sat down with him on this episode of Loop to Loop to compare and contrast Montana with Pennsylvania, and explain how Dick Vincent and his discoveries about wild trout in Montana decades ago led that state to prioritize wild fish, while Pennsylvania even in 2026 continues to dump stocked trout in streams with well-documented populations of wild trout. Ross and John also discuss a brand-new conservation organization, of which John is a founding member: the Pennsylvania Wild Trout Coalition (https://pawtc.org). Their mission is to stop the state from stocking trout in class A wild trout streams, and their motto is "Let Nature Raise the Fish."

Mike Komara is a 2026 World Angler for Fly Fishing Team USA. He is also the owner and head guide for Innovative Angline (www.innovativeangling.com), an educator, and a team bronze medalist in the 2025 FIPS Mouche Fly Fishing Championships in the Czech Republic. He shares how competitive fly fishing works, how team members are chosen, and who is one the 2026 USA team that is competing in the 45th FIPS-Mouche World Championships in Idaho Falls is September. He recently filmed an instructional video on the Flip Cast, a resourceful and easy cast when Euro nymping in tight quarters with micro-leaders.

Perhaps no one is better qualified to talk about the Roadless Rule than Trout Unlimited President and CEO Chris Wood. He worked for the U.S. Forest Service in the years the rule was developed and implemented. And now TU is fighting to keep the 2001 common-sense practice in place to protect America's best fishing for wild, native trout and salmon. Not only do these roadless, headwater areas contain the last strongholds of native trout, they have some of the best hunting in America. And they provide cold, headwater flows for the bigger rivers close to roads. Chris Wood and Ross Purnell also tackle the issue of data centers and Trout Unlimited's new policy paper on them. If you want to know how the country's largest coldwater conservation organization is working to take on the most important threats of 2026, you need to listen to this podcast or watch the YouTube version shot on location at TU headquarters in Arlington, Virginia.

Pat Calvert is the Virginia Director of Conservation for American Rivers. He sat down with editor Ross Purnell to discuss the rush to develop hundreds of data centers throughout northern Virginia and the Potomac watershed as well as across North America. Learn about why the Potomac River was named the #1 most endangered river by American Rivers, how data centers actually use water to cool their facilities, and how new federal legislation is needed to ensure transparency and protect watersheds.

Hilary Hutcheson has been a whitewater fly-fishing guide on the Flathead river system in Montana for over 25 years. She is the owner of Lary's Fly & Supply in Columbia Falls, MT. She's an environmental activist, conservationist, producer, director, frequent writer for Fly Fisherman magazine, and is on the board of the American Fly Fishing Trade Association. In this episode, Hilary joins editor Ross Purnell in a cabin in Pennsylvania to discuss why fly fishing for smallmouth bass is accessible to fly fishers across the country and how they can help trout. A rafting-guide at heart, she dives into techniques such as crab crawling and running clean lines through whitewater. She also co-directed the Yeti film "The Tengu Club" which explores a fishing club founded by pre-World War II Japanese-Americans, the devastating effects the internment camps that split their families apart had on them, how they survived afterward, and how the club and this part of American history ties into her heritage and cultural awakening.

Andy Mill is a two-time Olympian, competed in the downhill event in four World Championships, and went on to win 12 major fly-fishing tarpon tournaments as well as a Del Brown Permit tournament title and a Fall Fly Invitational Bonefish Tournament, making him the first person in history to win major tarpon, permit, and bonefish tournaments. He had a celebrity marriage and very public divorce, he was friends with presidents, and he wrote the greatest book about tarpon ever written. He learned to trout fish from Ernest Schwiebert, tied flies with Chuck Fothergill, and went on to become host of "Sportsman's Journal with Andy Mill." He was mentored by Steve Huff, Flip Pallot, and Lefty Kreh, and is widely considered the most successful saltwater angler of all time.

Now, Andy and his son Nicky are the host of the very popular Mill House podcast. Andy took the time to sit down with Fly Fisherman editor Ross Purnell in person in Florida and discuss his life, what he's learned about the dynamics of winning, and his current passions, which include bowhunting for elk in Colorado, golf, and conservation efforts with Bonefish & Tarpon Trust, American Saltwater Guides Association, and Captains for Clean Water.

Look for Andy Mill on the cover of the Aug.-Sep. 2026 issue of Fly Fisherman and the story "The Many Lives of Andy Mill" by author Monte Burke.