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Fly fishing and fly
tying books are a passion. Here you will find book reviews of books I have
read covering fly fishing for trout, smallmouth bass, muskellunge,
steelhead, and many other freshwater and saltwater species. You will also
find fly tying books covering the same areas. There are also books on
aquatic entomology, history of fly fishing and fly tying, hydrology, and
great prose having fly fishing as its main theme. There is far more to fly
fishing than casting a line, and there should be far more to a fly fishing
guide service web site than just costs and services offered.
Trout Hunting
by Bob Wyatt
Stackpole Books
Mechanicsburg, PA, 2005
191 pages, hardbound
illustrated, B&W with 11 color plates
suggested price $39.95
reviewed by
Bruce E. Harang
What a great way to start the new fishing year. Here is a book about one man’s observations
during more than a half century of fishing for trout all over the world.
This is a well written, fun to read, book that brings both insight and humor
to the fly fisherman that desires to become better at his chosen passion.
How can you not instantly love a man that has as the first lesson on fishing
rivers called “The informed guess” and another lesson entitled “Looking vs.
seeing”. Or of a fly fisherman that picks a location for a days fishing
because “…it is a big river; it is by all accounts over-fished; its trout
are scarce, wild, and impossible to catch; access is easy and cheap. It
sounded perfect for a pleasant day on the river with no serious expectations
of success.” What the author has done is write about fly-fishing as it
happens in real life, and he has done it with wit and humor rare in today’s
hook and bullet press.
The author details his development of his pattern the Deer Hair
Emerger (DHE) and how it has become his “go to” fly. The detailed
tying instructions are also fully disclosed so that everyone can reproduce
this very effective fly. Also described and illustrated are a number of
other excellent fish-getting fly patterns such as for example the CDC & Elk
of Hans Weilenmann and the Klinkhamer Special of Hans van Klinken. Overall,
the fly patterns described and illustrated in the color plates provide the
inquiring fly tyer with a new toolbox of ideas for trout catching flies.
The color plates done by Hans Weilenmann are excellent and
particularly good are the images of the fly tying steps. The color plates of
the flies in fishing posture on water are easily worth the cost of the book.
For once the reader can see how a particular fly style actually sits on the
water when it is fished. The black and white photographs have been poorly
reproduced in most cases however. While the subject matter and compositions
of the black and white photography is well done, the reproductions in the
book in too many cases lack proper contrast and tonal range or are muddy.
This is a wonderful read that should be in every fly fisherman’s
library. You will not only enjoy the writing, and laugh at the wonderful
humor in the stories, you will learn an awful lot about being a better fly
fisherman.
© 2005 Bruce E Harang
Building Classic Salmon Flies
by Ron Alcott
Frank Amato Publications, Inc.
Portland, OR, 2004
197 pages, spiral bound & hardbound
illustrated, Color and Black & White
suggested price $29.95 & $39.00
reviewed by
Bruce E. Harang
This is a reprint of the
original publication revised to include all color photographs of the tying
sequences. As such it is a wonderful update of an excellent fly tying
instruction book that has become very hard to find. For anyone wanting to
truly learn and understand how to build a full dress Atlantic Salmon Fly
this is one of the very best volumes available. The written instruction is
clear, concise, and easy to read while the new color tying sequence
photographs are of outstanding quality and clarity. For a working textbook
the spiral bound version is particularly welcome as it opens flat and
provides easy access while actually tying a fly following the author’s
instructions. In addition, the binding is done in a manner that provides for
a standard type book spine when closed and shelved so that it is easy to
shelf with your other tying books.
The substantive portion of the book opens with a short
discussion of lessons from the past covering in a few pages some of the high
points in the classic Atlantic salmon fly tying literature and then moves on
to the critical but often overlooked subject of Materials and Material
Substitutes. Unfortunately, many tyers feel they must have the original
materials called for in a published pattern even when such materials are
legally restricted or at the brink of extinction. The most important lesson
found the Materials chapter may well be that even during their heyday tyers
were already substituting for materials that were either scarce, or overly
expensive. The next chapter deals with color of silk, feather and fur used
for tying Atlantic salmon flies. This is followed by another extremely
important chapter covering the subject of Metallic Tinsels that fully
explains the various types of tinsels and clears up many misconceptions and
errors in describing these very important materials of the Atlantic salmon
fly tyer. Chapter Five defines and describes the various types of wings used
on Atlantic salmon flies and also details how the terminology of wings has
changed over time so that in reading old patterns the tyer must also read
into the pattern the understanding of the time during which the pattern was
first published. The next and final background chapter details the
proportions that are important to building a proper looking Atlantic salmon
fly. Of particular value, are the excellent pencil drawings illustrating all
of the important proportions required to tie these flies. The chapter
concludes with color plate of twelve classic flies, and twelve individual
color plates, one for each of the twelve patterns with the recipe included
below. Chapter Seven provides step-by-step tying instructions including full
color photographs for the Parson, the Silver Doctor, the Durham Ranger, the
Orange Parson, and the Jock Scott. In so doing the author teaches all of the
various types of wings, bodies, tails, hackles, etc. generally used in tying
classic Atlantic salmon flies. The next chapter contains the patterns for a
selection of twenty-five more classic salmon flies. The book concludes with
a metric conversion chart, a bibliography, and a first class index.
This is an excellent revision of one of the best Atlantic salmon
fly tying instruction manuals available. The only issue I found was that the
image in Plate 5 does not show the horns called for in the pattern and
Figure 7-73 on page 150 and Figure 7-74 on page 151 do not match the written
captions. For the tyer of Atlantic salmon, and steelhead flies this is a
must have addition to his library.
© 2005 Bruce E Harang
Oregon River Maps & Fishing
Guide
by Frank Amato Publications
Frank Amato Publications, Inc.
Portland, OR, 2004
47 pages, softbound
illustrated, color
suggested price $25.00
reviewed by
Bruce E. Harang
This is a beautifully
illustrated large format fishing map book covering the Pacific Coast and
Columbia River drainage fishing rivers. The book opens with a Oregon map
showing the location and name of the thirty seven rivers presented. This is
followed by a page of color illustrations of the Oregon sportfish you will
find in these rivers and a page of color illustrations of the major aquatic
insects as well as a hatch chart, a page of popular flies and another of
popular lures, followed in turn by four pages of general fishing techniques
and finally a page of popular fishing knots. All of these pages are well
illustrated in color. The balance of the book is full-page maps of a
particular river or a section of a particular river as the length of the
river dictates. Also included on each page is a fishing calendar giving the
best times of year to fish, a list of services in the area, general river
information, a map legend, and a short description of the river and the
fishing and fish to be found.
Overall,
this is a beautifully done fishing map book of Oregon. Like most maps
though, you must double check particulars like currently open boat launches
and park fees when you arrive or just before you head out. As this volume is
updated and augmented it will become an even more valuable asset to anyone
wanting to fish the Oregon Rivers.
© 2005 Bruce E Harang
Cane Rods, Tips & Tapers
by Ray Gould
Frank Amato Publications, Inc.
Portland, OR, 2005
94 pages, softbound
illustrated, color and B&W
suggested price $25.00
reviewed by
Bruce E. Harang
This is a master class
in bamboo rod building. For those who are already building cane rods this
little volume will greatly expand your repertoire as to both tapers and
methods. The book is composed of twenty-two tips, each comprising a chapter
in the book. Here you will find how to color tone bamboo, how to heat treat
and control moisture content as well as increase your knowledge of grips,
guide spacing, rod wrapping and preparing and mounting ferrules. If you
would like to start building quadrate or pentagonal, or spiral, or Spey rods
the information here will not only get you started it will take you over the
bumps in the road so you achieve success. Also included are detailed plans
for two different machines for milling bamboo, both of which will cost only
a few hundred dollars instead of several thousand dollars asked for
commercially available milling machines. These plans alone are worth far
more than the price of the book. The method and equipment for removing nodes
to allow for the production of nodeless rods is also to be found in this
book. If this wasn’t enough to make any cane rod builder happy there are
dozens of pages of tapers. There are famous old tapers, tapers from some of
the finest modern builders, tapers for Spey rods, tapers for banty rods as
short as 4’4”, and tapers for spinning and casting rods to boot. This is
definitely one of the finest collections of information for the serious cane
rod-making hobbyist. The book concludes with a short but lucid discussion
about understanding rod actions and an excellent source list.
The book is very well written, edited, and illustrated. The
color photographs of both classic and modern bamboo rods of all types are
exquisite. The photographs of the equipment for milling bamboo, spiraling,
tensioning, etc. are not only good quality images but also show the
equipment in a manner allowing the reader to understand clearly the
equipment and its use.
For those folks building standard hexagonal cane rods and want
to be better and to expand their horizons this book is a must have addition.
© 2005 Bruce E Harang
Fishing Small Flies
by Ed Engle
Stackpole Books
Mechanicsburg, PA, 2005
163 pages, hardbound
illustrated, B&W with 4 color plates
suggested price $24.95
reviewed by
Bruce E. Harang
If you are an Ed Engle
fan you will of course buy this book. If you need a Cliff Note short course
on presenting a fly to trout you will find this book handy. However, if you
are serious about presenting small flies or any flies for that matter to
trout there are better books available.
The author has presented well-known and many times published
information on presentation, casting, fly selection, patterns, and leader
selection under the guise of small-fly fishing as a separate niche in the
fly fisherman’s world. However, none of the information is really specific
to small flies and none of it is unknown to anyone who has fished for trout
with a long rod for any length of time. The presentation of the information
is well done and is readable. The highlight of the book is really the high
quality of the black and white photograph reproduction. Good clean solid
blacks, very good tonal range, and very little if any bleached out whites.
These are probably the best black and white photograph reproductions in a
book since the original printing of The Essence of Fly Casting by Mel
Krieger.
The book includes chapters on the Anatomy of a River; Tackle for
Small Flies; On Stream Observation; Nymphing Techniques; Dry Fly Techniques;
Playing Fish on Light Tackle; Major Small-fly Hatches; and what the author
calls The Elements of Style. The information is all solid though well known
and many times published. The coverage is also solid generally well written
and readable.
This is a book you have to want to have, not one you need to
have.
© 2005 Bruce E Harang
Handbook of Hatches 2d edition
by Dave Hughes
Stackpole Books
Mechanicsburg, PA, 2005
276 pages, softbound
illustrated, color
suggested price $21.95
reviewed by
Bruce E. Harang
The first edition of
this great book was first published in 1987 and became one of the finest fly
fisherman’s hatch matching guides available. Now the author has taken the
time and effort to revise completely this wonderful book to bring it up to
date and provide a larger number of photographs of aquatic insects and fly
patterns all of which are now in color. This is a very readable book for the
fly fisherman and/or amateur entomologist. With an opening chapter entitled
“Trout Don’t Speak Latin” the reader knows that he will find useable
information that will help him catch more and better fish as well as enjoy
his time on the water more without the need of a PhD in bugs. The main
portion of the book is broken down into chapters on Mayflies; Caddis Flies;
Stoneflies; Midges, Crane Flies and Mosquitoes; Dragonflies and Damselflies;
Water Boatmen and Backswimmers; and Alderflies and Hellgrammites. So as you
see, both running and still water environments of the trout fisherman are
covered.
Each bug chapter opens with a short historical opening, a
description of the life cycle of the bugs being discussed, followed by a
breakdown of each stage of the life cycle illustrated by great color
photographs of both the natural insects and the appropriate fly patterns to
imitate or represent them. Each chapter ends with a short discussion of how
to present the flies in the most effective manner. The book concludes with a
very good glossary and bibliography, as well as an adequate index. If there
is any shortcoming to the book it is that the index does not specifically
index the fly patterns. Otherwise this is an exceptionally well-written,
edited, and designed book. If you fly-fish for trout you need this book.
© 2005 Bruce E Harang
Tying Classic Freshwater
Streamers
by David Klausmeyer
Countryman Press
Woodstock, VT, 2005
150 pages, hardbound
illustrated, color
suggested price $39.95
reviewed by
Bruce E. Harang
This is another fine
fly-tying manual by David Klausmeyer. Here for the first time is a book that
explains and illustrates the process of tying classic freshwater streamers
of every type. The book starts out with chapters that explain the anatomy of
the classic freshwater streamer, and the materials needed to tie these
beautiful flies. Following these two chapters are chapters with step-by-step
tying instructions for the Carrie Stevens style streamer; the upright
featherwing streamer; tandem hook streamers; a chapter showing how to tie
one of the most involved classic freshwater streamers; marabou streamers;
bucktail streamers; thunder creek streamers; and the muddler minnow. The
final chapter is an excellent selection of classic style streamers both old
and new, tied by some of the foremost streamer fly tyers practicing the
craft today. The book concludes with a list of materials suppliers, a
bibliography, and a list of the streamer tyers showcased in the book.
The step-by-step photo sequences are extremely well thought out
and illustrate all of the nuances of tying this style of fly. However,
unfortunately, many of the photographs are of poor quality with the texture
of the materials completely gone and the images looking like someone had
painted them with latex wall paint. The use of a black background in many of
the photographs makes the images so startling that they are hard to view. In
addition, the text for each step needs to be placed along side the
photograph to which it pertains to help the reader clearly understand what
that step encompasses. Finally, the materials are not listed in the order
they are tied on in the various steps. For example the text in a step will
say to tie in floss for the body and tinsel for the rib which is exactly in
reverse of the tie-in order necessary.
Overall, this is a beautifully illustrated book that will teach
everyone interested how to tie some of the most gorgeous freshwater flies,
but it needs some serious editing in the next printing.
© 2005 Bruce E Harang
Tying Flies in the Irish Style
by E. J. Malone
Smith Settle Ltd.
West Yorkshire, England, 2000
227 pages, hardbound
illustrated, Color and B&W
suggested price £25.00
reviewed by
Bruce E. Harang
Colorful flies and Ireland seem to go together like strawberries and cream.
For all those who would really like to understand how to tie these colorful
and productive flies this book is the answer. The fly tying portion of the
book is divided into three main sections. The first section details
materials, methods, and design criteria for tying flies in the Irish style.
It includes extremely lucid line drawings which truly complement and
supplement the text. The second section is a collection of various Irish fly
styles illustrated by specific patterns that have line drawing step-by-step
tying instructions, full recipe, pattern history, and an outstanding color
photograph of the fly. The third and final section on fly tying is a pattern
book of many famous and popular Irish fly patterns including such patterns
as the Blae & Black, and the Cock Robin.
The final two sections of the book are devoted to arguably the
most famous Irish trout fly tyer, Tommy Hanna of Moneymore. The first
section contains a short history of Tommy Hanna and a collection of his
newspaper articles concerning fly tying. The last section is a selection of
letters to Tommy Hanna from G. E. M. Skues concerning fly design and related
musings reprinted for the first time. For those fly tyers interested in the
history of the craft these last two sections are a treasure.
The book is extremely well designed, written, edited, and
printed. The color photographs are beautifully reproduced maintaining the
lighting that shows the texture of the natural materials so well. The line
drawings are well thought out and executed. This is the way books are
supposed to be published but seldom are anymore. This is definitely a
keeper.
© 2005 Bruce E Harang
Hoover, The Fishing President
by Hal Elliott Wert
Stackpole Books
Mechanicsburg, PA, 2005
388 pages, hardbound
illustrated, B&W photographs
suggested price $29.95
reviewed by
Bruce E. Harang
Here is another
excellent fishing book. Not a fly-fishing how to book, or an instructional
tome, this is a story of one of the truly great Americans in our history.
Most Americans today don’t even know Hebert Hoover was president or the
important issues he faced and conquered in and out of the Whitehouse let
along that he was a life long avid fisherman of great skill. This well
written, easy to read, book will help to change all of that. In addition it
will provide today’s world with a look at a man that surmounted some of the
most devastating events of the last century. Through it all, fishing was one
of the glues that held this great man’s life together. If you found A
River Runs Through It a good read, you will find this book even better.
In addition, this is the story of some of the truly pioneering fishing and
fishermen of the American fresh and saltwater scene. Hoover was one of the
first anglers to fish for billfish, bonefish, tarpon, and permit. He fished
for steelhead in Oregon, and trout throughout the country. He did this as a
fisherman of great ability and great good humor. For those who enjoy the
history of our sport this is a must have book.
© 2005 Bruce E Harang
Mayflies
by Ted Fauceglia
Stackpole Books
Mechanicsburg, PA, 2005
196 pages, hardbound
illustrated, Color
suggested price $49.95
reviewed by
Bruce E. Harang
Ted Fauceglia is one of
the world’s great aquatic insect photographers. His work is absolutely
astounding. The images of the living insects, all shot alive in the wild,
are breathtaking and the format of the book makes it a beautiful coffee
table art volume. The information about the insects is well written and easy
to read. It provides the fly fisherman and amateur aquatic entomologist with
useful information in language that is clear and concise.
With chapters covering all of the eastern hatches this book is a wealth of
knowledge capable of aiding every eastern US fisherman become a more
successful fly fisherman. And for those of us who dream of the storied
waters of the Catskills and Pennsylvania here is a book to feed our dreams.
But there are some design problems with the book. While the text
describes important differences between sexes, for example, the design
layout is such that the pertinent images are not always next to one another
or on facing pages which forces the reader to flip pages to view the images
and read the text describing the images. The imitative fly pattern images
are technically average, and I was disappointed in
them compared to the images of the live insects. They need better editing as there are eighteen instances where
the fly pattern image does not match the fly pattern recipe. This is truly
disappointing editing in a book by such an outstanding fly-fishing
photographer.
The book is certainly worthy of everyone’s library for the
beauty of the insect images alone. With some editing of the fly tying
sections before the next printing, it will become the quality fly-fishing
book it was intended to be.
© 2005 Bruce E Harang
Tying
Spey Flies
by Gerald G. Bartsch
Quality Flies Tied by G.G.B.
100 Mile House, BC Canada, 2004
www.qualityflies.com
DVD
suggested price $24.95 USD
reviewed by
Bruce E. Harang
Would you like to tie great looking Spey flies for fishing? Spey flies that
are good looking, well proportioned, and will look good framed if you so
choose? If so, this sixty-one minute DVD will provide you with the
information you need to accomplish these goals. The author is a commercial
fly tyer specializing in Spey flies for fishing salmon and steelhead. As
such he has a solid practical background in tying serviceable, good-looking
Spey flies. While these are not designed to be display flies on blind-eye hooks
with gut loops, exotic materials, and microscopically small heads, they are
good looking and well made.
The DVD consists of a short introduction regarding the history
of the Spey style fly and a slide show of classic and modern Spey patterns
showing both good form and ingenious design. This is followed by clear,
well-presented instruction on tying three Spey style flies and one Hairwing
style fly. The first fly is the classic and probably most well known Spey
fly, the Lady Caroline. In this first tying session you will learn to dub a
tight body, lay in both the main rib and counter rib so they wrap properly,
mount the Spey hackle so it mounts in the proper position behind the main
rib, mount and properly tie off the collar hackle, mount the Spey wings, and
finish the head. The information on mounting the ribs and wings is worth the
price of the DVD by themselves. The second session ties the Orange Spey in a
modern adaptation of an older pattern. Again you follow the lessons of the
Lady Caroline reinforcing the lessons and improving your skill level. The
third session shows how to tie a Spey variation of a classic Steelhead
hairwing pattern the Purple Peril. Again you reinforce the lessons of the
first two flies, including folding hackle, preparing the hackles, preparing
the wing slips, and brushing out the collar hackle before gluing the head to
provide a better-looking fly. The final lesson is tying a classic hairwing
style fly. This is a variation of the original Steelhead pattern the Skunk,
called the Purple Skunk. While not a Spey style fly this final lesson
teaches the viewer how to prepare and tie in a hairwing so that it will not
come out during casting or from fish taking the fly.
The quality of the photography is first rate as is the sound.
The camera is always in focus and the close up shots are extremely well lit
and composed to allow the viewer the detail and perspective needed to fully
appreciate what is going on. The use of a black background is a nice touch
so that the viewer can more easily concentrate on what the author is saying
instead of being distracted by odd bits of fishing gear hung on a false
cabin wall. This DVD is very well done. Hopefully, the author will produce
more of this quality for other styles of steelhead and salmon flies. For
anyone tying, or wanting to learn to tie, Spey style flies this is a must
have DVD that provides both a good value and a great set of instruction.
© 2005 Bruce E Harang
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