Streamers - Due West Anglers

swinging soft hackle for trout spey, fly patterns include hares ear, partridge, peacock, pheasant tail soft hackles

Why Swinging Soft Hackles Works

It might be the oldest trick in the trout fly fishers playbook. Yet many people still don’t really know why swinging soft hackles work. It's hardly a natural presentation...

stanky leg fly pattern, tube jig fly pattern, crayfish fly pattern, euro nymphing fly pattern

fly tying

Weird Flies That Work: Stanky Leg

the fly fishing equivalent of a tube jig

Favorite Flies for fishing runoff: Pigsticker, Woolly Bugger, Cranefly, Tequeely, Polar Shrimp, Pat's Rubber Legs

Rivers

Down But Not Out: Runoff

6 favorite flies for fishing runoff, when the rivers are running high, and dirty.

Flies displayed include: chubby chernobyl, clouser minnow, barr's meat whistle, popper, crazy charlie, and turneffe crab

behind the scenes

Behind the Scenes

Unveiling the creative process from idea to ink for Due West Angler's distinctive articles on fly fishing + science + conservation

Streamer fly fishing on the Animas River, Durango, Colorado

Members only

streamers

How to Match the Hatch with Streamers

Fly fishing: We all know about the bugs... but what about the baitfish?

fly box

Fly Box Shootout

Umpqua, Cliff, Fishpond, Tacky, Plano, Fin River, Yakoda, what's the best fly box?

skunked

The Skunk Set Me Free

Getting skunked, catching nothing, was never an acceptable outcome.... until I realized different

Releasing a pre-spawn Wyoming Brown Trout

Members only

big fish

5 Tips for Landing Those Big Fish

To be a true angler you need to experience the heartbreak of losing a big fish. Here's how to stack the odds in your favor so that doesn't happen...

fly rod

Instant Favorite: TFO Axiom II-X Fly Rod Review

This fly rod has become an instant favorite, reviewing the tfo axiom 2-x fly rod

Members only

trout

Crash Course in Picky Trout Behavior

Fly Fishing graduate school: Understanding a picky trout can be the difference-maker when trying to present flies to these stubborn fish.

how does trout memory work? they remember flies after large hatches like the salmonfly hatch

pattern hangover

Fish Memory and Pattern Hangover

You missed the big hatch, but if you know a little about how trout brains work you might know that you're window of opportunity hasn't fully closed yet...

Bass vision, how do flies like bass poppers, Mr Wiggly, Slumpbusters, other assorted bass flies look?

Members only

largemouth bass

More Clues on Fish Vision (Bass Edition)

Can fish see color? Bass don't see our flies like you'd expect...

Wading and fly fishing the Gunnison River, Colorado, tactics for fly fishing rivers with low trout density

Members only

behavior Featured

Tips for Streams with Low Fish Density

Lets take a look at how we approach rivers based on fish density and discuss what fishing rivers with fewer fish per mile have to offer

Members only

sculpin Featured

Phantom Sculpins of the South Platte

Why would a trout eat a sculpin fly in a river without sculpin?

midge fly patterns for the San Juan River, New Mexico

fly tying

3 Under Appreciated Fly Tying Materials for Trout

Fly Tying: I want to highlight some under-appreciated materials that look incredible

behavior

Sibling Rivalry? Behavioral Differences When Browns and Rainbows Share a Stream

Rainbow Trout vs Brown Trout , the Ultimate Battle

stillwater

Why Don't We See More Chartreuse in Stillwater Trout Flies?

Do you recall any chartreuse flies for trout when shopping at your average fly shop?

nymphing the South Platte at Deckers, Colorado

fly rod

Rethinking the 9' 5wt Fly Rod

Are longer rods going to replace the 9ft 5wt?