I’ve always liked to have a handful of twitching jigs in my box tied up with Flashabou. The smaller 1/4 ounce jigs have been a favorite of mine in low and clear water for years and lately I’ve found that larger jigs tied with some bling will also hammer the cohos in the fall. The…
This past summer the Alaska Department of Fish and Game required all charter fishing vessels in Southeast Alaska to carry a rockfish release mechanism on board at all times. Since I own such a vessel in Craig, Alaska it was apparent I was going to have to change how we do things on the bottomfish…
By Dennis Dickson As the oldest flyfishing stream in the country, The North Fork of the Stilly is steeped in tradition, known for its wild summer steelhead of Deer Creek. This is a passionate subject for me. Not only was I fortunate enough to fish this river as a youth, my first job out of…
If there is a more popular fishing “rite of passage” than the lowland lakes trout opener, I sure don’t know what it is! The Nelson Clan at Perrygin Lake in Okanogan County a few seasons ago… I would venture to guess that more “first fish” are caught on this final weekend of April than at…
Every once in awhile, through trial and error, you come up with something pretty good. That would be the case with my Salmon Chips. Only this time, I came up with something Damn Good…. I started making’em for the guys at work a couple years ago and kept refining it until I had a recipe that has the…
By Dennis Dickson I would venture to guess, one of my most asked questions, the most misunderstood answers in steelhead flyfishing is; “So what is the hot fly?” Steelhead has an allure as an illegitimate son. His noble cousin Salmo Salar, the Atlantic Salmon has a rich and traditional past, fished by kings and nobleman….
Meet Robert Lee Tobeck: His resume is very impressive. Academic All American lineman at Washington State University, Pro Bowl center of the Seattle Seahawks during the highpoint of the franchise history: the 2006 Superbowl and former host of The Outdoor Line Radio Show. Unfortunately, none of this tremendous life experience has prepared him for what has now…
I have been a big fan of Beau Mac Floats for years. For me, I’m sold on the quality and the variety of floats now offered by Beau Mac. I look for several things when I am looking for a quality float. First and foremost is durability. I don’t like fishing floats that can’t take a little…
By Dennis Dickson I would like to think my success in helping anglers find and catch steelhead has improved over time. I will openly admit, as a biologist I study “cause and effect”, “stimulus and response”. I don’t mind adhering to tradition as long as my personal experience concludes that it is the most effective…
By Dennis Dickson I was floating a popular run on the Sauk River one spring day. The April morning found the river in prime shape and I knew the flyboys were going to be out in numbers. As we rounded the corner of a long bar, there near the bottom of the half mile run,…