Episode 14 is a deep dive into winter fishing tactics. And I'm joined by my friends, Bill, Josh, Austin and Trevor. Because the trout have different habits in the winter, we refine our approach to meet them on their own terms. Is that . . . low and slow? Sure, sometimes. Nymphing is often seen as the go-to approach, but for the winter trout angler who’s attentive, the opportunities for some great streamer action are there too. Even dry flies can be an option if you keep your eyes open. Why do so...
Dec 21, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Season 1Ep. 14
In this episode, I get together with my long time friend, Matt Grobe, for a candid, entertaining, fun and technical discussion about wild trout, big trout, and the differences between the fishing cultures and opportunities available in two of the meccas for trout fishing in the states -- Pennsylvania and Montana. Matt has lived and fished hard in both states, and he's been fortunate enough to live a life on the water, not just chasing wild trout, but chasing the big ones. He's always had a knack...
Dec 15, 2021•1 hr 18 min•Season 1Ep. 13
In Episode 12, my friends and I talk about nymphing tactics — specifically, how we take tight line principles and the tight line advantage over to an indicator nymphing system. We know that with refined skills and tactics, we can often make something happen, even on slow days. And there’s really no better way to consistently fool trout — in all conditions — than to get good drifts with a nymph. These small aquatic insects are the primary food source for most trout. And with nymphing skills, we d...
Dec 07, 2021•1 hr 6 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Pushing through the tough times — dealing with bad weather and difficult conditions — puts you one step ahead of most anglers. The rivers and the parking lots are empty when the wind is howling, the snow is blowing or it’s pouring rain. Sure, we’d all like to fish the sweetheart days. But the more you learn to fight the elements and win — to have success on the water — the more you long for those tough conditions. In this episode, my friends and I talk about fighting the elements. How can we eff...
Nov 30, 2021•1 hr 3 min•Season 1Ep. 11
In this tenth podcast, I read a story that I first published with Hatch Magazine in 2016 . It’s titled, The Kid, and it’s one of my favorites. My sons Joey (13) and Aiden (11) join me for the question and answer round. They answer a few questions, and they read a few from podcast listeners. Way back in 2014, I started Troutbitten as a way to document all of this for my two sons. I wanted a record of the fishing stories and the things that I’d learned about trout fishing over the years. Really, t...
Nov 22, 2021•24 min•Season 1Ep. 10
While fishing a streamer, we’re trying to make it look alive . That's the difference. Because, while fly fishing other styles, we spend so much of our time dead drifting dry flies and nymphs and trying to impart no motion, that switching to streamers is a relief. It’s liberating. It’s fun. And so many presentations — so many looks to the streamer — can be attractive and convincing. Because everything works sometimes. But day to day, some retrieves and presentations just work better. And there’s ...
Nov 16, 2021•1 hr 7 min•Season 1Ep. 9
We’re out there to catch trout. That’s what brings us to the water. But how many do we catch? And really, how many should we catch? What are the expectations? And how can we know that we’re fishing well? In some way, maybe none of this matters. It’s not really about numbers, right? it’s about the experience. Sure it is. And we all agree with that. But as I’ve written on Troutbitten, there are two sides to every fisherman — one that just wants to go fishing and is happy to be out there, and anoth...
Nov 09, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 8
This is our seventh podcast episode in the first season. And we’ve done this enough now to get into a rhythm. If you’ve listened to previous episodes, you know that we’ve kept the topics tightly focused on just one aspect of fly fishing for trout. And before we dig into those topics we always do a question and answer session with my friends. But in this episode we mix it up. This is the Freewheelin’ Troutbitten, with an hour long question and answer session — just a freeform conversation about t...
Nov 03, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 7
In this episode, my friends join me to share some of their best tips for reading water — seeing a trout stream, recognizing the currents in a river that hold trout and having the confidence to target them. Then we get into the philosophy of Cherry Picking or Full Coverage. That is, the speed at which we cover water. How fast do you move from one place to the next? And what are the merits of hole hopping or trying to efficiently cover every likely piece of river that holds a trout? Because there ...
Oct 25, 2021•56 min•Season 1Ep. 6
After hundreds of Troutbitten articles featuring the versatility of the Mono Rig, now there's a podcast. My friends Josh, Austin, Trevor and Bill join me to discuss how each of us fishes this hybrid rig as a complete fly fishing system, detailing the ultimate flexibility of this amazing tool. The Troutbitten Mono Rig is a hybrid system for fishing all types of flies: nymphs (both tight line and indicator styles), streamers, dry-dropper, wets, and small dry flies. With twenty pound monofilament a...
Oct 19, 2021•1 hr 21 min•Season 1Ep. 5
Keep wild trout wild. Not all trout are created equal, and there are many differences in the trout we catch -- in their appearances and their behaviors. Wild trout, stocked trout, holdover trout, fingerlings and club fish are very much a different breed -- or at least they can seem that way. My friends join me for an honest discussion about the trout we pursue. All of us fish for every kind of trout on the list. And all of these trout hold value -- but not equally. We believe wild trout populati...
Oct 12, 2021•1 hr 2 min•Season 1Ep. 4
Night fishing is a mystery with no resolution. Every other aspect of fly fishing for trout has been written about, understood and expanded upon. Lifetimes of information are available at your fingertips — the lives of so many fishermen who’ve come before you. You can read the accounts of their discoveries, their failures, their new ideas and understandings. But the night fishing game? It’s like a bare cupboard. There are very, very few people who’ve spent much time on the water at night. And the...
Oct 04, 2021•1 hr 9 min•Season 1Ep. 3
Fish cold water, fight 'em fast, handle gently, release quickly. In this second edition of the Troutbitten podcast, my friends Bill, Austin, Trevor and Josh join me to discuss safe catch and release practices, from hooking a trout to letting it go. Because if the goal of catch and release is to put a trout back and catch it again, then we want to ensure that the health of the fish remains intact. Some of the catch and release best practices might seem like common sense. But the truth is, handlin...
Sep 27, 2021•1 hr 1 min•Season 1Ep. 2
In this inaugural Troutbitten podcast, my friends Bill, Austin, Trevor and Josh join me to discuss how fly fishing for wild trout creates a life on the water. We consider what it means to fish hard, how hope is the strongest trait of a successful angler, why everything works sometimes, and how fly fishers, all too often, are a little much. We also talk about the tenets of Troutbitten , or the shared interests and characteristics about fly fishing that bring us together and keep us excited about ...
Sep 15, 2021•55 min•Season 1Ep. 1
