Michael Gracie

If you can’t cast a fly and/or can’t tie it to the line, you are going to have a hard time fly fishing. It’s that simple.

Fortunately, learning how to do both of these veddy, veddy important angling tasks is just about as easy.

A book I originally thought would help with lazy guide syndrome (i.e. guides refusing to pole close enough to the bones so I could just net them) turned out to be a pretty darn good book on generally casting and practice technique. Longer Fly Casting has plenty of pics to follow - it lingered in my library for a while, and has since been passed on. And since that time it’s been updated too!

The other “must have” for getting the fly in the water is Practical Fishing Knots. I’ve mentioned this one before, and it too was given to someone after I finished up with it. It’s a great guide that will leave you with a stable of go-to knots. Sadly, it’s been a while since I chased big game, and if I’m ever asked to tie a bimini twist I’ll probably have to buy it again!

Experienced fly fishing folk won’t be surprised that both recommendations are written (or co-written) by the infamous Lefty Kreh. That wasn’t the intention, but I’ve heard Mr. Kreh is one fine photographer too. Maybe he’ll put out a how-to book on that as well.

I could certainly use the help.

Never judge a book by its cover - an oft quoted phase coined to remind people that outward appearances can be deceiving. A book could be “handicapped” by its appearance, but grand, nonetheless. And it may take years for folks to figure this out.

Unfortunately, we’ve come to a point in our world where everyone is in a rush. In a world of snippets and sound bytes, the tactic now is to “read the inside cover,” and make an instant decision. Jumping to conclusions is the norm, and it may just be necessary for survival. With regard to books, online reviews are certainly useful. But it begs the question…where are your ’s going to be posted?