One of the aspects I like about fly fishing is that regardless of how long any of us have been involved in the sport there is always something new to learn. Some of us focus on casting and teaching. Others prefer to focus on mastering the art of catching a certain species and still others prefer to master the art of fly tying. The list truly is endless but it has one common thread – we all love fly fishing and that bond and the mutual respect upon which it is based is what creates friendships at club meetings, fly fishing lodges, industry shows and chance encounters on a river.

I am not one to make New Year’s resolutions but as this year draws to a close two of the things I would like to learn more about in 2011 are fly tying and entomology.These aspects of our sport are inseparable and while endless in their complexity they also give us countless hours of enjoyment at a tying bench and on a river. I was told when getting into the sport that catching a fish on a fly you have tied yourself provides one of the greatest senses of accomplishment you can experience as a fly angler. Over the years that comment has haunted me and I have decided that 2011 is the year that I will improve my knowledge of both.

To that end, one of the best online entomology resources I have seen over the years is troutnut.com and if you have not bookmarked this website you should. Created and maintained by Jason Neuswanger, troutnut.com is a fly tyers dream come true because it has over 3,700 pictures of 748 subjects and a growing library of behavioral information to help fly tyers understand and better imitate the things trout eat.

To see what I mean go to www.troutnut.com

70 Fahrenheit (21 C):
Bahamian flats guides stay on the dock because their sunscreen is chilled.
Canadian anglers put ice in their hats to prevent heat stroke.

50 Fahrenheit (10 C):
Italian anglers stop fly fishing because their wine gets too cold.
Canadians anglers stop wet wading.

32 Fahrenheit (0 C):
British anglers stop fly fishing because their beer freezes.
Canadians anglers don’t have that problem because they drink Canadian beer.

0 Fahrenheit (-17..9 C):
New York City landlords finally turn on the heat.
Canadians anglers put on a toque.

-60 Fahrenheit (-51 C):
Santa Claus abandons the North Pole.
Canadians anglers pull down their earflaps.

-109.9 Fahrenheit (-78.5 C):
Carbon dioxide freezes.
Canadian anglers skip school to go steelheading.

-173 Fahrenheit (-114 C):
Ethyl alcohol freezes.
Canadians anglers get frustrated because they can’t thaw the keg.

-459.67 Fahrenheit (-273.15 C):
Absolute zero; all atomic motion stops.
Canadian anglers start saying “Cold, eh?”

-500 Fahrenheit (-295 C):
Hell freezes over.
The Toronto Maple Leafs win the Stanley Cup…

We hope you wake this morning to find everything you wished for under the Christmas tree and that you have friends and family with whom to share the day. Merry Christmas everyone!

Happy Thanksgiving !

I gotta say there is going to be one huge sigh of relief from our team when our new site goes live… immediately followed by a Homer moment when we look at something stupid on the site that we missed that will be painfully obvious to everyone (except of course to those who have been immersed in it). You know the moment. You look at something you have been laboring over for what seems like forever and think, “…oh crap.” Hopefully there won’t be too many of them but we will appreciate you letting us know if you see any!

We are finishing up loose ends today and look forward to hearing what you think of our new site… we’re down to counting the hours!