Podcasts Sports Wilderness The Orvis Fly-Fishing Podcast Must-Reads in Classic Fly-Fishing Literature, with Michael Checchio

Must-Reads in Classic Fly-Fishing Literature, with Michael Checchio

Published: Nov. 13, 2023, 5:01 a.m.

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I get frequent questions from listeners on what I would recommend they read in fly-fishing literature, as there is so much out there it\'s tough to sort through it to find what\'s worth reading.\\xa0 Michael Checchio [38:10] is a retired journalist and investigative reporter and a student of fly-fishing books, so we spend some time discussing what he feels are must-reads (or maybe just interesting reads) in the vast river of what has been written about fly fishing.
Here is Michael\'s list:
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Fiction
  • A River Runs through It\\xa0by Norman Maclean
  • "Big Two-Hearted River" by Ernest Hemingway (short story)
  • Ninety-Two in the Shade\\xa0by Thomas McGuane
  • The River Why\\xa0by David James Duncan
Non-fiction\\xa0
  • The Longest Silence\\xa0by Thomas McGuane
  • The Angler\'s Coast\\xa0and\\xa0Dark Waters\\xa0by Russell Chatham
  • The Curtis Creek Manifesto\\xa0by Sheridan Anderson
  • "Hat Creek" and "Deeds Among the Steelhead" by Bill Barich (magazine articles; may be tough to find)
  • The Spawning Run\\xa0by William Humphrey
  • Trout Bum\\xa0by John Gierach
  • "The Same River Twice" by David Quammen (published in Outside Magazine)
  • "A Sporting Life" by Jim Harrison (magazine article, may be tough to find)
  • My Story as Told by Water\\xa0by David James Duncan
In the Fly Box this week, we have lots of questions and tips, including:
  • How do I know when to strip strike and when to trout strike?
  • Do I really need to go barbless on small dry-fly hooks?
  • How do I know what size material to use if I want to lengthen my leader?
  • A great tip from a listener on learning to cast with your "off" hand
  • A tip from a listener on wetting new tying materials befor you use them to see what color they will be
  • Why do I only see larger wild brown trout in one section of a river I fish?
  • How do I see my sighter in difficult lighting conditions?
  • If I am fishing for stocked rainbows and grayling, where should I place my grayling fly\\u2014on the bottom or on the dropper?
  • Should I use my 10-foot 7-weight Recon that I use for steelhead for streamer fishing from a boat for trout?
  • What is the main difference between a Helios D and Helios F rod when fishing for bonefish?
  • My bamboo ferrule only fits\\xa0\\xbe\\xa0of the way to full engagement.\\xa0 Is that OK?
  • Why do I see steelhead smolt in my river but never chinook salmon smolt?
  • Is there any way to get the bad smell off a bucktail?
  • Why don\'t people fish bucktails much these days?
  • Is there a way to tell a northern strain from a southern strain brook trout visually?
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