The Orvis Fly-Fishing Podcast

The Orvis Fly-Fishing Podcast

The Orvis Fly Fishing Guide Podcast provides weekly tips from acclaimed fly fishing author and lifelong fly fishing enthusiast, Tom Rosenbauer. Get the most from your time on the water!

Episodes

June 16, 2025 116 mins

This episode was originally published on November 20th, 2023.

Todd Tanner [43:02] is a lifelong fly fisher and journalist and spent years as a guide on the Henry's Fork, one of the best (and toughest) dry-fly rivers in the world.  He also prefers not to fish nymphs.  Todd shares his 12 tips on improving your success with dry flies this week, and they are solid and helpful.
 
In the Fly Box this week, we have a great and varied sele...

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Many North Americans would love to catch brown trout in their native environment, and most of us think of the UK or France or Slovenia for wild, native brown trout. But, Spain has a long history of fly fishing in the Pyrenees (Hemingway loved fly fishing in the Pyrenees and called this region "the closest thing to heaven") and for the traveler, there are many rivers with public access. Spain has small freestone mountain stream...
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    This episode was originally published on February 5th, 2024.

    My guest this week is Charity Rutter [39:50], a great friend and longtime guide in the Great Smoky Mountains.  She and her husband Ian have just finished a great book (I read the manuscript and loved it) and although it won't be available until April, you can pre-order it  here: 

    https://randrflyfishing.com/store/fly-fishing-guide-to-great-smoky-mountains-national-park/

    ...

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    May 27, 2025 77 mins
    We're not talking about the poetry of a fly cast made by Pete Kutzer, but poetry about fly fishing, some of the well known poets who were fly fishers, and why the appeal of poetry and fly fishing have much in common. My guest, Andrew Grace [29:19], is a published poet and professor of English, and he'll read us some of his own work as well as from poets like Jim Harrison and Chris Dombrowski. It's a real departure from our usu...
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    Every week I get some iteration of this question: "I hooked three fish and lost all of them before I could get them to the net. What am I doing wrong?" Well, often you did nothing wrong and it was just bad luck. But there are steps you can take to make sure you land the fish you've hooked and Josh Nugent [36:46], a regular on my podcast and one of the most thoughtful anglers I know, presents us with his Seven Deadly Sins. Ther...
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    I get frequent questions on the fly box about fishing for sea trout, or sea-run brown trout. I've never caught one and have never fished for them, so I brought in an expert on the subject, Krystjan [35:21] from Fish Partner in Iceland, owner of the organization Orvis uses for its hosted trips (and I'm hosting one in July) to Iceland and a fanatic fly fisher. He talks about seasons, conditions, presentations, and o...
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    Inside nearly every fly fisher is a budding writer, eager to share their passion with the world. I've done podcasts on how to write better fly-fishing stories in the past, and figured it was time to talk to an editor and publisher about how you can get your masterpiece published. Ross Purnell [32:15], editor and publisher of Fly Fisherman magazine, was happy to share his advice on this subject—and no one in the fly-fishing wor...
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    I've had a number of guests on the podcast teaching us about urban fly fishing and it will be an ongoing process because everyone has different takes on how to approach it.  There is nothing better than a few hours of peace before or after work, without needing to drive for hours, and you can fi...
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    I get a lot of questions about wader care, storage, and washing instructions.  Fit can also affect how long waders last and how comfortable they are.  Waders are one of our most expensive purchases, outside of a rod and reel, and in order to make them last longer we need to take good care of the...
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    Tic Smith [37:18] is head guide at Orvis-endorsed Southeastern Anglers and is a veteran guide with many decades of experience on southern tailwaters. Our discussion centers on his home river, the Hiwassee, but the tips and tricks he shares will be valuable on many other tailwaters.  He talks tackle, flies, presentation, and most importantly reading the water from a drift boat.
     
    In the Fly Bo...
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    It's always interesting to find out that public figures can be as obsessed with fly fishing as we are. People like Harrison Ford, Jeff Daniels, Tucker Carlson, Bette Midler, Jimmy Kimmel, and Dick Cheney are all serious fly fishers. (And no, I don't have any of them on tap for my podcast). But Rahm Emanuel [37:25] is a dedicated listener to this podcast, and when I had a chance to interview him I took it. There is no politic...
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    I get lots of questions about dubbing, which is a simple process that we sometimes complicate with hundreds of different blends and as many opinions on how to apply it. But it's an essential skill in fly tying, so Tim [35:18] and I spend a whole podcast exploring types of dubbing, when you would use them, and different methods of applying this essential material. Tim is always a fun guest and this one is no except...
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    My guest this week is country singer JD Clayton [35:35], a talented singer/songwriter and all-around nice guy who loves to fly fish for smallmouth bass in his native Ozarks. He fills me in on what their fishing is like, and why he loves this rural part of the country so much.
     
    In the Fly Box this week, I answer some questions and we have a couple tips from listeners, including:
    • What are ...
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    This week my guest Dave Zielinski [39:53], author of the comprehensive book Cicada Madness, tells us when and where you can encounter this year's brood of periodical cicadas—and if you can't make that event, he'll tell you how to find waters that host regular emergences of annual cicadas, which are not quite as large but can offer spectacular fishing if your timing is right. All kinds of fish go crazy over the gia...
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    Crayfish are prey that most gamefish can't resist. They're high in calories, abundant, and relatively easy for bass, trout, and many other gamefish to capture. Yet most of us don't know much about their life cycle and behavior (myself included). Guide Jake Villwock [47:02] has spent his life studying these critters, which gives him important insight on the right fly patterns, but even more important how and when t...
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    This episode was originally published on January 30th, 2021

    This week, continuing our series of podcasts on winter fly fishing for trout, I interview George Daniel, author and guide. George is also an Orvis ambassador and field tester, and teaches fly fishing at Penn State. As you'll discover, there are many similarities with winter fishing in other parts of the country, along with some flies and techniques a bit more appropriate...

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    This episode was originally published on January 14th, 2021.

    My guest this week is Rachael Leinweber [39:38], general manager of The Angler's Covey fly shop in Colorado Springs. One in a series of podcasts about winter fly-fishing tips, Rachael has some great ones for us, and it's been interesting to see how each guide we've talked to has a slightly different take on effective winter tactics.

    In the Fly Box this week, we have the...

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    My guest this week is Mike Tayloe [33:07], who is a fishing guide, EMT, and wilderness medicine trainer. Tayloe (he prefers this to Mike) has trained many Orvis-endorsed guides and lodges on emergencies that you'll encounter on the water. Basically, they're the same emergencies you'll find at home but without the ability to get a rescue squad or ambulance quickly. The bad news is that we can't give you...
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    Dave is one of the best young voices in fly fishing [38:14]. He's the real deal—he is a fishy guy and can handle a fly rod with the best of them, but he's also a teacher of writing at the college level and a published author. (His new book is terrific and the title is Calling After Water.) Dave gives us what I consider a mini master class on how to write about fly fishing so that your stories are engaging, concise, and fun. I know ...

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    Many of our trout waters run through agricultural areas. We need food and clean water and we'd like to fish for trout in these waters, but sometimes these things don't play well together.  It's when all user groups get together and come up with solutions that we have the best of both worlds. Cameron Aker [39:29] is the Outreach Coordinator for the Driftless Region of Iowa, and in this week's podcast he tells us ho...
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