reviews

NW Fly Patterns and Tying Guide

Reviewed by Barry Kundert

Northwest Fly Patterns & Tying Guide. Written by the Rainland Fly Casters and published by Frank Amato Publications. Available soft and hardbound, priced at $19.95 and $29.95 respectively. Printed in color in an 8.5 X 11 format. 83 pages. Available in many Northwest fly shops and online (google title).

ould you like to peek into Dave Hughes' box of favorite flies? What if Lee Clark offered to show you some of his best known patterns, tied using a new concept? How about asking Henry Hoffman for hackle selection tips?

What fly fishing junkie wouldn't jump at opportunities such as these? Unfortunately, we can't all sit down with Dave, Lee, and Henry. But Northwest Fly Patterns and Tying Guide might be the next best thing. This book is a testament to the talent to be found in Rainland Fly Casters, the Astoria, Oregon, fly fishing club. From the famous to the unknown, they collaborated to produce this book.

Types of Flies, Followed by Favorites

The first six chapters each feature a fly type: dry, wet, nymph, streamer, terrestrial, and saltwater. Each chapter begins with a short description of the fly type and how to fish it. This is followed by high-quality pictures and recipes for several patterns. Fly recipes include notes on what species the fly targets, as well brief but handy tying tips.

Chapter 8, "Member's Favorite Flies," encompasses most of the second half of the book. This chapter gives the contributors a forum to showcase stories, insights, tips, and, in most cases, their favorite fly patterns.

The real charm of this book shines through in this chapter. I'd call it a fun hodge-podge of material that has a feel similar to a friendly club get together in which members swap knowledge--except in this case the members include the likes of Hoffman, Clark, and Hughes. While the feel is informal, there are many golden nuggets of useful fly fishing information.

More than Expected

Northwest Fly Patterns and Tying Guide is much more than the title implies. I expected a book of fly recipes, with a few tying tips and photos. Instead, it's chock-full of practical flies for the Pacific Northwest, along with interesting and useful tidbits on all aspects of fly fishing. You'll find common patterns, old patterns with a new twist, and a few unique patterns such as the Rubber Band Caddis Larva or Don's Lingcod Fly.

While this is not a complete instructional guide to tying, beginners will appreciate the introductory sections on how to fish each type of fly and the instructional essays, such as Jeff MacLeans' "Introduction to Hatch Charts." More advanced anglers and tiers will find a good collection of regionally-effective recipes and tying tips. And readers of all levels will soak up the stories and insights from some of the region's top fly anglers.

Bottom Line: A fine collection of regional patterns from top tyers. Reviewer Rating: 4

Uploaded 03/19/2005.

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