I went to as pond on the only day of the week that I had free to go fishing. I had other things that needed to be done, which seems crazy for a retired guy. It was still way to wet to drive into any place. It had rained yesterday so several ponds were out of the running. Way to much mud between me and the pond edge. But I knew of a pond that had mowed grass around most of it. This seemed to be a good place to try. It was partly cloudy with a 15 mph wind blowing out of the northwest with gusts of up to 30 mph.

"How do you cast with this noodle?" was my buddy's comment as he stood next to the truck whipping the little glass 3 weight back and forth. "Why do you fish with these rods?"

I laughed, knowing exactly where that question came from, having been there myself. I then tried to explain to him as we finished rigging just why the little rod worked. Later, on the water, the intrigue of the rod got the best of him and he gave it a try. And as I predicted, he was hooked in 20 minutes.

Through the course, I realized Atlantic Salmon Flies are indeed an old-school subject. It's the tradition and the historical legacy, which has been loved and transferred generation by generation. Teacher and Student or Master and Apprentice, that style of relationship has been naturally formed. Fortunately I met one of greatest contemporary masters of Atlantic Salmon Flies, Marvin Nolte. He was the gentleman I met at DePuy's Spring Creek. His chapter in Judith Dunham's book (Review 3) was what struck me in awe (again the book was published over 20 years ago). I haven't mentioned his name up until this chapter because I don't want the public to think I'm trading on his name. Soon I came to learn of his reputation: The Grainger Collection, Buz Buszek Award, the list goes on.

We have all heard about that 'wily' brown trout or that 'cagey' old bass, but what do we mean when we use such terms? Too often I think that when we use these terms we infer that these individuals have a degree of intelligence that is superior to other members of their species. It is fortunate for us that fish are not high on the intelligence scale or catching them would be much more difficult. If they were able to learn soon we would not catch any fish. Fish react to their environment and those that are most successful at that live to swim another day. Since fish are not high on the intelligence scale why are they sometimes so hard to catch?

This year we will be starting a column called "The Best of FAOL." This issue check out one of the first articles written by The Ladyfisher and a fly tying article by Al Campbell. We hope you enjoy this walk down memory lane and perhaps you will even learn something new from these old articles.

If Robert Fulghum was a fly fisher he might have said, "The lack of etiquette can greatly reduce the joys of fishing." Or as Grandmother used to say, "There is just no excuse for bad breeding." Unless you really were born in a barn, there is no excuse for bad manners. That applies in spades when fishing - and not just fly fishing either. If you want to have a terrific time fishing, you can insure the quality of your experience by learning a few things you should practice.

The normal evolution a fly fisher goes through usually includes fly tying sometime after the first year or two. Some take up fly tying to cut the costs of all the flies they seem to leave in bushes and trees everywhere they go. Others want to try it to increase their involvement in the finer details of the sport. No matter what your reasons are, tying flies seems to be an integrated part of the whole fly fishing picture.
There have been perhaps more volumes of books and articles written on the art of fly tying than any other aspect of fly fishing. If you subscribe to any of the fly fishing magazines, you have encountered articles that included fly patterns. In fact, a few magazines are dedicated to the art of fly tying. Those magazines will enhance the information you find here and I encourage you to consider subscribing to one or two.

In this article I will be dealing with the Yellowstone River from the boundary of Yellowstone National to Billings Montana with a few notes and observations that extend to the river as it flows towards its confluence with the Missouri River near Williston, North Dakota.

Of all of the Montana Rivers that I fish the Yellowstone is by far the most challenging complex body of moving water within the state. Oh I am sure that the prior statement raised the hackles of a few of the readers who will soon be posting notes about how their river is tougher and more challenging, however before you grab the key board and start pounding out your incensed note I urge you carefully read the remainder of this article.