Todd Tanner has launched a new fly fishing school called School of Trout.  It will be held in Last Chance, Idaho, on the banks of the Henry’s Fork of the Snake River, October 7 – 13, 2018.  His idea is to teach people the skills of fly fishing, in depth, and to go well beyond the usual cursory overviews so common in this sport.  The focus on really learning how to fish—not simply helping people catch a few fish on a guide trip, sets this school apart from others.  

I’ll be participating in the school as the head of casting instruction.  My aim will be to teach and instill good mechanics, and to provide a thorough understanding of the principles of fly casting.  Good fundamentals, an understanding of essential principles, and the additional ability to self-diagnose casting mistakes will provide a solid foundation for any student, allowing them to progress as far in this sport as they like. Todd’s school requires that an application be filled out and accepted.  His website provides all the details: School of Trout.

The publication of Selective Trout in 1970 (see previous post) permanently altered the selection of dry flies available in fly shops all over the U.S.  This was especially true when it came to patterns designed to closely imitate various species of mayfly.  The waters of the Yellowstone area have long been home to profuse and diverse mayfly hatches, yet it wasn’t until the appearance of Selective Trout that anglers really began tying and fishing better representations of local mayflies.

The picture below is from Bud Lilly’s 1969 catalog, showing his dry fly selection.  Viewed in the light of pattern developments from the last four decades, the flies seem particularly dated.  But 1969 was a different time, to be sure.  We’ve learned a lot about trout stream insects since then.  Today, I wouldn’t wish to be restricted to these flies alone, but if pressed, they would still constitute a workable selection for a fair amount of the fishing in and around Yellowstone.  Two key missing elements would be patterns for Baetis mayflies in size #20 and #22, and a #16 caddis imitation. 

As with Bud’s nymph selection (see two posts ago), I’m struck by the preponderance of large sizes, salmonfly imitations notwithstanding.  #6 Goofus Bugs?  #4 Joe’s Hoppers?  Using such flies today seems like a stretch.  But then, maybe that’s just my post-Selective Trout bias showing through.         

During the years that Bud Lilly fronted his eponymous fly shop, it was considered a mandatory stop for all fishermen coming to West Yellowstone.  His store functioned as a central clearinghouse for fishing information and tackle, as well as a gathering place for every important angling figure, particularly post-1960.  Indeed, everyone visited Bud Lilly and his store.  In his 1970 catalog, Bud devoted a page to Doug Swisher and Carl Richard’s efforts in linking entomology and angling, titling it “Scientific Fishing on Henry’s Fork”.  The end result of Swisher and Richard’s work would be the book Selective Trout, published in 1971, and offered by Bud for early delivery.  Bud also had flies from this new book for sale, tied by none other than Dave Whitlock.

As it turned out, Selective Trout went on to become the most influential and best-selling fly fishing book in American history.  Forty seven years later, it is impossible to overstate the effect it’s had—and still does have—on this sport.  (And thanks to the influence of Nick Lyons, noted book publisher, Selective Trout remains in print today.  For any angling book, but especially an American one, that’s a long life.)

Bud Lilly’s decision to allot a full page of his catalog to Swisher and Richards and their forthcoming book appears, in hindsight, truly prescient.  But even if he got lucky—and I don’t think he did—the atmosphere he and his family created in their shop always put him in a position to be exposed to the people and products that would ultimately prove to be the vanguard of fly fishing as we know it today.  That says a lot about the man.