by Bob Marshall

Hunters and anglers are learning that the head does not always speak for the body when it comes to the Bureau of Land Management.

by Tim Romano

This week's Tie Talk "bug" comes to us courtesy of flyrecipes.com.

The Durex Condom Pike Fly is the brainchild of Simon Graham and has one very unusual item that might not be in your fly tying recipe basket: A condom for the tail...

Graham apparently got the idea while reading a piece from an Australian media outlet basically saying that, "despite Australia's best efforts to supply prophylactics to AIDS-ravaged Papua, New Guinea, there's no stopping local creativity in finding unusual uses for the free condoms. Local fisherman cut them up for lures, and women find the lubricant good for their hair and beauty regime."

by Kirk Deeter

I ran into my pal Steve Parrott, co-owner of the Blue Quill Angler in Evergreen, Colorado, the other day at the Bass Pro Shops Spring Fishing Classic. We struck up an interesting conversation about the use of "hot spots" or "trigger points" on fly patterns.

Basically, by adding fluorescent material accents in key places like the collar or tail of a beadhead nymph fly, you create these "hot spots" or "trigger points" that trout may indeed see better, and theoretically react to more favorably. These two photos show Steve's fly box in natural light, and then again in ultraviolet light, which simulates deeper water conditions. Those "hot spots" make you notice, don't they?

by John Merwin

Once in a while I run across a fly or lure that surprises me. It doesn’t look as if it would work, but turns out it works very well. Sometimes, extremely well. Such a trout fly is the GT Triple Double dry pictured here.

I first encountered this pattern while fishing with its originator, guide Gordon Tharrett on Utah’s Green River tailwater some years back. The first eight miles of river below Flaming Gorge dam, the so-called “A” section, is chock full of trout in extremely clear water. This section is hugely popular, is pounded hard by skilled anglers all year long, and most of the trout here have PhDs in being selective as to fly pattern.