Calendar
On a very large yearly calendar on my kitchen wall for the past thirty years I have recorded my daily fishing information as
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harry murray
Trip Information – Good Stream Notes
Trip Information in the form of Good Stream Notes help ensure fishing success in the future. When I return home from a fishing
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New Scientific Anglers Fly Line, Part Two
Part Two Blog on Scientific Anglers Sonar Sink 30 Warm Fly Line The new Scientific Anglers Sink 30 Warm is an outstanding fast sinking
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Bass Streamers
There are times when fishing streamers along the banks when floating smallmouth bass rivers can be very effective. However, some anglers on our
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Ostrich Plume
This pound of Ostrich will tie enough flies to catch many thousand fish. Ostrich Plume is used to tie streamers, Murray’s Pearl Marauder
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Simple Flies
Several years ago I stopped in a fly shop in Montana which was owned by a good friend. One of his employees was
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Where are the Natural Nymphs?
Many natural nymphs move to the downstream side of the cobblestones in the lower sections of the riffles at this time of the
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Selective Trout
A large trout comes up and looks at your dry fly but refuses it. There is a natural tendency to cast back to
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Wood Duck Flank
This is part one of three parts on dry fly winging material. The woodduck flank feathers you see here are one of my
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Smallmouth Bass Feed Heavily on Brown Drake Mayflies
Some of the most exciting smallmouth fly fishing takes place when they feed on natural Brown Drake mayflies. There are actually three different
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Switch Lines in Mid-River
You are standing in mid-river using a 9 foot rod and you decide you would like to switch from a floating fly line
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Stream Terms
Anglers just getting into fly fishing are often confused by some of the terms we use to describe the stream and currents. Here
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Dry Fly Cleaning
Dry flies that are coated with old floatant that have matted hackles can easily be brought back to life by carefully steaming them
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Murray’s Magnum Creek Chub
There are probably more creek chub minnows in most smallmouth rivers than any other single minnows. These are readily available to the bass
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Find the Good Water
Late last summer I drove a long distance to fish a mountain trout stream. When I arrived at the lower end of the
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Murray’s Magnum Hog Sucker Streamer Fly Tying Kit
In the forties and fifties, smallmouth bait fishermen on the Shenandoah River who were after the largest bass used live Hog Suckers for
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Murray’s Czech Nymph Leader
The NEW Murray’s Two Color Czech Nymphing Leaders are very popular for the way they help detect strikes. These come in 7 foot,
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Drag Free Drift
The speed of the current just inches below the stream surface is usually moving faster than the current on the surface where our
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Cold Hands?
During the winter and spring I always carry Simms Freestone Half Finger Fishing Gloves in my vest. Experience has shown me that if
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Releasing Trout
Always land your trout with a net as quickly as possible to prevent stressing them. Revive your trout completely before releasing him. Choose
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Popper Casting
When we make a back cast to pick a popping bug up off the stream to make another cast we may cause that
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Be Nice To Your Fly Rod
A friend recently purchased a new fly rod and broke it while casting the first day out. When I asked him if he
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Dying Fly Tying Materials
When I can’t locate the exact color of natural dubbing fur I need to tie a specific pattern, I dye some of the
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Blend Your Dubbing
Fly Tying Tip: Need dubbing material for fly tying? Blend your own custom colored dubbing to meet your fly tying needs. I am a
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Line Hand Strike
The more I fish, the more I find that I rely strongly on my line-hand strike to set the hook on the fishes
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Length of Casts
Experienced anglers know it is best to never cast further than is necessary to keep from scaring the fish when in freshwater. Excessively
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Drag Free Dry Fly Drift
I have been doing a great amount of experimenting this year with many different casts that are helpful in throwing slack line casts
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Quick Water
Heavy rains that last less than a day but deposit two or three inches of rain definitely cause our rivers to become too
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Riffle Hitch
Last year at my son’s encouragement, we started experimenting with the “Riffle Hitch” technique for smallmouth bass which I used many years ago
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Healthy Trout
Many beginning trout anglers are amazed to see a nice trout turn belly-up and die when they return him to the stream with
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Cooling Bass Rivers
The smallmouth rivers are cooling and although I am catching nice bass throughout the rivers, I am aware that some of the largest
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Escape Technique
I had outstanding smallmouth bass fishing on the North Fork of the Shenandoah River with a method of streamer fishing I am calling,
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Tying a Deer Hair Bass Bug
When I teach my winter fly tying classes, the beginning fly tyers are amazed how quickly they learn to tie great deer hair
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Wading Staff
Wading safely is an important part of fly fishing. I use a Folstaff Wading Staff (3/4″ X 50″) in all of my fly
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Night Smallmouth Bass Fishing
You just might catch your largest smallmouth bass of the year by fishing at night. They feed heavily in the low light levels
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Delicate Presentation
When fishing 7X leaders with small flies a delicate presentation is difficult when the wind is blowing straight into your face. One option
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Save a Fly Rod
When a fly gets caught in a tree over the stream which is out of reach the proper way to attempt to free
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Change of Pace Flies
Large trout in heavily fished streams become very tough to catch this time of year. I believe part of the reason for this
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Wary Smallmouth Bass
As the smallmouth rivers get low and clear I find that I can prevent scaring the largest bass by wading upstream and fishing
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Easy Trout
Now that the Trico hatch is in full swing on our trout streams you can rest assured that these trout probably have examined
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Stream Approach
The most valuable angling skill you can master is learning how to approach the specific piece of water you plan to fish. Sounds
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Keep Dry
During the summer I do not use waders when floating or wading smallmouth rivers. However I always carry a raincoat in the back
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Keep Healthy
When we are floating the smallmouth bass river or climbing the mountain trout stream we usually carry a lunch and drinking water in
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Streamer Success
Here are two simple steps that can easily double the number of successfully hooked fish on your streamer fishing. (1) Always follow the
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The Best Action with Surface Bugs
In order to catch large bass consistently on hard surface bugs it is very important to be able to adjust the bug action
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