I talked to Dennis Lee about the Half Pounder steelhead, a unique life history that is only found in large number in the Rogue River, Klamath, Trinity and Eel Rivers.

We talk about why this life history is significant to you as a fly fisher, talk about his new book and get into some of the history of steelhead fly fishing in Northern California as this was the birth place of steelhead fly fishing.

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Show Notes with Dennis Lee

04:00 – The book “A Half Pounder A Steelhead Trout” is Dennis’ most recent project.

09:49 – Dec Hogan was on the podcast in episode 20 and tells a story of a fish that beached him on the opposite side of the river.

15:20 – Dean Finnerty was on episode 19 of the podcast and discussed how anglers used to cut back the riparian area to make casting easier.

16:09  – Al Periman was a mentor for Dennis

23:20 – The Silver Hilton and Brindle Bug were popular Rogue River patterns.

27:40 – The Sotar raft company from southern Oregon

33:46 – John Shewey was on the podcast on episode 16 and talked about the publishing process.

35:20 –  American River Steelhead

37:00 – Gary Anderson and Gary Anderson Custom Rods.

34:20 – California Spey O’Rama at the Golden Gate Casting Club

41:04 – The Albany Fly Tying Expo event is where I met Dennis for the first time

41:20 – A Passion for Steelhead had a big influence on Dennis.

41:33 – Classic Steelhead Flies by John Shewey is another important book for steelhead.

44:50 – Klamath sized intruders

42:10 – The Dec Hogan episode and the intruder story

47:00 – Squidro by Scott Howell

51:20 – The Jay Nicholas episode where he chats about why he is dedicated to writing books.

You can reach Dennis at DennisPLee.com if you have questions or want to reach out and say thanks!

“If I’m not catching 10 to 20 half pounders in a day of fishing, then I’m probably not going to be very happy.”

-Dennis Lee 

Conclusion with Dennis Lee

I wanted to give Dennis a big thank you for coming on the show.  He sheds light on the amazing diversity of steelhead and why we should care about a tiny little steelhead.

If you want to grab some steelhead tips the guest from the podcasts, click the link below to check out the Steelhead Tips PDF Quick Guide:  https://www.wetflyswing.com/chrome

     

Gene Hering shares some history in fly fishing from his experience producing fishing videos over the last 35 plus years.  He talks about how he got into it all with broadcast news and how that evolved into his personal brand.

He has produced videos for some of the biggest names in fly fishing including over 40 steelhead videos.

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Show Notes with Gene Hering

04:15 – Pacific Outdoors Show was one of Gene’s first program he worked on that was more focused on all of the outdoor issues.

04:35 – Fishing The West was a popular fishing show that Gene filmed back in the day

05:05 – The Fly Fishing TV show began its run on national cable TV

06:02 – Gene produced some of the Frank Amato videos

07:17 – Secrets of Steelhead with  Jim Teeny was one that still sells copies to this day.  Gene produced over 10 shows with Jim Teeny.

09:30 – Kelly Gaulop was another big name fly fisherman that Gene worked with over the years.

17:54 – The Matt Klara podcast episode on trout spey

19:10 – You can see Fly Fish TV past episodes on Youtube

29:00 – My podcast interview with Duran Torrez and Gene’s tips for getting started.

35:28 – Pig Farm Inc is an interesting new group who is teaching people how to tie flies.

40:00 – The Oregon Fishing Club is a resource Gene still uses for fishing access

42:10 – Jim Conway was one of the big outdoor personalities that influenced Gene.  Here’s an old video clip of one of Jim’s shows.

42:33 – Grant McComie is a local video producer who was also an influence.

44:10 – Pat McManus is one of the biggest comedic outdoor writers.

46:10 – The American Sportsman with Curt Gowdy was one of Gene’s biggest influences.

54:00 – Gary Lofontaine was a big influence for Gene in some of his fly fishing background.  Here’s an old clip of Gary tying a caddis fly.

You can reach Gene at FlyFishTV.com if you have any questions or want to grab some videos.

Conclusion with Gene Hering from Fly Fish TV

I wanted to give Gene a big thank you for coming on the show and sharing his experience in the fly fishing industry.  For me, I appreciate the people who paved the way as I produce some fishing videos as well.

Click the link below to grab the 3 Best Tips from our Weekly Expert Fly Fishing Guest:  https://www.wetflyswing.com/3tips

     

I had pleasure of talking with Duran Torrez about his first year guiding and how his mindset and setting expectations is critical for a successful trip.

Duran shares a ton of insight about his passion and tips for getting into fish.  We are back to the klickitat on this one to talk a little summer steelhead

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Show Notes with Duran Torrez

13:57 – Scott McGarva podcast where he breaks down the expectations for your clients.

18:50 – Commando heads on single spey rods are the goto lines for Duran

20:00 – The Hanford Reach was an area that duran learned to spey cast on and is one of the most polluted and radioactive sites in the US.

23:20 – Pete Humphries was on episode 7 of the fly fishing show where he covered spey casting tips.

24:25 – Redington was the first rod that he used getting started with spey casting.

25:00 – Duran thinks the commando heads are great for beginners

32:00 – We talk about the gardening section on the School of Chrome and why that is part of his site.

35:00 – Midnight Sun Custom Flies is noted as a good resource for steelhead flies

35:40 – Fly Fishing Tapes podcast is a new show that I’ve been loving lately and looking forward to having them on our podcast.

35:47 – Pig Farm Inc is an interesting take on teaching fly tying, tattooing and keeping fly fishing fun.

You can with Duran Torrez on Facebook at School of Chrome if you have any questions or want to connect with him.

“You have to love the process.  You have to absolutely be in love with the process of doing what you are doing.  Because if it’s only about the end goal, you are going to be disappointed every time.”

-Duran Torrez

Conclusion with Duran Torrez

I wanted to give a big thank you to Duran for coming on the show and sharing his unique perspective on teaching, guiding and what it’s like to go all in on your passion.

If you want to learn how to fish for steelhead, make a garden and connect with the outdoors, Duran is your guy.  Click on the link below to get the Steelhead Tips PDF Quick Guide:  wetflyswing.com/chrome

     

There is no question that this will go down as one of the best podcasts on tactics for catching steelhead on the fly.  Dean Finnerty breaks down how to fish the North Umpqua in detail.

The North Umpqua, aka – Graduate school of steelhead fly fishing, is one of the most historied steelhead river in the world.  We cover skating dries in the summer to getting down in the winter.  Dean brings it all to the table so enjoy!

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Show Notes with Dean Finnerty

04:30 – Mark Bachman, from Fly Fish USA was one of Dean’s first mentors.  Mark was working for Larry’s Sporting Goods when Dean first met him

08:30 – Frank Moore was one of Dean’s mentors and a legend on the North Umpqua.  Here’s a short clip from OPB on Frank Moore

08:45 – The TU Sportsman Conservation Project 

14:50 – The North Umpqua Trail allows access to the other side of the river

26:50 – Simon Gawesworth was interviewed in this podcast

28:10 – The skagit switch line from Air Flo is Dean’s goto on the North

32:15 – Scott McGarva talks about the Dean River in this podcast episode

34:45 – Peter Charles shows us how to keep your tube floating upright with this Egg shaped tube fly video

35:55 – Rainy’s flies intruder patterns – Finnerty Intruder

47:40 – Delta spey line from Air Flo

1:12:00 – Science Friday with John from WildSteelheaders.org

You can connect with Dean Finnerty by going to deanfinnerty.com.  

“If you break that cadence or you break that rythm….. These fish are just like a little kid at christmas…… If you can keep that rythm and keep that cadence……. coming closer and closer to the fish, they will grab it.”

-Dean Finnerty

Fly Line Resource Noted in the Show

The Airflo Skagit Switch Spey Line

Conclusion with Dean Finnerty

I wanted to give a big thank you to Dean for coming on the show today.  He provided some amazing tips on finding and catching steelhead on the North Umpqua.

And if you’re interested in the right spey rod for steelhead, Click here to see the Spey Rod that has helped me drastically improve my spey cast and find more steelhead at a super reasonable cost (You also get a free spey line if you pickup the Spey Rod here).  By the way, the link above is an affiliate link, which means I earn a commission if you do end up purchasing through that link.  It’s at no extra cost to you, and please if you have any questions related to this product, please let me know and I’d be happy to answer them for you.