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Partner News: Kendjam Lodge

Kendjam Lodge is a new Flylab partner, providing destination travel to the Brazilian Amazon rainforest.

Kendjam Lodge is a remote and high-end fly-fishing lodge located in the heart of the Brazilian Amazon rainforest on the Iriri River, a tributary of the Xingu River. Known for exceptional, clear water fly-fishing opportunities, targeting various species like Peacock Bass, Pacu, Matrinxã, Wolf Fish and Payara, the lodge and guides (the best jungle fly-fishing guides in Brazil) provide an immersive experience in the untouched Amazon. The lodge operates during the low, clear water season, which runs from June to September.

Flylab discount: 10% off destination travel packages, plus a “Best Flies of the Kendjam” kit (for “pro” members). 5% off destination travel packages (for “basic” members).

A Novel, Utah Pounds Sand and New Fly-fishing Jobs

Beartooth: A Novel by Callan Wink is getting great reviews. Callan is the author of the novels Beartooth and August and a collection of short stories, Dog Run Moon. Read them all. He lives in Livingston, Montana where he is a fly-fishing guide on the Yellowstone River. Beartooth review from Kirkus: “A novel of impeccable control and unflinching darkness. And then a glimmer of hope.”

U.S. Supreme Court Shows Utah the Door in State’s Attempt to Grab Public Land. “This firm ‘no thank you’ does not mean that the Court has denied Utah’s claims on their merits; only that the Court declined to accept the case.”

Environmental News: This week, Washington state leaders cast a historic vote to “permanently ban commercial net pen aquaculture in Washington marine waters to ensure these facilities can never return in the future and setting a global precedent to bolster efforts worldwide to eliminate this industry in public waters.”

Skwala Fishing releases their RS Outpost Jacket, offering “unparalleled” warmth in frigid conditions. “The jacket has been rigorously tested over the past two years in the most extreme conditions and by some of the industry’s most demanding anglers and guides, making it an essential addition to any cold-weather fly fishing kit.”

Field Mag’s Ultralight Down Jacket Guide: Materials, Construction, Care & Top Picks. “On top of being a fantastic jacket option to wear for an entire adventure, they also make a killer safety net, because they’re highly packable…”

Fred Campbell of Hooké talks about his newest film, Echoes in the Tundra, with Flylords. They discuss the current state of Atlantic Salmon in Quebec and the untouched beauty of the Leaf River. “It’s a huge river and largely unexplored. There are defined pools, but we explore and find new water every time I’m there. Nobody knows how many fish are in the runs, no one knows where they go, no one knows what cycle those fish are on…”

Fly-fishing jobs: 1. Rangeley Region Sports Shop Retail Sales Associate 2. Big Sky Anglers Accounting Manager 3. Snake River Angler Seasonal Shop Staff 4. Kulik Lodge Fly Fishing Guide.

Baltic salmon (Salmo salar), from northern Sweden, are in drastic decline. Meet the anglers, scientists and activists trying to make a difference and help save this beautiful, complex fish.

All You Really Need to Know About the Double Haul 

Being able to “double haul” as you cast a fly rod is an important key to adding distance to your cast. 

But there’s a lot of confusing misinformation out there that only confounds and intimidates people as they attempt to learn this essential casting skill.

Myth number one is that double hauling is only for long-distance casting in saltwater situations. 

Myth number two is that you need an exaggerated, elongated pull of the fly line to make a double haul work.

Myth number three is that you sacrifice accuracy when you double haul.

Let’s set the record straight. 

The double haul is a very simple trick that involves a slight pull on the fly line with your off-casting hand (the line tending hand) as you make a casting stroke. By pulling down on the line, you add an extra “stop” factor, and decelerate the line speed on your back cast (which is good), so long as you are able to leverage that, turn the stroke and do it again as you add some extra resistance as you deliver the forward cast. 

“Hauling” is about stopping, starting, harnessing line speed and releasing the added flex to generate more momentum as you deliver the cast.

Rule number one: As you attempt to double haul, your hands should not fly far apart. Think like you have manacles on your hands, and you’re making that flex action by gently pulling on the line, no more than 18 inches in distance from the reel. If you’re pulling that line a couple feet off the casting hand, you’re setting yourself up for failure, because it’s hard to collect and control the line. It’s like playing an accordion, and leaving your hands far apart. 

Rule number two: You’ve got to learn how to give and take. Pull, hold, feel the rod flex and then turn the cast. And when you pull on the forward stroke, be ready to let fly. If you’re constantly grabbing without giving, you negate the effect of the double haul.

Rule number three: Know when to let go. You’ve made your false casts, and have added some extra “oomph” by flexing the rod by adding extra resistance as you load and unfurl. When the timing is right, let go–clinging to the line zaps all the energy and momentum from the cast.

If you’re lined up correctly, looking through your thumbnail as you deliver the cast, you will be accurate.

Double hauling is now part of my regular casting routine, whether I’m fishing a 3-weight bamboo fly rod for trout, or on the saltwater flats trying to bomb long shots into the wind. 

In either situation, you’ll never see my hands fly more than a couple feet apart. Sure, when I’m “micro hauling” on a tiny brook trout stream, that might be a matter of inches, and when I’m tossing a baitfish pattern at tarpon 60 feet away, that gap will be wider, and more exaggerated. Fly casting context is everything…

But the fundamental start, stop, feel the rod load and flex dynamic is exactly the same. And I never let the air out of the balloon by losing control of the line and the rod flex-factor.

So, if you want to double haul with effect when you take that dream trip to the flats, start by doing it on your trout river. Start small, develop the feel and it will transpose to other fishing situations. The mechanics are the same everywhere.

The double haul is 100% about feel, not power. Feel trumps everything. Build the feel of double hauling, and you can take your cast anywhere in the world.

U.S. Supreme Court Shows Utah the Door in State’s Attempt to Grab Public Land 

Last August, the State of Utah sought permission to file suit directly in the United States Supreme Court against the United States, alleging that the ownership of most of the federal lands in Utah was contrary to the U.S. Constitution. On January 13, the Court gave Utah the back of its hand, denying the State’s request without opinion. No justice dissented from the order.

This firm “no thank you” does not mean that the Court has denied Utah’s claims on their merits; only that the Court declined to accept the case. Utah is free to pursue its lawsuit in Federal District Court and, if unsuccessful, could eventually appeal back to the Supreme Court. But that is a long road with plenty of hurdles along the way.

Utah’s “Hail Mary” to the Supreme Court was widely derided by legal experts as a political stunt. The State claimed that the United States cannot own land in the states without a purpose founded in the powers given by the Constitution to the U.S. Congress. But the Federal Government has owned land in the states since the founding of the Republic and the U.S. Supreme Court has on several occasions validated the Government’s right to own and dispose of federal lands. Add to that, when Utah became a state in 1896 it explicitly agreed not to make a claim against federal lands. The Court’s decision not to take that case is not exactly a big surprise.

The real burr under Utah’s saddle has always been land managed by the Bureau of Land Management, which is nearly half of the land in the State. Utah’s suit did not seek divestment of federal ownership of national parks, national forests, military bases or federal buildings. Essentially, Utah sought divestment of only the BLM land, with the argument that local authorities know better how to manage local lands than the faceless bureaucrats in Washington. Many, however, believe that one of the State’s real goals is to convert federal lands to private use, with the financial benefits going to the State. Lost in the argument was whether and how Utah would pay for federal land, or if the State would simply expect the citizens of the United States to give the land to Utah, so that the State could profit from it.

Utah has vowed to press on with its claims, with the Governor, Attorney General and legislative leaders saying that the State “remains able and willing to challenge any BLM land management decisions that harm Utah.” Not exactly a “fight to the death” promise…

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Jon Christiansen is a former Chair of the Board of Trustees of Trout Unlimited and a former General Counsel for TU. The views expressed are solely those of the author.

More coverage on the Supreme Court ruling from The Salt Lake Tribune and Backcountry Hunters & Anglers.