The River Why

Here is the trailer for The River Why, a new film that is currently being screened in select cities.  The movie is an adaptation of David James Duncan’s 1983 novel of the same name.  It stars Zach Gilford, William Hurt, and Amber Heard.  Judging by the trailer, the movie contains some beautiful shots of fishing in Oregon.  I guess you can say it’s a more modern version of A River Runs Through It.  Plus, if anyone is a Friday Night Lights fan, does a movie get much better than Matt Saracen fishing?

History of Fly Fishing in North America

United States anglers are thought to be the first anglers to use artificial lures for bass fishing.  Prior to that, most anglers used live bait.

Anglers began to develop fly patterns (artificial lures) to fish for specific species of bass.  Eventually, each fly pattern began to be associated with a specific species of fish.

Anglers, such as Theodore Gordon, during the late 19^th century began using flies to fish the Catskill Mountains of New York.  They used the flies to fish the trout filled streams and rivers of the area such as the Beaverkill and the Willowemoc.

These anglers developed new fly patterns, and often wrote about the popularity of fly fishing in the area and the United States.  Charles F. Orvis, the founder of Orvis, helped to popularize fly fishing as a sport.  He designed new reels and fly designs.  Fly fishing historian Jim Brown described Ovis’ 1874 reel as the, “ benchmark of American reel design.”  The Orvis company began to supply Americans all across the U.S. with fly fishing equipment.

The popularity of fly fishing peaked in the early 1920s in the Northeast and the Midwest.  Ernest Hemingway helped to popularize the sport by writing about it.  After the 1920s fly fishing’s popularity decreased.  However, in the 1950s with the help of fiberglass rods, synthetic fly lines, and monofilament leaders, fly fishing became popular again.

Fly Fishing is a Joke

This is a beautiful video made by Henry Harrison.  This was his thesis for the MFA program in Science and Natural History Filmmaking at Montana State University.  Besides its aesthetic appeal, the video does an excellent job of understanding the draw of fly fishing.