MEDIA
Tying the bOU CRAW
Flyfisherman.com - December 2025
The Bou Craw is a refreshing departure from the many complex crayfish patterns out there. Its quick and easy to tie, requires only a few materials, and it catches fish. Click the link below to watch the full tying video on Flyfisherman.com.
THE BOU CRAW
Flyfisherman.com - December 26, 2025
Flies need not always be fancy. The Bou Craw is a pattern I’ve fished for a number of seasons with great success. What it lacks in looks, it more than makes up for in movement. It’s always in my box whenever I’m smallmouth fishing because it works. Check out the full article below.
A SIMPLE, EFFECTIVE FLY FOR SMALLMOUTH BASS
LINES FOR SMALLMOUTH FISHING
Flyfisherman.com - December 24, 2025
Fishing the right lines is critical to success in any environment. Its even more important, however, when wading rivers where current can be your ally or your enemy. Floating and intermediates are your best bets for most small and medium-sized rivers when chasing bronze.
ON FOOT
Flyfisherman.com - December 11, 2025
The Bass Nut has proven over the past few seasons to be one seriously effective smallmouth bass pattern. Built on the uber-popular Circus Peanut platform, it incorporates multiple well-established bass triggers in a relatively compact package. The article, which can be found at Flyfisherman.com, explains how the fly is constructed and details some of its more deadly applications.
Tying the bass nut
Salt Soul, Fresh Flats - Flyfisherman.com
Sight fishing shallow flats isn’t only done in saltwater. The Great Lakes offer a multitude of opportunities very similar to those typically associated with tropical destination trips. Jerry Darkes and Dave Hurley provide some insight into these opportunities, and explain how they employ saltwater-esque techniques in the world’s largest freshwater system.
VIDEO: Darkes’ E-Z CRAW
Simple flies are often the most valuable to anglers as they can be fished hard in heavy cover without fear of losing them. Darkes’ E-Z Craw is one of the simplest crayfish patterns around, and its hooked a multitude of species that include Great Lakes steelhead, brown trout, smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, carp, and freshwater drum.
Hook - Ahrex FW550 size 6
Tentacles - Grizzly Flashabou / Fulling Mill Flex Floss
Claws - Clawdad Tail size 6
Body - Crosscut rabbit strip
Head - Medium Dumbbell / Bead Chain Eyes / Rubber Legs
Silver and Bronze - Flyfisherman.com
Each spring a sub-population of Lake Erie smallmouth bass enter tributaries to spawn. These big fish, averaging around 17 inches in length, share the streams with a mix of fresh and dropback steelhead. Stripping streamers through high-percentage zones can produce epic mixed bags of silver and bronze.
VIDEO: Laser Dub GAME CHANGER
This video was released on Flyfisherman.com in May of 2025 to demonstrate how to tie one version of a Game Changer - a go-to pattern for a variety of warmwater species including smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, northern pike, and musky. Natural Shade Tapered Brushes from Just Add H2O make the process pretty simple.
Tail - 12mm shank
Body 1 - 12mm shank
Body 2 - Ahrex Universal Curve size 2
Body 3 - 20mm shank
Body 4 - 20 mm shank
Head - Ahrex Universal Curve size 1
A BEGINNER’S GUIDE TO FLY LINES - FLYFISHERMAN.COM
Fly lines are one of our most important pieces of equipment. When properly deployed they can efficiently deliver flies to fish, but choosing the right one requires anglers to understand a few characteristics of line design. This piece explores key topics like taper, density, head length, and grain weight to help anglers arm themselves with the right lines for their water.
SUBSURFACE FLIES FOR SMALLMOUTH BASS - FULLING MILL
River smallmouth are both exciting and challenging fish to target with a fly rod. This article, geared toward the wade angler, focuses on five must-have patterns for anglers looking to hook up with smallies in moving water.
GREAT LAKES STEELHEAD STREAMERS - FLYFISHERMAN.COM
The Great Lakes region is loaded with innovative fly anglers and tiers who have designed a variety of patterns for our steelhead. Choosing the fly that best fits the current conditions is the fastest way to hook up with Great Lakes chrome.
Three styles of streamers - Ahrex Hooks
Understanding the different actions of our flies helps us better present them to fish. Swim, jerk, and jig flies are three categories of streamers that have their own distinct movements in the water. Catering our retrieve to the style of fly we’re fishing can help us dial in our presentation and catch more fish.
Beat the heat - FLYFISHERMAN.COM
I caught up with Red Kulper, Creative Lead for G.Loomis, to discuss safe catch and release practices for trout in warm water. Red discusses strategies to minimize stress on our trout, and encourages anglers to explore warmwater species in the hotter months when trout are more vulnerable to angling stress.
GEAR REVIEW - CHEEKY SPRAY REEL -CHEEKY FISHING
The folks at Cheeky Fishing let me test drive their Spray 400 reel on a variety of Great Lakes species in the spring of 2024. The reel was as advertised - light, durable, and beautifully designed. I now have several of these reels, and run them in all seasons.
one man’s trash - flyfisherman.com
The Freshwater drum is the star of the show in this piece, which highlights the fish as a legitimate target for fly anglers. Jerry Darkes and Jeff Liskay, two of the most respected figures in the Great Lakes region, pioneered many techniques and tactics for chasing drum with flies. This article describes many of these tactics.
Dialed in - Flylords.com
Mike Schultz, G. Loomis ambassador and Owner of Schultz Outfitters shares his tips, tricks, and flies for targeting smallmouth bass during the early season.
Tying with TAPERED BRUSHES - FLYFISHERMAN.COM
Tying quality flies starts with choosing quality products. Natural Shade Tapered Brushes from Just Add H20 are excellent tools for tiers looking to create well-proportioned game changers for a variety of species.
Conditioning for casting - scientific anglers
By: Jerry Darkes
Jerry and I had an opportunity to sit down and chat about the benefits of strength training as they relate to flyfishing - specifically casting. Anglers can improve their on-water experience through some simple training protocols in advance of their outing.