Blog

Due to the extremely hot conditions and lack of moisture, some of our local rivers are experiencing mid-day closures for recreation.  These rivers include: the Dearborn from high bridge (route 435) to the confluence of the Mo, the Sun River from hwy 287 bridge to the confluence of Muddy Creek, and the Smith from the confluence of the forks (Camp Baker) to downstream of Eden bridge.  The closures are considered “hoot hour” closures which means you cannot fish from 2pm to... Read more

Join us today on the lower Clark Fork River in Idaho for some free spey casting classes.  Calvin will be teaching various styles of fishing casts to a small group of anglers.  Rods, reels, and lines are all provided.  If you have your own rod please feel free to bring it along.  If you are interested please call Big R Fly Shop in Ponderay, ID @ 208.255.5757 and ask for Calvin.  Space is limited and we only have a few spots left.  Hope to see you there! Read more

 When I started working in the shop 5 years ago it was apparent that a fly tying revolution had begun.  Everyone had begun tweaking patterns that led to some truly neat creations; some of which that worked really well and others that had great appeal but fished subpar.  Revolutionary materials like ice dub where leaders in the design of many newer aged flies.  It is hard to find patterns today that do not incorporate some sort of flash, especially nymphs.  Try to find a... Read more

 The St. Joe River, located south of 1-90 in North Central Idaho is a premier fishery for west slope cutthroat. It shares a lot of the same characteristics as the famous N. Fork of the Clearwater (Kelly Creek) and the CDA system to the north. Good access can be had from St Regis (Gold Pass), Wallace Idaho (Moon Pass) or via the river road from St. Maries Idaho. When on the Joe you can expect water as clear as gin, tumbling rapids, shadowy deep pools, and classic pocket water. There are... Read more

The guys over at Riddle Marine Custom Jet Boats out of Lewiston, ID obviously knew we would be attending the Federation of Fly Fishers International Fly Fishing Fair in Spokane, WA last weekend because they had this absolute beauty of a water craft waiting for us when we arrived. The well endowed RMX 15 with armor plated bottom is part of their center console series. With a Mercury 200 sport jet in the engine compartment, it can easily zip us around the Clearwater River this... Read more

That’s right ladies and gentleman, its Hex time here in Great Falls.  For those of you who don’t know what a Hex is, it is time to learn.  Hexagenia limbata or Hex for short are the largest hatching mayfly species discovered to date.  As an adult, the Hex can grow to be 4-6” from head to tail and has a wing-span to match.  Their habitat is constricted to streams and lakes that consist of extensive mud flats (i.e. the lower Sun River, Belt Creek, and... Read more

Lately Jerrin has been playing around with his GoPro while riding a popular bike trail around town.  Thankfully during this ride he was wearing his helmet cam to capture the moment of impact.  The meat and potatoes of the ride starts at 4:42 where it seems to be in fast-forward (but it's not).  At 5:27 the video takes a turn for the worst as he tries to avoid on-coming traffic.  This just goes to show how awesome GoPro's really are.  Enjoy!   Read more

Spokane, WA - Today is the last day of the International Fly Fishing Fair brought to us by the Federation of Fly Fishers and to be honest, I'm a little saddened by this. I have met so many awesome people in the industry these last few days and have learned so much. As a marketing specialist, I don't make it out to these events very often. But since I'm here, not having to talk to the multitude of people about our wader selection or sizes of our tippet, I was able to hit the fair floor with a... Read more

Members and friends of the Federation of Fly Fishers have assembled in beautiful Spokane, WA for the 47th annual International Fly Fishing Fair. For the next 3 days, both international and domestic fish folk will enjoy fly tying demonstrations given by some of the best tyers in the world. There are also casting, on the water and non-angling workshops as well as lectures and a 2 day youth camp. View the entire schedule. Never wanting to be left out from a good party, Big R Fly Shop... Read more

We've finally been able to get on our local creeks after super high flows lasted almost a month longer than normal. Guys are raving about double digit days on larger than normal trout. Most have been fishing small stonefly wets and dries. Personally, I discovered the fat Creek T cutthroat are moving for skating stones. One of those "Excuse Me" hookups as I was wading up to a new casting position clued me in. First a day-saving 14" woke me up to a possible egg-laying stone... Read more