Search Month: July 2026

Saltbitten: Thoughts and Lessons from the Summer Surf

I’ve lost good friends in the last year whom I know had plans that remain eternally unfilled. I used to think time was the enemy. I was wrong. The end is the enemy. And time is all I have to work with.

. . . I love the details of saltwater fishing. I love the sunrise and the sunset. I love the never-ending wash of good waves. I love having my bare feet in the ocean for hours at a time with nothing in front of me but the endless ocean until it meets the soft line of the horizon. I love the walk back, watching beachgoers enjoy their own moments, seeing their friendships and laughter. I love being by myself, and I love sharing the sand with my boys . . .

READ MORE

PODCAST: Fighting Big Fish #1 – The Hooks Set and What Comes First – S20, Ep1 (VIDEO and AUDIO)

For Season 20 of the Troutbitten Podcast, we have seven episodes lined up for a Skills Series that’s all about how to land the biggest fish of your life.

Because, when you do hook the big one — that one you’ve been waiting for — a Whiskey, a Namer or the best fish of your life, you want the skills for fighting big fish with confidence. You want these habits to be engrained into your muscle memory, because you don’t have time to think about this stuff when the biggest fish of your life shows up . . .

READ MORE

Night Shift — This River and the Other River

For a while it was the hope that kept me night fishing — the belief in a chance that some night I would catch the kind of wild brown trout that never shows itself in the daylight. That’s what kept me going. As seasons pass and it doesn’t happen, that belief dims with the reality of every trip.

I’m okay with that reality, and I still have the belief anyway. Now I just night fish because it’s in me, and I simply love it for what it is.

READ MORE

Dry Flies In Fast Water – Fly Fishing Tips (with VIDEO)

Here’s a look at fishing dry flies in faster water — in more complex currents — because there’s a unique set of skills to get true dead drifts in the fast water and pocket water. The drifts are shorter and harder to achieve. But some of the best fish hang out in faster stuff, and if you give them a great presentation you have a really good chance.

In this video, I cover three main skills that help meet the particulars of fishing dry flies in fast water. Those skills are also detailed below the video, in the article, with links to further Troutbitten resources.

READ MORE
PODCAST: Fighting Big Fish #1 – The Hooks Set and What Comes First – S20, Ep1 (VIDEO and AUDIO)

PODCAST: Fighting Big Fish #1 – The Hooks Set and What Comes First – S20, Ep1 (VIDEO and AUDIO)

Jul 26, 2026 | , , ,

For Season 20 of the Troutbitten Podcast, we have seven episodes lined up for a Skills Series that’s all about how to land the biggest fish of your life.

Because, when you do hook the big one — that one you’ve been waiting for — a Whiskey, a Namer or the best fish of your life, you want the skills for fighting big fish with confidence. You want these habits to be engrained into your muscle memory, because you don’t have time to think about this stuff when the biggest fish of your life shows up . . .

Night Shift — This River and the Other River

Night Shift — This River and the Other River

Jul 17, 2026 |

For a while it was the hope that kept me night fishing — the belief in a chance that some night I would catch the kind of wild brown trout that never shows itself in the daylight. That’s what kept me going. As seasons pass and it doesn’t happen, that belief dims with the reality of every trip.

I’m okay with that reality, and I still have the belief anyway. Now I just night fish because it’s in me, and I simply love it for what it is.

Dry Flies In Fast Water – Fly Fishing Tips (with VIDEO)

Dry Flies In Fast Water – Fly Fishing Tips (with VIDEO)

Jul 15, 2026 | , ,

Here’s a look at fishing dry flies in faster water — in more complex currents — because there’s a unique set of skills to get true dead drifts in the fast water and pocket water. The drifts are shorter and harder to achieve. But some of the best fish hang out in faster stuff, and if you give them a great presentation you have a really good chance.

In this video, I cover three main skills that help meet the particulars of fishing dry flies in fast water. Those skills are also detailed below the video, in the article, with links to further Troutbitten resources.

If You Have to Revive a Trout, It’s Probably Too Late

If You Have to Revive a Trout, It’s Probably Too Late

Jul 10, 2026 |

Reviving a trout was once taught as part of the routine. But we don’t hear that so much anymore. Because the idea of playing a trout to the point of exhaustion, so much that you have to help it regain balance and breath, is mostly a thing of the past. And that’s a good thing . . .

What’s the Most Fun Thing About Fishing?

What’s the Most Fun Thing About Fishing?

Jul 5, 2026 |

Our objective while fishing is to catch a fish. That’s the point. And as catch-and-release anglers, we don’t fish to put food on the table. We fish . . . because it’s fun.

We can all list a hundred other reasons why we enjoy fishing. It’s the environments where trout live, the problem solving, the daily mystery, the beauty of the woods and the water, the therapy of being immersed in a river and a chance to interact with one of nature’s swimming creations.

But none of that means much without a win once in a while. Catching fish is the motivation. And without that reward, without the feedback that we’re doing something right and improving, all those other intangibles fade away fast.

Pin It on Pinterest