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Scales | EWA Blog

Welcome to our blog of all things we at Emerald Water Anglers touch and care about in the fly fishing world. This has been quite a journey the past 10+ years, scrolling back we have seen some things coming and we continue to make every effort to have the pulse of where this is sport is headed both here in the PWN and globally.

EWA News

Posers and Frauds, Get Real or Get Out!

What a joyous title to a blog post huh!?! I guess it was bound to happen, way too long with way too much happy and f... more

Skate the Fly T.V. Episode 4 -- Brian O'Keefe

Yep, we are still at it, hopefully getting a bit better but likely not. This episode we have the pleasure of chattin... more

Deschutes River Road Trip

Here's the thing about road trips: they rock. Here's the thing about fishing trips: they're awesome. That's why ... more

Christmas on the Wenatchee

My Brother-in law and I have formed a very enjoyable Christmas tradition. Fishing. For the last three years, after me... more

Preparing for a Christmas miracle.

In honor of the big fella. Happy holidays to you and yours. more

EWA Featured Photographer -- Chris Ringlee

We have always felt one of the most important elements of fly fish guiding is not only knowledge of your sport and th... more

How to Tell if the Steelhead Angler Fishing Near You is a Witch

Witches have existed in one form or another since the dawn of mankind. There is a delicate, precarious balance bet... more

Training Guides to Blog, What Fun!

These days, being a fly fishing guide is not as much about a long beard with left-over pizza, a giant chew in your ch... more

Not Necessarily a Fishing Story, but Still a Good One.

Forwarded to me from a client of ours, this is one post my daughter loved sitting on my lap as I posted. She now wan... more

Skate The Fly -- Goes Big Time!

So it may have been evident for some time to some people that this was going to happen and to the rest it might be a ... more

Too Much Time at Home= Fly Tying Videos!

Dragon Leech Steelhead Fly (click here for video) I have not been fishing enough lately! Due to a number of factor... more

Driving Alongside Rivers...

I have grown up my entire life either on or in a river, swearing I wasn't on/in it, as of late dreaming of them and i... more

Happy Holiday Steelheading!

Here is wishing everyone in the world a happy and safe Thanksgiving weekend and a reminder that the fish don't know... more

Nymph Guy vs Swing Guy

For those who enjoy stirring the soup as I do and can laugh about, this is pretty funny. For those who take their st... more

Oprah and Fly Fishing - from Skate the Fly

There is a commonality amongst us EWA and related folk. Sometimes it is hard to find, other times it is getting hi... more

Wild Steelhead Retention on 8 O.P. Rivers

1. We close most of our rivers for the month of May to protect wild steelhead during their most prolific spawning se... more

Grande Ronde River, OR -- Mucho Bonito, Poquito Pescado

For over a decade, I have always looked forward to at least a week on either the John Day or the Grande Ronde Rivers ... more

Puget Sound in THIS IS FLY!

Most recent issue of This is Fly has a piece on Puget Sound featured in it. Check it out by clicking the picture ab... more

Skate the Fly T.V. -- Episode #3

Skate the Fly T.V. -- Episode #3

In this episode, Dylan Rose and I welcome our good and long time friend Coach Duff or Terry as we love to call him to... more

Bolivia -- HOLY CRAP -- Must Go Back!

Bolivia -- HOLY CRAP -- Must Go Back!

First I will apologize for the giant delinquency in our blog posting to the 7 of you who read this. While 16 of us h... more

Fall Steelheading...Oh Yeah!

Fall Steelheading...Oh Yeah!

As fall arrives in our region, some anglers begin to feel a bit anxious, almost hormonal in a way. It's the change i... more

Online Magazines

This is as good as it gets and is the future of our industry. Not only blogging but virtual magazines that encapsula... more

Awkward Silence...Broken or Perpetuated?

As the summer season prepares to bid us adieu and in our case it seems quite hastily, I reflect upon all the memorabl... more

Post-it-Note Fly

Every once in a while a truly inspired fly pattern is developed. The Parachute Adams, the Elk Hair Caddis, the San J... more

A Guide Laments - Issue #2

This doesn't look so bad I know, but keep reading... So we know it is a part of our job, a job we have chosen to da... more

2nd Installment: Steelhead Inspired Wine

There seems to be a theme here, many fly anglers have their hands in the wine making business as we will continue t... more

Fly Anglers and their Dogs

A new photo contest from our good friend Greg Thomas at Anglers Tonic hopes to exploit the bond between man and canin... more

Excerpt from an angling mother.

This morning my mom, Susan, sent me the following email: "The Powder is roaring, irrigation water being let out of P... more

Film: Lost World of Mr. Hardy

For many here in the PNW, I think this movie will be of considerable interest. Spey angling steelheaders, and oth... more

Urban Fly-Fish Guiding

My wife works for a big financial firm and when we go to holiday events with her co-workers, I dress up and look ev... more

The Ten Thousand Sounds of the River

Fishing creeks lately has gotten me reminiscing about the good old days when I first began fly fishing. I would spen... more

1st Annual Bug Launcher - successful!

A couple weeks ago, my dad, Mike McCoy hosted a small, by invitation only, fly casting games/competition down at his... more

A river in Alaska that is not a salmon trip!

Landed in Fairbanks on the 16th of July, drank beer and packed gear into dry bags, rod tubes, action packers, etc. B... more

Skate the Fly T.V. -- Episode #2

Holy cow, this has been in the works for along time and I am mixed with emotions from scared to excited and frighte... more

Western Cascade mountain creek......rainbows?

Let the record show that I began this post by saying the following: I think Cutthroats are awesome. The rich, gol... more

W"h"ine about Steelhead

So there is no lack of whining about steelhead fishing in our community for a multitude of reasons; weather, poor ma... more

A Fought for Bone

Here's a nice fish landed yesterday. Now for the story. The day before I was supposed to fish with this guy (Ta... more

Tight Quarters - Volume 1

As a fly fishing guide, and one taking this profession seriously, I love nothing more than clients new to the sport.... more

Light Switches and Saltwater

So it isn't as though this is new but I get the feeling many have been sitting around, waiting to see if the fad of ... more

Tough Stuff

P-Line has been on the market for quite a while and hordes of gear fishermen can attest to the incredible performan... more

Recycled Beadheads

While tying nymphs for an upcoming trip I ran out of beadheads. Why I procrastinate and wait until midnight the... more

Surf Fishing in SoCal

Well, going in, I knew this wouldn't be the easiest of fisheries to tackle. Open exposure to the Pacific Ocean, head... more

The art, skill and passion of Harry Lemire

Harry Lemire, legendary steelhead fly angler of the Pacific NW exudes his passion and reflections of decades angling... more

No More Training Wheels

I recently took up spey casting, and in doing so I learned a great deal about why fly fishing is important to me. ... more

Busted in Mexico

So the title doesn't quite explain the whole idea of this post. Yes, I have been busted in Mexico for not being ver... more

Frank Smethurst, first winter run steelhead

Well over a decade ago, I moved to Telluride, Colorado in my former career (if you can call it that) as a ski race c... more

Thank you spineless cowards...

Not much to say here other than I can't believe the levels some will stoop to. If you keyed one of our company sub... more

Sometimes you just wanna catch a fish

This past weekend I flew down to San Francisco for my buddy's (www.reddheadflyfishing.com) birthday. We drove up to ... more

Way early but not complaining...

It is a bit early in the year to be focusing on the forks of the Snoqualmie but, when the flows are around 500 on t... more

First "Hatch" of the Year in Puget Sound

Hatches as most people consider them don't really occur in the the local saltwater of Puget Sound but for those of ... more