Basic Fly Fishing for the Reasonably Competent

This is a far cry from your father's stuffy, effete how-to book on fly fishing. It assumes you're not a wealthy snob who understands Latin, but it does expect you to have a sense of humor and the willingness to give this wonderful pastime a try. And if you are a Latin-speaking snob, I hope you read it anyway - it's never too late to be cured of that unpleasant affliction. Written for beginners interested in one of life’s greatest pastimes, Basic Fly Fishing for the Reasonably Competent is a simple, step-by-step guide that provides everything you need to know to master the basics—with no unnecessary information, no complicated diagrams and none of the high-brow Latin terminology found in most fly fishing books. You won’t need a degree in fish and bug science to master the art of fly fishing—you just need to be curious (and reasonably competent). Basic Fly Fishing for the Reasonably Competent delivers common sense instruction on the why, how, when and where of fly fishing. Combining the author’s 50+ years of fly fishing, a crisp writing style and a sense of humor, this book is all the novice needs to quickly be throwing artful casts using the right flies with a reasonable chance of catching a fish.

Jerry O'Connell has been fly fishing since he was 12. Having learned the basics on the murky waters of northern New Jersey, he continued to hone his skills as he fished ever-increasingly clear waters in New England, Canada, the Caribbean and New Zealand before eventually settling on-and in-the crystalline rivers of Montana. Following a career in the software industry in New England, Jerry has become active in the restoration and preservation of Montana's Big Blackfoot River. He founded The Big Blackfoot Riverkeeper program where he is executive director, and is a board member of the Big Blackfoot Chapter Trout Unlimited. He and his fly fishing wife Deborah, with several dogs and horses, now enjoy a life of quiet solitude in western Montana.