The Guide to Urban Fly Fishing: How to Explore and Enjoy Your Local Waters

A one-of-a-kind guide that reveals the accessibility, affordability, community, and unique adventures that urban waters offer.

While city dwellers often turn to hiking, biking, or simply enjoying a local park as healthy pastimes that don’t come with high costs or distant travel, one rewarding pursuit remains largely untapped in urban environments: fly fishing. For over a thousand years, fly fishing has been more than a method of harvesting food; it’s a source of immense joy, a pathway to understanding nature intimately, and a tradition that connects us to water and wildlife. But why should this enriching experience be confined to remote waters and rural landscapes? Why can’t we cast a line right in the heart of our cities?

The Guide to Urban Fly Fishing shatters the stigmas and preconceptions—elitism, exclusivity, and notions of purity—that have kept fly fishing from thriving in urban settings, revealing how the sport is truly accessible to all. More than just a how-to, the book provides the tools, resources, and diverse stories to help us discover the vibrant community and joy of urban fly fishing.

Packed with dynamic photos, this book also serves as a comprehensive guide for those new to fly fishing in general, as well as for anglers who have yet to explore urban waters. Filled with practical
insights and tips from experienced urban anglers from several cities, it is also a call to action—inspiring us to advocate for the health of our urban waters and ecosystems.

"It's time to grab your fly rod, and this fine book, and explore the wild adventures available in the city."—Fly Fisherman

Marc Fryt, a US Army veteran, discovered fly fishing as a way to decompress and explore mountain rivers and streams during his military service as a helicopter pilot and operations officer. After leaving the service and moving to Columbus, Ohio, he took up urban fly fishing with the encouragement of local anglers and mentors. He is now an urban fly-fishing guide in Spokane, Washington State’s second-largest city. He brings years of writing and photography experience, having been published in numerous fishing and hunting magazines such as The Drake, Flyfish Journal, Backcountry Journal, Fly Culture, Covers, Project Upland, Kayak Angler, and American Fly Fishing. He is skilled in researching complex, technical information and distilling abstract ideas into content that readers can easily understand. For this book, he has pulled together diverse voices among urban anglers from various cities, consulted experts in multiple fields, and conducted research into scientific studies and textbooks. He is passionate about helping readers learn the skills of urban fly fishing so they can experience the same joy.