Bud “The Talent” Murray

When I first met Bud Murray nearly 30 years ago I just knew him as Bud the ex-coach who had a reputation as an all around good angler.   That was back in the early 80’s when I was doing time at Anglers Inn.  With a name like Bud who was a good stick, how could you not take him seriously.  As he was then, he is today at Western Rivers, a colorful character who is well respected and most always has a nice easy going smirk on his face. Occasional he is still referred to as coach, but he’s acquired a few more titles since my Anglers Inn days and those seem to fit his character just as well.

Since meeting him at Anglers Inn he’s become a part of the fabric and rich history of Western Rivers Flyfisher and at 77 and elder statesman of the morning Coffee Crew.   They gather daily for java at the shop to solve the worlds problems, plan their next fishing trip, talk about the weather or what a mess the world is, all before heading off to fish or make their next Dr’s appointment or to knock off an item from their never ending Honey Dew lists.  Life should be that casual for us all and the Coffee Crew bunch do a good job of making it seem so.  Given their collective age, especially the core of this group, they’ve earned that.

To read the rest of this throwback and other click here…

Gift Ideas for the Fly Fisher Week 4

Each week we are featuring 3 gifts our employees want under their tree’s this year. For the entire WRF Fishmas list and gift ideas click here…

Nick’s Fishmas List

Fishpond Hook Jaw River Tool: For the guy/gal who wants a little bit of everything in a cool, metal package. Built in the U.S.A. out of aluminum and titanium, this is a river tool that will not fall apart. The Hook Jaw comes with a cutting blade for leaders and tippet, bottle opener, and has a VERY accurate tippet and leader gauge that will keep you from wasting perfectly good leaders. For only $20.00, this makes a GREAT stocking stuffer!

Smith Creek Middle Fork Patch/Smith Creek Rig Keeper Dropper Rig System: Organization of flies and gear makes for more fun days on the water, period. These two new fly patches from Smith Creek are excellent choices for any angler wanting to streamline their fishing, and keep their flies open and available without fear of losing them. The Middle Fork fly patch has a solid pin mount that keeps it from being yanked off your vest, and has double-sided slit foam for storage of flies. The Rig Keeper/Dropper Rig system is tailor-made for those of us who LOVE to fish dropper rigs (i.e. ME). It too has double sided slit foam, and line grooves so you can literally wrap up your dry-dropper rigs without having to take them apart. These two fly patches are only $25.00 (Middle Fork) and $21.95 (Dropper Rig) respectively; a great gift for the angler who has everything, but still needs a little help in streamlining their fishing time!

Simms “Taco” Wader Bag: This is not the most “new” and “hip” gift item for 2015, but it is still one of my favorites and incredibly useful! Carrying your gear to and from your car, and keeping it from getting your car incredibly muddy is something that should never be underappreciated. It is a simple gear bag that also doubles as a wader mat for setting up on. Functionality, simplicity, and durability-nothing wrong with any of those attributes!
Retail: $30.00

Gift Ideas for the Fly Fisher Week 3

Each week we are featuring 3 gifts our employees want under their tree’s this year. For the entire WRF Fishmas list and gift ideas click here…

Skyler’s Fishmas List

Simms Kinetic Jacket: There is nothing like having a good insulated jacket while out on the water on those cold, brisk days. With a Primaloft fill and a durable water resistant shell, this is a go to for those cold fall and winter days on the water. A warm fisherman is a happy fisherman!

Nomad Nets: Ditch the old woven string basket net. These lightweight carbon fiber nets sport trout friendly clear rubber baskets which not only have significantly less impact on the fish, hey are also a far superior landing net. The great thing is they also come in a variety of lengths, shapes and finishes suiting each fisherman’s needs.

Tacky Fly Boxes: The new Tacky boxes are great. Instead of traditional foam which gets damaged or misshaped over time, these boxes sport incredibly durable, rubber silicone slits that you slide your fly right into. Thin, lightweight and clear, these are the perfect stocking stuffers for your angler to get organized.

Gift Ideas For the Fly Fisher Week 1

Stay tuned, each week we will be posting our own wish lists to help you find the perfect gift. To see the entire list click here…

Logan’s Fishmas List

Yeti Rambler Mugs: Just like the rest of us, it’s rare you’ll see me without a cup of coffee. I love my coffee and I like it hot and to stay hot when I get preoccupied or hit the water for a few hours.

The Yeti ramblers offer me a bombproof mug in a variety of sizes that I can rely on for my drinks to stay hot or cold for as long as I need.

Patagonia Flannel Lined Workwear Pants: For the bitter cold days that I want to stay warm and comfortable whether it be under my waders or around the camp. Being comfortable is crucial and these heavy duty canvas pants look like they don’t lack in warmth or durability.

Socks: Both Patagonia and Simms offer killer socks for wading or just every day wear. It seems that when my parents ask what I want for christmas, my first thought is socks! As I said before staying comfortable is crucial, and I’ve learned through experience that keeping my feet warm, dry, and comfy is an important factor that I often and regrettably overlook.

Patagonia Foot Tractor Review

The Patagonia Foot Tractor takes wading to a whole new level of comfort and traction. Several years ago we; Western Rivers staff had an opportunity to test these boots out on our annual shop trip. After 4 days of pounding around in them we were impressed. The Foot Tractor right out of the shoot was noticeably an improvement over the Aluma-Bar boot. After using the Patagonia Aluminum Bar Boot for the past 3 seasons (which still have plenty of life left in them), I left them behind this fall as I headed to BC for my first steelhead trip of the year and some of the most challenging wading anyone will be confronted with.

Regardless of the new bar and sole design of the boot, which is grabbing everyone’s attention, this was the most comfortable heavy duty wading boot I’ve ever worn.

Scott Women’s A4 Rod Review

Fly rods have come a long way in the last decade and I’ve noticed that fly rod companies are now starting to pay attention to fly rods that need to be designed for women.  Of those companies, I recently picked up the women’s A4 905-4 fly rod.  The first thing that comes to mind with this rod is its extremely versatile!

To continue reading the full rod review click here…

Winston Boron 3 LS Fly Rod Review

Fly rods and their impact on fly-fishing and the experience we’ve come to enjoy has morphed over the years and now more so than over the past decade. In the ever changing world of fast action fly rods R.L. Winston has stuck to its roots and developed a rod that bridges the gap between modern fly rod flexes and traditional technique. Enter the R.L. Winston BIII LS.

For a long time Winston has produced trout rods that have a full flexing profile, catering to the angler who revels in the cast, the presentation and the simplicity of a single dry fly. As our sport has grown, fly-fishing with a single dry fly has slowly been pushed aside in response to the various creative ways anglers have engineered to catch fish with a fly rod. Click here to read the full Winston LS review

Scientific Anglers Sharkwave Fly Line Review

At Western Rivers we’re picky about our fly rods and the fly lines we choose to get the most from a fly rods performance. When we tested the new Sharkwave flyline we approached it with some skepticism as we do with all new products before we get to test them, but after now casting and fishing this new textured fly line we believe this new fly line from Scientific Anglers to be an improvement in performance over  their original Sharkskin fly lines. When we can’t get out to fly-fish on one of our local waters we often find ourselves practicing our fly-casting at a local park.  It is very relaxing, improves our success, but it also allows us to try out new fly-lines as they come out. Click here to continue reading the rest of the review…

Hatch Fly Reel Review by Steve Schmidt

The Hatch Fly Reel company is a relatively new fly reel manufacturer that has risen to the top of premium fly reel companies in a short period of time.  I remember distinctly when I first came across this company; they only offered one very fine fly fishing reel.  That was unique for a new reel manufacturer: just one reel, one size, one color.   For several years  I followed this new innovative reel company and watched them mature.  Not long after learning of Hatch Reels I bought one.  It was the first non-Hardy trout reel I’ve ever owned and used since opening Western Rivers 28 years ago.  I was so impressed that shortly after that we brought them in to the shop even though my crew was somewhat hesitant because of their price.  That hesitancy didn’t last long, however.  Since then just about everyone in the shop now owns and fishes a Hatch Reel amd they have become our best selling premium fly reel. To read the rest of the review click here…

Sage Aluminum Travel Rod Tube Review

Fly-fishing rod tubes have been around for a long time. Looking back, Sage has offered a variety of cases and rod tubes over the years. Until recently most rod tubes, including theirs are constructed of Cordura, are round and are structurally supported by a PVC lining. Like their great line of fly rods, Sage now offers what I think is the best bomber rod tubes available. Instead of finding a Cordura and PVC tube their new rod tubes are constructed of brushed aluminum and are rectangular in shape rather than round. The year they were introduced I thought they were one of the best new products at the annual Fly-Tackle Retailer show. Now after purchasing one and having trekked it across continent’s I know for a fact that for traveling and protecting your precious fly rods, these rod tubes have no superiors. To read the full reivew click here…