• Barr Flies: How to Tie and Fish the Copper John, the Barr Emerger by John Barr

    John Barr is one of the esteemed fly designers for Umpqua Feather Merchants. He has honed his patterns and variations fishing the stories rivers and lakes near his home in Boulder, Colorado. The photography in the book was produced by another famed fly designer, Mr. Charlie Craven. Barr Flies offer crisp instructional photographs accompanying the tying instruction, hints and tips. Mr. Barr provides background to each of the illustrated patterns and includes tips on when and how to fish them solo and within multiple-fly rigs. The step by step instructions are well illustrated and easy to follow along. Includes popular patterns such as the Barr Emerger, Copper John, Slumpbuster and 17 other patterns.

  • The Founding Flies by Mike Valla

    The Founding Flies: 43 American Masters: Their Patterns and Influences by Mike Valla

    Mike Valla has penned several books and has come to be known as a trustworthy source for fly tying history. The book is beautifully written and includes 40 chapters covering 43 historically important American fly tyers. Each chapter bring focus to one or two of these masters and highlights their career achievements, milestones and a selection of fly patterns that helped cement their names into modern fly tyer nomenclature.

    The book is wonderfully adorned with color photos of the flies and includes pattern recipes for nearly 300 flies. Included among the famous tyer profiles, past and present, are Art Flick, Ray Bergman, Lee Wulff, Don Gapen, Len Halladay, André Puyans, Cal Bird, Lew Oatman, Dave Whitlock and 34 other influential anglers who made their mark in fly tying.

    Author: Mike Valla
    Format: Hardcover-spiral 320 pages
    Publisher: Stackpole/Headwater (August 1, 2013)
    ISBN: 0811708330

  • The Fly Tying Bible: 100 Deadly Trout and Salmon Flies in Step-by-Step Photographs – Peter Gathercole

    Avid sport fishermen will treasure this book—which is nearly as beautiful as the objects it describes. Fly-tying is a highly prized fisherman’s craft, but it’s also an art form, wonderfully captured in this volume’s hundreds of color photos. Each of 100 fly patterns is presented in a two-page spread: an enlarged photo and textual description on the left-hand page, complemented with a set of step-by-step, clearly captioned photos on the facing page. In addition, fishing enthusiasts will find sections on fly-tying tools and materials plus general instructions for getting started. The author, a well-known fly-tier and sport fisherman gives instructions on making traditional trout and salmon flies—all of them fish catchers of proven effectiveness in the United States, Canada, Europe, and Australia. Examples vary in complexity, with patterns to fit every skill level from novice to expert fly-tier. Here are dry flies, nymphs and bugs, wet flies, streamers, and hairwings—a virtually complete selection of traditional and up-to-date examples of the art. The book’s hidden spiral binding keeps its pages opened flat, which makes it ideal for reference at the workbench. More than 600 color photos.

    The book is easy to read and follow and the spiral binding makes it easy to have beside you as you tie flies. The images are clear and each pattern also includes a listing of intended species each fly has been tied for. the patterns are also separated into categories, so finding the right fly for your next fishing trip is made simple.

    Author: Peter Gathercole
    Format: Hardcover-spiral 256 pages
    Publisher: Barron’s Educational Series (March 1, 2003)
    ISBN: 9780764155505