The Balanced Leech Collaboration
The Rest of the Story With hundreds of new fly patterns arriving on the scene every year, it’s…
If you asked Chip O’Brien whether he preferred fly fishing or writing about it, it could go either way. As a kid, he fanaticized about learning the ways of the long rod, and his love for writing barely managed to keep pace.
O’Brien worked as a Northern California fly fishing guide for fourteen seasons and a Regional Manager for CalTrout. O’Brien currently resides in Spokane, Washington within easy striking distance of the Idaho Panhandle and Montana. He retired from teaching, fished all over the West, got bored, and now works in a fly shop in Spokane. He has been a contributor to California Fly Fisher since the early 1990s. His other titles include River Journal: Sacramento River (1996) and California’s Best Fly Fishing (2009).
27 posts
Reflections: Almost Perfect
Perhaps the moon was in the Seventh House and Jupiter aligned with Mars, but it was late afternoon…
Getting Down with Chironomids
I’ve been fly fishing most of my life, and it’s scary to realize how many years that actually…
F-Bombs in the Air at Manzanita Lake
Bleeeep!!! I was startled when the F-bomb erupted from someone’s mouth and echoed through the clear mountain air,…
NorCal Winter Fishing Opportunities
Charles Dickens had something else in mind when he penned the words, “It was the best of times,…
My Favorite Northern California Trout Waters
I’ve always felt that reminiscing about the past should be done sparingly, lest one take their eye off…
The McCloud in Summer
When the searing heat of a typical Northern California summer registers somewhere between Holy cow! and How many…
The Bird’s Nest After Cal Bird
Anyone who has ever learned to spin fur and feathers on a hook has experienced the nearly irresistible…
The Pit River Puzzle
When you’ve floated your hat in the Pit River as many times as I have, two choices rise…
Fly Fishing the Desolation Wilderness
If you can find a way to feel desolate in the Desolation Wilderness, the granite-crowned, lake-studded wilderness area…