The Orvis Fly-Fishing Podcast Podcast By Tom Rosenbauer The Orvis Company cover art

The Orvis Fly-Fishing Podcast

The Orvis Fly-Fishing Podcast

By: Tom Rosenbauer The Orvis Company
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About this listen

Produced by The Orvis Company and hosted by Tom Rosenbauer, author of The Orvis Fly-Fishing Guide, this podcast will provide you with tips on how to get the most of your time on the water. Read more about Orvis at www.orvis.com/podcast.The Orvis Company
Episodes
  • Who is the Finest Fishing Guide Who Ever Lived? With Monte Burke
    Jul 14 2025

    My guest this week is one of fly fishing's best writers and storytellers Monte Burke [31:35], whose writing you may have seen in Garden & Gun, Forbes, or The Drake—or perhaps you've read his book, and one of my favorite fishing books, Lords of the Fly. To discover who Monte, and many other people (including me) consider the finest fly-fishing guide who ever lived, you'll have to listen to the podcast. You'll also learn about his new book of stories, Rivers Always Reach the Sea.

    In the Fly Box this week, we have some questions that I think will help many other fly fishers solve problems they may have, including:
    A listener informs us about the different grain weights in standard fly lines, and how there is a much bigger percentage difference in lighter lines than heavier ones.
    What do you think about hooks that get left in a fish's mouth?
    What would you look for in an ideal brook trout spot?
    How can I keep panfish from grabbing my carp flies?
    Is there an advantage to silicone fly boxes over ones with foam strips?
    If I practice casting with my 4-weight fiberglass rod, will that affect my casting on other rods?
    How do you use a dubbing loop and when do you use one?
    The solid metal eyes on my redfish flies sink too quickly. Should I use bead chain or plastic eyes instead?
    What is it about CDL feathers that make it worth using?

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    1 hr and 10 mins
  • All About Public Lands and a Major Win, with Joel Pedersen of TRCP
    Jul 7 2025

    We've recently won a big battle for public lands, and my guest this week, Joel Pedersen [25:56] of Theodore Roosevelt Conservation Partnership, fills us in on what we've won and what we need to keep an eye on for the future. But the podcast is much more than that. Joel educates us on the differences between the major classes of public lands—National Forests, BLM land, National Parks, and Wilderness areas and just what uses are allowed on each—and who makes the decision on extractive industries in these vast tracts of land that WE as citizens and taxpayers own.

    In the Fly Box this week, as usual we have some great questions that might benefit your own fly fishing, including:


    I'm curious about who might be your successor on the podcast
    A listener informs us why he thinks a 4-weight rod is a better option for smaller streams than a 3-weight.
    Why do most of the hook eyes on flies orient horizontally? When would I want a fly with a vertically oriented eye?
    I have the Orvis Essential Trout Fly Selection. What else would I need for fishing the great Arkansas tailwaters this summer?
    Another listener asks if a 3-weight or 4-weight rod is better for small streams.
    When my indicator is bobbing along in riffles, does that action hurt my presentation?
    A good tip from a listener on how to get a stuck rod apart.
    What are the pros and cons of using a stand-up paddleboard for carp and pike fishing, and what brand do you recommend?
    I have not done well fishing as high water recedes. Is this typical?

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    1 hr and 7 mins
  • Secrets of an Award-Winning Guide, with Antoine Bissieux
    Jul 1 2025
    My guest this week is Antoine Bissieux [38:28], Orvis-Endorsed Guide of the Year for 2025. Antoine, otherwise known as The French Fly Fisherman, regularly fishes with and communicates with the top French competitive fly fishers, and has developed methods of fishing nymphs and dry flies as well as dry/dropper setups adapted from what he has learned from these world-class anglers. You'll learn some new techniques to make your fly fishing more effective and more interesting no matter where you fish. In the Fly Box this week, we have some questions that I think will help many other fly fishers solve problems they may have, including:
    • How can I tell what line is on my old reel?
    • Should I get a 3-weight or 4-weight rod for small streams?
    • Do those devices to remove flies from fish quickly really work?
    • I have seen carp opening up their mouths and taking repeated gulps of food from the surface. Is this common and what do you call it?
    • A fly shop told me that using tippet rings is not a good idea because I would break off fish. Is this true?
    • A listener reports on conditions on the rivers in western North Carolina after the floods.
    • I put a nick in my fly line and have to cut off the last 12 inches. Can I still use this line?
    • My foam flies keep landing upside-down. How can I correct this?
    • How should I fish streamers in clear pools where you can see right to the bottom?
    • How should I cast to a fish that is directly below a branch trailing in the water?
    • A suggestion from a listener on using a room dehumidifier to dry out waders and boots.
    • Can I rig two flies on a blood knot, using both sides of the knot, one longer and one shorter?
    • Would a 9-foot, 9-weight rod be the right one for fishing in Chesapeake Bay? And can I use the same rod for steelhead in Michigan?
    • I see a lot of goose feathers on my local golf course. Can I use these for biots on flies and which part should I use?
    • What can I do with saltwater flies where the hook has gotten slightly rusty?
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    1 hr and 32 mins
Most relevant  
Tom is very articulate and knowledgeable and makes each podcast very entertaining. highly recommend

excellent podcast

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Great podcast covering everything from fly patterns, gear, tactics, tying tips, habitat and much more.

Wealth of knowledge

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