Fly Tying Series with W.R.I.

Fly Tying Series with Wenatchee Valley Fly Fishers’ Bruce Merighi and the Wenatchee River Institute

Do you fly fish or would you like to fly fish? Then you need flies! Learn the basics of fly tying from Wenatchee Valley Fly Fishers’ Bruce Merighi. This is a five-Tuesday series Feb. 11 – Mar. 10, 6-8PM in Wenatchee River Institute’s Red Barn, 347 Division St. in Leavenworth. There is nothing like catching a fish with a fly you hand tied.

Enjoy small-group instruction by Merighi and the Wenatchee Valley Fly Fishers, assisted by the Trout Unlimited Icicle Valley Chapter. Learn about fly-fishing equipment, philosophy and the basic entomological connections between aquatic food sources and local fish -with minimal Latin. Each student will come away with an understanding of beginning fly tying techniques, including the use of tools and various fly tying materials enabling the independent tying of diverse patterns.

“Tying a fly is more than bringing together materials to create a lure. It’s realizing you must learn so much more in order to fish correctly with a fly. Its not just randomly trolling, casting with large lures, or chucking a glob of fish food out from shore in hopes a fish might randomly swim by and take the bait. It’s first understanding why a fish would take your offering and then bringing together those materials to create an appealing fly,” tells Merighi.

Merighi received his first fly-fishing outfit for his 8th birthday. After losing most of the flies from the kit amongst tree branches and between deep rocks, he bought a few hooks, gathered a few strands of Christmas tinsel and together with dust bunnies collected from under his bed, he tied his first flies. From then on, Merighi was hooked!

Find out more about observing the natural habitat of the fish species you are perusing to determine the best appearance and action of your entomological creation. You will then be able to experience the satisfaction of catching fish with your own hand tied flies.

All materials and tools are provided. Students will leave with 6-8 flies to begin new fly-fishing adventures. Class size is limited to 12, is designed for ages 15 and up with skill levels from beginner to Intermediate. Please contact Rachel Bishop with questions, rbishop@wenatcheeriverinstitute.org or 509-548-0181 x5.

Series cost is $60 for WRI-members and $70 for non-members, including all five evenings with materials and tools provided.

Event link: https://wenatcheeriverinstitute.org/event-calendar.html/event/2020/02/11/fly-tying-series/274359
Additional Links: http://wenatcheevalleyflyfishers.com/ and https://iciclevalley.tu.org/