Fish Untamed

April Vokey is the host of the Anchored Podcast and founder of Anchored Outdoors. On her podcast, April captures the stories, thoughts, and passions of our elders within the fly fishing and outdoors worlds, bridging the gap between generations and ensuring that these stories are able to live on for years to come. Anchored Outdoors is her newest venture, a membership website covering fishing, subsi...

Kip Vieth is the owner of Wildwood Float Trips out of Monticello, MN, and also the author of the Orvis Guide to Muskies on the Fly, set to be released October of 2020. In this episode, Kip walks me through all things musky fly fishing. Having never cast a single fly for muskies, I’m a complete newbie, and as Kip describes, it’s somewhat night and day compared to fly fishing for other species like...

Brian Barney is a hunter, angler, and all-around outdoorsman. He is the host of the Eastmans’ Elevated and Eastmans’ Fly Cast podcasts. This episode was a bit of a grab bag of topics, as Brian and I met up on Zoom to have a virtual campfire chat. We went in without any specific topic in mind, and ended up having a great conversation about everything from chasing grayling in Alaska, to our favorite...

Chad Williams is a guide and manager of Total Outfitters, a fly shop and guide service in SW Montana. Total Outfitters works with anglers of all skill levels and has recently been focusing more on introducing trout spey to the areas they fish, particularly the Bitterroot River. In this episode, Chad walks me through trout spey, a technique I’m familiar with in theory but have never tried. We cover...

Jason Rieke is an engineering student turned trout bum. He spends his summers guiding in the Rockies, and when he’s not with clients, he’s most likely fishing himself. Because of the sheer amount of time he spends on the water, Jason’s become skilled in a wide variety of tactics, but his go-to flies are streamers. As someone who has relatively little experience fishing streamers, I was eager to pi...

Mark Livesay is a well-known name in the e-scouting world. A favorite guest among hunting podcasts, Mark is the founder of Treeline Pursuits, a website and course that teach the ins and outs of e-scouting for elk. In the summers when he’s not chasing elk, Mark spends a great deal of time fly fishing the area around Yellowstone, and he applies similar techniques to searching for hidden gem fishing...

Sara Camiscioni is the founder of Find Your Strong with Sara, a program created to help others achieve their outdoor goals. Sara coaches everyone from kayakers to hunters and everyone in between. Instead of focusing on working out for the sake of working out, she believes in using exercise and nutrition to be safer, more confident, and more capable during the activities we want to do. She also bel...

Aaron Reed is the author of Fly Fishing Austin & Central Texas. In this episode, we talk about the book and fishing around the Austin area, including some of the unique species available there. Later in the show, we move onto more classic fly fishing banter, like our thoughts on the fly fishing film industry, why people gravitate toward certain species, and the comparison between fly fishing and b...

Susan Thrasher is a guide and owner of Southern Brookies Fly Fishing, an outfitter based in Tennessee. She’s also the author of a new book, Thrasher’s Fly Fishing Guide. This is a great all-around guide book for anyone interested in fly fishing, from the beginner to the advanced angler. In this episode, Susan and I chat about her background, what inspired her to write her book, and the next genera...

Brenda Costa is the Executive Director of the French Creek Valley Conservancy, which is a private 501(c)3 non-profit land trust dedicated to maintaining and enhancing the exceptional water quality, natural habitat, biological diversity, and recreational opportunities of the French Creek Watershed in Northwest Pennsylvania. In this episode, Brenda shares her story with French Creek, how the FCVC wo...

Robbz Olson is one of the hosts of the Aquarium Guys Podcast. Although mostly focused on aquarium fish, The Aquarium Guys also do “out of the tank” episodes covering related topics, like fishing. I was recently invited to join them to talk about fly fishing, and now Robbz is returning the favor. As an avid aquarium hobbyist, Robbz has (perhaps unfortunately) become quite familiar with the issue of...

Mike Raether is a backpacker, fly fisher, hunter, and camper. He is the author of over 50 articles in national and regional magazines such as Bugle, Northwest Fly Fishing, and Montana Outdoors. Last spring, he published a fishing guide titled Flyfisher’s Guide to Northwest Montana’s Mountain Lakes. In this episode, we discuss the use of pack goats as a backcountry fly fishing aid. Mike covers how...

Until his recent retirement, Bill Somer was a Sr. Environmental Scientist with the CA Department of Fish and Wildlife. Much of his career was spent working on the conservation of a native species of cutthroat trout, the Paiute. Once on the brink of extinction, this fish has made an impressive comeback thanks to the hard work of folks like Bill and his colleagues. In this episode, we talk about the...

Jay Benjamin is the co-founder of Big Sky Rentals, a company focused on renting out fishing, hunting, and camping gear. The cost of technical outdoor equipment can be limiting, especially for those new to a sport. Additionally, traveling with gear is often a hassle. Rental gear addresses both of these problems, and Jay’s goal is to provide high-quality, low-cost, low-stress rental options. We get...

Jen Ripple is the Editor-in-Chief of DUN Magazine, a fly fishing magazine written by women and for women. After writing a women’s column for another magazine, Jen realized there wasn’t yet a women-focused publication in the fly fishing world and decided to start one of her own. While DUN is by no means meant to exclude men (and Jen mentions how many of her readers actually are men), it does offer...

Jake Roy is a fly fishing guide with Wilderness Place Lodge in Alaska. Although many people will want to book a guided trip if they head north, Alaska is also very doable as a DIY “exotic” destination for those of us from the lower 48. In this episode, Jake walks me through what to expect when planning a trip, including when to go, what you can catch, how to bring fish home, and how to hire a plan...

Lukas Leaf is the Executive Director of Sportsmen for the Boundary Waters and is on the board of the MN chapter of Backcountry Hunters and Anglers. This episode starts with a little discussion of what the Boundary Waters Canoe Area is, why it’s important to so many people, and what the fishing is like throughout the year. Then, we get into the current threats to the Boundary Waters, most notably a...

Scott Bosse is the Northern Rockies Director of American Rivers, an organization that protects wild rivers, restores damaged rivers, and conserves clean water for people and nature. In this episode, Scott and I talk about Wild and Scenic Rivers, which are rivers that have been designated for protection due to their unique and outstanding qualities. We talk about what it takes for a river to make t...

Eddy Wittry was, until recently, the Program Lead for the Denver chapter of Project Healing Waters, a non-profit dedicated to helping disabled veterans through fly fishing, fly tying, and rod building. This program benefits vets suffering from both physical and mental disabilities by transitioning them back into civilian life at their own pace, using the therapeutic qualities of time on the water...

Mike Sprague is the founder and CEO of Trout Headwaters, Inc., an ecological restoration design and build firm. Mike and his team focus on repairing damaged streams, wetlands, and riparian areas to bring them back to their former glory, and he believes that ecology and economy can and should coexist in order to derive the best benefit for all. In this episode, we get into some of the common threat...

Mel and I have been friends for years, and she’s one of my favorite people to fish with. So naturally, when she decided to spend a month fishing in New Zealand, I wanted to pick her brain about her trip and the logistics behind planning a destination fly fishing trip. Mel did her trip totally DIY, and she shares plenty of tips for anyone looking to do a trip over there. Of course, we also got into...

Mel and I have been friends for years, and she’s one of my favorite people to fish with. So naturally, when she decided to spend a month fishing in New Zealand, I wanted to pick her brain about her trip and the logistics behind planning a destination fly fishing trip. Mel did her trip totally DIY, and she shares plenty of tips for anyone looking to do a trip over there. Of course, we also got into...

Jacob Knight is the Director of Business Development at GoWild, a social media platform built for outdoorsmen of all types. Whether you like hunting, fishing, hiking, or birdwatching, you can find likeminded people and meaningful conversations on the GoWild app. Jacob and I talk about the platform, as well as his experiences fly fishing and teaching his kids how to fish.   GoWild – Jacob Knight In...

Landon DeKeyser is the host of The Fishing Podcast and a well-rounded angler from Michigan. In this episode, we chat a bit about his podcast, what he has in store for season 2, and the varied fishing techniques he uses to catch fish in his home state. We cover fly fishing, ice fishing, and Landon’s hunt for big brown trout.   Instagram: @thefishingpodcast Facebook: /thefishingpodcast Website: http...

Ali Bair is a fly fishing guide and producer on an upcoming documentary called “Daughter of the White River.” Ali and I have been good friends for years, and decided to have a beer together over the phone and talk about the movie, the fly fishing film world, and some of our favorite memories fishing together. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices