Fly Patterns for Stillwaters
By Philip Rowley
Frank Amato Publications, Inc.
2000
106 pages
$29.95 (USD)

British Columbia is one of the richest and most diverse fly-fishing locations in the world. Fly fishers have the opportunity to pursue a myriad of species from trout, salmon, char steelhead even bass. Within this vast geographic region runs a spine of some of the most productive lakes in western North America. It is not surprising that many B.C. fly anglers hold a soft spot for stillwater fly-fishing. Personally it is my favorite place to pursue fish on the fly.

I began as others had before tying patterns that local legends such as Jack Shaw and Bill Nation had popularized. Flies such as Doc Spratley's, Carey Specials and Black O' Lindsay's all took station in my fly boxes. Today only the Carey makes the odd guest appearance. At first finding impressionistic patterns was challenging, as most were well-kept secrets or hybrids that migrated from rivers and streams. As my knowledge both on the water and behind the vise grew so did the number of successful patterns in my fly box, most self-designed.

My struggles and experiences planted a seed that a book of proven stillwater fly patterns might be a good idea. Finally, I garnered the courage to approach a number of publishers about the possibility of writing a book. A phone call from Frank Amato late one afternoon shook my dream into reality. Buoyed by this acceptance I set about creating Fly Patterns For Stillwaters, a book aimed at linking an understanding of the available food sources within productive stillwaters to successful fly design. Three and one half years later the book hit the shelves and the success has been overwhelming. Tempering the ups and downs of putting such a project together. The panic of wondering if I would encounter certain hatches in order to test concepts and more importantly get the images I needed. Callibaetis just about drove me to fits. Then there was the fly tying shots themselves, as I sent over 700 labeled slides to the publisher. Proof reading followed by more proof reading, at times I swear between the images and prose I was seeing triple. At times I thought it read fantastic other times I wanted to take a lighter to whole works. Turns out my thoughts were somewhat prophetic as the courier truck my slides were transported in burst into flames between Seattle and Portland, fortunately the slides where in the "cool" end of the truck.

When Fly Patterns For Stillwaters hit the shelves in late 2000 it was an instant hit. Being available right before Christmas didn't hurt either. Within a year the first edition was gone from the shelves. Buoyed by the acceptance and success of Fly Patterns For Stillwaters interested fly fisher and tiers should stay tuned as other ventures will be forthcoming including additional books and videos.

"Because you never stop learning"