Christmas is right around the corner and honestly, it snuck up on me as fast as it probably did you. It is time for egg nog (which shouldn’t be out in September, local grocery stores … come on!), the smell of pine in the house, animals and/or toddlers knocking over the tree in the living room at least a few times, and arguably the most important thing – gift giving.And picking a gift for an angler, especially a fly fisher, is quite the easy thing. Or, that is how it would seem.
If your first inclination is to buy a new piece of tackle for the angler such as a rod, a reel, a line, or lures/flies/the like, put your credit card down now.
In my humble opinion, unless the angler in your life has specifically told you exactly what you want, blind buying new tackle is just about the worst thing you could do.
The seasoned (read: jaded) angler is a picky, finicky being about what they want in their personal quiver. Take me for example when it comes to a fly rod: I want something slow to medium in action, preferably fiberglass or bamboo, and I want it to be something that I have tested and found that I truly enjoy fishing with. If a loved one in my life bought me some fast action graphite rod that requires you to swing your arm like a crazed maniac to cast out a streamer, it would most likely sit in the corner of my office until I find a buyer for it on eBay so I can put the money towards a rod that I know I will enjoy.
It goes the same for flies, reels, and especially fly lines. Now of course, I would be grateful towards my loved one for thinking about me and my insane, mind/wallet/time controlling hobby, but inside I would be steaming that I now have something that I wouldn’t use.
Now, this might seem like I am just being a (insert any crude insult here) , but anyone who has a hobby or craft that they are passionate about should know where I am coming from. You don’t buy a Makita saw for a Stihl person (well, you should never buy a Makita anyway). You don’t buy a Janome for a Singer person. You don’t buy a Milwaukee for a DeWalt person.
People at a certain level or skill of their hobby or craft know what they like, and they usually would like to keep it that way.
So here is my first gift suggestion for the angler in your life–a gift card to a fly shop or outdoor store that they enjoy. For the Boundary County fly fisher, I would recommend a gift card to two main fly shops around us: The fly shop in North 40 in Ponderay or an even better suggestion, a gift card to Shoo Fly Fishing Company in Troy, Montana.
Both places have everything the angler would need: fly rods, reels, lines, flies of all kinds, clothing, boots, waders, gear of all types. And it allows the angler to choose what he or she wants themselves. A gift card is always a great choice.
Now, I did leave out our local fly shop in this suggestion. Last Resort in downtown Bonners Ferry is a great fly shop that I have bought from quite a bit over the last year or two. There is a good choice of flies and clothing, and a smattering of other gear and I will always recommend visiting the shop.
However, it is only really open during the hot fishing months of the year, and I longingly look into the winter during these cold months wishing for the door to open and let me in from the cold. However, I am mentioning them in this article for a different reason.
Leeanna Young has been a friend of mine since I met her at a fly tying class a while back, and she has been a very good resource to have even for a river I have fished my whole life like the Kootenai. She knows the river as good or better than everyone else, and she runs guided trips through the Last Resort.
She has spent more than 20 years floating the Kootenai, and I know she will put you on trout no matter what. Not only that, but she is just a great human being to be around and the fishing scene in the town would not be what it is without her.
You can purchase a guided trip from their website, and you can even see what other rivers that they are guiding floats on, which include the Snake and the Salmon.
If a gift card seems a bit impersonal to you, and a guided trip is a bit out of your budget, I have a few options for gifts to the average fly angler.
First, I can direct you to my last article about fly fishing books, or give me a ring down at the bookstore or shoot me an email at james.standal@gmail.com if you want some other recommendations (I have read a lot, and I mean a lot, of fishing books).
A framed picture/print of their favorite fish species, local animal, or local area would be a great idea. A fly box or a new pair of line nippers are always welcome to the fisherman. For a fly box, I would recommend the new FishPond Magpads. They are honestly one of the best simple, new products on the market. It is basically the old fly pucks that every fly shop used to (and many still do) give you your flies in, but they are waterproof and have a magnet on the bottom to hold your flies in so they don’t flop out. Once I tried one out, I suddenly had four or five more of them, and they are all I use. They make a great stocking stuffer at a cheap price.
Now, let us get down and dirty and real: socks. Warm wool socks. For every angler, every outdoorsman or woman. Everyone could use more warm wool socks. The same goes for wool gloves. For the angler, nice fingerless wool gloves–the type without Thinsulate– are an absolute godsend during the chilly months for any activity outside. A nice wool toque is always a great thing to find under the tree as well.
For something a bit more niche, but that I highly recommend to everyone (as long as you drink coffee) is a nice stainless steel coffee kettle that the person in your life can take out with them on their outdoor excursions. A day in the woods is a wonderful thing but trust me, a day in the woods with a coffee kettle for a nice, fresh brew is even better. I use a reasonably priced kettle from FireMaple that works great, and Uberleben out of Bonners here also puts out a nice pot that could be used for coffee along with some great little stoves and fire starters.
With this short little article, list, whatever you want to call it, I hope I at least helped one person out there decide on a gift for a loved one. It is never easy to buy the perfect gift for someone, but a gift is just that–a gift. Make it a good one, and enjoy the greatest gift of all this Christmas season: spending time with your loved ones.
Tight lines out there, friends.
P.S. If my wife is reading this, I hope you learned a thing or two … I love you.