If fly fishing had an All-Star Game, names like Kreh, Barr, Anderson, Clouser, Gawesworth, Lawson, Meck, and Waller would undoubtedly make the cut. In 1001 Fly Fishing Tips, expert advice from these fly fishers--and others--is presented in 12 chapters covering casting, wading, presentations, leaders, tippets, knots, hatches, seasons, travel, and more.

This advice is presented in short, easy-to-read packages. In “Casting Weight,” for instance, Bob Clouser explains his favorite strokes for casting weighted flies, sinking lines, and split-shot. In two pages, you learn how to roll-cast a sinking line, prevent tangles, open your loops, single and double water haul, avoid overhanging obstacles, and shoot line. Dave Hall illustrates the various techniques with more than 200 drawings of everything from rigging foam indicators with the improved slip knot to how fish feed during various stages of insect emergences.

Packed with good information, 1001 Fly Fishing Tips makes it easy to navigate your way into expert territory.

DVDs
Soulfish
Soulfish: A Fly-Fishing Adventure, Burl Productions, burlproductions.com, 130 minutes, $29.99.

The brainchild of documentarian and fish fanatic Mikey Wier, the latest edition of Soulfish asks the question--and elucidates the answer--why we fly-fish. We see the sportembraced through characters such as Andy Burk, Jack Dennis, Loren Elliott, and Rachel Andras.

Wier sets the tone in Mongolia with big flies--gangly double-squirrel poppers--and even bigger fish and broken rods.

Otherlocales include the Brazilian Amazon, Belize, the Florida Keys, Louisiana,and Christmas Island. Closer to home we meet American fly-casting champion Lance Egan and sit down with pioneers including Lefty Kreh, Brian O’Keefe, and Jack Dennis.

Wier asks, “Is fly fishing a hobby, sport, lifestyle, or religion?” In the end, this entertaining story proves it’s all of the above.

All the Best: A Conversation with Flip Pallot & Lefty Kreh
All the Best: A Conversation with Flip Pallot & Lefty Kreh, Collectors Covey, collectorscovey.com, 4:50 minutes, two disks $29.95.

There are no exotic and distant fly-fishing destinations in this DVD, just two fishermen and miles of uncharted conversation. But whether waving a rod or not, Lefty Kreh, with his wicked wit, always commands attention.

Flip Pallot sits down with Lefty, and through questions and answers, opens a window into the life of one of the sport’s legends. Lefty grew up in a rent- subsidized ghetto on the outskirts of Baltimore with his mother, two brothers, and sister. Overcoming the adversities of poverty and his father’s untimely death, Lefty’s life meanders through such monumental American cultural swings as the Great Depression and World War II, where he saw active duty during a cold, bloody winter in the Battle of the Bulge.

Lefty’s fishing interests were sparked at a young age, and fueled by his fly-fishing mentor Joe Brooks. Lefty tells about speaking engagements as a knot expert, a brief romp as a traveling pool shark, his burgeoning writing career, developing the Deceiver, and redefining fly fishing by revolutionizing many of its techniques and instructional theories.

Lefty’s compelling life story is now on record for posterity thanks to this DVD.