New Hampshire fly fishing greats

[Ken B]

Just wondering if New Hampshire has any great historical fly fishing legends, say like a Carrie Stevens. Do we have any historical buffs here?

Ken

[Hoosier]

Lee Wulff was from the Keene area. Not sure if he was born in NH though.

[Hoosier]

Did a search and found he (Lee Wulff) was born in Valdez, Alaska. He and his wife Joan Wullf both did live around Keene at one time.

[Owl's Roost]

I'm not sure there has ever been or will ever be a fly tier as prolific as Carrie Stevens, but NH does have some pretty famous tiers of it's own. The one that comes to my mind is Jim Warner. Jim can lay claim to patterns like the Winnipesaukee Smelt. He made a his mark in streamer production and still ties some. He has been written about for years. He was a production tier and owned a sport shop in Wolfeboro. Other patterns Jim is noted for are Babbs Ghost, Wolfeboro Bay, Meredith Bay, Melvin Bay, Bicentennial Smelt, and the 10 Feather Streamer series. JIm now lives in Tuftonboro and still ties. His use of marabou was his claim to fame I think. In my humble opion he is truly a legend. :D

[flytackle]

I believe "Tap" Tapply (and his son Bill) had/have a home in NH. The great outdoor writer Corey Ford had a beautiful stone home in Freedom that still stands - a real sportsmans palace overlooking the mountains and Osippee lake. His story "The Road To Tinkhamtown" is one of the best hunting stories ever written - and full of NH scenes like this; ("Shad" is his dog):

They had come to the stream, and Shad had trotted across the bridge. He had followed more cautiously, avoiding the loose planks. On the other side of the stream the road mounted steeply to a clearing in the woods, and he halted before the split-stone foundation of a house, the first of a series of farms shown on the map.
Shad's bell had been moving along the stone wall at the edge of the clearing and he had strolled after him, thinking about the people who had gone away and left their walls to crumble and their buildings to collapse under the winter snows. Had they ever come back to Tinkhamtown? Were they here now, watching him unseen? His toe stubbed against a block of hewn granite hidden by briers, part of the sill of the old barn. Once it had been a tight barn, warm with cattle steaming in their stalls, He liked to think of it that way; it was more real than this bare rectangle of blocks. He'd always felt that way about the past. Doc used to argue that what's over is over, but he would insist Doc was wrong. Everything is the way it was, he'd tell Doc. The past never changes.

Dick Surrete, Dick Stewart and Farrow Allen, all of whome contributed mightily to the fly tying world, called NH home at one time. Did Bob Elliot live in NH? He had a good run of books awhile back, though not exclusively fly fishing. Tight lines, Alec

[BugChucka]

Dick Talleur is one of today's notable tiers who lives in NH.

[fessiewig]

Dick has moved to the Mid-Atlantic states someplace.

[BugChucka]

Darn!

[Mountain Angler]

I would loke to add Ora Smith to the list. He lives in Keen and created a great many patterns that are still fished. He is probably best known for the Manard's Marvel, which he did not create, but certinaly made it the popular fly it is today.

[fessiewig]

There is a guy I'd like to recommend . . . Manchester's own, Nick Lambro. Nick has been selected as Sportsman of the Year by Flyfishing Magazine a number of years back, he designed the Heron pattern flies that are so deadly on Salmon and Trout, just to mention a couple of the things I personally know of.

[BugChucka]

I doubt anyone would object to that addition!

[TomS]

I know its the salt, but what about Bill Catherwood?

-- Tom

[fessiewig]

Nothing wrong with Salt Fly Fishers being included.

[flytackle]

I'm pretty sure Bill Catherwood is from MA. - isn't he?

[Mountain Angler]

I don't know how I forgot Wendell Folkins of Tamworth. Wendell brought out Carrie Stevens in the 1950's. He tied for most all the great camps in Maine. For many years he was of the few who knew how she tied her flies. The story is writen up in Graydon Hilyard's book on Carrie Stevens. Wendell's vice and his letters from Carrie were given to the museun of fly fishing by his old friend Walter Staples also from Tamworth.
Wendell tied his flies in the bathroom in his home in Tamworth.
If any one is interested I have some posters of Wendell's flies that was printed by the Tamworth Outing Club. They sell for $15.00 and the proceeds go to the club.

[mer]

Bill Hunter of Hunter's Angling. Even Warren Duncan talks about Bill helping him get better at tying Atlantic Salmon flies.

[Ken B]

Are there any books out there that profile any of these people and/or the history of flyfishing in NH?

Ken

[dan hall]

Hi,
Jack Noon is NH's historian on fishing here in the state. He has several good books on this subject and is considered 'the Dean'. Take a peek at his books, IMHO NH is fortunite to have someone like Jack that has dedicated his life to NH fishing history and current habitat issues.

Regards,
Dan

[Ken B]

Dan,

Do you have any of the book titles and perhaps where I could pick one up?

Ken

[dan hall]

Hi Ken,
Check out moose country press at
http://moosecountry.com/aboutjack.html
I've found both "Fishing in New Hampshire-A History"
and "The Bassing of New Hampshire" to be
interesting books.
Regards,
dan