Zach Miller
Signature Tyer
Born in Montana and raised in Wyoming, it is safe to say that fly fishing is my life. From throwing giant chunks of protein to buck nasty browns to size 28 midges to finicky rainbows, I love it all. I started my fishing career around the age of 5 and began fly fishing by age 9. Interestingly enough, I began tying flies before I started throwing a fly rod simply because I had an obsession with insects. Sure, my first flies tied consisted of mom’s sewing thread, dad’s giant bait hooks, and the family cat’s hair, but I sure was proud of them.
It wasn’t until I started guiding at age 16 that my true love for fly fishing became evident. It is one thing fishing for yourself but there is something visceral about sharing an experience so special with someone else. When I moved to Redding, CA I began working at The Fly Shop. With the plethora of water in the area I began to play around with fly designs. It is fun to tell clients that they are fishing “prototype” patterns, incorporating them in the quest to find the secret recipe. This idea of a secret recipe is what makes fly tying so much fun for me. Being able to look at the little organisms that fish eat and use my imagination to replicate that little organism in such a way the fish approve.
My days of fishing are either spent playing the chess game of trout or rolling the dice for steelhead. Whether it's knee deep in Hat Creek sight casting to feeding rainbows or standing in the Trinity river skating big dries in search of heavy metal, my itch to wet a line is always scratched. Fly fishing simply completes me and when I am on the water, a single quote always comes to mind: “Rivers and the inhabitants of the water elements are made for wise me to contemplate.” - Izaac Walton
Born in Montana and raised in Wyoming, it is safe to say that fly fishing is my life. From throwing giant chunks of protein to buck nasty browns to size 28 midges to finicky rainbows, I love it all. I started my fishing career around the age of 5 and began fly fishing by age 9. Interestingly enough, I began tying flies before I started throwing a fly rod simply because I had an obsession with insects. Sure, my first flies tied consisted of mom’s sewing thread, dad’s giant bait hooks, and the family cat’s hair, but I sure was proud of them.
It wasn’t until I started guiding at age 16 that my true love for fly fishing became evident. It is one thing fishing for yourself but there is something visceral about sharing an experience so special with someone else. When I moved to Redding, CA I began working at The Fly Shop. With the plethora of water in the area I began to play around with fly designs. It is fun to tell clients that they are fishing “prototype” patterns, incorporating them in the quest to find the secret recipe. This idea of a secret recipe is what makes fly tying so much fun for me. Being able to look at the little organisms that fish eat and use my imagination to replicate that little organism in such a way the fish approve.
My days of fishing are either spent playing the chess game of trout or rolling the dice for steelhead. Whether it's knee deep in Hat Creek sight casting to feeding rainbows or standing in the Trinity river skating big dries in search of heavy metal, my itch to wet a line is always scratched. Fly fishing simply completes me and when I am on the water, a single quote always comes to mind: “Rivers and the inhabitants of the water elements are made for wise me to contemplate.” - Izaac Walton