What I learned at the School of Trout | Hatch Magazine
June 18, 2026 
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I should be clear right off the bat. I’m not a student. And I didn’t attend the School of Trout. In addition to my longtime work as a fly fishing writer, I actually run the school. But that doesn’t mean that I haven’t learned from our classes, or our instructors, or our students. To be frank, I’ve soaked up more solid information about fly fishing, and fly casting, than I ever would have thought possible back when we first started offering classes. More importantly, though, I’d like to take a few minutes and share some of those lessons with you. So let’s get started.
We can tell a lot about your skills as a fly fisher by looking at your leader
Here’s an interesting exercise. Ask the person you’re fishing with if you can see their leader. Then, if they say “yes,” take a close look at its construction. Is the leader the right length for their fishing? Are the taper and proportions correct? Will the leader turn over without issues? Is the tippet the appropriate size and length for the fly (or flies) they’re using, as well as the fish they’re likely to catch? Are the knots well-tied? Will the leader help them achieve their angling goals? Would you want to fish with it yourself or, conversely, would you say “no thanks?” A fly fisher’s leader offers a quick glimpse into their angling knowledge and their skill level. As one of our instructors, the incomparable John Juracek, likes to say, “we should all take pride in our leaders.” If you can’t look at a leader and judge whether it’s a good fit for the conditions, you might want to spend more time delving into the subject of leader design and construction.
The more you believe you know, the less you are likely to learn
There’s an old Chinese parable about a master who asks his student to empty his already-full cup so that the student has room to learn and grow. As you might imagine, there’s a fair amount of truth to that lesson. People who are convinced that they already know everything they need to know are far less likely to increase their knowledge or improve their skills compared to anglers who “empty their cups” and approach their fly fishing with the idea that there are always new things to learn and plentiful opportunities to grow. In my experience, even our instructors, who were already exceptional anglers when they started at the school, are constantly working to learn and to improve.
There’s a direct correlation between your ability to tie knots and your on-the-water success
There are times when the world is screaming at you that you need to change things up. The fish are hungry and the conditions are ideal, yet the technique that was effective yesterday, or the fly that was working an hour ago, is no longer getting the job done. Folks who are quick and confident with their knots don’t hesitate in those situations. They change their flies or modify their leaders without a second thought — and they’re back fishing in no time at all. Conversely, anglers who struggle with their knots are far more likely to stick with an ineffective technique or a fly that simply isn’t working. So what does that tell you about the importance of knot-tying?
Very few fly fishers can differentiate a well-executed fly casting stroke from a poorly-executed fly casting stroke
I don’t believe that we’ve ever had a student at the School of Trout who, when they arrived for their first session, already possessed the ability to describe a mechanically-sound casting stroke — much less execute one. And that’s a failure of the entire fly fishing industry (and the fly fishing media) here in America. We, as anglers, should all be able to look at a video of someone casting a fly rod and determine whether or not their stroke is sound. Yet the majority of fly fishers can’t do that. Heck, the majority of fly fishing professionals can’t do that. They can tell you if your loop looks okay, or if your rod is doing pretty much what it should. But they can’t differentiate between a flawed stroke and a sound stroke. Which is a major issue, since skilled casters have a serious advantage on the water.
Fly fishing is fun regardless of whether or not you fish well
One of the things I’ve noticed over my years of running the School of Trout is that talent and skill aren’t prerequisites for having fun on the water. If you have the right attitude, you can have a good time regardless of how skilled you are, or how many fish you catch. Since we can, and should, measure our success by how much we enjoy our fishing — as opposed to how many fish we just caught, or how big those fish were — that’s really good news. At the same time, though, skilled anglers typically do have more fun than anglers who lack a basic understanding of the sport. Which, at least from where I sit, makes sense on an intuitive level. The more passion and energy we put into our fishing, the more enjoyment we get back out. That’s just the way it works.
At it’s heart, our sport is focused on the search for the perfect fly
Except it’s not. The fly pattern you’re using at the moment is rarely responsible for either your successes or your failures. I know that goes against the prevailing wisdom you’ll hear espoused in fly shops or whispered on the banks of our finest rivers. But it’s true nonetheless. And it doesn’t matter how many guides or fellow anglers you’ve heard make those claims. As long as your fly is a solid choice for the conditions, and unless you can rule out all the other variables first — the fish, the water, your approach, your casting, your mending, your presentation, etc. — you can be reasonably certain that your fly is not holding you back.
Craig Matthews speaks during a classroom session at the School of Trout (photo: Tim Romano).
Don’t go too fast
At least with regard to your next fly rod. We have a fair number of students who show up at the school with fast action rods. More often than not, they struggle with their casting and angling. Why? Because fast & stiff rods are a pain in the backside to fish with, and they also reduce the enjoyment we derive from our casting. If you want to take your fly fishing for trout to the next level, a more moderate action rod is the way to go.
What? We’re supposed to enjoy our casting?
Damn right. Our fly casting is what sets our fly fishing apart from every other form of angling. At the same time, one of the major benefits of fly casting is that it truly is, for lack of a better word, “fun” — at least when it’s done reasonably well. Which is why so many School of Trout students are drawn inexorably to the practice lawn before breakfast, or during breaks, or after dinner. Good fly casting is its own reward, and the only way you’ll ever experience it is if you learn good form and then practice on a regular basis.
Simplify it
I’ve heard it a million times, and I suspect that you have as well. We should strive to simplify our fishing. We should do everything we can to make fly fishing easier, and more accessible to the general public. We should make it less intimidating. We should aim for the lowest common denominator. Except — and I realize that I’m swimming against the current here — we shouldn’t. Not for one second. Fly fishing is so wonderful because it’s incredibly interesting, and challenging, and because it requires us to develop real skills as well as a solid foundation of knowledge. Fly fishing, or at least fly fishing at its most satisfying, requires more of us than simply tying on a fly and getting it out on the water. It asks us to meld body, mind and soul. It teaches patience and observation. It immerses us in the purity of the natural world, and it does so in a way that refreshes us and that helps wash away the clutter and clamor of modern existence. Fly fishing is an actual refuge from the worst aspects of modernity, and the walls of that refuge are built, brick by brick, with our time, our effort and our experiences. The last thing we should ever want is to devalue our fly fishing by dumbing it down, or asking less of ourselves.
So those are nine of the things I’ve learned while running the School of Trout over the last nine years. Hopefully some of them will resonate, and those of you who hoped to glean a little fly fishing knowledge from this piece will walk away feeling like you accomplished that goal. In any case, I should wrap up by acknowledging, and thanking, my friends and colleagues who have shared their angling wisdom at the school over the years. I owe a huge debt of gratitude to Craig Mathews, Tom Rosenbauer, Kirk Deeter, Bob White, Hilary Hutcheson, Tim Romano, Jeff Currier, Steve “Mac” McFarland, Lindsay Kocka, Karlie (Roland) Loftice, Brant Oswald, Pat McCabe and John Juracek. From where I sit, they are the very best at what they do.
(Editor’s note: Hatch Magazine is now publishing a regular column featuring many of the School of Trout instructors.)