Bill Marts

I have a hard time writing about myself, but here goes. I have been in the fly fishing industry for more years than most people have been on earth and I have been lucky enough to travel extensively just to put a fly in front of a fish. I have chased steelhead, salmon and trout throughout the Pacific Northwest, B.C., Alaska, Argentina and Tierra del Fuego. Saltwater pursuits have taken me to all of the popular fishing destinations in Central America, Bahamas and Venezuela plus some not so familiar (Tuamotus, Cook Is., Seychelles, Truck Is.). I have been doing business in Mexico with various guides and lodges for 30 years and am very active promoting and helping my friend and his guide service in Holbox, Mexico, fishing for tarpon. I have been in the fly fishing travel business for over 30 years. I have guided fly fishers for trout and steelhead in Washington, Montana, and Idaho in the years between 1985 and 2005. I enjoyed the hell out of it, but, now prefer fishing alone or with a friend. With all of this, another of my favorite fishing pastimes is carp fly fishing on the various freshwater flats in Eastern Washington. I have taught classes in all aspects of fly fishing; had many articles published, owned my own fly shops and worked at The Fly Shop between 2005 and 2011, in the travel department specializing in Saltwater destinations. What all of this means is that I truly like flyfishing and everything associated with it. I retired from The Fly Shop, in Redding, Ca. at the end of 2011. I now tie flies for those who would rather buy than tie and write for a few fly fishing magazines. I also photograph my trips for the articles I write. I like to tie flies and especially enjoy a challenge; maybe to come up with a pattern to perform a certain task, use a new material, combine colors in a pleasing way (that also are of interest to the fish) or imitate a food source for certain fishes. Believe me when I tell you that I have created many more “duds” than effective patterns. But that is actually part of the fun and learning. I really like the “old style” steelhead patterns (on a single hook – no stinger) and fish them a lot, but I appreciate the effectiveness of the newer intruder type flies. Given a choice between a stream containing few fish with no anglers around and a new run of eager steelhead in a river choked with well-meaning, dedicated anglers and I’ll wade the lonely waters searching for the stray fish or two. That is probably why I fish way more than I catch. Good thing I like the fishing. As much as I enjoy swinging a fly through a perfect run, I am slowly giving way to a preference of shooting (with a camera) my streamside experiences. An image or two that really stand out from hundreds of shots in a day give me the same feeling that a pull gives me after hundreds of casts. So, as long as I can carry my camera and my rod to the river, I’ll keep doing it.