This series of posts is meant to introduce all of you terrific tiers and cool customers to our small, but fantastic team of anglers here at The Caddis Fly Angling Shop. Each employee answered a number of questions about their fishing expertise, their favorite style of fishing and fishing products. Each week we will publish another employee’s answers to these questions to let you know Who We Are. This series will hopefully give you a peak into who we are, how we fish, and who you are chatting with when you next call or email Caddis.
This week we introduce our shop fly gal.
Who: Maddy Bell, Retail Associate/Internet Sales, Social Media
Time at Caddis: 1 year, 4 months
Are you a Eugene local, or are you a transplant?
I moved her from Idaho last December, but I am originally from the Seattle area.
How many years have you been fly fishing?
I have been fly fishing for 13 years. I tagged along on my father’s fly fishing trips from a very young age, and I finally asked him to teach me when I was 13. One of the best decisions I’ve made to date!
What is your favorite rod and reel combo?
My favorite rod and reel combination is my Sage One 9′ 5wt rod and 3-tand T-150 reel. I bought the rod just before they discontinued the 590-4 last summer, at the recommendations of a coworker at the shop. (–>Second best decision I have made to date.) The reel was a gift from a fly fishing mentor. They are both awesomely lightweight and I like to fish them on smaller creeks when I go camping.
Wet wade or float, and why?
Wet wade. I’m on foot until I can get a hold of a fishing buddy with one!
Dry fly, streamer or nymph–and do you tie them?
Dry flies since I started. I tied in a class in college and I play around with an old Thompson vise now and again, but I have yet to dive into tying my own arsenal for rivers around Oregon.
Spey or single hand cast?
I love to double haul, so I would say single hand, but ever since I got my first spey casting lesson from George Cook I’ve been pretty enthused about the Spey style. My Echo Dec Hogan II 12’6″ 6wt is my favorite rod to take out on the Mckenzie to swing.
Salt or Freshwater?
Freshwater. Sea sickness is real. But I have fished out on the ocean a few times and it was a rod bending blast!
Where do you fish?
States: Washington, Oregon, Idaho
Waters: Puget Sound, Willamette River, Mckenzie River, Owyhee River, North Fork of the Boise River, various small streams in Idaho.
What is your favorite part about working at Caddis?
I enjoy the camaraderie. Because of the efforts the Caddis Fly Crew makes to eliminate the intimidation factor for new anglers, I have been able comfortably ask questions from day one. As a result, I have expanded my fishing expertise significantly in my time here, and I’m really happy to be a part of the team.
When a fellow angler asks, “What is the biggest fish you have ever caught?” what is your answer?
I learned to “sight fish” from my first mentors. Sight fishing essentially means finding your fish before you cast, quietly dropping dry flies in front of sipping trout in their feeding lanes, often in technical little pockets of slow water. In the midst of this education I was scolded by one of those same mentors for answering the question “What did you catch?” with actual length and weight estimates. He told me that it doesn’t matter how big a fish is; at the end of any day on the water, as long as I caught the ones I wanted to catch, it was a good day. So, that’s how I answer this question.
Maddy is at our guru on all things inventory and availability. She is up to date on any products you might be waiting to come available from your favorite brands, and she knows whether or not you will be able to get that old/new generation spool or rod to outfit your gear. She is also one of our site editors, social media photographers and bloggers. She can be found on the shop floor, taking photos for our Instagram and Facebook feeds. If she is not out front, she’s in the back office updating inventory, helping a customer on the phone or writing a fresh post for oregonflyfishinblog.com.
As a dry fly fisherman, you can ask her what flys would be good to stock and what gear to check out for small mountain streams. She’s always happy to help answer your questions, and if need be, she’ll get a hold of industry experts to track down that answer for you.
Want to know more about the Caddis Fly? Visit our website’s About page at this link and feel free to call or email us any time at our contacts below:
(541)505-8061
caddiseug@yahoo.com
Tight lines until next time!
The Caddis Fly Crew
