Troutbitten
Life on the water. Troutbitten is a deep dive into fly fishing for wild trout in wild places. Author and guide, Domenick Swentosky, shares stories, tips, tactics and conversations with friends about fly fishing through the woods and water. Explore more. Fish hard. And discover fly fishing at Troutbitten.com — an extensive resource with 1500+ articles about trout, friends, family and the river.
Episodes
139 episodes
Ten Years of Troutbitten
We're here to celebrate ten years of Troutbitten.December 8th was the tenth anniversary of the first article ever published on Troutbitten. All those years ago, I never expected this Troutbitten business — this media company — to become...
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Season 13
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Episode 9
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1:38:17
Brown Trout, Rainbows, Brook Trout, Cutthroat -- What's the Difference?
This discussion is about the differences between trout species. How are the habits of brown trout different than rainbow trout? Where do brook trout tend to hold and feed vs brown trout? What about cutthroat? Do they have different tendencies o...
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Season 13
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Episode 8
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1:02:35
Season 13 Intermission -- Leader Shop, Videos, Podcast Plans, Books and More
For our Season 13 Intermission, my wife, Becky, joins me for a look at what's going on in the Troutbitten world. We talk about the upcoming leader sale in the Troutbitten Shop (December 6th). We talk about upcoming podcast and video plans, book...
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Season 13
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36:49
Why Do Some Rivers Hold Big Trout?
I fished for two decades before I finally realized that not every river, not every creek or stream has big fish. For most of my early days of fishing, I thought there was a different class of fish in some of my favorite waters that I simply nev...
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Season 13
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Episode 7
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1:11:09
Why We Fish
Tonight we’re here to talk about why we fish. It’s a simple question. Why do we commit so much of our free time and efforts, our thoughts and our daydreams . . . to fishing?Why, after all these years, do we keep coming back?Why,...
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Season 13
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Episode 6
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1:09:23
Barbed Hooks or Barbless? Does It Really Matter?
We’re halfway through Season 13, and tonight we have a discussion that’s been on our backburner for quite a while -- barbed hooks or barbless, and does it really matter?Should we always fish barbless? Maybe not. The answer isn’t that si...
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Season 13
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Episode 5
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1:05:14
Finding Your Confidence Flies
Every angler needs a set of flies to call their own. Among the thousands of patterns, options and choices out there, eventually, we sort out a handful of confidence flies.Our faith in these flies gives us conviction when choosing them a...
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Season 13
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Episode 4
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1:05:36
The Ethical Angler -- What Does That Mean?
What's right and wrong? That's what ethics really boils down to. Certainly, there are nuances about how much space to give other anglers on the river or how long we should hold a trout out of the water for a picture. But doing the right thing a...
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Season 13
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Episode 3
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1:01:27
The One or Two Fly Debate, Across Fishing Styles
The Troutbitten guys are here to talk about two flies. Why do we fish two dry flies, two streamers, wets or nymphs? Why don’t we? Why might we fish with just one fly instead? Multiple fly rigs are a common solution to fishing problems, but extr...
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Season 13
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Episode 2
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1:01:26
Why Do We Catch Trout In Patches?
The full Troutbitten crew is back for season thirteen. In this fall and early winter season, our theme is casual conversations. After three years of podcasting, we've recorded many episodes that go deep into the weeds on one specific topic. We'...
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Season 13
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Episode 1
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1:08:27
Fishing Dry Flies -- Dry Fly Skills Series #7
For this final episode in the dry fly skills series, we work through some scenarios that anglers frequently encounter. Because, just like nymphing, fishing streamers and fishing wets, we fish dry flies for many different reasons and in many dif...
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Season 12
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Episode 7
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58:01
Rise Forms and Hook Sets -- Dry Fly Skills Series #6
In the last couple of weeks we talked a lot about choosing the next fly, when to change, and what informs our decision about what to change to — basically, how do we develop that next theory about what fly, water type and presentation sty...
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Season 12
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Episode 6
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46:41
All About the Flies -- Dry Fly Skills Series #5
Here we are at the part of the season where we address everybody’s favorite question — what fly are you using?We’ve argued for years that the leader is the most consequential element in the system — much more important than the fly. Tha...
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1:00:47
Casting and Mending -- Dry Fly Skills Series #4
Our discussion here is about casting dry flies, and that’s where all good fly casting starts. With a dry fly, there’s no weight at the end of the line to help us out. No split shot, no tungsten bead, conehead or bobber. Refining the dry fly str...
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Season 12
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Episode 4
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52:39
Catching Up, With Leader Sales, Videos and Troutbitten Plans
For our Season 12 Intermission, my wife, Becky, joins me for a lighthearted look at what's going on in the Troutbitten world. We talk about the upcoming leader sale in the Troutbitten Shop (August 21). We talk about the New Trail Troutbitten be...
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Season 12
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34:36
Dry Fly Leader Design and Adjustment -- Dry Fly Skills Series #3
The leader should match the moment and match the angler. It should match the fly, the river and the wind conditions. Adjustments are necessary, and when they're performed often enough they become intuitive.An objective look at real goal...
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Season 12
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Episode 3
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1:00:41
Dry Fly Skills #2 --Drag Free Drifts and Animation
The drag free drift -- a high percentage of the time, that’s what catches trout on top. So aiming for perfection on a dead drift sets the baseline. And if you get those great drifts, but they won’t eat it, try some animation. Think slight, smal...
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Season 12
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Episode 2
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59:46
Dry Fly Skills #1 -- When and Why
Season twelve begins. It’s a seven-part skills series dedicated to dry fly fishing. My friend, Matt Grobe, joins me to build the framework — a method and a system — for presenting dry flies to trout.In this first episode, we ask when an...
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Season 12
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Episode 1
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58:39
Prospecting for Trout
Prospecting is a strategy for covering water. It’s about pace. A lot of what we do, day to day on the water, is searching. We’re looking for activity. We’re trying to find feeding fish. Sometimes we’re looking to find the fish the...
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Season 11
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Episode 10
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1:17:30
The Airing of Grievances -- Three
The third annual Airing of Grievances on the Troutbitten Podcast has arrived. Some of this is playful and some is serious.Complaining’s not a bad thing if it accomplishes something productive -- or if it’s kinda fun. Or if it draws atte...
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Season 11
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Episode 9
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1:25:16
Set the Hook! All About Different Hooksets
There are many different ways to set the hook while fly fishing for trout, because there are many different ways to fish for those trout. One size does not fit all. So we adapt our hook sets to suit the situation.In this episode, we cov...
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Season 11
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Episode 8
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1:14:30
The Further You Walk, the More You Leave Behind (a Story)
Here's a story about the solitude that so many of us seek on the water — how the full experience of planning for a trip, driving before dawn, walking in and exploring a river valley provides a respite from our daily life. It’s a chance for a cl...
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15:56
The Troubles With Club Fishing
We're here for a tough conversation. This one's about fishing the pay-to-play setup of a club.These are the troubles with club fishing . . .One club leads to the next. One private stretch invites another down the road. So clubs ...
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Season 11
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Episode 7
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1:06:21
How Woodsmanship Catches Fish
There's an intangible quality built into the best anglers. It's about being comfortable and natural around the water. It's about having an instinct and a guiding intuition on a river that informs decision without even giving it much thought. It...
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Season 11
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Episode 6
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1:17:23
Boat Fishing -- How Everything Changes When Floating a River
We're here to talk about floating down a river, about why we like boats, how floating is so much different than wading, how some opportunities are uniquely available and how others are shut off too.It’s the companionship and teamwork, a...
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Season 11
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Episode 5
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1:13:29