Art of the Atlantic Salmon Fly

Rating:
Summary: Following the Historical Lines of Atlantic Salmon Flies
Review: In contrast to many other reviews,this book actually merits a superlative like five stars. I was fortunate to live in the same town as Joe Bates and spoke to him on several occassions. He urged me to read as many book about the sport as possible , and to collect only hardbacks from the area I was interested in the most. I had him sign a copy of his Streamer Fly Fishing, which I later traded for the book now under consideration. As you may know ,Joe Bates cut his teeth on fishing the Rangely Lakes and the Colonel Bates streamer fly is one Helen Shaw named after him! He has about 15 books to his credit, three of which should be in a serious fly fishing library-Streamer Fly Tying and Fishing, Atlantic Salmon Flies and Fishing, and The Art of the Atlantic Salmon Fly. Some are very had to find. I have followed Joe's advice. This past year I have read nearly 350 old, rare, or antique fly fishing books from the Fredrick Lane collection at Amherst College. Many are the actual originals cited here. The Art of the Atlantic Salmon Fly is a scholarly tracing of the origins and pathways the craft went through, but it is not academic. Bates brings in solid information from all the greats in the field. This includes Barker, Chetham, Bainbridge, Younger, Scrope, Rogan, Blacker, Fitzgibbon, Wade, Francis, Kelson, Maxwell, Hardy, Pryce-Tannatt... The book goes back to the Treatise and starts with the Twelve Flies of 1496. It goes from the primative patterns of the 1600-1800's and then continues with the early Tweed patterns. The Irish, Welsh, English, American, Icelandic patterns are covered. There is even a lesson in tying a Classic "Baron". With twenty-four large plates of beautifully photographed groups of actual flies (some of his own antique collection too) and about seventeen drawings and photos to compliment the actual flies, you are getting a lot of information to digest plus a lot art work. There is information on Hair Wings,the Tweed, the Dee, the Victorian, and just about every major aspect of the game that I can think of. I have read this book three times so far, and keep it as a reference and cross reference to the actual originals I read. This book provides the reader with a perspective you don't find in other so-called art books. Joe was a serious fisherman, and a serious collector. Even some of his personal antiques flies, tools, and vices are pictured. He had the good sense to pick the brains of masters around him, to read deeply, and to fish throughout the world. A lot of detail and knowledge went into this book. I value it , having known the author, but there is more than sentiment here. Anyone serious about the sport, anyone who wants a wide and detailed history should grab this book.It is a piece of art itself. And by the way, it is a heck of a lot cheaper now than when I bought it. Tight Lines!

Rating:
Summary: Following the Historical Lines of Atlantic Salmon Flies
Review: In contrast to many other reviews,this book actually merits a superlative like five stars. I was fortunate to live in the same town as Joe Bates and spoke to him on several occassions. He urged me to read as many book about the sport as possible , and to collect only hardbacks from the area I was interested in the most. I had him sign a copy of his Streamer Fly Fishing, which I later traded for the book now under consideration. As you may know ,Joe Bates cut his teeth on fishing the Rangely Lakes and the Colonel Bates streamer fly is one Helen Shaw named after him! He has about 15 books to his credit, three of which should be in a serious fly fishing library-Streamer Fly Tying and Fishing, Atlantic Salmon Flies and Fishing, and The Art of the Atlantic Salmon Fly. Some are very had to find. I have followed Joe's advice. This past year I have read nearly 350 old, rare, or antique fly fishing books from the Fredrick Lane collection at Amherst College. Many are the actual originals cited here. The Art of the Atlantic Salmon Fly is a scholarly tracing of the origins and pathways the craft went through, but it is not academic. Bates brings in solid information from all the greats in the field. This includes Barker, Chetham, Bainbridge, Younger, Scrope, Rogan, Blacker, Fitzgibbon, Wade, Francis, Kelson, Maxwell, Hardy, Pryce-Tannatt... The book goes back to the Treatise and starts with the Twelve Flies of 1496. It goes from the primative patterns of the 1600-1800's and then continues with the early Tweed patterns. The Irish, Welsh, English, American, Icelandic patterns are covered. There is even a lesson in tying a Classic "Baron". With twenty-four large plates of beautifully photographed groups of actual flies (some of his own antique collection too) and about seventeen drawings and photos to compliment the actual flies, you are getting a lot of information to digest plus a lot art work. There is information on Hair Wings,the Tweed, the Dee, the Victorian, and just about every major aspect of the game that I can think of. I have read this book three times so far, and keep it as a reference and cross reference to the actual originals I read. This book provides the reader with a perspective you don't find in other so-called art books. Joe was a serious fisherman, and a serious collector. Even some of his personal antiques flies, tools, and vices are pictured. He had the good sense to pick the brains of masters around him, to read deeply, and to fish throughout the world. A lot of detail and knowledge went into this book. I value it , having known the author, but there is more than sentiment here. Anyone serious about the sport, anyone who wants a wide and detailed history should grab this book.It is a piece of art itself. And by the way, it is a heck of a lot cheaper now than when I bought it. Tight Lines!