The Sportsman's Corner

When I got hooked by fly-fishing more than 55 years ago, I lost at least several flies on each fly-fishing adventure. Flies weren’t outrageously expensive in those long-lost days; but as a student, I did not have extra cash lying around for store-bought flies. I knew that enthusiastic fly-fishermen tied their own flies, and the handwriting on the wall told me that I’d better learn to tie flies if fly-fishing was going to be affordable.

I had run into Ralph Haney and his son Randy on several of my adventures. Ralph was a fine fly-fisherman, and he tied his own flies. He offered to show me how t...