Anglers and authors Yvon Chouinard and Craig Mathews are scheduled to speak at Montana State University on Tuesday, Oct. 7. The event, which is free and open to the public, will take place at 7 p.m. in Strand Union Building Ballroom A on the MSU campus. Attendees can hear Chouinard and Mathews discuss their new book, “Pheasant Tail Simplicity: Recipes and Techniques for Successful Fly Fishing,” and have copies signed. Keith McCafferty, a Montana author, will moderate the discussion.
The event is organized by Patagonia and the MSU Library as part of the library’s Trout and Salmonid Initiative. This initiative aims to educate people about angling, environmental issues related to water policy, and public access. According to MSU Library Dean Doralyn Rossmann, both Chouinard and Mathews have collaborated closely with the MSU Library in support of this effort.
During the event, Chouinard and Mathews plan to share experiences from their years of fly fishing. They will also address a central theme from their book: that anglers do not need thousands of different fly patterns but can succeed worldwide with variations of one pattern—the pheasant tail.
“Successfully catching fish is less about having a thousand flies in your vest and more about having faith in an all-around fly and fishing it where, when, and how it should be fished,” Chouinard wrote in the book’s introduction. “Technique, confidence, and skill trump dozens of fly boxes. In other words, you need to learn to read the water and to match the fly and the technique to each specific situation.”
Chouinard is known as the founder of Patagonia as well as for his conservation work. He was named Angler of the Year by Fly Rod & Reel magazine in 2009. Together with Mathews, he co-founded 1% for the Planet—a network connecting businesses with environmental organizations globally—and resides in Ventura, California.
Mathews has written or co-written nine books focused on fly fishing in western states including Yellowstone National Park. He operates Blue Ribbon Flies with his wife Jackie in West Yellowstone. In 2005 he was selected as Angler of the Year by Fly Rod & Reel magazine; he lives in Montana’s Madison River Valley.
