If you’ve been wondering what’s brewing in the fly fishing world lately, there’s actually some pretty fun stuff in the news that might nudge you to clean the line, patch the waders, and hit the road.
Let’s start out West. The Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife just rolled out their “What’s New for 2026” rules, and there’s a couple sleeper changes that matter if you like to sling bugs in the high country. According to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, kokanee now have their own separate limit in a bunch of zones, with a 10‑fish daily bag, open all year and no size limit. That’s tailor‑made for those of us who like to swing soft hackles or strip small streamers on the kokanee lakes but don’t want to burn our trout limit doing it. They also clarified that crayfish are basically open all year almost everywhere in lakes and streams, which means you can flip rocks after an evening hatch and gather a campfire snack without wondering if you’re poaching.
Slide over to Colorado and things get a little spicier. FlyLab’s recent write‑up on the Lower Blue River highlights a big fight over what’s really hurting the trout down there. Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s survey report says the pellet‑feeding programs on that stretch are causing overcrowding, disease issues like gill lice, and higher mortality, even as some landowners are pointing fingers at floating anglers. The fun twist for the fly crowd is that CPW specifically noted angler‑induced mortality is minor on that catch‑and‑release, fly‑and‑lure only stretch. So while some folks are trying to tighten access with a “10‑year pilot permit system” for floaters, the state’s own biologist is basically saying, “No, the real problem is the feed train, not the guys drifting nymph rigs.” If you care about public water and honest science, that’s a story to keep an eye on.
Up in the Northern Rockies, there’s a quiet access win that feels pretty big if you like exploring. A recent podcast breakdown of 2026 fishing regs reported that the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is opening up more sport fishing on national wildlife refuges in states like Idaho, Montana, and Washington, adding over 87,000 acres of access that line up with state rules. No goofy lead‑tackle drama, just more spots to walk in, swing a soft hackle, or grease a dry along a refuge side channel that used to be off‑limits. It’s not flashy, but for locals who like having a backup plan when the main river looks like a drift‑boat parade, that’s gold.
And if you’re more of a “talk fishing while not actually fishing” person this time of year, the calendar’s stacking up fast. FlyFishers International and the folks behind the International Sowbug Roundup are already hyping the 2026 Sowbug as the premier tying and fishing expo in the country down in Arkansas. Meanwhile, the Fly Fishing Film Tour’s 2026 U.S. schedule is shaping up to be a big milestone year, with a fresh batch of films hitting shops, breweries, and little theaters all over the place. Between shows like that and the local fly shop events, you can basically wander from one dark room full of fish nerds to another all winter, talking hatches, watching big-screen tarpon eats, and pretending you’re “scouting conditions.”
That’s the quick lap around the current fly fishing headlines. Thanks for tuning in, and come back next week for more. This has been a Quiet Please production, and for more from me check out QuietPlease dot A I.
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