The Flies of Mike Boyer

My name is Mike Boyer and I live next to the North Santiam River in Mehama, OR. I've been tying trout flies since I was a kid and Steelhead and Atlantic Salmon flies for about 10 years. I learned to fish for Steelhead in Northern California on quite a few coastal rivers and streams. I've been living in Oregon for three years (first in Eastern OR and now Western).

I love tying these flies, finding and collecting materials (when I can afford them), and meeting and talking to other tiers. I've learned a lot from watching and talking to great tiers such as John Shewey, Wayne Luallen, Steve Fernandez, and Marvin Nolte. Books are also a great source for learning and inspiration. I can remember ordering Poul Jorgensen's book "Salmon Flies" and a fair pile of materials needed to tie these flies. It took a lot of practice and patience to figure out the lingo, the styles, and letting my fingers learn what to do, but today I'm glad I spent all that time at the vise.

By no means am I through learning. That's why I like talking to other tiers. There's always something new and excellent about what they're doing.

A few words about materials: Don't worry about having the exact feather called for in these older dressings. A lot of them are very hard to find and very expensive. Some of them are illegal to possess. Just find some high quality Turkey tails, Peacock wing, Wood Duck, Pintail, and Bronze Mallard. Look around for really good Golden Pheasant. This bird is of great value for toppings, tippets, body feathers and of course tails. The important thing is to tie the best fly you can with good quality materials.

Many Thanks,
Mike Boyer