If anyone is qualified to list the top 12 fly-fishing states, it might be Kirk Deeter, and that's exactly what he did.
Deeter, who writes Field and Stream's Fly Talk Blog and has wet a fly all over the world, ranked them from 12 to 1, recently, using a three-pronged approach.
He considered multi-species opportunities, angler-friendly environment, and cultural affinity to fly fishing.
Did he leave your state out, and do you agree?
12. New York: For Trout, striped bass and albacore
11. Maine: For Stripers, brook trout and landlocked salmon
10. California: For Mako Sharks, largemouth, carp, stripers, Trout and steelhead
9. Idaho: For Trout
8. Washington: For salmon, steelhead, Trout and smallmouth bass
7. Florida: More species than can be listed
6. Colorado: For Trout
5. Montana: For Trout
4. Alaska: For the beauty…Salmon, steelhead and Trout
3. Louisiana: The freshwater fishing, redfish, sea trout, music, food and culture
2. Wyoming: For having more space than Montana, cutthroat trout
1. Michigan The first brown trout in America was caught here, plus bass, pike, panfish, steelhead, salmon and carp
You can check out his rationale, and pick a bone with him, on his blog. The list is out there, so let the debating begin.
There's certainly room for argument, and when you open the conversation up globally, it gets even more controversial. Brainz.org, a site that lists and ranks just about everything, ranked the top fly destinations in the world like this:
7. Montana: Trophy Trout
6. The Florida Keys: Numerous Flats species
5. New Zealand: Offshore Sailfish, and beautiful inland rivers for Trout
4. Alaska: Trout salmon and steelhead
3. Belize: Bonefish, permit, snook and tarpon
2. Patagonia: Beauty and big browns
1. Labrador: Salmon and huge brook trout
We'll step back and let the arguing begin.
-Rick Bach
