leland's annual steelhead school, 2011
hosted by scott howell
Friday, September 2 - Sunday, September 4
Steelheading is one of the
most celebrated cultures in North American freshwater fly fishing. Swinging flies for this beautiful and elusive fish is to us one of the
defining experiences of the sport. The Leland Steelhead School
provides a small group of students an unmatched introduction to steelheading with two handed rods.
Book the full weekend now.
Friday: Fly Tying, Dinner with Wine Flight, Scott's Steelhead Slide Show
Taking advantage of our position in
Sonoma's wine country, we'll begin the weekend with an introduction to tying
the flies that enable you to fish the Pacific Coast's steelhead rivers with supreme confidence. We'll cover Scott's signature patterns --
the Ska-Opper, the Prom Dress, and the notorious Intruder -- as well as some famous traditional hairwing patterns and a
secret or two from his fly box. Over a California cuisine dinner with
wines from nearby vineyards, we'll take in Scott's famous slideshow, shot on
rivers both famous and unknown, from California, to Oregon, to British Columbia and Kamchatka.
Book Friday Fly Tying now.
Saturday: The Spey Casts of the Pacific Northwest
Scott was
extremely influential in adapting the methods and advantages of European Spey casting to the specific water types and fishing requirements of the Northern Pacific Rim. He's been
casting Spey rods for over two decades, with particular expertise in the Skagit and Scandinavian styles. His casting, function-forward but inherently beautiful, is
easy to learn and extremely effective. On the waters at the Ranch, you'll have the opportunity to
learn in a controlled environment from the Skagit Master himself, with the
full support of Leland's instructional team.
Book Saturday Casting now.
Sunday: On-Water Instruction and Fishing the Waters of Northern California
Jumping off from the Ranch's location between the Russian, American, Yuba, and Feather Rivers,
we'll venture out early on Sunday to take our practiced skills to the playing field.
Waist deep in moving water, we'll cover anchor setting, mending, depth control -- and hopefully,
fighting, landing and releasing steelhead.
Book Sunday Fishing now.
Leland on Scott Howell
The release of Skagit Master II is letting the world in on a secret that Leland has known for years:
when it comes to steelheading experience, knowledge, and technique, Scott Howell is a resource without peer. We think he might just be the
fishiest man alive.
For
almost four decades, Scott has been fishing the steelhead waters of the Pacific Rim, and for over 20 years, he’s been guiding them professionally. He was one of the handful of Pacific Northwest anglers to pick up two-handed rods in the late 1980s, and was
an integral part of the casting and line-design innovation known as the "Skagit Revolution." He was also part of the first batch of American guides to fish the unexplored steelhead rivers of Russia's Kamchatka peninsula.
His wealth of experience and scope of expertise are difficult to fathom.
For six years, when he was guiding in Alaska every summer, Scott made his home in British Columbia. One year,
he promised himself we would fish every day, from the time he got home from Alaska in September, through the winter, until he went back the following May – and he did.
Each year Scott spends over 300 days guiding on his homewaters in southern Oregon, with the vast majority of his bookings coming from repeat clients. Leland feels very fortunate to have received Scott's pledge of three days this September, and
we encourage interested students to book their spots early.
Book the Full Weekend.
Book Friday Fly Tying.
Book Saturday Casting.
Book Sunday Fishing.
coming soon....