Discover Fly Fishing at WILSON’S

About ArtCreel…

Back in the summer of 1996, two new friends took off from work early on a Friday afternoon to backpack to a lake in the Cascades for the weekend. Once camp was set up next to the lake, Friend 1 pulled out his spinning gear complete with treble hook spoon and began fishing. Friend 2 carefully set up his fly fishing gear and began “fishing” as well. Friend 1 snickered at the elaborate casting motions and laborious retrieves of Friend 2. He thought he had never seen anything quite so unnecessary . He laughed out loud and the echo bounced many times off the glacial cirque that formed the lake. Friend 2 said, “I’ll have you fly fishing in no time.” Friend 1 was quite sure he would never give up his easy dardevle ways.

Within a year, amazed by the possibility of pinpoint casts with a fly (it reminded him a little of being back on the pitcher’s mound) and the stillness and rhythm of a sport that was growing on him, Friend 1 had almost completely abandoned his spinning rig in favor of an “economical” fly rod from Fred Meyer and noisy click-pawl reel.

Seven years after that first trip to the Cascades, Friend 1 decided to hang up the 9 to 5 gig and become an artist. Though he loved the Cascades, he found himself longing for better trout rivers he had flirted with on trips to Montana. Getting the green light from his incredible wife, they made their move in the name of painting the landscape, and said goodbye to Seattle’s 1 1/2 hour daily commute forever. That there happened to be some fine flywater all around was just ‘coincidence’. And besides, it was really all Friend 2’s fault anyway that an addiction had formed and now needed to be fed frequently by the many moving waters around the Gallatin valley. In time, aside from painting Rocky Mountain landscapes, he began painting a few trout; an angler here and there…and eventually the idea for ArtCreel was born…

In 2009 ArtCreel goes online as a place to showcase a fine collection of angling art, from fly fishing’s veteran artists and rising stars. We hope you enjoy what you see here. We will strive to provide you with the best opportunity to find, view, and purchase art that speaks perfectly to whatever it is you love about fly fishing – art that “floats your driftboat”.

Scott and Lara Hale
Bozeman, Montana
www.artcreel.com/

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