AS A KID growing up in Athens, Alabama, Brandon Bailes used to spend a lot of time in his grandfather’s woodshop. His grandpa would cut a block of cedar for Bailes, then sketch something on it—the ...

The classic hair popper is as much a work of art as it is a lethal fish catcher. Courtesy of Brandon Bailes Surface flies made of tightly-spun deer belly hair have been catching bass for more than a ...

Master deer hair fly tier Mike George demonstrates how he makes his creations. Michael Pearce The Wichita Eagle OVERLAND PARK – Watch him work and you will recognize Mike George is a sculptor. Using ...

My rod was a 7-foot, 6-weight Cortland. Not exactly the most efficient gear for chucking a heavy, wind-resistant, deer-hair popper more than 10 yards. One summer, a buddy who tied flies in exchange ...

The white head and fan tail of a Bald eagle flew out of the riverbank trees, turned to give us a look, then pumped its wings to cruise downstream. A covey of Wood ducks, spooked by the table-size bird ...

This column first appeared in Field Notes, The Spokesman-Review’s weekly outdoors newsletter. The newsletter is sent Friday evenings at 7 p.m. You can subscribe here. There was one truck in the ...