The Albemarle Angler is Central Virginia’s full service fly fishing guide and outdoor lifestyle outfitter. We carry the best fly fishing and outdoor brands in the world including Orvis, Simms, Barbour, Filson, Hardy, Fishpond, Sage, Scott, TFO, Abel, and Rio. We offer guided fly fishing trips in Virginia to many of the great trout and smallmouth bass streams including the Blue Ridge Mountains, the Jackson River, the James River, and the Shenandoah River. Stop by anytime to chat about fishing or outfit yourself and your family for life in the great outdoors of Virginia. We are located a block from the University of Virgina in Charlottesville in the Barrack’s Road Shopping Center beside the CVS pharmacy. Click here for directions.
SPECIAL ORDERS: As always, we are proud to offer free shipping on all special orders. If you can find it in the catalog then we will order it for you at no charge. You can even phone in your order with the item number from the catalog to 434.977.6882. To request a current Orvis catalog, please call us at 434.977.6882 or email us at info@albemarleangler.com
Did you know we offer a rewax service for Barbour Jackets? One week turnaround.
Let’s start by saying that I typically review only rods that really impress me and this review is no exception: the new TFO Clouser rod is phenomenal especially when you consider the $250 price tag and typical TFO lifetime warranty. When i first took the rod out of the case I noticed that while we had the typical blue blank, it was a color of blue I hadn’t seen before which i like. It also includes the “fly” graphic above the grip. In addition, the burled cork rings on the grip are a nice touch. The rods all come in a 4 piece configuration.
I consider TFO rods as a whole to be the best value in fly rods today. Mind you, they’re not the best rods out there but for the money they are tough to beat. This rod is no exception and is by far my favorite saltwater caster. I had despised the old TICR-x—it’s a broomstick fit for a witch. The Axiom is a great rod and I was happy to see it come along a couple of years ago but the Clouser sets a new standard in castability: I feel it comes in head and shoulders over the Axiom. While the Clouser doesn’t feel as light as a very high end rod such as the Orvis Helios or Sage Xi3, it has a great balance and substantial feel without being heavy. What really sets this rod apart from others is its castability: it is effortless to cast. You can feel the tip load easily, loop is easy to control and it has plenty of reserve power. With minimal effort you can cast 80ft and it will chuck the whole fly line with power to spare. Sure there are other rods which have this power but they seem to me a bit more difficult to control. The Clouser is pinpoint accurate and positive. The rod was actually designed to throw weighted flies and sinking lines and this it will accomplish well but that doesn’t mean its not a terrific tool for your standard floating line. The only rod in this price range that comes close to this is the Grey’s Platinum XD saltwater (which is a close second). Finally, the only odd thing about this rod is its limited configuration: it only comes in one length. 8 feet 9 inches but it covers line weights 5-10. It’s a home run from TFO and Bob Clouser at a price that you can afford. As Bob Clouser says about this rod, “Light in the hand and super sensitive…..I like to say, “I can feel them breathing on the fly as they inhale it”.
Reminder about this months meeting, this Thursday Feb 25 at 6:30 pm at the UVA Astronomy Bldg. We will talk about the upcoming Spring Fly Fling, and the Va Trout Stream Sensitivity project where TU members will collect water samples from 386 of the states over 500 streams. We need volunteers for both projects, let us know if you can help.
This Friday, February 26th, we will be holding our weekly FREE fly tying roundtable. Come and hang out, swill free coffee and chew the fat as we tie flies (since we don’t want to be outside freezing trying to catch fish). If you are new to tying or an accomplished hand, all are welcome. I will be helping out beginners or anyone who has questions about tying or equipment. John Edelen will be on hand too. I’ll be tying some PT nymphs, Zebra Midges, and my “Moorman’s Miracle Midge”. Make sure to bring your equipment and materials although we have a couple of extra vises if you need one. We’ll start fly tying at 2pm and go utill we feel like quitting. As usuall, we’ll have coffee, fun, and friends. After this week we will not be sending out emails to remind people of this event. Please watch here for updates every week.
We recently made the trek over to Beaver Creek in Ottobine and got in on some good trout action including one fish that went to 20″. The snow was deep, the water cold, but there is great fishing right now if you can get to your favorite stream.
As many of you know, the fly fishing industry is moving quickly toward all rubber soles on most of the new wading boots to combat the spread of invasive species. The newest entry into the market from Orvis is the Riverguard series of boots. We highly recommend studs on all Vibram wading boots but the good news is that the Riverguard boots by Orvis come with studs. Our testiing has seemed to bear out the fact that rubber is more durable and offers better traction when studs are used than felt alone. This video explains more about the boot.
Check out the new Orvis Video on the Orvis Hydros Rods that are new this year. If you haven’t already heard, the Hydros is “the poor man’s Helios”. The Helios broke the barrier for all fly rods when it was introduced last year and is by far, the lightest fly rod on the market. It also happens to by my favorite casting rod too. But what to do when you don’t have $750+ to spend on your next fly rod? Enter the Hydros: made with the same technology and tapers, it is just a bit heavier and lighter at the same time: heavier in weight, lighter on your wallet. We have these rods in stock now at the Albemarle Angler and you can come in and test cast them anytime. I think you will be impressed by what Orvis is doing with their rods. I am.
We are blowing out our old fly tying inventory to make room for the new stuff. Many items are 45% off the list price, including many hooks and tools. Come take a look at the selection or call us if you have something in particular that you are looking for.
Our 4th FREE fly tying seminar will be Friday, January 29 from 2-4pm at the shop. Our topic will be saltwater fly tying with an emphasis on local Bay waters; Stipers and Bluefish. We’re planning on having a guest tyer for this seminar. We will post more info then. Bring your vise and tie along with us. You must supply your own materials (although we’re happy to share some personal materials). We’ll have coffee, fun, and friends.
