Chris Reeves
England
The Irish Fly Fair - Killyhevlin Hotel, Enniskillen, Co. Fermanagh
18th & 19th November 2023
JOIN Chris Reeves AT THE IRISH FLY FAIR
I have been a fisherman all my life and a fly angler for almost 25 years. I began fly fishing at Barn Elms reservoir in West London and progressed via small stillwaters to the large reservoirs, where I fished many of the large competitions with some success.
I then moved on to the challenge of chalkstreams before I started fishing further afield in many “destination fisheries” including Alaska, Chile, Argentina, California, The Bahamas and Florida. I fish at least twice a week in the season and also hunt pike on the local stretches of the River Thames. I regularly take part in coarse matches at a local lake but fly fishing and fly tying are the real attractions.
I own a house in Florida and fish there as often as possible, usually in saltwater. The species may not be trout but at least it never snows! I started tying my own flies some 30 years ago. I was self taught and quickly realised the value of good instruction and how scarce it was, so I became an Instructor under the Salmon and Trout association STANIC banner, later becoming part of GAIA. I am currently a member of the professional anglers association offering classes in trout fishing, coarse fishing and of course fly tying. Since then I have taught privately and also in Adult education courses at my local college. I am currently running a course at Hampton rugby Club in SW London. In addition I spend a lot of time as teaching disadvantaged children to fish for coarse species with Wandle Valley School.
My favourite flies to tie are Chalkstream dries and Irish Loch flies, but I enjoy tying all styles and regularly tie Saltwater, Salmon and Pike flies too. I am a life member of the Fly Dressers Guild, currently the general secretary and also on the committee of the Surrey branch, I have been a Whiting Pro team tier since 2005, I am a member of the Partridge Pro team, and demonstrate using their porducts. I always enjoy trips to Ireland especially the Irish Fly Fair and look forward to this year’s event in the Enniskillen Co. Fermanagh, I hope to make some great new friends and enjoying a Guiness or two.
Email: chris.reeves@fishingclass.co.uk
