Flyfishing 101 Classes Scheduled

There is more to successful fly fishing than learning how to cast. This class covers the skills and techniques necessary to get you on the stream and catching fish! Ace teacher and experienced fly fisher Carlo Bongio - who also manages the fly department for us - gives this essential overview of fly fishing, including learning three types of casts, knot tying, presentation techniques, and understanding equipment, trout habitat and entymology (the study of insects -- the natural food of the trout).

During the session, students will have opportunities to both learn and practice techniques. Beginning with a description of the fly fishing equipment and how it is put together into a complete outfit, this class then focuses upon essential fishing knots, the different types of flies and when to use them. Once all students understand the “why” aspect of fishing, coursework moves to casting and controlling line for different conditions and presentations. By the end of the course, budding anglers are ready to concentrate on catching fish. We recommend these sessions rather than casting-only classes for novices.

This class is limited to 6 students and goes from 9 am to approximately 12:30 pm.
Reservations required - contact Carlo at 415-456-5454. (Note - classes generally fill early, so don't delay!) All gear provided. Cost: $95/student.

Saturday, March 5
Saturday, March 26
Saturday, April 2

Waterfowl Season-End Sale!

The last truckload of gear has finally been unloaded at the mothership in San Rafael*, and we're even through a goodly portion of the totes and boxes which came down. Things are still a bit crazy and disorganized, but we've wrangled stuff around enough to make some sense of things.

One thing we know for sure is that the general waterfowl season ended last weekend, and that means one thing - time for us to clear out the last of the waterfowl shells, gear and equipment. The Annual Waterfowl Season-End Sale starts NOW!

It also means that some of you who didn't have the opportunity to drive north to take advantage of our store closing sale in Santa Rosa have the chance to save big on waterfowl gear. Heck - even if you found a lot of great bargains up there, you are welcome to head on down to San Rafael and save big!



All Steel Shot Waterfowl loads - Buy a Case, take $20 off our already low prices! Save $2/box!
All Camouflage Clothing - 40% OFF! (And make sure to check out the SALE RACKS - save even more on one-of-a-kind and closeout items)
All Camouflage Waders - 40% OFF!
All Duck Calls - 30% OFF!
All Decoys - 20% OFF!
There's also a few SALE tables set up for even more serious savings, a few firearms which have lowered pricing, and new consignment guns in the rack.

*Just in case you missed the news, we closed our Santa Rosa store at the end of January. All credits, gift certificate records and firearms for pickup have been moved to our San Rafael store.

Carlo's Steelhead Wrap Up

Fly Department manager Carlo Bongio sent over just a few shots from this year's excellent steelhead season

"The first wild steelhead was caught and released from a local tidewater stream in sonoma county. The second photo taken in the boat is a Smith river hatchery Steelhead that was kept for the barbaque. The last photo with the flyrod is a Russian River hatchery Steelhead that was also kept. The point of this post is to make sure that all anglers understand that all wild steelhead in California must be released. You will notice tha large intact adipose fin of the wild steelhead compared to the clipped adipose fin of the hatchery fish. This winter's runs have been fair to good on most rivers on the coast. - Carlo"

Last Day - Santa Rosa Store Closes Today!

Today will be the final day of the Store Closing Sale in Santa Rosa - 2790 Santa Rosa Avenue. The store will close at 4pm today, Sunday, January 23rd.

I've received a number of calls and emails from people looking for specific items. Honestly, it's been too crazy and busy to be able to confirm in stock items. Several times, we've turned our back on something, only to have a customer swoop in and buy it!

There are still a huge number of items in stock, and even if what you are looking at doesn't have a specific sale price, you still save because we are paying the sales tax!

Yes - after you put together an armload (or truck load) of the best deals on fishing, fly fishing and hunting you can manage - We Pay the Sales Tax!

This absolutely ends today at 4pm - it is the LAST DAY to save this big!

So, don't delay - head down to the Santa Rosa location at 2790 Santa Rosa Avenue right now - bring a friend to help carry out the best possible deals!

*If you have have a rifle or shotgun which is to be picked up and will not be able to make it to the shop before Sunday, we will be on site during the following week for clean up and fixture sales. You will need to coordinate with us for pickup during this time. As of Februray 1, 2010, all firearm pickups and transfers will be available in our San Rafael store at 902 Third Street.

Final Two Days - Santa Rosa Closes Sunday!

What are you waiting for?

The deals are hot, discounts are deep and there's still a ton of great gear at incredible prices.

Not only that, but after you put together an armload (or truck load) of the best deals on fishing, fly fishing and hunting you can manage - We Pay the Sales Tax!

In other words, today and tomorrow are the last days to save this big!

So, don't delay - head down to the Santa Rosa location at 2790 Santa Rosa Avenue right now - bring a friend to help carry out the best possible deals!

The Santa Rosa store will be closing down at the end of business day Sunday, January 23*.

*If you have have a rifle or shotgun which is to be picked up and will not be able to make it to the shop before Sunday, we will be on site during the following week for clean up and fixture sales. You will need to coordinate with us for pickup during this time. As of Februray 1, 2010, all firearm pickups and transfers will be available in our San Rafael store at 902 Third Street.


Right Now - Final Two Days:

We have gone through our inventory and marked selected items as low as 50-70% OFF the regular price. Any previously discounted fly fishing clothing has been slashed again - as much as 50% off! We will be continuing to slash prices until the doors close on Sunday.

40% OFF all General Tackle - lures, line, weights, swivels, nets and gear
40% OFF all Conventional fishing rods (not fly rods)
40% OFF All Tying Material, hooks, tying vises and accessories
40% OFF All Fly Fishing Accessories
40% OFF All Knives

All Flies ONLY ONE DOLLAR!

20% OFF all Camouflage Clothing (also at San Rafael!)
20% OFF all Federal Centerfire Ammunition - Premium, American Eagle and "Blue Box"
20% OFF all optics (binoculars, scopes, spotting scopes & shooting glasses)
20% OFF all Decoys (also at San Rafael!)
20% OFF all Hunting Waders (also at San Rafael)
15% OFF all Gun Safes and Cabinets
40% OFF all Other Hunting Accessories & Cleaning Supplies

20% OFF all New Books in stock

Great deals can be found in all departments - fly fishing, hunting and regular fishing.

And don't forget the Huge Book Sale going on in our San Rafael store:
All NEW BOOKS - 20% OFF!
All USED BOOKS - 50% OFF!

FIXTURES & DISPLAYS - we will be selling off fixtures, cases, grid wall, slat wall, storage racks, rod racks, clothing hangers and peg hooks from our Santa Rosa location. We also have grid wall and items which we have used at consumer shows over the years which we will be selling off.
If you are interested in fixtures or similar items, please feel free to email editor@westernsportshop.com

Please note - Sale items are strictly limited to stock on hand. Sales items limited to Santa Rosa store only unless specifically stated otherwise. No layaways, "holds" or partial payments on sale items. Credit cards or cash only. All items sold "as-is". No exchanges or returns on sale items.

No Tax Sale Starts Today

(click for full size)

Find an armload (or truckload!) of the best deals in the store, the great gear we stock, any item in our Santa Rosa store and, starting today, we pay the sales tax!

Starts today, Wednesday January 19 and runs through end of business Sunday, January 23.

Starting today through the end of business on Sunday, January 23rd, we will pay the sales tax on every purchase made at the store. So, find an armful of bargains - tons of items 20-50% off and many items reduced to ridiculously low prices - and great gear throughout the store, and pay not one penny of sales tax!

All the discounts below are in effect right now:

We have gone through our inventory and marked selected items as low as 50-70% OFF the regular price. Any previously discounted fly fishing clothing still in stock has been slashed again - as much as 50% off!

50% OFF all Women's sized waders and wading boots in stock
40% OFF all General Tackle - lures, line, weights, swivels, nets and gear
40% OFF all Conventional fishing rods (not fly rods)
40% OFF All Tying Material, hooks, tying vises and accessories
40% OFF All Fly Fishing Accessories
40% OFF All Knives

All Flies ONLY ONE DOLLAR!

20% OFF all Camouflage Clothing (also at the San Rafael store!)
20% OFF all Federal Centerfire Ammunition - Premium, American Eagle and "Blue Box"
20% OFF all optics (binoculars, scopes, spotting scopes & shooting glasses)
20% OFF all Decoys (also at down at San Rafael!)
20% OFF all Hunting Waders (also at San Rafael)
15% OFF all Gun Safes and Cabinets
40% OFF all Other Hunting Accessories & Cleaning Supplies

20% OFF all New Books in stock

Great deals can be found in all departments - fly fishing, hunting and regular fishing.

And don't forget the Huge Book Sale going on in our San Rafael store:
All NEW BOOKS - 20% OFF!
All USED BOOKS - 50% OFF!

Also - we will be selling off fixtures, cases, grid wall, slat wall, storage racks, rod racks, clothing hangers and peg hooks from our Santa Rosa location. If you are interested in fixtures or similar items, please feel free to email editor@westernsportshop.com

Please note - Sale items are strictly limited to stock on hand. Sales items limited to Santa Rosa store only unless specifically stated otherwise. No layaways or partial payments on sale items. All items sold "as-is". All sales final.

North Coast Heating Up!

For the past couple of weeks, we've had our heads tucked down, focused on clearing out the inventory in our Santa Rosa store. Luckily, we have staff members and a few customers who have gotten a chance to be out doing what matters - checking conditions on the coastal rivers.

With the lighter rains and warm days of the past week, conditions in some of the quicker-clearing rivers have gotten to be excellent. So, after you drop by the Santa Rosa store this last week of the sale, then you might just spend a little time closer to the coast.





You never know what you might come up with...