September activities

AFR monthly meeting
Thursday, September 19th
6:00pm
Pack & Paddle Outpost (behind P&P)
601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette

Join us Thursday, September 19th as club member Pat Bienvenu gives us a presentation on "Fishing Vermillion Bay".  Vermillion Bay has a reputation for being difficult, and Pat has a reputation for catching Speckled Trout there. Come and hear what Pat looks for and how he successfully probes the water of this estuary.

As always, guests are welcome!

Natchitoches Fly Fishing Tie-In
Saturday, September 14th
9am - 4pm
Natchitoches Chamber Building
716 Second St, Natchitoches, LA

This event is being hosted by the ArkLaTexOma Fly Tiers, an independent group of fly tiers from the four corners region. This event is free and open to the public. Many of the top tiers from across the region will be on hand to demonstrate a wide range of patterns. 

According to Mike Hawkins, there's room for more tiers - contact Mike at flyfish.hawk@gmail.com.

Acadiana Bugs & Brews
Thursday, September 26th
6:00pm
Pack & Paddle Outpost, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette
Open to the public

Acadiana Bugs & Brews is an open community fly tying event usually held the fourth Thursday of each month. Though not affiliated with Acadiana Fly Rodders, several club members are usually on hand to assist any beginners. Bring your favorite beverage to Bugs & Brews, and enjoy a cold one while tying and sharing fishing tales.  Attendees can tie whatever flies they want. However, we usually have a featured tier who demonstrates a particular fly, and attendees can join in to tie that pattern.  Materials are provided. 

This month, Pat Bienvenu will demonstrate the Popping Flats Shrimp from Backwater Fly Fishing. It's a great pattern for specks and reds as Fall begins. Come early and get in a little retail therapy at our fine sponsors in Pack & Paddle.

Rio Grande Rumble
Saturday, September 28th
Weigh-in: No Wake Outfitters
1926 Airline Dr, Metairie, LA
Registration: $20

Our neighboring club in New Orleans - New Orleans Fly Fishers Club - is hosting their 15th annual Rio Grande Rumble Fly Fishing Rodeo on the 28th. The target species is the invasive and wary Rio Grande cichlid. Categories are Longest and Most. Fishing starts at 6:52am  and ends at 12:30pm.

Pre-registration is available on the NOFFC website. Anglers can also register the morning of the tournament at No Wake Outfitters. For complete details, and to pre-register, go to www.neworleansflyfishers.com.

August activities

AFR monthly meeting
Thursday, August 15, 2024
6:00pm
Pack & Paddle Outpost
601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette

Join us on August 15th as Capt. Ron Begnaud gives us a presentation on targeting Bull Reds here in South Louisiana.  Capt. Ron and his Redchaser Guide Service have been successfully targeting big redfish on the fly for many years so don’t miss this opportunity to hear what Ron looks for and the techniques he uses.

Ron has fly fished from the Lake Calcasieu Estuary to Grand Isle and he’ll present information that can help you target Bull Reds on the fly in various areas and times of year.  One presentation you don’t want to miss!

As always, guests are welcome!

Acadiana Bugs & Brews
Thursday, August 22, 2024
6:00pm
Pack & Paddle Outpost, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette
Open to the public

Acadiana Bugs & Brews is an open community fly tying event usually held the fourth Thursday of each month. Though not affiliated with Acadiana Fly Rodders, several club members are usually on hand to assist any beginners. Bring your favorite beverage to Bugs & Brews, and enjoy a cold one while tying and sharing fishing tales.

As always, attendees can tie whatever flies they want.  However, for those interested, Mike Carlin will demonstrate and assist others in tying his version of Capt. Joe Blado's Crease Fly.  The Crease Fly is a super effective topwater minnow made from sheet foam.  As always, tools are available for use during the session and materials will be provided.

For all these events, come early and get in a little retail therapy at our fine sponsors in Pack & Paddle.

July Activities

AFR monthly meeting
Thursday, July 18, 2024
6:00pm meeting
Pack & Paddle Outpost, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette

This month join us as Darin Lee gives us a talk on his chartered trip to the Chandeleur Islands over the July 4th weekend.  In addition to the details of his trip and preparations, he will discuss some of the the other charter options available for fishing the Chandeleurs. 

Also, Darin will present a bit of info on the restoration efforts underway to sustain the islands and seagrasses.

As always, guests are welcome!  

Acadiana Bugs & Brews
Thursday, July 25, 2024
6:00pm
Pack & Paddle Outpost, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette
Open to the public

Acadiana Bugs & Brews is an open community fly tying event usually held the fourth Thursday of each month. Though not affiliated with Acadiana Fly Rodders, several club members are usually on hand to assist any beginners. Bring your favorite beverage to Bugs & Brews, and enjoy a cold one while tying and sharing fishing tales.

This month, Darin Lee returns to demonstrate Bob Popovic's Bulkhead Deceiver. It's a great suspending baitfish pattern that catches fish, and is surprisingly simple to tie. Darin will introduce some techniques for tying with bucktail.  

Tiers are then welcome to tie their whatever flies they wish, but if interested in tying the Bulkhead Deceiver, materials will be available.  For beginners, tools are available for use during the session.

For all these events, come early and get in a little retail therapy at our fine sponsors in Pack & Paddle.

June activities

AFR monthly meeting
Thursday, June 20, 2024
6:00pm meeting
Pack & Paddle Outpost, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette

This month, John Williams gives us a talk on his trip with Becky to Mexico where they did a bit of tarpon fishing, among other things.  John will discuss the flies used, accomodations available and how they found a guide.  Should be a great program!

As always, guests are welcome!  

Acadiana Bugs & Brews
Thursday, June 27, 2024
6:00pm
Pack & Paddle Outpost, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette
Open to the public

Acadiana Bugs & Brews is an open community fly tying event usually held the fourth Thursday of each month. We are a group of independent tiers who gather for the enjoyment of tying and to share stories and cold beer. Though not affiliated with Acadiana Fly Rodders, several club members are usually on hand to assist any beginners.

This month, our featured fly tier will be Ray Boudreaux. Ray will demonstrate the tying of his famous Black Boudreaux.  Bring your vise and tools, materials will be available for those wishing to tie a copy of this great pattern.

For all these events, come early and get in a little retail therapy at our fine sponsors in Pack & Paddle.

May 16th meeting - Flycasting Faults & Fixes

AFR monthly meeting
Thursday, May 16, 2024
6:00pm meeting
Pack & Paddle Outpost, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette

This month join us as we focus on fly casting.  We’ll watch one of the best videos ever made on the subject: Mel Krieger’s “Flycasting Faults and Fixes" details various flycasting problems and their solutions. Whether you're a novice or have been flycasting for some time, there's likely something in the video to help you improve your casting skills. 

Afterwards, we'll have a brief open discussion on some of the topics covered.  

Come early and get in a little casting practice beforehand, weather permitting. Or check into Pack & Paddle and get some retail therapy

April 18th meeting - Rotary Vise tips and techniques

AFR monthly meeting
Thursday, April 18, 2024
6:00pm meeting
Pack & Paddle Outpost, 601 E. Pinhook, Lafayette

This month club member Darin Lee will lead a demo on "Getting the Most from your Rotary Vise".  Whether you currently tie flies on a rotary vise or are thinking about tying on a rotary, we will discuss the types of vises and demo several techniques that fully utilize the rotary features of a full rotary vise.  

So bring your vise and tie along and even bring along any rotary techniques that work for you and pass them on.

Come early and get some retail therapy inside Pack & Paddle.