What Trout Hear and Smell, with Jason Randall

The Orvis Fly-Fishing Podcast

A couple months ago I did a podcast with Jason Randall [36:39] on trout vision, and it was so popular that I asked him to come back on the podcast to do one on a trout's sense of smell and hearing. Can trout hear your metal studs on the bottom when you wade, or the tip of your wading staff? Can they hear you talking? Can they smell your flies, and does it make sense to add scents to your fly? Can they smell hatches coming? I explore these and other topics with one of our foremost experts on what trout perceive in their environment. In the Fly Box this week, we have a great assortment of questions and tips from listeners, including:

• What could I tie with size 16 and 18 Keel Hooks?
• When working the same pool, should the nymph or streamer angler cover the pool first?
• Where should you park when you see a stretch of unposted land?
• A listener relates a fun story of his first carp on the fly
• What would make me choose the more expensive textured Pro fly line over the Smooth version?
• What is your rod, leader, and fly setup when fishing a small stream?
• Is there a difference between a dubbing loop and the split thread technique?
• Do Recons and Clearwaters go through the same process of improvements that Helios rods do?
• I saw a lot of bugs but no trout rising. Do you think they were overwhelmed by too much food?
• If trout in the East don't eat adult stoneflies much, why does the Chubby Chernobyl work so well?
• I find sunglasses in the evening a hindrance. What should I do to protect my eyes after the sun goes down?