Description: "Angling afficionados and authors Chouinard, Mathews, and Mazzo join together again to reveal the secret to successful fly fishing: the pheasant tail fly. In Simple Fly Fishing (Patagonia, 2014; 2018), they made the case for replacing unnecessary gear with knowledge and technique. Now, after years of continuing to experiment and simplify, they offer the next step: the feathers that can be used to tie any kind of fly: nymphs, dry flies, emergers, and beetles. Conceived as an advanced follow-up to Simple Fly Fishing, Pheasant Tail Simplicity focuses on essential fly patterns that all share one critical ingredient--pheasant tail."--
Brief description: Yvon Chouinard is the founder and former owner of Patagonia. He is a world-recognized fly fishing expert. He is the author of several books, including Simple Fly Fishing: Techniques for Tenkara and Rod and Reel (Patagonia, 2016) and Let My People Go Surfing (Penguin Press, 2006, 2016, and 2025). His home waters are Jackson Hole, Wyoming and Ventura, California.
Review Quotes: "A minimalist manifesto for the modern angler, Pheasant Tail Simplicity is the perfect gift for fly fishers who believe less gear and more wisdom leads to more fish. . . . it's both a practical guide and a celebration of simplicity in the sport." - Fly Fisherman Magazine
"While this book features only a single main fly-tying material, it promotes an increasingly rare mindset: prioritizing knowledge, craft, and creativity." -- The Drake
"Inspiring you to keep turning the pages, learning more and to adopt this book's over-arching message of K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple, Stupid)" --The Mission Fly Fishing
"With its spectacular color photos, pattern recipes, expertly written instructional text, and feet-on-the-ground philosophy of better fly fishing through simplification, Pheasant Tail Simplicity is a book that appeals on multiple levels. It's the sort of volume you'll open again and again, if only because the gorgeous photos make it so enjoyable to flyp through. Fly tiers will want to keep a copy close by the bench. And it would make a fine coffee table book for guests to peruse in a home or fishing lodge. Highly recommended." --Fly Fisherman Magazine
"All in all, Pheasant Tail Simplicity will definitely increase your knowledge and simplify your fishing--and, if you're lucky, help you catch more fish." -- Outside Bozeman