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Cliff's Bugger Barn is a
sturdy large fly box from
Cliff Outdoors a
small company in Casper, Wyoming.
I must say that there was a
time when I seemed to be collecting every fly box that was
being produced. And I never really fell in love with
any. But Cliff's Bugger Barn is an exception.
It's not perfect, but it is the best I have found for its
purpose.
Typically I would load up
my boxes at the beginning of each season. I would take out
the flies remaining from the prior year's boxes and insert them into this year's
chosen boxes. Then I would reach into my bin of newly tied
flies and fill in any gaps remaining in the new boxes, with missing colors and sizes of my favorite
patterns.
I have always used a large
box that I call my "cross-over" box. It holds a
collection of sub-surface flies that I always have with me,
as they work equally well for trout (except on the smallest
mountain streams) and bass and panfish. In other
words, these flies "cross over" between the species I fish
for. Mostly the box
contains bugger-type flies, streamers and large nymphs.
The flies in the box in the top picture give you an idea of
what goes into my "big box". This box slides nicely
into the right chest pocket of my vest. I use a Simms
vest with vertical pockets, as this design allows me to
swing my arms as I walk without hitting my fly boxes, which
may be an issue for fisherman with horizontal pockets.
Well, about 4 or 5 seasons
ago, I started out the season by filling a brand new Bugger
Barn. The blue foam makes it easy to see your flies,
and the slits cut into the foam hold the hooks firmly in
place. The only downside I found is that with my aging
eyes I can't see the slits too well. But, as suggested
to me by Matt Cassel, owner of Cliff Outdoors, if you turn the box
so the eyes of the hooks are pointing away from you, you can
easily find the slot by sliding the fly backwards and
pulling it toward you along the foam. The bend of the hook easily finds the slot and
wedges itself into place.
I absolutely recommend this
box. The foam slits make for easy organization of your
flies, and the blue color is easy on the eyes. The box is made of sturdy plastic and it has
metal hinges. The latch has a solid click to it.
This is a very high quality product.
Initially, one could only
find Cliff Outdoor products at a few locations. But
recently I have seen their products in catalogs from such
major outfitters, such as Orvis. According to
the Web site, they now have dealers in 39 states and 5
foreign countries. If you have difficulty finding a
dealer, either in your area or online, you can contact them
through their Website,
http://www.cliffoutdoors.com/
Peter
Frailey
September, 2009
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