FLY-FISHING WITH JOHN AND ELIZABETH EISENBARTH

Tying Flies with Elizabeth Eisenbarth

EDITOR'S NOTE: Elizabeth Eisenbarth, along with her husband, John, is co-owner of Riverside Outfitters and Fly Shop. She has tied flies for over 15 years and can tie hundreds of different flies. Elizabeth sells them off their Website and also conducts classes on how to tie flies.

Question: How did you learn how to hand-tie flies?
Answer: About 15 years ago, John couldn't buy the flies he wanted. John told me to try tying flies. I bought a book, and taught myself, and now I can tie over 200 different flies.

Question: What's your most-popular seller?
Answer: I make a special fly called a Fat-Head Bug, a tiny wooly-bugger type, damselfly nymph that sells for $2. I do a mayfly imitation that is really large, and it cost $5. My poppers run up to $7, and saltwater flies are much more expensive.

Question: How does someone order your flies?
Answer: I have a page on our Web site. Anyone interested can e-mail me and ask what to do next. They can send me a photo or tell me what they want.

Question: Say I have a specialty fly that I want you to tie. How much does it cost?
Answer: If it is a trout fly, the cost is usually $2 each with a minimum order of a dozen. Saltwater flies depend on the size. I will give you quote, and you can decide from there.

Question: How many customers do you have who want custom flies?
Answer: About three a week. But I also tie all the flies in the shop. I also supply other shops with flies.

Question: What products do you use the most when tying flies?
Answer: The feather I use the most is peacock herl. I use maribou, elk hair and hackle for other flies.

Question: How does someone get into fly-tying?
Answer: I do private classes, group classes and demos.

Question: What does a class cost?
Answer: A person can make an appointment for a one-hour class that cost s$45. Generally someone has to take five to seven classes to learn to tie flies.

Riverside Outfitters and Fly Shop is located in Jasper, off Hwy 69 N, 4 miles below the Smith Lake dam. For more information, call John Eisenbarth at (256) 287-0050, go to www.1flyfish.com or e-mail him at JE@1flyfish.com.

TOMORROW: FLY-FISHING WITH KAREN JORDAN