Episode 82 Featuring Chris O'Donnell---Winter Steelhead Kick-Off Episode

The 2025-2026 Upland season is winding down. In this episode of Fin And Fire With Jeff Mishler, I revisit my favorite clips from past episodes focused on the processes of hunting upland birds: gun dog training, the gear we use, and the ethics inherent in our hunting experience. If you love hunting upland birds or are curious about the processes, sit back and enjoy. 

Chris O'Donnell is a well versed man.  As a fly shop owner, fishing guide, outfitter and family man, he is committed to his clients and his business. In this episode of Fin And Fire With Jeff Mishler, Chris and I about talk winter and summer steelhead---  lines, flies, rods, seasons, jet boats and whether a popper is a skater, or a skater is a waker...Yup, we dork out a bit. This is a great primer for your upcoming winter steelhead trip.

If you love duck hunting, particularly hunting mallards over decoys, this episode is for you. In this episode of Fin and Fire with Jeff Mishler, Mike Callian and I discuss duck blind construction, the new DSD line of mallard decoys, and how to effectively deploy them for maximum success.  

Tom Larimer has dedicated his career to fly fishing.  In his new role as North American Sales Director for Farbank, he has access to some of the best products in the industry.  In this episode of Fin and Fire With Jeff Mishler, Tom and I discuss his new position and go deep into winter trout techniques utilizing all of the tools in his chest. 

Fall is my favorite time of year. In this episode of Fin and Fire With Jeff Mishler, I mash-up my favorite moments from the waterfowl hunting shows because, it's duck season, and I'm going duck hunting.  Mike Callian and Dave Smith of Dave Smith Decoys and shooting instructor Eric White cover some critical elements in the process of calling and shooting waterfowl.

After all of these episodes featuring the most interesting people in the world of hunting and fish, the guys at Fin and Fire asked me to pull together a mash-up of my favorite spey centric/steelhead interviews.  So here it is.  Ed Ward, Scott O'Donnell, Dec Hogan and Rich Zellman share stories from a life committed to fishing for steelhead with a two handed rod.

In this episode of Fin And Fire With Jeff Mishler I meet up with Dave Pinczkowski on the banks of the Deschutes River during his once in a lifetime, month-long, west coast steelhead adventure. After a few days of fishing together we share some stories and in the process I learn how to fish for sturgeon and catfish with a swinging fly. 

In this episode of Fin And Fire with Jeff Mishler, I share stories with Ken Morrish, a life long angler, fly designer, destination travel professional and international angler seeking the next great adventure. Ken Morrish of Fly Water Travel lays bare the ideas behind his fly designs and motivation to connect you with your next great adventure.

Amy Eichner is a category manager for Benchmade Knives.  In this episode of Fin and Fire With Jeff Mishler we discuss the inspiration and motivation to create this new line of knives. The Water line meets the needs of those seeking a quality knife for a lifestyle spent on the water.

Besides creating some of the most beautiful and effective steelhead flies, Charles St. Pierre seeks the culture of angling for one reason...the people.  In this episode of Fin And Fire with Jeff Mishler, Charles and I talk about flies, presentation, and our gear, but by the end of our conversation it's clear that Charles is in it for the Vibe.