I’m Quill Gordon! Well, not actually. The Quill Gordon is a very old eastern trout fly developed by the famed Theodore Gordon. Quill’s a nickname given me when I started in the commercial fly fishing business over 30 years ago.

Gordon Rose aka Quill Gordon

I began my life of fly fishing at the age of 5 with my father on the small mountain streams of Colorado. At the age of 10, I began tying flies and selling the horrible concoctions to my Dad for 25 cents each. As my tying skills improved, I worked summers in high school tying commercially for the Hank Roberts Company and the Rocky Mountain Fly Company. My fishing skills were honed during that period on the difficult fish of Colorado’s South Platte River in Cheesman Canyon.

In the early ’80’s I moved on during college summers to West Yellowstone to tie flies and guide the Madison River for Bob Jacklin. While in law school, I spent 3 summers guiding the Big Horn River for the Bighorn Angler. After a brief stint practicing law in Denver, my wife and I established Quill Gordon Fly Fishers on the Big Horn. With that business, I tied flies and guided fishermen on the “Horn” for 13 years. We sold the business in 1999 and moved to Sheridan, Wyoming to seek out more private, pristine fishing experiences throughout Wyoming. During my time on the Big Horn, I was portrayed in a feature article in Sports Afield magazine, and featured in televised fly fishing videos presented on ESPN and Minnesota Outdoors. I am a featured fly tier in Kelly Galloup’s book titled Cripples and Spinners.

Now I’m back! After so many past clients and fly shops kept requesting my distinctive fly patterns, I’ve decided to get back into the business full-time. With the exception of John Barr’s excellent Copper John series, all the flies offered here are my own patterns developed over decades of on-stream experiences. I use only Tiemco hooks and the finest materials available. Every fly comes off my vise, tried by my hand – – no imports!

Of course, since I’m doing all the tying, the patterns available are relatively limited. But I’m totally confident I’ve presented the best patterns to cover most trout fishing scenarios across the country. Give them a try, and enjoy!