The Troutfitter

First time fishing as an adult and needed some gear to go along with our Wallyworld rods that we brought along. The gal who helped us out was knowledgeable and recommended some items that didn’t break the bank. She showed us how to put on a bobber and correctly tied knots. Even showed us how to wrangle a worm. Don’t think you’d get that kind of personal service at Walmart.

This is the best fly/​tackle/​gear shop I’ve been to in the Eastern Sierras. All the staff members are super knowledgeable and friendly. I’ve been to many fly shops where the staff treat you like an uninformed amateur. Regardless of experience level, the Troutfitter staff treat you like a local fishing buddy. Their selection of flies is excellent too. If you are looking for a guided fishing experience, ask for Ryan. He was fantastic. We had a great time fishing the upper Owens River with him. The Troutfitter is an all around great experience. It’s a destination for us when in the Mammoth area… so much more than a gear stopover.

Always get decent customer service and good intel on the hot spots from the guys at troutfitter. Great selection of flies and other gear. I don’t bother with the other shops in the area since this one is convenient and has a selection. Thanks Troutfitter!

On our recent trip to Mammoth, we actually had a pretty positive experience at the shop. Based on other reviews that I have read on Unilocal,I think maybe that makes me an «old guy.» That being said, we needed some chironomid patterns to fish Crowley… And this shop had exactly what we needed.
truth be told, it’s proximity to the gas station — where we had stopped for coffee and gasoline — made this an easy stop as well. I enjoy talking fishing as much as the next guy, but really, I wasn’t in there for a conversation. A little local know how it is never a bad thing, and hopes that I willing to share with customers is also a bonus. I found the staff to be cordial but not gushing and overbearing.
Maybe it was the float tubes and fly rods sticking out of the back of my truck in the parking lot, but they didn’t try to sell me anything I didn’t need or ask for.
Based on other reviews, it sounds like there are some other options in town for purchasing trout fishing gear. You need to find a store that works best for you, based on your ability and needs for service and support.
It sounds like some folks like to stand around tackle shops talking fishing. I prefer to maximize my time on the water. The Troutfitter facilitated that, and I’m happy.

Unfortunately, I didn’t use this store’s full services until my last day. This store has a wide range of items that can be rented like waders, float tubes, fins etc. For reasonable prices.
The store also has a lot of specialty dry flies and nymphs that are native to the Mammoth Lakes.
The price for purchasing equipment and other gear is reasonable as well. Unfortunately, I had purchased most of my gear at Orvis prior to coming up and spent nearly double for gear.
The store’s staff is very knowledgeable about all of their gear and offer up more than enough information about the fishing activities at each lake.

We have had three different fly fishing guides at Troutfitters and they all have had their own unique style. Jim is very thorough; a really nice trait for teaching rookies like us. On our first visit, Jim took my wife and I to practice at a grass field to learn basic skills before we hit the upper Owens river. Once at the river Jim demonstrated a «real» cast and of course got a nice fish instantly. My wife and I weren’t quite that fortunate but within an hour caught (and released) a Cutthroat, a couple Browns, and a Rainbow. I have since asked for Jim on two subsequent trips. September, 2014, with my college-​age daughter (lower Owens this time) and most recently this August (2015) as a solo. I learned the most on the solo trip for obvious reasons. We went to Hot Creek on Jim’s advice and he taught me some different ways to fish given the more challenging circumstances of less water flow and increased temperatures. In the case of one stealthy Rainbow it took about 30 presentations to get his attention. He was visible and grabbing food off the surface one minute and darting down another. We tried a variety of fly arrangements to no avail until Jim rigged a mystery nymph without an indicator. Wham. Within a minute we had a Rainbow in the net! Despite the summer heat we still managed to catch a great deal of fish early in the morning. Once the winds picked up, it was time to move on.
The cost was $ 310 plus a day license at $ 5.12 (don’t ask why the $.12, it’s government). It may seem pricey, but considering the the fact that we were fishing for over 5 hours, it was a real bargain in my book. The other guides that we have worked with in the past are Dave and Otis. They are both great people and did a nice job with us in challenging circumstances (not as many fish and a group of six). Overall, this shop is a class act.

I used them in 2013 for guiding flyfishing trip for two days with me and wife and the guide name Cogs was great. I am going back in 2 weeks and just booked two days with Cogs.
Steve

I’ve been stopping here for fly fishing gear for years and had spotty service, sometimes good, sometimes poor. I’ve also hired guides through this shop. My kid who is in his early 20’s went in there by himself and had a horrible customer service experience. They didn’t pay any attention even though they were not busy. Seen some fly shops over the years who don’t help young people. That’s how they guys at Troutfitter operate. We now take our business to Ricks where we’ve always been treated well and our money is welcomed. Also stop at Brock’s in Bishop now that it’s under new management. Too many other shops in the sierras to put up with the arrogant store clerks at the Troutfitter.

This is a great place to rent everything you need to have a great fishing trip. The staff is friendly and knowledgable. Plan on using their services the next time I’m back up here!

The trout fitter is awesome, I was able to get everything I needed and even things for my daughter while we fished. The staff (David) is very helpful and knowledgeable and fishing in the area. Lots of tips an tricks you can’t go wrong here.

These guys seem to know their stuff and are passionate about the sport.
We rented gear to go fishing at the local lakes. (Lake Mary and Mamie with my 5Yr old son, Wife and Daughter)
Scott helped us, he set up my sons fishing pole, gave us advise on where and how to fish.
We were also able to buy our fishing licenses here.
Thanks so much for making our Fishing trip very successful and memorable.
P. S. Mammoth has a free trolley that takes you as far as horseshoe lake.
They even have a trailer to carry perhaps up to 20 bikes so that people can ride the paved trail down the mountain back to town.
Way cool.

I contacted the Troutfitter to schedule a guide trip for my adult son and my two adult nephews along with myself. I had perused their shop several times while having breakfast nearby. I had always had «tube fishing» on my bucket list and this was the year I was going to «get er done».
I first made contact with Jon Carlton, an energetic and enthusiastic guide who was very good at keeping contact with me up until the day of the trip. We had some outfitting challenges as none of us had waders, boots, fly rods, tubes etc. and my son was an ex collegiate offensive lineman so he was particularly tough.
John was able to outfit us completely the day before so our start would be seamless.
On the day of the trip we met with the second guide Scott Flint. Scott is a grizzled veteran of the business who I believe has been doing this for over 25 years. We traveled to a nearby lake on the way to Devil’s Postpile where the first hour was spent learning the basics of fly casting in an adjacent parking lot.
The two guides worked very well together; Scott took the lead on most of the instruction with John injecting comments where appropriate.
Many of us would have a first impression with Scott’s many years in the business there was a chance he had lost his passion and become mechanical in his approach. Nothing could be further from the truth. Scott was as passionate as a kid with his first fishing pole in his hand. His instruction was organized, had good progressions, and was individualized to each of our learning abilities.
Scott also did a good job of framing the day. He had concerns that taking neophyte fly fisherman on float tubes was a bit much for one session and set out expectations to preclude any first time disappointments.
Once on the lake the two guides split time between the four fisherman. They were good at «checking in» while still affording the student adequate time to learn and make mistakes on their own.
Despite Scott’s trepidation all of us were able to hook fish. My son (who had bait fished for several years) said he would never do anything but fly fish after this experience. My nephews were very apprehensive about what their uncle was dragging them into but had a great time as well.
Overall I cannot say enough good things about the two guides and our experience. Subsequent to my trip I spoke to «Dave» at the shop for some advice on future purchases. He was knowledgeable and patient in answering my questions.
I will be back.

Cant complain the customer service here was great and very helpful. It makes your vacation great when you find people helping you. This definitely help there business because I will keep coming back for years to come.
The guy told us of the different lakes and steams to fish and what to use. Great help thanks.
07/​25/​2013

The guys at Trout Fitter are great. Everyone is so nice and ready to help when you need it. The shop is clean, well organized, and always stocked.

Where ever there is a concentration of fly fishing waters, there’s usually a multitude of fly shops to choose from — one of them really good and the other the grumpy guy that thinks this would be a really great job if all these people would stop coming in and bothering him.
The Troutfitter is the good guys. They were willing to give us the information we needed to customize our fly fishing vacation. We wanted a smaller stream that no one else wanted to bother with and catch lots of small fish all day long. They came up with some great suggestions and we’re glad we took a chance on them and pulled off the road to check them out.

I’ve been a customer for a few years, whether to purchase just a fishing license, bait, lures, flies or accessories. There is a large selection of dry flies, nymphs, midges or streamers. They also carry leaders, tippets, floats, strike indicators and misc tools. They have float tube, wader, fins, and fly rod reel rentals. The Troutfitter offers ‘all-​inclusive’ guided trips and fly fishing instructions. The staff is friendly and helpful, so stop by on your next trip in Mammoth Lakes. They are located behind the Shell gas station and next to the Breakfast Club.

Yes fisherman do Unilocal.This place has everything from bait to lures to t-​shirts and etc. The people here are knowledgeable.

Clay was awesome and helped me get my fishing license. They seem to have everything you need for fishing.

Great fishing shop, probably one of the best shops in Mammoth. The staff is very knowledgeable and can easily tell you what you should get. They have a pretty large selection of flies and bait along with rods and reels, even tons of clothing. This place is great, support their business!

The Trout Fitter. What to say? At first glance the store seems to be full of everything you could possibly need, and for the most part it is. Try talking to one of the staff and you will soon get a feel for what this place is all about. How dare you interupt me when I am talking to my co-​worker. What do you want? Is this all you are going to buy?
My suggestion is, don’t let the façade fool you, this place wants your money not your business or loyalty.