In this article I would like to highlight the skills of a local angler that has truly made his presence known in the fishing community. His name is Louie Denolfo or better know as “Louie the fish Denolfno”. Louie was born in New London, CT on May 27, 1944. He worked as a deckhand on charter boat Empress from age 11 till 18. Fly fishing since age 10, he caught big sea run trout in his teens. Louie the Fish is considered one of the contemporary masters of bone carving. He crafts some of the most beautiful bone carved fishing hooks I have ever seen as presented on his website http://www.louiethefish.com/
He is not only a master craftsmen he is also a master angler catching trout on his own custom designed flies out of the Tongariro river. If you are seeking a good guide to get you started in your fishing experiences definitely keep Louie in mind.
Louie was a guide in New Zealand for 20+ years, in Turangi, North Island, on the banks of the famous Tongariro river. Each year he goes back there to host anglers from his house. You can read all about his NZ Hosted Fly Fishing offer on his Facebook page at Louie the Fish, or his site at louiethefish.com. He caught that Brown trout on his NZ cicada dry fly, which he invented in 1983. He even won a fly tying contest with it that year!
“It is my go-to dry fly all summer in NZ” .
He sometimes adds a trailer dry fly, my foam brown beetle, about a yard behind, to just confuse the fish! great fun! He will be leaving Honolulu again on January 17 for 3 months of fly fishing and hosting angler in NZ, and he is half booked up already! Louie states that “My deal is by far the cheapest fly fishing deal in NZ, and includes accommodation, breakfast and dinner!”
Anyone interested in escaping a freezing US winter to trade for summer dry fly fishing in NZ, just email him at louiethefish@yahoo.com
Louie is also quite the carver as seen in the photo to the right. He has made custom pieces for many celebrities as indicated on his website. His craftsmanship is superb and the quality of his work is admired by many. Louie has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting, Ceramics and Sculpture (bone carving) at from the University of Hawaii.
