Bernard “Lefty” Victor Kreh — one of the most influential figures in fishing during the past 70 years — was an author, journalist, photographer and tackle innovator who taught thousands of people how to cast a fly. He died March 14, 2018, in his Cockeysville, Maryland, home after a brief illness. He was 93.
Kreh not only reinvented the way fly anglers cast, but he also created some of the most successful modern salt- and freshwater fly patterns, and collaborated in the design of numerous pieces of gear. He caught 126 species on every continent except for Antarctica, and fished with four U.S. presidents, Ernest Hemingway, Fidel Castro, Ted Williams, Jimmy Dean, Tom Brokaw, Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard, Flip Pallot, Bob Clouser, Bob Popovics and many others. A beloved figure,…
