Loop Tackle, that we are fond of, has changed hands and has a new policy. There has been much discussion about the American buyers regarding their investments in companies that don’t truly champion what we call “the natural world”… but that’s not what brings us here today!
We are here to introduce you to their new web magazine, The Take!
It’s a bit all over the place from a technical standpoint and isn’t the most user-friendly, but I suppose we’ll get used to it… and things always tend to be a bit shaky at the start. So there you have it, you’ll get used to it — and so, here is the First issue of The Take ! Safe travels and long life! As they say….
The editor’s cast
Andrew Flitcroft welcomes you to the The Take magazine
WELCOME, DEAR friends and fellow fly-fishers, to The Take — a new, interactive, free-to-view global magazine born of a shared obsession with fly-fishing and brought to you by the passionate makers, ambassadors and followers of Loop Tackle,.
Whatever kit you favour, wherever you cast a fly-line, whichever fish you target, you are warmly invited to join our new worldwide community, bound by curiosity, craft and care. Together, we’ll travel to the planet’s most remarkable fly-fishing destinations, celebrating not only the hunt, but the wild fish and wild places that stir us to our core. We’ll share hours at the vice preparing our flies and celebrate those whose wisdom can shape our success.
Yet celebration alone is not enough. We will also be custodians. Guardians. Advocates. So that those who follow in our footsteps can experience the same electric take of a tarpon, the same meditative dawns on an Irish trout lough and the same unspoilt, pristine headwaters that still deliver hope and wonder. Our legacy depends upon it.
The Take does not preach. It carries no front, no ego. It exists to break boundaries and cross borders and oceans — a meeting place for fine writing, arresting imagery and hard-won practical insight. It is as much about thought as it is about action.
For me, after 20 years as a magazine editor, it is a genuine privilege to help shape this new and exciting journey — one of adventure, new friendships and a truly global coming together of our sport. United, we can make a difference. We can speak up, share knowledge and protect fragile habitats while safeguarding the future of fly-fishing.
I began fishing in Dumfries and Galloway (Scotland) in the 1980s, when salmon and sea-trout were plentiful. We ate everything we caught — it was normal back then. But today we have a different outlook — recognising a moral obligation to return our fish where necessary and to give back to the waters and wildlife we engage with. If The Take can help lead that charge and inspire you to be part of it — while having a whole lot of fun — then it will have achieved exactly what it set out to do.
So, please do join us on this maiden journey. The Take will evolve and grow and hopefully become your companion — something to turn to when you’re not casting a fly-line, when the takes dry up, or when you just need to feel great about what we do.
In making this issue, I’ve been reminded that the fly-fishing community need not be limited by geography. We share the same passion, wherever we live and whatever species we choose to catch. We face the same challenges and tie the same flies. My hope is that this magazine grows into a collaborative, thoughtful platform built on shared experience. You can be part of it too: send letters, write articles, and share your special fly-fishing moments captured through a lens.
Andrew Flitcroft Redacteur en chef thetake@looptackle.se
