Outdoor Fun
5 Expert Guides For Fly-Fishing

BY PETER KAMINSKY

1 The urban angler now has more fly-fishing opportunities than ever before. And the class of the saltwater-fly-fishing field is East Hampton's Paul Dixon, who along with his associate, Amanda Switzer, guides for stripers on the sandy, tidal flats of Gardiners Bay. (631-324-7979; $450 full day.)

2 Closer to home, Frank Crescitelli and Dino Torino of Fin Chaser Charters range for stripers, bluefish, and tuna about eight miles out, between Coney Island and Sandy Hook. Think do-it-yourself sushi. (917-468-4817, www.finchaser.com; $450 full day, $300 half-day.)

3 Amiable expert Brendan McCarthy poles his flats boat for stripers, weakfish, blues, and albacore in Jamaica Bay. The cognitive dissonance of landing a big one right within sight of a JFK runway is weirdly satisfying. (212-727-3166, www.mctrout.com; $350 full day, $250 half-day.)

4 For the troutophile, Al Caucci's Delaware River Club in Starlight, Pennsylvania, offers superb wading or floating on the best trout stream east of the Rockies. Caucci, the undisputed grand master of trout fishing, is often on hand. (800-mmayfly, www.mayfly.com; $295 guided float trips, $75-$90 rooms available.)

5 On the west branch of the Ausable in the Adirondacks, you'll find Tom Akstens and Rachel Finn, two refreshingly urbane yet passionate trout anglers, putting neophytes through their paces. (518-946-2117; $220 full day, $130 half-day.)