OK, so I got too wrapped up with trying to post the pictures and lost track of the actual story. Here's the recap of the day...
Bob had discovered this upper section of the East Branch of Fish Creek on a recon mission disguised as a rock quest for his wife Karen's landscaping projects. Bob is cunning like that, and he has a super-human ability of looking on a map and being able to visualize how nice a body of water looks. Too bad his telepathic powers don't allow him to get into the minds of the trout. It would've helped that morning. The East Branch of Fish Creek is beautiful, but the brook trout didn't get the memo that they were supposed to feed ravenously on what ever I threw at them. I'm sure it was a problem with the DEC home offices, because the brook trout on the upper West Canada Creek didn't get the memo either. I mean, they're brook trout for God's sake. They don't get as big and aren"t as hardy as other trout species (I know - they're actually a char and not a trout, but for argument sake stay with me). The only thing going for them is their vibrant colors and the penchant for eating any fly thrown in front of them. Stupid fish, jeesh....
So, Bob hooked up on a brookie and I had two hits but no takers. Time for an early lunch and then on to the upper West Canada Creek. Wow. Beautiful water...again. Stupid brook trout...again. Bob brought up 4 more. I couldn't even get a hit on a wooly bugger. Hmmm. Maybe I'm underestimating Bob's telepathic powers. Fortunately, the black flies were everywhere, making the experience even more enjoying. If it wasn't such a beautiful place and my favorite river, I might have gotten a little discouraged. OK...well.....how about the lower West Canada.....
We decided to try a few spots on the lower West Canada that had been mentioned in Paul Keesler's book. First spot? McDiermid's run. We followed the map in the book to the access trail. Wait.......no trail? Posted? Crap. OK.... well.......how about Powers Bend? Ah-ha! No black flies! smart stockies that hit most flies and strike indicators for good measure! Woot!! Both Bob and I scored doubles - meaning a fish on the indicator fly and one on the dropper fly at the same time. We both lost count of how many smart stocked browns we caught. Bob even got into a nice 16 incher.
We took a break to rest our backs, grab a bite to eat, and call the wives. Had a nice conversation with a guy vacationing in the area, and lost the pool to some spin fishermen that descended on the spot like raccoons to road kill. Oh well. We decided to finish out the day at the run below the Trenton Falls bridge. No other fishermen there - go figure. A Saturday night on Memorial Day weekend and we had it all to ourselves. We both got into some decent fish, including a 16 inch rainbow trout that slammed a golden stone nymph I was swinging through the run.
All in all, a great day. A little slow at first, but the good old West Canada Creek saved the day. Too bad about Fish Creek, but something tells me we'll be back. It looks too good to only fish once....
Tight Lines,
Muddler
Sunday, June 7, 2009
Tuesday, May 26, 2009
May 23, 2009: black flies, an unusual catch, and do stocked fish really count?
unfortunately, my picture posting skills need refinement. Here's a bunch of pictures from the last trip. I will post an entry about the trip in the next post. A quick breakdown - the first group of pics are from the East branch of Fish Creek, the next group is from the upper West Canada, and the last is the West Canada in the no kill sections ( powers bend and below the Trenton Falls dam to be exact).
Sunday, May 10, 2009
Nymphal Shucks part 4: the fly line
Building on what I've written before, it's time to address the fly line. Remember the bull whip and wet towel analogy? Ok then, let's look at a fly line.
Above is a picture of two types of fly line designs. The top one is a weight forward fly line. As you can see the fly line has an initial taper up to a thicker and heavier section. Then, it tapers down to a smaller, level section. All that weight concentrated in the forward section of the line tends to pull the rest of the line with it. Because of this, weight forward lines tend to be a little easier to cast, and are usually a good beginner line. They are also excellent for distance casting and when fighting wind.
The bottom line is a double taper. Double taper lines are the same thickness throughout its length with tapers on either end. Although not as effective for distance casting as a weight forward, double taper lines tend to cast a little smoother and softer. This is good for delicate fly presentations when trying not to spook a fish. Because of the consistent thickness, they make good roll casting lines (we'll get into the different casts later). Since the average cast is typically no more than half the length of your fly line, the end of your line sees little use. Often, when the front and most used part of your fly line is getting old and cracked, the end is still like new. Since a double taper is the same on either end, a budget conscience angler can reverse a double taper line and get twice the life out of it.
The leader is simply an extension of the fly line. Since the fly line is too thick and opaque to tie directly to your fly, you need a go-between. The leader is made out of clear monofilament line. Before you go grab your Berkley Trilene, there's a catch. The leader has to have the continuous taper just like the fly line for it to roll out smoothly and put the fly where you want it to go. Back in the day (and still today) fly fisherman would hand tie their own leaders. The process would entail tying varying thicknesses of monofilament together to create a thicker-to-thinner taper. There are still guys that do this, and it can be very cost effective. Also, tying your own leaders can result in some creative tapers designed to achieve specific casting results. This can give you an advantage depending on the fly and the conditions. the only drawbacks are they can be time consuming to tie, cost quite a bit more initially to get started, and in some cases the multitude of knots can cause trouble with your fly presentation.
Thanking God for modern technology, I embrace the factory-made tapered leader. These can be had for very little money and are tapered without knots - kind of like little fly lines. these are a no-brainer for a beginner. They are sold in standard lengths of 7.5ft and 9 or 10ft - usually matched loosely to the length of your fly rod. The downside is that the taper is always the same. OK, I guess that's a downside...
The end of the leader is called a tippet. No, I don't know why, maybe because it's the tip of the leader. The tippet is the section that is tied directly to the fly. It's ironic, but pound test is not really a consideration for determining the tippet size, but rather it's thickness. Looking back to how a fly line works and how the fly gets casted, you'll understand that the tippet needs to be the thinnest part. Tippets are measures with an odd, "X" system. As you go thinner, the "X" value goes up. So, a 4X tippet is thicker than a 5X or 6X, and so on. Aside from standard lengths, pre-tapered leaders are also designated by their ending tippet size. So for example, if I was shopping for a leader for my small stream rod, I would probably pick up a 7.5ft 5x leader. I will get into matching your tippet to your fly later on, as well as the knots used to tie all the parts together.
Another note on the tippet is how long and when to tie on more. You see, as you tie on each new fly, you are using up more and more of that tippet section. Most tippet sections are around 18 to 24 inches. As you get down to 12-18 inches left of the tippet, it's time to tie on a little more. Fly fisherman will keep spools of tippet "material" handy to replace the constantly dwindling tippet section. Also, if I am going down to a much smaller fly than I had been fishing with then I might need to tie on a smaller diameter tippet section to suit the new fly. OK. I'm running the risk of getting too long winded, so, I'll cover more of this later on as well.
finally let's end with the beginning. A fly line is only about 90ft long. that's not bad for panfish and stream trout, but in cases of bigger waters and larger fish you need more length. Attached between your fly reel and fly line is another type of line called the backing. The backing is usually a flexible, string-like cord that is relatively thin but strong. It has two advantages. First is the obvious - give you more line to work with if a steelhead takes off on a 100 yard run. Second is that it fills up the smaller core of the spool and gives a larger diameter base to wind your fly line on. Since fly lines are plastic, they do have a bit of coil memory when they've been spooled up for a while. Winding backing on a reel before the fly line helps to lessen that effect. 'Nuff said...
So, there's the anatomy of a fly line and it's parts in as brief a description as I feel I can get away with. Next up, we'll talk about fly reels.
Muddler
Above is a picture of two types of fly line designs. The top one is a weight forward fly line. As you can see the fly line has an initial taper up to a thicker and heavier section. Then, it tapers down to a smaller, level section. All that weight concentrated in the forward section of the line tends to pull the rest of the line with it. Because of this, weight forward lines tend to be a little easier to cast, and are usually a good beginner line. They are also excellent for distance casting and when fighting wind.The bottom line is a double taper. Double taper lines are the same thickness throughout its length with tapers on either end. Although not as effective for distance casting as a weight forward, double taper lines tend to cast a little smoother and softer. This is good for delicate fly presentations when trying not to spook a fish. Because of the consistent thickness, they make good roll casting lines (we'll get into the different casts later). Since the average cast is typically no more than half the length of your fly line, the end of your line sees little use. Often, when the front and most used part of your fly line is getting old and cracked, the end is still like new. Since a double taper is the same on either end, a budget conscience angler can reverse a double taper line and get twice the life out of it.
The leader is simply an extension of the fly line. Since the fly line is too thick and opaque to tie directly to your fly, you need a go-between. The leader is made out of clear monofilament line. Before you go grab your Berkley Trilene, there's a catch. The leader has to have the continuous taper just like the fly line for it to roll out smoothly and put the fly where you want it to go. Back in the day (and still today) fly fisherman would hand tie their own leaders. The process would entail tying varying thicknesses of monofilament together to create a thicker-to-thinner taper. There are still guys that do this, and it can be very cost effective. Also, tying your own leaders can result in some creative tapers designed to achieve specific casting results. This can give you an advantage depending on the fly and the conditions. the only drawbacks are they can be time consuming to tie, cost quite a bit more initially to get started, and in some cases the multitude of knots can cause trouble with your fly presentation.
Thanking God for modern technology, I embrace the factory-made tapered leader. These can be had for very little money and are tapered without knots - kind of like little fly lines. these are a no-brainer for a beginner. They are sold in standard lengths of 7.5ft and 9 or 10ft - usually matched loosely to the length of your fly rod. The downside is that the taper is always the same. OK, I guess that's a downside...
The end of the leader is called a tippet. No, I don't know why, maybe because it's the tip of the leader. The tippet is the section that is tied directly to the fly. It's ironic, but pound test is not really a consideration for determining the tippet size, but rather it's thickness. Looking back to how a fly line works and how the fly gets casted, you'll understand that the tippet needs to be the thinnest part. Tippets are measures with an odd, "X" system. As you go thinner, the "X" value goes up. So, a 4X tippet is thicker than a 5X or 6X, and so on. Aside from standard lengths, pre-tapered leaders are also designated by their ending tippet size. So for example, if I was shopping for a leader for my small stream rod, I would probably pick up a 7.5ft 5x leader. I will get into matching your tippet to your fly later on, as well as the knots used to tie all the parts together.
Another note on the tippet is how long and when to tie on more. You see, as you tie on each new fly, you are using up more and more of that tippet section. Most tippet sections are around 18 to 24 inches. As you get down to 12-18 inches left of the tippet, it's time to tie on a little more. Fly fisherman will keep spools of tippet "material" handy to replace the constantly dwindling tippet section. Also, if I am going down to a much smaller fly than I had been fishing with then I might need to tie on a smaller diameter tippet section to suit the new fly. OK. I'm running the risk of getting too long winded, so, I'll cover more of this later on as well.
finally let's end with the beginning. A fly line is only about 90ft long. that's not bad for panfish and stream trout, but in cases of bigger waters and larger fish you need more length. Attached between your fly reel and fly line is another type of line called the backing. The backing is usually a flexible, string-like cord that is relatively thin but strong. It has two advantages. First is the obvious - give you more line to work with if a steelhead takes off on a 100 yard run. Second is that it fills up the smaller core of the spool and gives a larger diameter base to wind your fly line on. Since fly lines are plastic, they do have a bit of coil memory when they've been spooled up for a while. Winding backing on a reel before the fly line helps to lessen that effect. 'Nuff said...
So, there's the anatomy of a fly line and it's parts in as brief a description as I feel I can get away with. Next up, we'll talk about fly reels.
Muddler
Friday, May 8, 2009
Thursday Night Fishing Club: returning to the scene of the crime
So, Gaddabout and I got together last night for the reconvening of the Thursday Night Fishing Club. Our original plans were to take us to Nine Mile Creek to meet up with a few friends, but they bailed on us. We were also concerned that most of the streams would be high and muddy after the rains we had the previous night and morning. The only option for clear water? Butternut below the dam. You remember Butternut below the dam, don't you? Oh, about a month ago? Opening day? my rant about the wind?
Don't get me wrong, this little stretch of water is beautiful. Pleasant riffles and pockets and a couple of deep pools. It's even better when you don't have to share it with anyone. Last night was all of that. It was only Bob and I, 65 degree air temp and 59 degree water temp. The water was at mid level and clear down to 2 ft. There was a bunch of bugs coming off: Caddis in #16 tan/dun, #18 black, #18-20 Dun; Mayflies in hendrickson spinners #14, olives/blue dun #16, one March Brown #10; and various midges. The fish were rising ~ at times chasing cadd
is out of the water and at times sipping mayflies and midges from the surface.It was funny how Bob and I were whining as we put on our gear. We were acknowledging that the fish gods weren't as kind to us these last few years as they've been in the older years. So, it came with great surprise that we did pretty well....or maybe the fish gods finally threw us a bone. Bob headed to the base of the dam, and I started quartering a black wooly bugger down through the riffles and pockets towards the "big pool". At the head of the big pool, I
got a hit on my 5th or 6th cast. He faught well, but not as hard as he probably should've since he was an 18 inch small mouth. Yup, I was incredibly surprised too. Nice fish. The evening glided on with me catching 2 browns on dry flies and Gaddabout landing 4 browns, 2 small mouth, and a rock bass.Phew. It's nice to get a fish in the net again. It's been a long winter. It was great to fish with Bob, head to a local joint afterward, catch up on the families, and build excitement
for the next trip. We both sighed at one point, taking in a good day of fishing and soaking up the relaxation around us. It's good to be alive, and even better when you can you can spend some time fishing.here's the link to the CNY Flyfisher report I posted: http://www.cnyflyfish.com/forum/itemView.php?msgID=695
Stay tuned - more fishing to come in the next few weeks. Hopefully my picture taking abilities will improve along the way....
Muddler
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Nymphal Shucks part 3: the fly Rod
OK. So, I will do my best to keep this as short and sweet as I can.
Fly rods differ from spinning and casting rods in a number of ways. First off is length. Since managing your fly line is more involved than just making a cast with a weighted lure, fly rods tend to be quite a bit longer than spinning and casting rods. You will find fly rod lengths ranging from 4 1/2ft long to 14ft long, however most fly rods tend to be around 7 to 9ft. The shorter rods are best for small fish and narrow casting access like a small, tree covered creek. As you get up to larger waters, you tend to get into the mid sizes like 8 to 10ft. Then, say you get into a specialized casting style such as spey casting or pursue large saltwater prey your rod length can get up to 14ft.
Second, the rod's action plays a part in how it casts. a slower action rod is a bit more flexable and allows for a smooth, forgiving cast that isn't as powerful but delivers the fly delicately and acts as a shock absorber to protect a fine tippet. You might like a faster action rod that is a bit stiffer and provides considerable more power to your cast when you're fighting wind or trying to make a long cast.
Third, the weight designation applied to each rod is a way to help match a particular fly line weight to the rod. There is room to play in this designation - some guys like to overload the rod with a heavier fly line than what is recommended to get a desired casting feel, for example.
To keep it simple, I'll give you a run down of my rod outfits - both current ones in service and my future rod building projects. I think my current and future rod outfits will give you a good concept of how the different variables are applied to chose the right rod for the water you fish. I fish in lakes for panfish, bass, northerns, and carp. I also fish small creeks to larger rivers for trout, and medium rivers for salmon and steelhead. So, here's what I got or plan to finish for my well rounded arsonel:
Now, just because I'm trying to keep these posts shorter than my usual to make them easier to read, doesn't mean I'm not open to questions. If you have questions, please feel free to post them in the comments. If I can't answer it well enough in the comments section, I will dedicate a post if needed to get the point across. For all I know, no one is reading or following this blog, so if you do have questions let me know so I can address them.
Muddler
Fly rods differ from spinning and casting rods in a number of ways. First off is length. Since managing your fly line is more involved than just making a cast with a weighted lure, fly rods tend to be quite a bit longer than spinning and casting rods. You will find fly rod lengths ranging from 4 1/2ft long to 14ft long, however most fly rods tend to be around 7 to 9ft. The shorter rods are best for small fish and narrow casting access like a small, tree covered creek. As you get up to larger waters, you tend to get into the mid sizes like 8 to 10ft. Then, say you get into a specialized casting style such as spey casting or pursue large saltwater prey your rod length can get up to 14ft.
Second, the rod's action plays a part in how it casts. a slower action rod is a bit more flexable and allows for a smooth, forgiving cast that isn't as powerful but delivers the fly delicately and acts as a shock absorber to protect a fine tippet. You might like a faster action rod that is a bit stiffer and provides considerable more power to your cast when you're fighting wind or trying to make a long cast.
Third, the weight designation applied to each rod is a way to help match a particular fly line weight to the rod. There is room to play in this designation - some guys like to overload the rod with a heavier fly line than what is recommended to get a desired casting feel, for example.
To keep it simple, I'll give you a run down of my rod outfits - both current ones in service and my future rod building projects. I think my current and future rod outfits will give you a good concept of how the different variables are applied to chose the right rod for the water you fish. I fish in lakes for panfish, bass, northerns, and carp. I also fish small creeks to larger rivers for trout, and medium rivers for salmon and steelhead. So, here's what I got or plan to finish for my well rounded arsonel:
- (current project) 6.5ft, 4 weight rod, medium action for very small creek trout fishing
- (current project) 7.5ft 4 weight rod, medium action for small creek trout fishing
- 7.5ft 3 weight for creek trout fishing
- 7.5ft 5 weight for creek and small river trout fishing
- (current project) 8.3ft 5 weight medium action for small river trout fishing
- 9ft 5 weight medium action for small to medium river trout fishing
- (future project) 9ft 6 weight fast action for medium to large rivers and windy conditions
- 9ft 7 weight medium action for stillwater and steelhead fishing
- (future project) 9ft 8 weight fast action for windy days on stillwater, and some eventual saltwater fishing
- 11ft 6/7 weight short spey length for river steelhead
- 11ft 8 weight short spey length for river salmon
Now, just because I'm trying to keep these posts shorter than my usual to make them easier to read, doesn't mean I'm not open to questions. If you have questions, please feel free to post them in the comments. If I can't answer it well enough in the comments section, I will dedicate a post if needed to get the point across. For all I know, no one is reading or following this blog, so if you do have questions let me know so I can address them.
Muddler
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
Nymphal Shucks part 2: what's so special about fly fishing?
What's so special about fly fishing, you ask? Well, technically nothing. It's just another fishing technique. Simply put it's a method of fishing designed to propel a lure that is so small and light that it can't propel itself. When spin fishing or casting, the lure or bait is weighted enough to pull the line off of the reel. In the case of a fishing fly, it's not heavy enough to do the same. Enter the fly line. BUT, I'm getting ahead of myself.
So, you want to catch fish? Well, since they don't just jump into your creel spontaneously you have to figure out a way to lure them to you, right? I know you know where I'm going with this but I'm trying to put a simple spin on something that has often become too complicated. A fly, simply put, is just another lure. Now, I know my friend Gaddabout is getting all worked up over that statement but he knows it just as well as I ;). To lure a fish to your line you have to match your lure to the fish's food source. In the case of stream or river trout fishing, that is quite often a bug of some sort in it's various stage of development. A lure of such proportions is way to small to pull line off of your spinning reel, so you have to find a way to get it out to the fish. Also, sometimes that bug is floating on or near the surface of the water. Placing a weight on the line near the fly will naturally cause it to sink and won't look...natural. a couple of centuries ago, some genius came up with the idea of braiding some fishing lines together to create enough mass in the line itself to propel the fly out to the fish. And so, the fly line and fly fishing was born.
The modern fly line is more than just thick plastic. It is heavy enough to cast, yet in many cases will float on the surface of the water easily. It's typically tapered in it's thickness to allow for a smooth blend of power and finesse that allows the fly to land on the water naturally. Without getting too technical and side tracked into all the variables, allow me to attempt to simplify the theory of fly casting. Have you ever cracked a whip? Or, maybe, snapped your buddy with a rolled up, wet towel after swimming at the beach? Did you notice that the whip or the towel rolled out in a really tight loop as you snapped them with your wrist? The reason why the whip or the towel acted that way is that they were tapered - thick to thin. As you cracked the whip, you were holding on to the thickest part and started it moving with a flick of your wrist. As this movement started, the thicker part transferred its power to the thinner part in a smooth chain reaction of sorts. Now, if you had a flat piece of rope instead of the tapered whip, the loop you made with the wrist action would have just lost its inertia before it got to it's end and died out. BUT, in the case of the whip or towel and due to their taper, thicker and heavier is always pushing the thinner and lighter. this causes the power to continue to the tip, and in the case of a whip or rolled towel causes the tip to snap. This is exactly the process that happens in fly casting. The fly line is tapered to the leader, which is also tapered down to the fly. When you cast the fly rod, this tapered design allows the fly line and leader to roll out smoothly in front of you, sending the fly in the direction you casted it.
Now, I'm trying to keep my posts a little easier to get through, so I will stop here. Next, I'll get into the fly rod outfit and the line/leader/tippet relationship. Also, I'm on vacation for the next few weeks and have some fishing planned so stay tuned!! I hope to get down to the Catskills at least once in May. I also plan to fish locally both to some trout streams and on Oneida Lake with my wife. Bob and I have a trip to some new spots on Fish Creek in a few weeks. And, as soon as the water levels get a little friendlier, I NEED to get to The West Canada Creek. It's a disease, I know...
Muddler
So, you want to catch fish? Well, since they don't just jump into your creel spontaneously you have to figure out a way to lure them to you, right? I know you know where I'm going with this but I'm trying to put a simple spin on something that has often become too complicated. A fly, simply put, is just another lure. Now, I know my friend Gaddabout is getting all worked up over that statement but he knows it just as well as I ;). To lure a fish to your line you have to match your lure to the fish's food source. In the case of stream or river trout fishing, that is quite often a bug of some sort in it's various stage of development. A lure of such proportions is way to small to pull line off of your spinning reel, so you have to find a way to get it out to the fish. Also, sometimes that bug is floating on or near the surface of the water. Placing a weight on the line near the fly will naturally cause it to sink and won't look...natural. a couple of centuries ago, some genius came up with the idea of braiding some fishing lines together to create enough mass in the line itself to propel the fly out to the fish. And so, the fly line and fly fishing was born.
The modern fly line is more than just thick plastic. It is heavy enough to cast, yet in many cases will float on the surface of the water easily. It's typically tapered in it's thickness to allow for a smooth blend of power and finesse that allows the fly to land on the water naturally. Without getting too technical and side tracked into all the variables, allow me to attempt to simplify the theory of fly casting. Have you ever cracked a whip? Or, maybe, snapped your buddy with a rolled up, wet towel after swimming at the beach? Did you notice that the whip or the towel rolled out in a really tight loop as you snapped them with your wrist? The reason why the whip or the towel acted that way is that they were tapered - thick to thin. As you cracked the whip, you were holding on to the thickest part and started it moving with a flick of your wrist. As this movement started, the thicker part transferred its power to the thinner part in a smooth chain reaction of sorts. Now, if you had a flat piece of rope instead of the tapered whip, the loop you made with the wrist action would have just lost its inertia before it got to it's end and died out. BUT, in the case of the whip or towel and due to their taper, thicker and heavier is always pushing the thinner and lighter. this causes the power to continue to the tip, and in the case of a whip or rolled towel causes the tip to snap. This is exactly the process that happens in fly casting. The fly line is tapered to the leader, which is also tapered down to the fly. When you cast the fly rod, this tapered design allows the fly line and leader to roll out smoothly in front of you, sending the fly in the direction you casted it.
Now, I'm trying to keep my posts a little easier to get through, so I will stop here. Next, I'll get into the fly rod outfit and the line/leader/tippet relationship. Also, I'm on vacation for the next few weeks and have some fishing planned so stay tuned!! I hope to get down to the Catskills at least once in May. I also plan to fish locally both to some trout streams and on Oneida Lake with my wife. Bob and I have a trip to some new spots on Fish Creek in a few weeks. And, as soon as the water levels get a little friendlier, I NEED to get to The West Canada Creek. It's a disease, I know...
Muddler
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Nymphal Shucks: the beginner's corner introduction
The problem with a blog, or writing anything for that matter, is that it can be incredibly difficult to explain a visual and physical process. Nothing seems harder to explain that fly casting. It really is something you have to see and feel to understand. So, to get you off to a good start, I've got some references for you to check out:
"Scientific Anglers Basic Fly Casting with Doug Swisher" http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/item-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat20431-cat601973&id=0044057621889a&navCount=1&podId=0044057621889&parentId=cat601973&masterpathid=&navAction=push&catalogCode=IK&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat601233&hasJS=true
Now, this video is a bit dated - it was what I used twenty years ago to learn how to fly cast. However, Swisher just seemed to make sense, and his video and exercises were incredibly effective.
As for learning the basics, the book I learned from is no longer in print...and doesn't that make me feel old. Still, a good book is a great reference to have so I'll suggest one:
"The Orvis Fly Fishing Guide by Tom Rosenbauer" http://www.orvis.com/store/productchoice.aspx?pf_id=65C0&dir_id=758&group_id=8791&cat_id=14974&subcat_id=14975
I've thumbed through it at the store and it looked great. Now, I do plan to cover a great deal of information in small bites here. We'll start with theory, and then on to the rod outfit, leaders and tippets, flies, fly boxes, tools and gadgets, waders and vests, and anything else I can think of. I will try to provide pictures and links to help illustrate, but if you have any questions you can email me directly and I'll try my best to explain any point in greater detail.
So, that's where I'm going with this blog for now and I hope it helps all of you looking to start fly fishing or seek to improve your skills and knowledge base. More to come :)
Muddler
"Scientific Anglers Basic Fly Casting with Doug Swisher" http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/item-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat20431-cat601973&id=0044057621889a&navCount=1&podId=0044057621889&parentId=cat601973&masterpathid=&navAction=push&catalogCode=IK&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat601233&hasJS=true
Now, this video is a bit dated - it was what I used twenty years ago to learn how to fly cast. However, Swisher just seemed to make sense, and his video and exercises were incredibly effective.
As for learning the basics, the book I learned from is no longer in print...and doesn't that make me feel old. Still, a good book is a great reference to have so I'll suggest one:
"The Orvis Fly Fishing Guide by Tom Rosenbauer" http://www.orvis.com/store/productchoice.aspx?pf_id=65C0&dir_id=758&group_id=8791&cat_id=14974&subcat_id=14975
I've thumbed through it at the store and it looked great. Now, I do plan to cover a great deal of information in small bites here. We'll start with theory, and then on to the rod outfit, leaders and tippets, flies, fly boxes, tools and gadgets, waders and vests, and anything else I can think of. I will try to provide pictures and links to help illustrate, but if you have any questions you can email me directly and I'll try my best to explain any point in greater detail.
So, that's where I'm going with this blog for now and I hope it helps all of you looking to start fly fishing or seek to improve your skills and knowledge base. More to come :)
Muddler
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