Fly Fishing

Chad Venturanza asked:


Clueless about fly fishing?

Me too!

I have been really curious about this sport for some time now. I’ve seen it done countless of times.

Tried it. Failed.

People have endlessly and tirelessly, with their utmost patience and understanding tried to rub off some fly fishing skills on me - but to no avail.

I have resorted to reading, for now. I decided that whatever I can’t do, I might as well LEARN - even just in theory. It helps. I think of my self right now as “A work in progress”.

Let’s all learn the basics. DEFINITION OF TERMS!

A brief definition about some terms I need to know about fly fishing.

What is Fly Fishing?

Fly fishing is an ancient and distinct angling method, developed primarily for salmonids (trout and salmon, mostly) and now extended to other species such as pike, bass, and carp, as well as a wide range of salt water species.

Fly casting is gripping or holding a fly rod correctly and to adopt the correct stance to maintain comfort and balance. The most basic rule to casting is based on the way a clock looks. Your head points straight up to 12:00, your cast (the tip of your rod) should go back to 10:00 and then forward to 2:00, releasing your line at the end of the forward motion. It is a common mistake to dip the rod below those two positions and almost always ends in a line tangle!

Angler. (Does that have anything to do with Math? I hate Math!)

That would be YOU silly! Someday, IF you learn how to fly fish, you will be called an angler. A person catching fish or shellfish with no intent to sell, this includes people keeping the catch or people that practice the “Catch and Release” method (highly recommended).

The Essentials - If you don’t have a complete list of these, you’re NOT Fly Fishing!

Fly Fishing rods are long, thin, flexible rods sometimes made of bamboo, but more recently from man-made materials. Fly rods tend to have large diameter eyes (or guides) spaced along the rod to help control the movement of relatively thick fly line. To aid in the freedom of movement required to skillfully cast with a fly rod, there is usually little to no butt (handle) extending below the fishing reel. Although fly rods are mainly used for casting from fixed positions, they can also be used for trolling for fish.

Fishing Reel is a device used for the deployment and retrieval of fishing line using a spool mounted on an axle. They are used in conjunction with the fly rod and are attached to the base or handle of the rod.

Fishing line is any cord made for fishing. Important parameters of a fishing line are its length, material, and weight (thicker, sturdier lines are more visible to fish). The refractive index is also important—lines with a refractive index similar to water are almost invisible to fish. The most important parameter in deciding what line to use is its strength. This is the amount of weight the line can hold before snapping. One must balance the trade-off between strength and visibility.

Flies as Bait? Are you kidding?

Flies or Artificial flies are constructed — “tied” onto a hook with thread, fur, feathers and other materials — in sizes and colors to match naturally occurring food or simply to excite a fish. And to add more confusion, the names of flies: Wet and dry flies, nymphs, scuds, eggs, streamers, steelheads, bass flies, salmon flies,and saltwater flies.

You will be considered a well equipped fly fisher if you bring waders, wading boots, vest net, polarized sunglasses to protect your eyes and see through the reflection on the water, a hat for the harsh sun, sun block and bug dope (bug repellant) - if you don’t want to be eaten alive by bugs before you even catch a fish!

Armed with the stuff I read, I went about to experience Fly Fishing without even going near a body of water.

Wondering how?

A site that sells fly fishing products - with pretty pictures too! - Riverbum.com



Amber

Troy asked:


i’ve just started fly fishing and i dont know what are good flys to use in Hew Hampshire

Gael

Steve W Sharpe asked:


Alaska is well known for its incredible fly fishing, but it’s also a great place to go for a fly fishing vacation in a rustic lodge setting. You can find all kinds of lodges in the rustic country of Alaska that can make your fly fishing vacation a real adventure. This article will outline a few of these great destinations.

The Alaska Rainbow Lodge claims to have the finest, most centrally located accommodations in Alaska. A short flight from Anchorage will put you in the middle of prime fly fishing territory. You can fish for rainbow trout and salmon and stay in a gorgeous lodge with all the amenities. They offer float planes to their guests that will take you to some of the most remote fishing areas where you will find quality fishing in any season. They can be found online at www.alaskarainbowlodge.com.

Wilderness Place Lodge offers some excellent fly fishing accommodations along with some terrific amenities. They have guides that will lead you to the best place to fly fish for salmon or trout and boast riverside cabins and a 1:1 customer/guest ratio to insure excellent service during your stay there. They also offer classes to their guests on topics like fly tying and effective casting. They can be found online at www.wildernessplacelodge.com.

The Lake Marie Lodge is another option for your fly fishing vacation. They specialize in rainbow trout and salmon fly fishing as well as sight fishing and surface fishing. Their experts offer fly fishers the opportunity to catch huge salmon and they fish all sorts of rivers and streams that are accessible to them only. They average about 14 guests at a time which allows them to provide the utmost in service. Their web address is www.lakemarie.com.

The Alagnak River is known for its excellent fly fishing, and if you’re looking for a quality lodge located on the river, you may want to look at the Katmai Lodge. They have single, double, or private cabins that adjoin a common area where you can gather to share “fish stories” after a day of angling. They also offer Orvis sanctioned fishing expeditions that are led by some of the most experienced guides in the area. Research them online at www.katmai.com.

When you are considering an Alaskan fly fishing vacation, you will want to find a lodge that can comfortably accommodate those in your party. The choices are many, and you will want to do your research before you book your trip. But most of these Alaskan lodges are committed to making your fly fishing trip the best you’ve ever had.



Regan

William Carter asked:


Have you ever been fishing? Many people would answer yes to this. In America alone, according to the American Sportfishing Association, there are nearly 40,000,000 anglers. But; have you ever tried Fly Fishing? Well, If you enjoy fishing of any kind I strongly suggest you try it. But, and this is very important. Learn How To Fly Fish Properly. If you go out with your new fly fishing gear, tie on your fly, cast, and hope, it’s likely that you’ll catch nothing, and then you’ll become disillusioned.

There are many things to learn first: Rod selection, line selection, leader and tippet selection, casting techniques. I could go on and on. But what I’m saying is, get the basics right first.

Fly Fishing is learning to imitate nature as you fool the fish into taking your carefully selected fly. Then feeling the exhilaration as you maybe hook a Smallmouth Bass and skilfully reel it in as it jumps and fights for all it’s worth on the surface, trying to throw the hook. Or perhaps a big trout that threatens to break your line.

O.k. so you can get the same thrill from bait fishing, and once you’ve hooked a fish, the way you reel it in is much the same. But it’s the skill of catching the fish which makes Fly Fishing so exhilarating.

So which is best, Bait Fishing or Fly Fishing? The answer is that neither one is better, or worse than the other. They’re just different. There is more to learn for successful Fly Fishing, it’s true, and some people just don’t want to learn about hatches, fly patterns etc. The skill of Fly Fishing is to make the fish see the fly and believe it’s a real insect and not a threat, or something to ignore. In my opinion, when you catch a fish this way, the feeling you get is 100 times that, of putting live bait in the water and waiting for the fish to bite.

Most novice anglers start with bait fishing. And it’s the best way to introduce children to fishing. But for me, and every Fly Fisherman I’ve ever talked to, bait fishing just doesn’t give the excitement of Fly Fishing.

Learn how to Fly Fish properly and it’s unlikely that you’ll ever want to go back to bait fishing.



Kaden

Ernesto Maitim asked:


If you are into fly fishing, then definitely you have encountered fishing terms such as artificial fly, wet and dry flies and fly fishing flies. In fact, the term fly fishing will not be without the flies. However, it must be clear that flies, even the artificial ones, can be used for other forms of fishing.

 

In the game of fly fishing, the main concept is that we try to catch the fish using some form of fly which closely resembles whatever kind of prey your fish is after. In the world of flies and preys, the most popular water insects that are imitates as artificial flies are Stoneflies, Caddis and Mayflies. They are the most commonly imitated insects even during those early times and development of the sport of fly fishing, even up to the modern times.

 

How are artificial fly fishing flies exactly made?

 

In the early times, flies that are artificially created are usually made of the combination of feathers, animal hairs or furs; all these three are tied to a fish hook by the early fishermen in order to mimic fish preys, albeit quite crudely. These materials were formed to create imitations of the usual insects and tiny animals (Caddis and Mayflies, as earlier mentioned) and baitfish.

 

Nowadays, with the modern era of fishing, advanced materials such as synthetics, rubber and mylar are mixed with natural components to produce to highest quality fly fishing flies. The imitation is cunningly so close that even the veteran will be amazed by the resemblance of the fly to the fish prey it mimics. Now there are numerous preys that are being imitated by artificial fly fishing flies such as water and land insects, worms, spawn, small amphibians and reptiles, crustaceans and even birds.

 

Construction of fly fishing flies

 

Basically construction of artificial fly fishing flies is done using the method of fly tying. This process involves basic tying tools as well as the components of the fly pattern that are being tied and the pattern to mimic. Fly tying equipment effectively assembles all materials to the fishing hook. Such materials are the common ones like feathers, hooks and furs. When tying flies, natural as well as synthetic components are needed. On the other hand, a fly pattern represents the blueprint needed for fly creation. With a fly pattern, you will know the appropriate size of hooks, the colors, as well as the assembly method.

 

If you are greatly interested in fly fishing and angling articles, do visit us at http://flyfishinggreats.com/ blog.

 



Jalen

Daniel Eggertsen asked:


Are you a fan of fly fishing wondering if you can catch crappie that way? Or maybe you are an avid crappie fisherman and want to know of new methods and techniques for catching these favorite fish. Either way, crappie fly fishing is becoming more and more popular and if you’re interested, you can learn how to do it for yourself.

Crappie are some of the easiest and most popular fish to fish for in the United States. There are two main species: the white crappie and black crappie and both types are found in different parts of the country.

Time has brought us many new tools and techniques for catching crappie. There are also many new lures that work great at enticing the crappie to bite. Fly fishing is a great way to present your bait to the crappie and entice them to bite. It’s smoother and less likely to scare the fish than other types of bait casting. If you like the idea of crappie fly fishing, you’re going to need to learn to go about it the right way. Here are some tips and ideas to try to help you.

Preparing for Crappie Fly Fishing

Before you can play a fly fishing crappie trip, you need to have the proper supplies. If you don’t already know how to fly fish or have a fly fishing rod, you’re going to want to take some time to try to learn this first. Get some lessons, practice on your lawn or whatever you need to do to get in the groove before heading out on a crappie fishing trip. Once you feel confident enough to try fishing in the real waters, you need to pack your tackle and supplies. You also need to learn about the area you are fishing at. Here are some ways to prepare.

So how can you get ready for a crappie fly fishing trip? Just like any other crappie fishing trip, you need to prepare by learning as much as possible about where you will be going and the weather and more. You can get fishing reports of the lake or body of water you are fishing in if possible to help you prepare. If you’ve been to the body of water before it will help you plan for the best spots to try some fishing. Crappie fly fishing is different from deep water crappie fishing so you need to try to go at a time and season when the crappie will be fishing essentials to the list but this is a great place to start.

Crappie fly fishing is probably most easily done in the spring when the crappie are spawning and easily biting and when you can wade in the water at comfortable temperatures for you.

Techniques for Crappie Fly Fishing

If you’re going fly fishing for crappie, you need to know the proper techniques to help you reel them in every time. The unique thing about a fly rod is that it allows you more opportunity to gently place the bait where you want it so that it does not upset or startle the fish.



Marisa

accordvtec90 asked:


I have never fly fished before but would like to start trying it soon how much should i spend on some gear from walmart or something of the sort.

Leah

anonymous asked:


Fly-fishing, a fun sport

Fly-fishing is an ancient angling method especially effective in catching trout and salmon. This distinct method of angling uses artificial flies to lure or excite fish. Fly-fishing helps anglers catch the fish easier than the traditional way.

There are two basic forms of fly-fishing, dry flies and wet flies.

Dry flies need coating with floatant in order for it to sit in the surface of the water. Dry flies are mostly effective in upstream and moving water. Dry flies help anglers’ spot where fish resides like pools and pocket in streams. Thus, it is easier to detect them and catch the fish.

The use of wet flies is beneath the surface of the water. Wet flies are nymphs, lures and true wet flies. It works as effective as dry flies except that in cases where weeds are many and almost touching the surface, wet flies blends with the weeds and thus may not be as effective as the dry flies.

Fly-fishing was developed in the 19th century, dry fly technique is very effective especially for slower and clearer rivers.

This is because weeds in rich rivers tend to grow closer to the surface, thus traditional wet fly fishing is almost ineffective. Dry fly fishing is thus useful by keeping the fly and the line floating on the surface. This makes fish excited and aggressive; the angler can then spot the location of the fish and in turn catches fish easier.

Later developments of fly-fishing made this concept as basis, thus in the latter part of the 19th century, anglers develop love for fly-fishing. This gave birth to fly-fishing, the sport among its aficionados.

Various parts of the United States host fly-fishing sports such as in the waters of Catskill Mountains of New York and the provinces of Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, British Columbia, Alberta and California.

Anglers in North America also develop various literatures pertaining to fly-fishing. The sport of fly-fishing and all these literatures gave North America the reputation of being the birthplace of dry fly-fishing, specifically the City of Calgary, Alberta. It is arguably one of the world’s best trout rivers, thus it remains to be the epicenter for the Western Fly Fishing in North America.

Various other states in America keeps the growing number of fly-fishers such as Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Utah and Arkansas. The growing number of anglers that are drawn to the sport of fly-fishing keeps the popularity at its peak.

Dry or wet fly-fishing, whichever is more effective in the rivers where you fish will help keep the sport exciting. It may not be long that other countries will learn to love the sport and make it a globally loved sport.

How does fly-fishing work?

Fly fishing uses longer and lighter rods; sizes vary from 2m (6 ft) for fresh water and up to 4m (14 ft) for salt water fly-fishing. Weight for fresh water rods are between two to five ounces.

Popular types of casts in fly-fishing follow its variety in situation specifics. Anglers uses common cast when the angler whisks the fly rod forward and back using his forearm and upper arm, the wrist is used to soften the motion.

The rod movement varies from 10 o’clock position to 2 o’clock position without touching the ground. Anglers do this to load the rod tip with energy and to travel the fly line creating distance and control; they call this motion false casting.

False casting needs to be done to excite the fish or make it aggressive enough so that when the fly touches the surface, it will be sure that the area where the fly touches is where most of the fish are located and thus will be easier to spot and catch them.

Whether you are a fly-fishing aficionado for outdoor excitement or having fun with your family, using the proper equipment will help you develop love for the sport. Keep it exciting and enjoy fishing at its finest in most popular fly-fishing locations in the country. There are many locations, thus you will not have a problem in spotting nice locations for you and your family for this wonderful outdoor adventure.



Courtney

Tom P asked:


Hi i play Runescape (not geeking), and i was wondering if fly fishing is a good way to get my fishing level up. it is currently 65, and i want to get it to 76 for sharks, and then to 99. any help??
also for getting 99 fishing would help.

Christina

Steve W Sharpe asked:


Although experience is a great teacher when you are learning about fly fishing, you may also want to look into the myriad of books that are available on the topic. Fly fishing involves a lot of things, and you’ll need to know about these things if you’re going to be effective in the sport. Fly fishing books are a great way to start learning!

A quick search on Amazon.com shows over 8,000 titles on fly fishing available! Prices range between $10 and $50. Some of these books are purely instructional while others contain anecdotes and fish stories designed to entertain. You can get books that tell you the best places to fish at and the most satisfying fly fishing destinations.

Fly fishing books are great resources as well if you want to learn how to tie your own flies. One of the first things you need to know in fly tying is what the flies look like that you’re trying to mimic. When the book comes with illustrations, you can easily match your fly to the picture.

Online books are another great way to get information about fly fishing. There are many e-books available for download. Look for the ones that will fit your needs. If you’re a beginner, you may want a comprehensive guide to all aspects of fly fishing. If you’re more experienced, an update book may be the way to go.

When choosing a fly fishing book, look at the author first. Are they qualified to write this book? What experience do they have in the sport? Can they provide you with compelling reasons to take his or her advice? You will get more accurate information from a person who has personal experience to offer.

Is the book easy to read? When you are reading a book filled with technical language, it can be overwhelming and it isn’t likely to help you much. The author should define unfamiliar language early on in the book and keep reminding you throughout the text what they are referring to.

Don’t opt for long winded tomes of pages akin to War and Peace. They aren’t likely to give you much good advice plus the boredom factor has to come into play. A lot of great information can be packed into a few pages. Opt for the shorter book rather than the longer one so you get what you pay for!

Fly fishing books are wonderful sources of information when you are learning about this sport. Find a book that you are comfortable reading that also gives you what you are looking for. The choices are vast, so go online or get to the bookstore today and learn what you need to about the sport of fly fishing!



Diamond