Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Simple Steps for Successful Fly Fishing

By Genie Sligar


There are almost as many different ways to "go fishin'" as there are fish. However, you will discover that fly fishing can be extremely gratifying. No matter where you live - by the ocean's salty water or pure fresh water streams - you will find superb spots, many of them untouched by modernization, where you can enjoy fly fishing. The focus of this article will be on some of the basic skills and equipment you need to succeed at fly fishing.

There's a good reason why so many fishers go out very early in the morning and also at dusk. The main reason is that these are when the fish are feeding and biting. As you probably know, if you've been outdoors at these times, every insect for miles around comes out of hiding. It's prime feeding time for the fish. If you make it a habit to "follow the flies" you will have a lot more success as a fly fisher. And don't forget the insect repellent! You may be fishing with a phony fly, but the real bugs will be eating off of you. You will also find that the wind is calmer at dusk and dawn. Another benefit of following this schedule and mainly fishing early morning or early evening is that you will have less difficulty casting due to the fact the wind will be calmer.

For many hours, you will need to hold onto the fly rod, and continue casting. You need to react, instantly, when you feel the fish bite, and this is why you need a fly rod that is very good. The fly rod is flexible and responsive, and can be made of light graphite, medium graphite or heavy graphite, depending on how much you want it to flex.

All you have to do is pull on the line to test your knots to make sure that they hold as well as they need to for what you are doing. Any excess material should be trimmed away, after you tie the knot, but when you do this, don't damage the knot. The best way to get good at tying knots is by doing it over and over, but you still need to learn how to get started with books or videos, as well as websites.

Expert fly fishers don't indulge in random behavior. They are always observing what's happening in their environment. Make this a habit for yourself, also. Pay attention to what goes on around you and especially watch for patterns. Dedicate a certain length of time to patronize one or two specific areas so you can get to know the patterns and terrain. It's not to your benefit to constantly be changing where you go fishing. You lose a big advantage because you won't know any of the areas intimately. You may want to start a fishing diary, where you write down as many factors as you can think of and see what the results are. Record anything that is measurable and that can impact the conditions that you are fishing in. Weather, water temp, date, time, density of flies, etc., are just a few examples. After you have tracked the environmental data, chart your results - for example, the size of your catch and each fish, the precise location, and the time you caught each one.

As with most skills, you will have the greatest success as your knowledge of fly fishing increases. There's a lot more to fishing than just showing up at a stream with your pole - you have to discover everything that it takes to cause the fish to start biting. Fortunately, fly fishing is a practice that can give you hours of pleasure while you're still learning.




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