Thursday, June 16, 2011

How to Tie the Right Knot in Fly Fishing

By Jane Claire


Tying the appropriate knots in any situation is important in fly fishing. Without the proper skills in tying the right knot to do the job, you'll lose your fish almost all the time.

Before you tighten a knot, moisten it with saliva or with water you are fishing on. This will help the knot slide and seat properly. Lubrication also decreases excessive heat which can weaken the monofilament. Heat is generated by friction created when the knots are drawn up tight. Moistening the knot will reduce this heat and allow you to have good, strong knots.

Tighten knots with a steady, continuous pull. This is called seating the knot. Make sure the knot is tight and secure. To check this, pull on the line and leader to be sure it holds. It's better to test its strength before you cast rather than to have it break once you get a hook.

Furthermore, you can buy books as well as surf the internet for advices and lessons on how to tie your knots properly.

You will need to know how to secure your line to the reel. This is called "Backing to the fly reel" and there is a specific knot as to how to achieve that. When you are backing to the fly line, you should use either an Albright Knot or a Nail Knot. The Nail Knot is also good for using when tying the fly line to the leader.

After this, you now have to fortify the leader to the tippet. Possible knots you can do to secure this are a Barrel Knot and a Surgeon's Knot. When fastening the tippet to the fly, you can accomplish using a Duncan's Loop or a Clinch Knot.

Some consider a fish flyer's knot as the most delicate part in a fish flyer's arsenal. If you aren't good with a fish slipping your line, you should learn and master the proper ways of tying knots in all sorts of situation in order to avoid breaking your line and losing a fish.

Some fly fishing knots are simple to do - others are a little more complicated. Practice tying knots before you get on the water. Become proficient at it and be sure you can do it in low light in case you have a broken line. There is no one knot best for any specific situation - the choice is personal. But when you are fly fishing, you need to depend on your knots and it's worth taking the time to learn properly.




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