posted by admin on Mar 27
The Surgeon Knot is probably the easiest knot to tie and used to attach tippet to your leader.
Procedure:
- Overlap about 6-inches of tippet and leader material, side-by-side, with the ends facing opposite directions.
- Pinch the standing leader and tippet tag ends with the left thumb and forefinger and use the right hand to tie an overhand knot with the leader tag end and the tippet. The entire length of the tippet must be passed through the overhand knot loop, even though the leader tag end is only about 5-inches long. Don’t tighten the completed overhand knot.
- Grasp the completed loop with the left hand and make another pass through the same overhand knot, passing the full length of the tippet and the leader tag end through a second time.
- Draw a loop down by simultaneously pulling on the leader and tippet. Moisten the loop, grasp the leader and tippet tag on the left with your left hand, and the tippet and leader tag on the right with your right hand. Pull all four ends simultaneously to snug the knot tight.
- Trim the tag ends.
- Test the knot!
posted by admin on Mar 27
The Nail Knot is used to attach your leader to your fly line. It can also used to attach your line to backing material. Though not a terribly difficult knot to tie, it is not as easy as the Clinch or Surgeon抯 knot. This is one knot you should practice.
The Nail Knot requires a small diameter utensil like a nail, toothpick, or some other object about the twice the diameter of your fly line. A small diameter tube makes the knot even easier to tie.
Procedure:
- Hold the tube and the end of the fly line with your left thumb and forefinger so about two inches of the fly line and the tube sticks out to the right.
- With your right hand, from a 12-inch loop with the thicker end of your leader. Pinch down and hold this loop with your left thumb and forefinger next to the tube and fly line.
- Use your right hand to grasp the short leg of the leader loop and make 5 snug wraps over the tube and fly line. These wraps should butt against each other and be at least 綌 to 緮 from the end of the fly line.
- Slide your left thumb and forefinger forward to hold the wraps so they don抰 unwind while you work the tag end of the leader butt through the tube from right to left. Carefully remove the tube by sliding it to the left. (If you using a nail or other utensil, you will have to work the leader butt end under the wraps along eh nail before removing it.)
- Semi-tighten the knot by pulling gently on both ends of the leader. Do not pull on the fly line. Moisten the knot area, inspect the knot wraps for smoothness, and tighten the knot by simultaneously pulling on both end of the leader so it 揵ites?into the fly line. Then pull hard on the fly line and leader to seat the knot.
- Trim the leader tag and flyline ends.
- Test your knot!
posted by admin on Mar 27
The Improved Clinch Knot is recommended for tying your fly to your leader or tippet. It is a simple knot to tie and as you gain experience fly fishing, it will be as easy as tying your shoes laces.
Procedure:
- Insert 5 to 6 of tippet through the eye of your fly hook. Make 5 or 6 turns with the tag end around the standing part of the tippet, turning away from the hook.
- Push the tag end of tippet or leader through the opening between the hook eye and the first wrap. This creates an open tippet loop over the wraps.
- Push the tag end through this open loop and pull slightly until the knot begins to close.
- Moisten the knot area. Alternately pull on the standing portion of the tippet and the hook until the knot snugs up against the hook eye.
- Trim the tag end.
- Test the knot!
posted by admin on Mar 27
The Arbor Knot is used to attach your backing material to your reel arbor.
Procedure:
- Tie an overhand knot on the backing end and tighten it. Insert this knotted end between the reel foot and the arbor, circle the arbor, and pull the knotted end out so it next to the standing part of the backing.
- Tie a second overhand knot with the tag end around the standing part of the backing.
- Holding the reel in your left hand, pull on the standing part of the backing with your right hand, snugging the knots against the arbor.
- Trim the tag end, and wind the backing onto your reel. Make sure the line feeds from the guide on the rod to the bottom of the reel. If not, you’e winding in the wrong direction. Make tight, smooth layers across the arbor as you wind on the backing.
posted by admin on Mar 27
The roll cast is a very efficient and effective cast and one you should absolutely know if you plan on fishing on creeks or streams. The primary purpose of the roll cast is to give you the ability to cast when a backcast is not possible. This may occur, for instance, if there are trees or bushes on either side or behind you. The roll cast is also effective when there is a stiff wind at your back or need to just quickly reset your fly.
The roll cast has evolved with the advent of the graphite rod. With older rods, like those made of fiberglass, it was more difficult to effectively load the rod. The roll cast was performed by raising the rod to a position slightly behind your ear and then quickly lowering the rod in the direction of the cast. Some describe the motion to that of hopping a log.?A loop was formed and the line would feed out in front of you.
The graphite rod has made the roll cast fairly simple. With the line tight in front of you, lift the rod up to the one o’lock position (slightly behind your head). Then simply do a hard forward cast like you would do with an overhead cast. That it. The rod should load sufficiently to cast your fly in the direction you need. Don’t pause at the top position or the line will just pool in front of you.
What makes the roll cast work is the water surface tension on the line. This tension holds the line allowing you to load the rod during the forward cast. So, you will need to be near water to practice the roll cast.
posted by admin on Mar 27
The overhead cast is the basic fly fishing cast. It has evolved over the years primarily due to advances in equipment. In the ilden days?before graphite rods, a lot more wrist movement was involved in the cast. Now, there is more arm and shoulder movement in order to boad the rod?to better utilize equipment (graphite). However, the basic concept is still the same. Bring the fly line overhead and behind you, then cast it front of you to the desired target.
Grip the Rod ?hold the rod like you are shaking hands with someone. Your thumb should be on top of the rod and curl your fingers underneath. Your hand should be located in the middle of grip. The fly line should be between your index finger and the rod for better control.
Stripping Line ?pull out about 10 yards of line from your reel and quickly move the tip of your rod back and forth horizontally. Your line should feed down your rod and onto the ground in front of you. This technique is important because it can be used to feed line when fishing downstream to keep your fly feeding into a pocket or seam.
Back Cast ?Walk backward so that the line is extended in front of you. With your wrist stationary, lift the tip of the rod up by raising your forearm until the line is tight. Then quickly rotate your arm backward to bring the line behind you. The rod will bend (called loading). It is important to stop the rod near the top of you back cast which will release the line. The line should form a loop and gracefully unfold behind you. Then PAUSE until the line is completely behind you. This pause is very important. Many beginners start the forward cast too soon which does not allow the line to completely unfold behind them. The easiest way to know if the line is completely unfolded is to watch it!
Forward Cast ?When the line is completely behind you, move your arm forward to load the rod again. Bring the tip of the rod forward and stop the rod. The line will follow. Gently lower the tip of your rod and the line should softly settle in front of you with the line tight.
False Casting ?False casting is a technique used to extend more line or to dry off your fly. Instead of allowing your line to fall to the water after your forward cast, you start a back cast after the line is fully extended in front of you. Simply loosen the grip on your line near the completion of your next forward cast to extend more line. You should feel it slip through your fingers.
Problems ?The ideal cast should have the line tight at all times and the line should form tight loops at the end of the back and forward casts. The line should remain horizontal to the ground at all time. Problems arise usually because timing.
posted by admin on Mar 27
Streamers are used to imitate live bait. They are fished under the water surface and usually through deep pools or in lakes. The deeper the better is usually the case for streamers. Like nymphs, they are weighted to get the streamer down deep where large fish are lurking for a big meal.
Basic streamer patterns include:
Woolly Buggers
Muddler Minnow
Leech Patterns
posted by admin on Mar 27
Nymphs are flies that represent the insect in the nymph stage of the insect life. Nymph patterns are fished under the water surface, usually near the bottom of the stream or lake. Like dry flies, nymphs are tied in both an imitation and generic (attractor) patterns.
Nymph patterns are usually tied with a weighted material to get the fly to sink. They can also be tied with what is called a bead head. A bead head is a bb-sized, metal ball (usually gold colored) that not only helps add weight to the fly, but also is an attractor for the fish.
Here are the most commonly used nymphs:
Prince Nymph
Pheasant Tail
Hare’s Ear
Stone Fly
San Juan Worm
posted by admin on Mar 27
Dry flies are used to imitate the last stage of the insect抯 life where they emerge from the nymph stage, come to surface of the water, and take flight to mate. There are literally thousands of different dry fly patterns available though there are some basic patterns that you should always have with you.
Sometimes you will see flies tied with a white clump of material on the top of the fly. These are called parachute patterns. I would highly recommend beginners use the parachute version of dry flies. They are much easier to see, float better, and you get the correct orientation of the fly in the water.
Imitation Patterns - Most dry fly patterns will try to imitate the fly based on shape, size, and color. These flies are usually mayfly, stonefly, and caddis fly patterns. Dark color flies are used in cooler weather (dark color absorbs more sunlight for heat) while lighter color flies are used in the heat. The most common imitation dry flies are:
Elk Hair Caddis
Parachute Adams
Stone Fly
May Fly
Grasshoppers
Ants
Attractor Patterns ?Attractor patterns do not necessary try to imitate a specific insect. They are generic patterns that have similar size, shape, and colors of various insects. Attractor patterns can be very affective.
The most common attractor dry flies are:
Stimulator
Royal Wulffs
Royal Coachman
posted by admin on Mar 27
You have your gear, practiced casting and are comfortable with the feel and now you are ready to head to the water and catch some fish. This is where mental side of fly fishing comes to into play. You have to understand some basic principles or it could turn out to be a long frustrating day.
The two big questions you need to answer are:
1) What insects are the fish feeding on? This will dictate the fly pattern you should be using. Anglers have a term for this watch the hatch?
2) Where in the water are the fish feeding? This will dictate where you should cast and place your fly. This will be different for streams and lakes.
This section on fishing techniques will try to explain the basics of matching the hatch and where to cast your fly. It will be the basics folks. Entire books and videos are dedicated to this subject and I highly recommend you educate yourself as much as you can.
There is also information in this section describing some basic knots and wading techniques to ensure you have a safe experience.