Fly Fishing Support

Fly fishing is a distinct and ancient angling method, most renowned as a method for catching trout and salmon, but employed today for a wide variety of species including pike, bass, panfish, and carp, as well as marine species, such as redfish, snook, tarpon, bonefish and striped bass.

There are many reports of fly fisherman taking quite unintended species such as chub, bream and rudd while fishing for 'main target' species such as trout. There is a growing population of anglers whose aim is to catch as many different species as possible with the fly.

In fly fishing, fish are caught by using artificial flies that are cast with a fly rod and a fly line. The fly line is heavy enough to send the fly to the target. Artificial flies vary dramatically in size and weight, depending upon the application. It is important that the fly be matched with the appropriate line, rod, and reel. In general, larger, heavier flies require heavier lines, larger capacity reels, and heavier weight rods.

Artificial flies are created by tying hair, fur, feathers and other materials onto a hook with thread. The first flies were tied with natural materials, but synthetic materials are now extremely popular and prevalent in most flies. The flies are tied and material arranged in sizes and colors to match local terrestrial and aquatic insects, baitfish and other fish food attractive to the target fish species. Fly lines are heavier than regular fishing line, some made to float and some heavier to sink.

Unlike other fishing methods where the cast is delivered by the weight of the bait or lure, fly fishing relies on the rhythm imparted to the rod and line, with the fly trailing, to project the offering to a likely spot holding fish. It is similar to sending a wave along a garden hose in order to get a kink out. The angler normally holds the rod in the dominant hand and manipulates the line down by the reel with the other, working line out a bit at a time as the momentum carrying it forward and backward allows.

The mechanics of the rod's movement are commonly described as "10 to 2", meaning that the rod's movement on the forward cast is arrested at the 10 o'clock position (12 o'clock is rod straight up, 9 o'clock flat forward, 3 o'clock flat backwards) and the backcast at 2 o'clock. The ideal cast has proper stop points with the fly line laying parallel to the river surface before the rod begins to move in the opposite direction.

hen desired on the forward cast, as the line pulls forward with momentum imparted by the fly rod, the angler lets go of the line and lets it fly forward, carrying additional slack line out of hands grip. Flyline speed and geometry in the forward and back cast yield a tighter or looser unfurling (referred to as the "loop") of the flyline. The better the rhythm and line control the further and more accurate the cast. A poor cast is quickly indicated by the line becoming entangled.

Flies can be fished floating in the surface film (dry flies), partially submerged (emergers), or below the surface (nymphs, streamers, and wet flies.) A dry fly is typically thought to represent an insect landing on, or emerging from, the water's surface as might a grasshopper, dragonfly, mayfly, stonefly or caddisfly.

Other surface flies include poppers and hair bugs that might resemble mice, frogs, etc. Sub-Surface flies are fished to resemble a wide variety of prey including aquatic larvae, nymphs and pupae, baitfish, crayfish, leeches, worms, crabs, etc.

Wet flies known as streamers are generally thought to imitate minnows and leeches. In the broadest terms, flies are categorized as either imitative, meaning they resemble some natural food source, or attractive, meaning they contain a medley of triggering characteristics designed to entice fish without representing a common food source.