4
Critical Fly Fishing Tips
by: Frank Faldo
Good Fly Presentation
Obviously, the goal when casting a fly is to present the
fly to the fish in a realistic manner. You are trying to
simulate nature here. If you are going for trout in a
stream, for instance, this means a drag-free float of 36
inches over a precise spot that marks the window of a
feeding fish.
Also remember that the
Evening Secret (http://www.eveningsecretfishing.com/specialsecret/4_Fly_Fishing_Tips.php)
will swarm fish to your spot consistantly, and help you
catch more fish.
Never randomly cast –
you have got to pick a spot and hit it. Throw tight
loops that put the fly on target. One important method
that can be used is to overcast the target and stop the
line short while it is in the air. The fly should come
back to you and fall on the water with slack in the
leader.
The best trout fishermen
fish with only 30 to 35 feet of line, but make up for
this with accurate casting. They read waters will and
put the fly in the p ay zone time after time. One of the
most important thins they do is to recognize that
presentation and approach are much more important than
pattern.
It is different for
bass. Whether a surface bug or a streamer, the offering
must move past a spot where a bass is apt to hold. As
the boat drifts, it is important to pick a precise time
to shoot a cast to the target. Too soon or too late, and
the fly won’t be in the right spot. This is where the
double haul form of casting becomes essential. It
generates line speed and enables the caster to pick 30
or 40 feet of line off the water and shoot another
without false casting.
When basing, make your
presentation, retrieve 10 to 20 feet, pick up, and cast
again without the need to false cast. After each one,
drop the rod type and keep the butt of the rod near your
belt buckle with the tip-top of the rod pointing at the
line. A simple lift will let you execute the next pickup
or strike a fish.
Leader Connection
If you are a fly caster,
you know that a smooth connection between the leader and
fly line is important in presentation. The best way to
do this is to nail-knot a six-inch piece of 25-30 pound
leader material to the end of the fly line. A loop like
those found on snelled hooks is then tied into the
opposite end. The connecting leader must also have a
loop.
Connecting the leader
itself is done by passing the loop attached to the fly
line through the loop on the leader; reaching through
the fly line loop. Next, grab the butt section of the
leader and pull the leader up through until the tippet
passes the loop. Last, just pull the loops together by
tugging on the fly line and the butt section in opposite
directions.
Strategy
If you are every in a
situation where see large brown trout in open water and
hold, your best bet is to use a No. 12 Cinnamon Ant and
sink it. If this doesn’t work, move to the No.16 Adams
fly. Still nothing? Switch to the No. 20 Black Ant.
Last-ditch effort would be to use a 3X tippet and use a
No. 6 nymph or streamer.
Typically the bigger
trout will leave small morsels to the small guys,
preferring the bigger bites that are easy to get. They
are very economical feeders.
High Rider Dry Fly’s
If your best dry-fly
patterns are failing you, it may be time to switch to
spiders and variants. Many times a spider or variant
will bring trout to the surface, then you can switch
back to a conventional dry fly.
These spiders and
variants will delicately drop to the water, usually
somersaulting or jumping after touching it. Fish find
this very alluring.
High riding is another
attribute of these flies. When tied properly, their
hackles support the hook above the water’s surface, thus
imitating a natural fly much more closely than the
ordinary fly does. |
