When asked about hobbies, you might expect people to say art, a musical instrument, or even cooking. Fly fishing probably doesn’t spring to mind, yet an estimated 7.8 million people went fly fishing in 2020 alone.
Of course, there is a big difference between someone casually giving fly fishing a try with their angler buddy and someone striving to become an angler pro. After all, effective fly fishing not only requires the right fly fishing gear but no small amount of skill.
If you’re in the market to up your game, keep reading for fly fishing tips to help you break out of the ranks of pure amateurs.
Fly Fishing Gear
When you first start out, almost any rod and mass-produced flies will do the trick. You’ll spend most of your first season and probably several after mastering your casts, figuring out which flies you like, and finding good spots to fish.
The reality is that you’re not experienced enough to understand what differentiates good gear from bad. Once you rack up on some time, though, you’ll want to upgrade to a better rod from one of the big names, such as Loomis or Sage.
Tie Your Own Flies
Fly-tying is an earned skill, but one that’s worth it. Tying your own gives you a lot of insight into the architecture of a fly, which can make repairs easier.
Beyond that, learning how to tie a fly also means learning a lot about why that fly exists. Fish bite on different kinds of flies depending on everything from location to season.
Keeping that knowledge in your back pocket will make fly selection easier on your next fishing trip. Plus, fly-tying is a hobby that doesn’t involve a lot of screen time. In a world where everything runs off screens, it can prove an excellent break.
Talk with Other Fly Fishers
It doesn’t take an extraordinary effort to learn the basics of how to fly fish. Most people can pick up a functional backcast in a long afternoon or over a weekend. The roll cast is trickier but not something that will take you weeks to learn.
Refining those casts, on the other hand, is the work of years. One of the essential shortcuts is gleaning wisdom from more experienced fly fishers. They can show you tricks and even help you analyze your own casts.
As an added bonus, they can give you tips on places to fish and which flies work best in those locations. You can find more tips and gear reviews over at https://repthewild.com/.
Fly Fishing and You
Taking your fly fishing game to the next level isn’t about any one thing. Yes, practice helps, but only up to a point. If your cast is flawed, nothing but advice from someone more experienced can correct it.
Once you get some experience under your belt, though, you should give serious thought to upgrading your rod. Take up fly-tying as well, since you’ll learn about which ties work best under different conditions.
Looking for even more fishing insights? Check out the posts in our Animals section.
