Flyfishing for dummies

[Braun]

Ok so i dont think i am ready to make the big leap from spin casting yet just because i love spin casting for alot of reasons and am not fully squared away with it enough to switch to fly. I eventually will want to start fly fishing and i probably will do alot of both. but what i want to know is of the people who do both or used to spin and switched; why? whats your favorite thing about it? i know its a totally different thing but what are the big differences you notice between the two(excluding the obvious things, im not an idiot. i mean in terms of catching in different conditions, fish pickiness, difference in fight...)

not looking for obvious answers. and im not looking to be "converted"


on another note, there is a simulation game called "flysim" apparently it is supposed to be very similar to the real thing and they try to replicate casting conditions and how fish fight, choose to bite, importance of hatchings.... blah blah blah. for those who have played it whats your opinion of it. you can download a trail here (http://www.flysim.com/flysim/flysim_download.html) for free. on the trial you can only fish 1 river for cutties and can only catch 1 fish. after you catch the fish the game turns off unless you buy it......i thought it was cool but wanna hear if real flyfisherman think it is cool or made with the stuff you was hogs with (for those who are slow: hogwash)

[slingshotz]

Two words: Dry fly

I still love to do both spin casting and fly fishing but to be honest a lot of people who fly fish nymphs are basically old school fishing with a bobber (ie indicator) and artificial bait. I'm not a huge fan of nymphing because of this and as a result my success rate on the bow isn't fantastic because of this. Now try and tell some of the fly fishermen out there that they are fishing like kids with a bobber and you'd get some pretty nasty replies.

However, when fish are taking stuff off the surface nothing gets the heart racing like seeing the boil of water and watching your dry fly disappear. It's exactly comparable to fishing floating cranks and plugs and seeing pike or bass smash them at the surface.

I equally enjoy the fight of a fish on a fly rod and a spin rod, different style of fight but I still get a kick out of both. I do believe it's a bit more difficult to land fish with a fly rod as using the drag on the fly reel isn't as straightforward as a spin reel and it takes a bit more practice to get good at it.

[Braun]

ya i can definately see that. one big thing i am looking forward to when learning to fly fish is that you have to know where fish will be holding and with spinning i get a general idea but you can cover more area with spin/ baitcasting. but with a fly you miss your cast and you could miss the fish.

[Calgaryguy1977]

I'll try not t be captain obvious here but some of it may be!

I do both and in the past few weeks I've done nothing but fly fish. I like fly fishing better because there is more strategy and technique. You learn the hatches, have to learn to read water properly, and the most rewarding/interesting part is tying your own flies. I've found that once you know what you're doing you will catch many more fish on the fly. A week or two ago I was at the upper K and spin casters were coming all day long...even tried my own luck for fun and nobody caught a thing. I hauled out my fly rod and was hitting them like crazy....caught about 7 or 8 and I'd say 5 got away because I got too aggresive. Also you cant strong arm the fish like you can do with spin casting. You have to let the fish run if you get a large one and you will have to learn to play the fish out more....this is the biggest difference. I find alot of times with Spin casting its redundant and sometimes dumb luck. I find it's alot harder to catch fish fly fishing when you are relying on dumb luck. If that makes sense to ya. In terms of casting theres about 20 different methods you can use to hit a certain spot but it takes practice and technique. Once you get into fly fishing you probably won't want to go back unless you have one of those days where you feel a little lazy and throw the spoon in.

The biggest differences for me though?.....I say you get a bigger sense of accomplishment if you catch fish on the fly. I get a helluva better fight on a fly rod! You feel the action in the rod more. The weirdest part for me though that I didn't expect is I have more respect for fly fisherman than any other type.....sorry if that sounds like arrogance but most fly fisherman know what I mean I'm sure.
Cheers

[Calgaryguy1977]

BTW what "experienced" fly fishers do instead of a bobber is put a large stimulator fly or hopper higher up on the leader and then put a small caddis or san juan or something on the end. It acts kind of like a bobber in a way. Also when you fish at night (the most rises) you can see your fly better.

[Braun]

I can definitely see that. if i do end up switching i will still do both because i have now started fishing at lunchtime downtown and it would be hard to find the room to flyfish from shore and not wade out. That is another thing. i know alot of spots especially at night where i would catch something on every cast on a fly without even wading water but more often than not you have to wade out to find the honey holes. anyways, i will have to do both and also i think i would stick to spin casting when i would be fishing lakes.

I figured flyfishing would put up a better fight on the end of the rod cause a fly reel is more sensitive than a spin or bait caster. After you learned to flyfish and learned how to read the water, did you notice you also had more success when spin casting? Also costwise(not including gear to start up, more of mainting your tackle and what not) flyfishing is cheaper correct? Spin casting you have to have a large variety of different kinds of lures and colors and they arn't cheap. where as if you know the rivers you are going to fly fish you generally use alot of the same flies. so you would need less of a selection when you head out.

[MrDave]

I am one of the few people who use my flyrod for species such as perch, and whitefish. I am just getting back out into the streams and lakes, after a bad knee injury. I now mainly fish from the boat, as I fear what my knee will do in the river. These last few years have made me very aware of the other options available.

I rarely pursue trout with it, but when I do, it is floating a wet fly past a holding spot, that gets my blood racing. Very much the same rush I get stalking game. Trying to sneak within range of the cast without being felt, or seen.
Most of the trout streams I fish, are fast rough streams, that dont have many slow pools. The best spots seem to rule out a dry fly for me. Plus I suck at landing it perfectly.
I am getting eager to hit the back country again, for the main reason I go out. The scenery. I don't go where most people, I go where mother nature displays her finest.