My post about Mahi and Captain Beardsley's catch the other day brings me around to fishing the fly. This time, we'll concentrate on salt water although some of the techniques and gear I'll mention can also be used for big fresh water game fish.
However, before I launch into a short treatise, I'd like to spend a paragraph or two on my personal fishing philosophy.
Izzak Walton said Angling may be said to be so like the mathematics that it can never be fully learned. He also said God never did make a more calm, quiet, innocent recreation than angling. While certainly true in some ways, neither statement quite explains the whole attraction to the sport.
Fishing, both bait/reel and on the fly can be as complex or as simple as you wish. Basic arithmetic is simple, quantum physics is complex - both are mathematics. A bobber, cane pole with hook and worm are simple - big game reels with three stage gearing, auto-clutch drags and tension monitors on custom carbon fiber rods, ceramic roller guides and high strength butts are complex.
Still fishing for pan fish is calm, quiet and relatively innocent - big game fishing contains the excitement of the chase, the cast, the hook up and the catch. While Izzak had the right idea, he didn't quite carry it far enough. Then again, he lived in a relatively simpler time.
My personal philosophy when it comes to fishing is simple is better. I learned this when I was First Mate to Captain Jim Hendricks during high school summers crewing the 47 Post sportfisher Blue Horizon out of Marblehead, MA. Captain Hendrick's approach to fishing involved solid gear, easily repairable/easy to use, simple rigging techniques and a small variety of artificial/frozen bait. He told me time and again it was our job to know where the fish were, remembering the time of day, the weather, the state of the tide and what worked. And as fish are basically stupid, the rest is easy. This philosophy has served me well over the years.
My selection of salt water fly rods are all custom made (by me) using Shakespeare Ugly Stick blanks in different lengths. Most of the time, I use the 8' length in medium with a very fast action the guides set along the spine rather than opposite the spine of the rod. Believe it or not, there can be a difference both in casting and in striking power in how the guides are placed. Aligning the guides along the spine gives a much stiffer response while maintaining the proper casting and striking action. If you aren't into rolling your own, a good rod shop can strip off the guides from a production rod, then reverse the guide placement fairly inexpensively. That is my preference though, if you find that a standard production rod gives you performance you need at the price you can afford then that is the way to go.
With respect to reels, this is the second most important component of the fly system. My preference here is Van Staal, but they are pricey - ok, very expensive. I only own two (I won one as a prize in a tournament), but I switch them from rod to rod as necessary. Other than that, Penn is always the best choice for standard large capacity fly reels - they make a quality product for a reasonable price. Purchasing extra spools is a good idea as you can rapidly switch lines when conditions change. My choice for backing is to use a good Dacron loose wind in sufficient capacity that the actual fly line just comes up to the lip of the spool.
Salt water fishing is not a finesse sport like fresh water trout fishing. Heavier #8/9 lines in forty foot length weight forward SINKING line (90% of the weight is forward of the running line) is a good weight if you are fishing in open water or in-shore around structure. You want to be able to get under floating structure (for mahi) and in/around sub-surface structure (for stripers) - that requires heavy sinking lines. While this may seem like heresy to the fresh water trout fly throwers, adding lead core leader to the tip of the line gives a necessary assist in getting the line down - a ten/fifteen foot length of 3/4 lb is sufficient. And as always, a short length (3/5 feet) of 12 lb florocarbon tippet.
Don't get caught up in the while rod/line design thing. Most rods are designed for a particular weight line (and this is true for bait casting also), but moving up or down a couple of sizes is perfectly ok. For example, if your rod is speced for #6 line, there isn't reason why you can't use a #4/5 or a #7/8 line.
The most critical component in the system is the fly/lure. This is another area where I keep it simple and easy. Most fly types, in my opinion, are over kill and actually designed to catch more fishermen/women than fish. My choice is always a large Clouser imitation in chartreuse or pink:
or a streamer tied to imitate whatever bait fish is normal for where I'm fishing:
As you can see, my preference is towards greens and pinks. This is directly the result of my personal trust in these colors. If you examine my fresh water lure selection, you won't see very many different types of lures nor will you see a lot of color other than what you see here. A large part of fishing is having faith that what you are using will work under most conditions. The guys I normally fish with all have differing opinions on what works well when, but if you examine their boxes, they are similar to mine in that they have limited their choice to type and color.
As promised, I am working on a terminal tackle post, but BD asked for a fly fishing post so I thought, as he is Maggie's ram rod, I'd comply. If anybody has any questions, I'd be glad to answer them. I do tie my own flies and I build my own specialty rods so any questions are welcome.
I'll be glad to help out with advice, encouragement or commiseration if necessary.
