Fly fishing - preparing for your next trip

The key to successful fly fishing is comprised of two abilities:

Firstly, an intuitive feel for the areas where trout are found and an understanding of their feeding behaviour and secondly, being prepared mentally and having the right equipment and fly selection to catch the trout.

Visualise yourself on the river bank organising your gear and preparing to cast; this will help you immensely. Also, having your gear well organised will free-up some mental space and allow you to concentrate on observing your immediate environment. Chance favours the prepared angler. So if you want to become one of the 20% who catches 80% of the fish, read on... I have learned many lessons the hard way about preparation over the last three summers. I consider myself to have been chronically hopeless at organising my fishing tackle and have frequently been shown up by my friends. In addition, I caused them much frustration while fumbling around. At best, being poorly prepared will involve watching other people catch fish while you miss out. At worst, it can mean becoming lost in the back country.

Maps

Maps are extremely important for finding good fishing water. The NZMS map series (1:50 000 scale) made between 1982 and 1989 is especially detailed. Spend some time looking over maps. This will help immensely in finding new fishing locations. Since maps are expensive it is worth getting a photocopy of the appropriate section of the map and placing it in a plastic bag in the pocket of your tackle vest. There are some great fishing guide books available. Read fishing guides but remember that they aren't the last word and be open minded

Rod Selection

Throughout New Zealand a 6-weight rod will be suitable for 95% of the fishing. Yet after experiencing the El Nino summer of strong nor-westers, a 7-weight rod is highly desirable, especially when nymphing in headwater streams. There are a few situations where a heavier 8- or 9-weight rod will prove useful. I primarily brought a 9-weight rod for winter fishing at the Tongariro, but have found the rod to be useful in Canterbury when fishing Tongariro-style on the larger stony rivers such as the Hurunui or when lure fishing for sea-run trout.

Heavy gear is needed to control large fish! If fishing with a friend on a river then tie up different rigs on each rod. For example, have a tapered leader and dry fly set-up on one rod and an indicator and nymph set-up on the other. Share rods according to the situation and this will save a lot of chopping and changing of rigs and increase your fishing time. It also pays to have two fishing rods in the car or at the bach in case one gets broken. I have already broken two fly rods this season so I appreciate the importance of having a spare.

If you were to buy a third rod it would be worth looking at a four-piece packaway rod - especially if you are keen on exploratory fishing. The four-piece rod can also be discretely taken with you as a backup rod.

Reels

It is especially useful if you can buy spare spools for your fly reel as you can pack a floating line, sinking line and shooting head all using the same reel. Sometimes you can expect to fish all three types of line in a day, especially if you are fishing on lakes. Many people make the mistake of not getting deep enough when fishing lakes. It is impractical to carry three reels. Avoid reels with a flashy metallic appearance. Also, buy a reel with a reasonable drag system.

Flylines

A selection of fly lines is required. The most frequently used line is the floating line. A weight forward line is best, especially when casting into the wind, and has pretty much become accepted as a necessity in Canterbury (remember the nor-wester?). When buying a floating line avoid bright colours, dull green, grey or light brown is more appropriate. This is especially so for spooky brown trout in headwater streams and trout cruising the edges of lakes.

A second line is a Type 11 sinking line which is useful for lure fishing at night in the streams flowing into Lake Ellesmere and for night fishing over deep weedbeds on our high country lakes. A deep presentation of a large nymph or lure is often the difference between success and failure. Type 11 sinking lines are useful for lure fishing in lakes and slow moving rivers where the fly has to be presented close to the bottom in either deep water or slow flowing water.

A third type of line is a shooting head. A shooting head is useful for fishing for sea-run fish at rivermouths such as the Hurunui, Rakaia and Waitaki. Fly fishing for sea-runs is great fun and the possibility of hooking a salmon shouldn't be overlooked.

Remember to regularly clean grit of your flyline and to stretch it out before the season begins. There is nothing worse than looking at a coiled-up flyline on the water's surface.

Leaders

It pays to have a range of tapered leaders if you are fishing dry flies or fishing for extremely spooky trout. If, however, you are fishing weighted nymphs or lures then tapered leaders are not required. A level leader is more than adequate. Buy a selection of tapered leaders going down to 4lb breaking strain.

Tippet material

Tippets in a range of breaking strains from 3 to 81b should be carried when trout fishing. For some situations such as fishing lures at night heavier line of 12 pounds is required to keep fish away from snags especially in willow enclosed environments.

It is also worth having several spools of low breaking strain fluorocarbon lines for those more difficult trout you encounter when the fishing gets tough. Fluorocarbons are very expensive but are only needed for about 10% of the fishing situations you'll encounter. Maxima is an excellent cheap 'bread and butter line' and tends to take the knocks when fishing stony rivers.

Now please do not underestimate this next point - always have rubber bands on your spools to prevent line falling of. Each time line has tangled from spool to spool valuable fishing time is wasted untangling it.

Fly Selection 

It pays to have a wide range of flies but a few flies cover 95% of fishing opportunities. It is Important to have these key patterns in a wide range of sizes. All fly boxes should have a selection of the following patterns.

Cicada - can also be used as an Z indicator fly in rough, broken water.
Royal Wullfs and Humpys in sizes 8-16. These flies are excellent searching patterns on larger rivers and also good indicator drys in larger streams.
Elk hair caddis, Adams and Comparaduns for fishing on smaller streams in sizes 12-18.
Hare 'n' Copper and Pheasant Tail nymphs in sizes 10-18 (especially sizes 12-16). These nymphs are real bread and butter patterns. Having pearl or gold bead heads is an advantage.
Dragonfly and damselfly nymphs - standard for lakes.
Black and Peacock - all round sight fishing pattern.

Fly storage

When storing flies I prefer to use foam fly boxes. Forget those boxes with little compartments. As soon as you open the box in any breeze your dry flies will scatter over the ground. Ever tried looking for a size 18 Adams amongst the stones? Other hints include taping a small silica pad into your flybox to prevent hooks rusting. Also, have a large compartment flybox which you keep at home or in the car.

Polaroids

Polaroid sunglasses are essential for flyfisherman. They are excellent for spotting fish and tend to brighten up images when you use a bright yellow tint. But try not to use the glasses for too long as they can cause significant eyestrain. Check that the glasses are coated for LTV A and B. Glare from the water can cause damage to your eyes and even if you're not spotting fish you should always wear good quality sunglasses. Also, make sure that you secure your glasses with a head band otherwise you will lose them. I remember when my brother was attempting to land a trout for me. He leaned down, the trout bolted, and the leader scuffed across his face flicking the glasses into the rapids!

A wide-brimmed hat with a strap to secure it in the wind is also handy.

Odds and ends

All anglers should have a tackle vest. Get a vest that allows you to store enough gear for a day trip. Always try to get into the habit of putting the same gear in the same pocket and it will save you a lot of time. Avoid tackle vests with a large white fly patch on the front. Line cutter and forceps are also useful. A landing net can also save a lot of fumbling around: the new weigh nets are great! Always carry a torch, even if it is a small mag light. I have stayed out fishing for much longer than I expected on several occasions. Once I intended to fish only for the afternoon at the Rakaia Rivermouth, but as the fishing got better and better in the evening with sea run trout moving into the river, I decided to stay. By dusk good numbers of large trout where moving into the river, but frustratingly I had to give up fishing as I did not have a torch.

A hook sharpener is also useful, even when using the new chemically sharpened hooks. I find when fishing in areas where the backcast may hit stones or when fishing with a sinking line with the fly hitting the bottom, the point of the hook will become slightly blunted. Just enough to prevent a hook-up for perhaps the only strike you'll get all day! If ever you strike and fail to hook up, always check your hook for damage. You will find that more often than you expect, the hook has suffered some wear. Inspect your leader, tippet and flies every five minutes. Constantly checking your gear is important. There is nothing more disappointing than losing a trophy brown, after a day's hiking, to a wind knot!

Other necessities are poly-yarn for indicators and floatant. Also, split shot and the new lead substitute putties are useful for adding extra weight onto flies, especially when nymph fishing in deep, fast water. A nail should also be carried for tying nail knots and a plastic bag to put trout in and a small bag to contain off cuts of nylon.

Clothing

Polypropylene underclothes are excellent in a wide range of situations. They are lightweight and keep you warm when walking up icy cold rivers. Polar fleece jackets are also great in cold conditions. Felt-soled shoes are a must if you are a keen river fisherman and neoprene waders are great for lake and rivermouth, but are unsuitable if you intend walking more than a few kilometres.

One of the joys of being a well-prepared angler is that you can organise your gear in the comfort of your own home on a winter's evening and re-live the fishing memories of the previous summer. Also put together a kit of basic fishing gear ready to go at a moment's notice in a plastic bin. You never know when your mate will phone up with news of some hot fishing. Being a well-prepared angler will also save you precious fishing time when on the water. Ever thought just how much real fishing time you had and how much time was spent fumbling around with tangled leaders?

The final piece of preparation in putting it all together is psychological. Visualise arriving at the water and how you are going to fish. If you have visited the location before try to recall the experience, including background sights and sounds - believe me visualising works. If you have time, try to make some visits to your favoured fishing spot and just look at the layout of the place. Reconnaissance is especially important at locations which are constantly changing like the large east coast rivermouths.

Observe other anglers. See how they are set up and take note of how they fish. Always carry a notebook and make notes on techniques that work and general observations. If you are well-prepared you will minimise the random factor and concentrate on the vagaries of the trouts' behaviour. Being well-prepared will give you more fishing time (and fish) and less stress and distractions.

Good luck on your journey into the 20% of the anglers that catch 80% of the fish.