Fly Fishing - Top Tips

With summer fast approaching it is time to get out and experience some of the awesome fishing we have in this country.

Having fished in several places overseas, I can categorically say that we have some of the best fishing in the world!

Fly fishing is one of those pastimes you can enjoy for a lifetime but never come close to mastering – although it’s great fun trying! It often feels as if the more you learn, the more you realise you don’t know.

No matter what level you’re at, there is always something to learn, and that’s what keeps us coming back for more.

Catching fish may be only one of many reasons why we go fishing, but, let’s face it, it’s the most important one for most people. If you’ve got a fishing trip coming up and don’t want to have to listen to your mates bragging about how many more fish they caught than you, here are a few simple tips that might help swing the luck into your favour.

1: Closer is better. The less line there is between you and the fish, the more control and contact you will have, especially when blind fishing. Often there is no need to throw a long cast; it’s just a matter of getting in a better position.

2: Quick striking is the key to getting a good hook set and will increase your hooking and landing rate. Strip-striking is a must, and having the rod at about a 30-degree angle to the line allows for a quicker side-strike. When lake fishing or wetlining I like to watch the rod tip to get a visual cue for registering takes earlier.

3: Check your hooks. Rocks, snags, trees and even bony fish mouths can all damage the fine point of your hooks. I regularly check my hook points and often find they need to be re-sharpened or replaced. Blunt hooks are a prime reason for people losing fish!

The best way to check them is to gently try to hook your thumbnail. If the point is sharp it will dig in; if it’s blunt it will just slide across the nail. A little diamond hook sharpener is a handy addition to your fishing vest. Also, watch out for hooks that have opened up slightly.

4: When retrieving flies, mix it up. Don’t just do one monotonous retrieve, as fish will often just follow the flies and not take. Imagine there is a fish following your flies and you are trying to tease it into taking (like teasing a kitten with a piece of string and paper).For example, do a couple of big strips, then pause, then a little figure-of-eight, then several quick, short strips, then pause again etc. etc.

5: Fish slow. When fishing lakes, I often find that fishing quite slow can be very effective, particularly if the fishing is tough. Pausing for a few seconds mid-retrieve can often be too tempting for a trout following your flies. I often pause several times in the same cast, particularly if I think my flies are in a fishy spot.

If you have ever had fish follow your flies all the way in, or had swirls as you have pulled the flies out to re-cast, try using the ‘hang’. This is where you simply pause for a few seconds at the end of the retrieve before casting again.

When ambushing cruising brownies, a well-timed slight twitch is deadly, although any more movement than that can make them wary instead.

Fishing a nymph hung under a dry can be very productive.

6: The more time your flies are in the water, the more fish you’ll catch. Often people make extra false casts with little gain in casting distance. So sacrificing a little distance by reducing the number of false casts can save a lot of casting time (and potential tangles). Challenge yourself to try to cast with fewer false casts, and you will find your casting improves.

7: When nymphing, try to fish the right fly weight as often as possible. Ideally you want the nymphs as close to the bottom as possible without coming into contact with it too often. This can be challenging, as most rivers have varying water speed and depth, so you need to adjust the weight and length of your set-up regularly. This takes time, but sees the water covereded far more effectively than by fishing the whole river with just one rig.

8: Mend in the cast. The reach cast is a great way to delay the onset of drag. Once you have punched forward with your final cast (and the line and flies are still in the air), you can move the rod tip to either side, causing the line to lay out at a different angle to help counteract river currents. This reduces the need to mend, so you get a longer drag-free drift. I also cast backhanded in some situations to get a better drift.

9: Try to impart as little drag on the flies as possible when mending. The biggest downfall of mending is that it often stops the flies from getting down to the fish. When doing a standard mend, try wiggling the rod tip from side to side with your wrist as you do it. The line lifts off the water more freely, reducing the drag on the flies. Another method is to allow a bit of slack to form below your rod tip so that you can then do a mini roll-cast mend. If done correctly at the start of the drift, your indicator should hardly move, if at all. Also, it helps to have a line that floats well.

10: Get some practical tuition and guidance from others. Books and magazines are a great way to learn new techniques and skills, but first-hand practical experience with the help of an expert can dramatically speed up the learning curve. Fishing clubs can be a great way to meet new people who can show you a thing or two. Competition fishing is also a great way to meet and learn off some of the top anglers in New Zealand.

As part of our fundraising to get to the World Fly Fishing Champs in Poland next year, the New Zealand Silver Flies are running one-day and weekend fishing clinics this summer on both rivers and lakes. These clinics will involve small groups of people getting to watch and fish with team members, who will demonstrate and teach different techniques and skills that they have spent thousands of hours practicing. If you would rather have a one-on-one day with one of the team to get the full benefit of their knowledge, this can also be arranged.

If you want some more details and are keen to catch a few more fish, contact Aaron West on:

aaronlwest@hotmail.com or phone 021 2567 028

	This article is reproduced with permission of New Zealand Fishing News 2009 - by Aaron West Re-publishing elsewhere is prohibited