Shooting heads have been around overseas for some time.    I was one of the first to use one on the Tongariro Rv in the early seventies after I fished one out from the Major Jones Pool.     It was lost by an American executive of the Boeing Airline Company, who was guided by Hut Little from Turangi.     Interestingly anglers campaigned to have SH banned along side the Red Setter fly.    

The reason why I put a post in on Shooting Head casting is that over the last couple of seasons I got really bored with upstream nymphing on the Tongariro.     Watching endless passes of various coloured indicators has lost its appeal.     Instead I have returned to downstream wet-fly fishing with a shooting head that I started fishing this famous river nearly fifty years ago.     This rocket has also been my goto weapon fishing the deep drop-offs at the bigger river mouths around Taupo and the occasional salmon expedition down south.     Modern graphite rods, double hauling, HD shooting heads and non memory shooting mono has really revolutionised and refined this very traditional form of fly fishing.    Just to watch a big cast sail effortlessly across a wide river is a joy to behold.     The reward is a big hit that can happen anytime during the swing.     The anticipation is many times more intense than watching an indicator dip down and being rewarded by a surprise wriggle down below.     Surprisingly there are many anglers who have never tried it.   It all boils down to what you value most from the sport.