Intro
Hello fly nation I'm back again and this time I have an instructional document for you. OK, so you bought a nice 200 dollar entry level fly rod and some waders. What now?!?!?! Its simple; go out to the nearest body of water and catch some fish. Nah! I'm just playing. Before you can land that trophy trout that pulled you 100 yards down the river you need to learn how to cast.
Casting can be done in many different ways. Really , the options are endless. I'm going to show you just what you need to work your way around the North Carolina streams. All that fancy crap can wait till you really need to learn it.
How does a fly rod work?
First to understand how to cast we must understand what we are casting. When you fly fish you're actually not throwing the fly and leader. You're throwing the fly line. Quality fly lines have a taper that has a thick and heavy front and sizes down to a light and thin strand. The weight of the heavy front is what is used to throw out the entire 90 feet of line.
Getting Started
Grab your rod and reel and head to a large grassy field. It's important to practice on grass so you don't ruin the structural integrity of the line by dragging it across a hard surface. Pull about 5 feet of line from the last eyelet out and let it sit on the ground. Now hold the rod like you'd hold any other poll except instead of wrapping your thumb around the poll let it sit on the top of the grip. Bring the rod up so that the tip of your rod is in the 2 o’clock position. Bring the rod back to the 10 o’clock position and back forth. If done right your wrist will be stable and the rod tip will move in a straight line. If that tip is not moving in a straight line then you will be slapping the water with your line when you try to fish. Continue to move from 2 to 10 until you feel comfortable letting more line out. You can cast more line by pulling 20 feet or so out of the spool but not through the eyelets. Let the line sit on the ground as you start your 2 to 10 movement. Pinch the line with your off hand and each time you move to the 2 o’clock position release and let some of the line slide through the eyelets. Grab the line with your off hand on the way back to the 10 o’clock position and don't let it go out.
When you have let out your ideal amount of line you need to land or “present” the fly in the water. Splash down to hard and you risk scaring the fish, to light and you'll miss your target. So how do you present the fly perfectly? Well, in order to do this the line and fly must land on the water at the same time. This prevents any change in the lines shape on your presentation. Once you've reached your target let the loop in your line funeral and as soon as the line is straight lower the tip of your rod towards the water. The speed required for this will change with your casting angle and speed.
If you have done everything correctly the fly will land perfectly on the water. Once you've mastered the simple cast you can move onto more complicated casts such as the switch-t, double spey, or single spey. While all these casts look beautiful they are impractical for most fishing you'll do in North Carolina. The most practical cast to use in this environment in the roll cast. Lucky for you this is actually easier than your standard overhead cast. To perform a roll cast pull about 10 feet of line out and through the eyelets. Bring the rod tip back to the 10 o’clock position. When you're ready just powerfully move the tip to the 2 o’clock position. The 10 foot of line that was on the ground in front of you will now be straight out in front of you. This cast works best with about 10 foot of line which makes it perfect for the close fishing you'll be doing.
Conclusion
I hope this little tutorial helped! The key to mastering any new skill is practice. Don't be mad or get frustrated if you don't get it on the first try. Have some patience and practice often. I practiced every day when i got my first rod. 4 years later I have become very proficient in the art of casting but even I am still learning. As always have fun with the sport and enjoy your time outdoors.
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