These are 5 things I wish I knew when I started Fly Fishing for Trout in the US!!
Before we get started my intent with this video is to have something that new fly anglers can use for years to come. So if you’re someone who’s been fly fishing for a while leave a comment and let people know what’s something you wish you knew when you started fly fishing… and then like a few comments that you think were interesting / important. That way new anglers can read through the comments and learn things even beyond this video.
1. There are 3 types of flies… streamers, dry flies, and nymphs. Jig streamers and wooly buggers you can work exactly how you’d work a jig for any other species of fish and are easy to pick up as a beginner. If you have a stimulator, caddis, and a parachute Adams you’re set for dry flies (at least out east). And for out west having a Griffith’s gnat is always handy. There are a few basic nymphs, pheasant tail, hares ear, prince nymph, and rainbow warrior, that catch fish anywhere in the world. Fly sizes are simple, the smaller the number the bigger the fly. For example a size 12 fly is much bigger than a size 18, and so on. The most “normal” sizes for flies range from around six 12 to size 20, with any number lower than 12 being really big, and any number higher than 20 being really small.
2. Fly selection isn’t that important. Everybody talks about fly choice but its such a small piece of the equation. It is far more important for you to get your fly down in front of the fish than it is for you to have exactly matched what they’re eating. For example, if you don’t see any fish rising don’t throw a dry fly and expect to have a killer day on the water. There are obviously exceptions to everything, but generally if you have the flies I mentioned in the flies section in the beginning of the video, you can and will catch fish almost anywhere, regardless of what is hatching and what isn’t. And if you’re struggling and feel like you did need to match the hatch, flip over a rock and match your flies with what you see crawling around, or stand for a second and look at what bugs are flying around the river.
3. Trash flies aren’t trash, people just don’t like how well they work. “Trash flies” are flies like a squirmy worm, mop fly, greenie weenie, or an egg. If you don’t have trash flies in your box then you’re missing out on some of the best fishing you can have on the water. These flies just flat out catch fish, and when you’re knew that’s important. The lesson for section 3 is just have fun and catch some fish. There is no right or wrong way to fly fish and catching fish as a new fly fisherman is the most important thing you need to learn if you’re ever going to stick with it.
4. If you’re new, use an indicator rig or a jig streamer. Indicators are just a fancy way of saying bobber, and if you drop a squirmy below an indicator you’re essentially bobber fishing with a worm. If you drop another fly down there then you’ll have double the chance of hooking up. This isn’t the coolest way to catch a trout, BUT it’s a great way to Catch a few fish and get the hang of casting out, fighting a fish, and landing it. Jig streamers are another great way to get started just because they’re so similar to jigging for any other species of fish. Once you’ve caught some fish and get the hang of fly fishing you can start trying new rigs and getting more particular with how you catch fish (if you want to).
5. What you should and shouldn’t spend money one… for example Tippet is just thinner diameter fishing line and It’s slightly overrated. Let me explain: Tippet is theoretically designed so that you can throw higher pound test on smaller diameter line and spook less fish. The sizing looks complicated but it’s not that bad, I’ll throw up a general tippet to pound test conversion on the screen. Generally when you’re fly fishing you will use 3x to 6x depending on the day, with the most common being 4x-5x. But if you’re throwing a streamer you have no reason to use tippet, and honestly in a lot of nymphing / dry fly fishing scenarios tippet isn’t needed. For years, I used regular florocarbin fishing line for streamers and had 4 pound test monofiliment in my bag for nymphing and dry fly fishing. It’s so much cheaper to use regular fishing line and in most areas it doesn’t make a difference
SO that’s my 5 things I wish I knew when I started fly fishing. These are fly fishing specific, in other words I didn’t go into the ins and outs of how to catch trout because when I started fly fishing I already had been trout fishing for years. If you want more specific videos like this one, let me know in the comments below. Thanks for watching!
