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CASTING A FLY ROD
The key to successful fly fishing is tricking fish into believing your man-made bait is a real insect. Choosing the right fly and presenting it to the fish with a skillful cast are two crucial ingredients to this task.
While there are many effective styles and kinds of casts, the roll cast is a great place to start. It'll give you a foundation of skills from which you can move on to other, more intricate casts. You can use it equally effectively with nymphs, wet flies, and dry flies. Plus, it's easy to understand, you can practice it on your own, and once mastered, it'll help you catch fish with flair.
To get the feel for imitating a fly, spend some time watching other anglers. Pay attention to how they stand, how they grip their rods, their casting form, and how they play with the line. Or, seek out some videos on casting a rod. Just watching will provide you with a model to copy until you develop the nuances of your own form. Ask at a local fly fishing store or consult a guidebook to discover a local fishing spot.
Step 1 - Stand Correctly
From either water or land, there are two ways to stand:
Closed body stance. Your feet and body face the target (the place in the water where you want to cast). Keep your knees shoulder-distance apart, and slightly bent. This stance is used for short casts (about 15 to 25 feet, or 4.5 to 7.5 metres).
Open body stance. The leg on the same side of your body as your casting hand is turned 90 degrees behind you, so you're facing sideways to the target. Keep your knees shoulder-distance apart, and slightly bent. This is used for longer casts (about 25 to 40 feet, or 7.5 to 12 metres).
Whether you cast from shore or while standing in the water depends on how wide the body of water is and where the fish are situated. Either way, move around as quietly as possible; fish can "hear" vibrations from heavy footsteps and talking--and even a change in water current (caused by a few careless steps) can alert them to potential danger.
Go to Casting Page 2
