FS Digest

Hello all,

I’ve been fishing successfully for more or less 30 years on spinning tackle primarily for large mouth bass and bluegill in the south. As I’ve gotten older I’ve moved away from gotta catch the biggest/most fish to more of the zen of fishing and just enjoying a well executed cast. As I look to broaden my fishing interest I’ve had a lot of friends tell me to give fly fishing a try. I’ve also been more interested in trying trout fishing as opposed to just using live trout as bass bait. Is a fly setup more efficient/productive for trout than spin tackle or is it a matter of opinion?

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by ATurkeyWhisperer

FS Digest

I like to fly fish for trout, the missus likes to throw spinners and the kids use worms and bobbers.

We have 1 trout stream nearby that they stock pretty regularly and we go there often. Sometimes I kill them, sometimes it's the missus, sometimes it's the kids that do well.

And I have no idea why.

I will say that fly fishing will allow you cover more types of water than a spinning rod. But that doesn't mean more fish.

Be prepared to spend a fair bit of money if you get into flyfishing.

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by Ltownbanger

FS Digest

I use a lightweight spinning rod for trout fishing and it serves me fine. I think it's a matter of opinion, honestly. I've never noticed any fly fishermen having more success than me.

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by genericname01

FS Digest

I would recommend picking up a cheap starter fly fishing kit at dicks or the like to make sure it’s something you like before shelling out a ton of money

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by jsun-

FS Digest

I'd say that you are going to have a better chance catching native (more savvy) trout using flies.

stocked trout bite on just about anything.

having said that, both techniques are fun and both can be effective, if you enjoy perfecting your cast, fly fishing offers a new challenge and can be very rewarding when you drop the fly right where you want it.

if you enjoy fishing, give fly fishing for trout a try. it doesn't mean you have to give up bass fishing either. I go back and forth all the time.

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by MAPR3

audigger53 Loc: Severn, MD

All i can say is what happened to me when I was 18 and went fishing on a Creek in Arizona, south of flagstaff. I used a small white spoon and a zebco 33 reel with a 5 foot rod. You could see the trout in the creek, as they were stocked, they were not hungry. I would cast the spoon past the fish trout in the line up and when it was 4 inches from him, I would flip it over him. I would do that 4 times and then take it past him. He would hit it ever time. 30 mins walking down the creek and then back to camp with 6 trout. All the other people were upset with me and digging into their tackle boxes. Flies, Sammon Eggs, worms, they were hitting nothing. They have to be hungry or mad to bite. I just made them mad. LOL

Big dog Loc: Bayshore, Long Island, New York

I always have a 3’ piece of fly line and a short tipit in my vest. The fly line acts as a weight for casting on my ultralight 2 lbs test spinning rod. It’s a great trick when the trout are on a hatch.

FixorFish Loc: SW Oregon

Let's back up.... you were using "live trout as bass bait" ?? Really ? Not sure if I can talk right now....I need to process that logic.....if there is any.......

CaptGene

I fly fish constantly. Much rather than spinning rod but that’s just my preference. Have fun either way

Tanglefoot Loc: Brevard, North Carolina

In just about every state I know about using game fish as bait is illegal. Enough said on that topic.

If you follow the suggestion to go to Dick's to buy an inexpensive fly outfit, get a 8 or 9 foot graphite fly rod that takes a 3 or 4 weight line. A Redington would be a decent starter outfit. Don't sabotage your first experience with a fly rod by getting the cheapest piece of junk available. If you can, go to a local fly shop and get some straight advice and maybe even a casting lesson. I have yet to run into a big box retail sales person who knew the first thing about fly fishing.

Unclemo Loc: Graeagle, Northern California

Different types of fish require different types of fishing. He’mavy tackle for bass, ultra light and light tackle for trout. Fly casting and delivery take some practice to get the presentation to the area of the fish. Casting a spinner orheavy bait take much less patience than fly fishing. If you already now how to spin fish and bait fish, just understand that fly fishing will take more time, education, patience, and unfortunately money. The gentleman that introduced me to fly fishing started me tying fly’s before going to the water. It taught me skit about bugs in general, matching the hatch, but most of all patience and how believe in my self and be confident. Next we went to the back yard for casting tips. We started with a fly with the hook broken off so wouldn’t hurt one another or catch trees all afternoon. And he taught me technique and how not to have all the line pile up and the fly land on top of my line. He also talked about overhead and side arm
Casting. After a few more solo casting sessions, he took me to the water and we did very little casting, but talked more about stalking, locations of fish, and what s strike looks and feels like. I’m sure someone mentioned it above but I believe it’s best to learn how to fly fish by having a mentor. You’ll have lots of questions and want answers. A mentor will make things much easier.

Flyfisherman61

Though I prefer to fly fish whenever possible, there are just some times and places where it is not possible so I would not give up the spinning tackle. I agree with the one individual, don’t go about and buy the cheapest set out there as it will not give you the true feel. You can pick up a great Redington kit for between a $100 and a $150 that will give you a great experience. The one piece of advice I can give is do not attempt it on your own. Go get two hours of instruction from a licensed, reputable instructor. Reason being, fly fishing is really about timing. Once you pick up bad habits, you then have to unlearn the bad habits in order to get it right. Trust me, been there done that. A good instructor can stand next to you and imitate what you are doing wrong so you can see it. Once you get the hang of it, you will never go back:-)

Tight lines

audigger53 Loc: Severn, MD

When I first tried Fly fishing, I took yarn and learned how to cast with that. Back and Forth to make the distance loop. After using the yarn, Fly Line was much easier to do. Of course I had to do it when the wind was not blowing, but it did teach me how to cast with Fly Line.

MassBaster

I've been picking up fly fishing for a couple of years now - always wanted to try it since I was a kid. The problem for me is I have so much fun and more success spin casting, so it's hard to put down the spin rods. As we transition into colder water, i'm going to lock the spin rods away so I get the fly rods going. I do find it more challenging than spin, though I'm just beginning with fly.

I'd say if you're getting more interested in the zen of fishing, fly fish all the way; it's active, meditative and lord gawd when the cast rolls out in that beautiful tight loop - nirvana.

MassBaster

Nice Big Dog - i'll have to try that one. I've been messing around with bombarda bobbers to add options to my spin rod: haven't landed anything yet but it definitely adds new methods for using flies with the spin rod. I've had fish nipping at the flies, just never enough to set a hook. Your fly line method would more subtle for when the fish are spooky, I'd guess....