Cabelas Wind River Outfit and General Beginner ?'s

[mgh-pa]

First post here for me. Looks like I'm going to have another forum to visit frequently as I'm contemplating entering this hobby (already a member over on HNI and ArcheryTalk). Anyways, my fiance and I just bought a house, so we're being budget minded as the closing AND our wedding approaches. I've played around with the idea of getting into flyfishing for a year or so (I'm an avid bowhunter and spin fisherman). I've actually visited this site a few times last winter, and decided to join as I'm pretty sure I will purchase a rod/reel for this year.

Like I stated, I have fishing experience (I'm 24 and I have been fishing since I was old enough to hold a rod), but I've only flyfished once in our stocked pond at our cabin with my uncle's rod. It was a blast.

I will primarily be fishing for trout on small to mid sized streams (natives are a favorite for me in spring time) in northcentral PA. I was thinking a 7ft6"-8ft6" 4-5wt would suffice as a good starter. Thoughts on this? Action wise, I'm not sure if I should stick with a medium or go more on the slow-medium?

Anyways, since I'm looking at a budget setup, what do you guys think of the Cabela's Wind River outfits? Could I do better? Reviews are decent. Part of me tells me not to go out and buy something super expensive, but on the same token, I don't want junk either. Is it better to piece my setup together, or go with a combo? I'm not going to have time to tie flies, so I don't have to worry about purchasing fly tying materials, just the rod, reel, line, and flies. I already even have the vest and waders from my spring spin fishing.

So, if you guys could give me any suggestions on this particular outfit, that would be great, or if you have other ideas that might be a better route, let me know as well. Thanks, guys. I'm looking forward to all of the things I'm going to learn here.

 

[littlelehigh]

Read through this
Look for my first setup

 

[tomgamber]

You are going to get everyone's personal preference so I'll go ahead and give mine based on what you've said...8ft 4wt. You could go shorter but if you are just starting out and get a chance to hit bigger water you appreciate the longer rod.

I bought a wind river outfit about 16 years ago on my way moving back to Pa from Idaho. Thought I could get my wife out to use it. My son uses it and being a young teenager It turned out not to be very well made. I have however heard other on here tout the three forks rods which are still pretty cheap.

Actually it looks like you have your choice of 7 1/2 4wt or a 8ft 5wt...in which case I wold go to a store or your local fly shop and try something out and see how it feels for you.

 

[David]

It sounds like you are on the right track with line wt and rod length. As far a particulars...get out and cast them, like Tom said. Each rod is different (even if it's marketed as slow or fast action) and everybody's casting stroke is different. Cast a few for distance AND for accuracy (most of your fishing doesn't require distance) and see what feels better to you.
It is always fun to talk about rods we have tried and like (I have a JP Ross 7ft 3wt Adams that I love- 'bout $100), but getting a first hand feel is probably the best way.

 

[mgh-pa]

I'm liking the looks of the Temple Forks series as well. I wish Dick's Sporting Goods carried more of a line. I have a $25 gift card I could utilize. As for the casting, where would I go for that in the middle of the winter? Do fly shops offer this as an option?

 

[tomgamber]

I think Bass Pro shops has a good combo deal on the TFO Professional series right now. Use your dick card for little things like indicators, leaders or maybe a warm under armour for fishing in the cold.

http://www.basspro.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/Product_10151_-1_10001_10200217_175001003_175000000_175001000_175-1-3

 

[tomgamber]

I just looked and dicks has some decent stuff on their web site, where you could also use the card. Like most of their stuff though, its over priced and you can do better without the card elsewhere.

 

[mgh-pa]

Thanks for that link. I was looking over it, and was wondering. Would I be better off spending $150 on that rod/reel, then spend the $25 toward line, leaders, tippets, indicators, and flies, or should I look at the White River Pre-Assembled combos? I notice the Hobbs Creek and the Dogwood Canyon get great reviews, and they come with everything but the flies. Now I know I still would need extra leaders and tippet, flies, etc, but these combos are a nice price and for the the reviews, it seems like a good start. I know I'm coming across as a bit of a cheapo, but I'm not willing to jump into this full bore with tons of $$, so I'm looking for the best bang for my buck. Thoughts?

 

[tomgamber]

not at all...there are several "cheapos" on here..me included. Look for a combo that comes with, as you said, everything but flies. At least everything will match up. Then use your Dick's card for anything else you need that they have in store. Trust me, that 25 will go fast. If nothing else, I think Dicks carries waders and boots if you need those...

 

[mgh-pa]

Thanks, and yeah I'm assuming the $25 gift card would just supplement my supply purchase, but it would help. I have the vest, waders, forceps, etc from my spinning setup, so I'm at least good there.

 

[AlwaysWading]

Mph-pa:

As you heard the chances are pretty solid that you will hear many thoughts and suggestions here.

From my point of view this is where I started out about 7 years ago. I joined a great hunting and fishing club simply for the hunting. Shortly after that one of the members asked me to take a look at fly fishing the club steams. so he lent me a setup and I spent a few hours with him. Shortly after that I made my way to Cabela's and purchased a setup (7', 4 wt) for a bit more than $100. I then spent a total of around 4 weeks with that same gentleman as he taught me fly fishing from the ground up.


A year of fly fishing later, I started to move up in equipment. I now have three setups of LST rods and SLA reels, to accompany my original setup which I upgraded the reel to a Prestege Plus. I fish natives, special reg streams and Lake Erie tributaries. Over that time period I tried my original teachers setups, which included nothing but high grade gear, SAGE, Orvis, etc.

Does quality eqipment make you a better fisherman? From my point of view not always, but it does help to have something other than a Walmart type setup. Go fast action right off the bat and you will quickly figure out how to handle it to your advantage. If you are in native water (tight streams) with lots of roll casting, the fast works well, plus when you step into larger water, the action is prime.

Tie your own flies, leaders, learn the tricks of tippet and first and foremost, understand that the more time you spend in the stream, the more fun life is. It should not matter if you walk away not bringing one on for release each and every time you are out; simply enjoy the time spent on the water and you will realize productivity growth along the way.

 

[tomgamber]

so you really like those LST rods? I have always thought they looked like nice rods but never tried one...

 

[gfen]

I'm not sure if my opinion should count for much, as I've really only tried out a few rods, but I have an 8'6" LST 4 wt that I think is fantastic. I've also taken to overlining it with a 5wt line when its kinda windy, and I can really feel the rod load which is great for me as a beginner.

As to the OP, I bought a Redington combo at Dick's and was quite satisfied with it until I snapped the tip off. If I could do it over again, I would probably head over to either a dedicated shop and have them work with me to pick out a decent rod that fits, and help explain what it is that works best. I'd then use that gift card to buy the Keystone branded flies that Dick's sells, as well as other sundries.

 

[mgh-pa]

Thanks for all of the suggestions. It's funny you are all mentioning the LST rods with the SLA reels. I talked to a guy yesterday who I know only through bowhunting, but he's a huge flyfisherman as well. He recommend that I spend the extra money and go with the LST/SLA combo as it essentially would be all the rod I would ever need for quite some time (assuming I got it in an 8ft6-9ft 5wt). I think that's my best option, and I may just save a bit more, and go with something that will serve me well for years.

 

[MattBoyer]

I have the SLA and like it, but I should mention that it is a little short on backing capacity if you ever decide to use it in a big game capacity and the drag doesn't tighten as much as I'd like it to. If I had it to do over again, I would buy another Orvis Battenkill Bar Stock. The BBS is an awesome reel and I believe cost less that the SLA.

Boyer

PS Welcome to the board!

 

[flipnfly]

i have both the temple fork outfitters its an 8' 4 wt and i love it i have a cabelas reel on it and sceintific anglers lefty kreh line on it it casts well also i have a three forks i have a 9' 8 wt i use for bass and sometimes trout on really windy days i have a cabelas prestige 2 reel on it too and ive had no troubles with either of them i dont know about the wind river outfit though i guess it all comes to personal preferance to your cast and how aggressive or not your stroke is

 

[SoYoCoTransplant]

By the way... If you haven't yet you need to check out E. Hille Angler's Supply House its just over the Market Street Bridge in South Side. They are a full service fly shop and they handle most everything including the TFO rods. I was actually there today and tested a Cortland Brook Series 6'-6" 3 wt. I thought it was awesome and had great play but I am waiting to test one of the TFO Finesse Series Rods before I make my next purchase.

 

[mgh-pa]

Thanks. I've never noticed it. Is it right off the bridge or up 654 a ways?

 

[wetnet]

Lots of good advice. Just a question, though. Did you ask your archery friend if he had a rod he could loan you for a bit? The first couple of years of learning to fly fish are I think the most expensive. You buy tons of stuff that later made you question why you ever thought you'd like the sport.

Your friend suggestion of a 8'6" to 9' , 5 wt and that is a good starting point. Good advice. If I had it to do all over I would have just learned with the 9', but 8'6" is OK. Spend the money on a better rod with a lesser reel. To be honest, I couldn't cast that far anyway and the 29.99 Redington Red Dot I bought on sale actually just got retired. I would look at a medium to fast action rod. Despite the fast action causing webs of tippet and leader wrapped every direction and you spending hours untangling it ( hopefully you'll learn your knots so you can just cut the mess off) it will teach you quite quickly what you don't want to do ever again. A slower action rod for a beginner is like sloppy steering for a teen in an oversized truck. I started out with a Fenwick, not cheap but it was a noodle and as much as I thought I loved to fish I was really questioning it. Just test a few. Find something, how can I explain this?...... That you feel the rod shaft flex approximately at the 1/3 top section of the rod without the tip giving you more than 1/3rd of that distance up and down. Doesn't matter what the brand is. There are lots of good rods from every manufacturer at every price level. It might seem stiff when you're picturing yourself casting but the rod is the release, the line is what's casted.