When is it just fishin' but not "fly" fishin'

afishinado

afishinado

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to you:

mono line, spinners, jigs, weight, props, nymphs, fly tipped with bait, just bait, rubber thingies, indy/bobber, sinking line, synthetic materials, plastic rods, flies that sink, flies that stink....
 
I am as curious about the topic and I am the answers. I think the best determination is what is on the end of the line and secondarily, what kind of equipment you use.

Fur and feathers to imitate any living creature qualifies for the end of line criterion, a rod that uses a thicker/heavier line to carry the "bait" to the target satisfies the other. Forty-foot leaders, where the cast is less than 30 feet, barely qualify as FFing, imo. Likewise, metal blades, live bait and green weenies are a deal-breaker to me. :cool:
 
Jack beat me to the GW blast. :-D
 
and "bobbers"...
 
Personally - in my snobby mind - I don't think you're really fly fishing, unless you have a dry fly on the end.

But for all practical purposes - if you're using a fly rod, with some kind of fly on the end, I guess you're fly fishing. And that would include green weenies and bobbers, -er - I mean strike indicators.
 
Oops, sorry afish, I see you already mentioned the bobber thing.... :)
 

All your flamebait aside, if the weight of the line carries the lure to the target, it qualifies.

Flopping a leaden lure and then dragging it back, lather, rinse, repeat might be using fly tackle, but its not fly fishing.

Whether that be a spinner, a jig, or a plug; regardless of construction of lure, or the manufacture of rod and attitude of the reel, its not really "fly fishing" now is it?
 
Agree with gfen. The difference is where the weight is. If you are casting a line, with a lure that happens to be on the end, it's fly fishing. If you are casting a lure, which happens to be attached to you via a line, it is not fly fishing.

Note, that this would allow the use of bait while fly fishing, or the use of flies while spin fishing.

The key here is that to me, there is nothing whatsoever wrong with non-fly fishing. One's not better than the other. There's nothing superior about a woolly bugger when compared to a spinner. The debate is purely academic, a way to define 2 fundamentally different methods of accomplishing the task of catching a fish, but have some gray area in between. It's not about determining which is "superior".

For instance, using lots of lead to dredge nymphs after a "lob" cast is not inherently fly fishing. If you take the next step, and lose the fly line, and go with an all mono leader, it makes no difference. It's not fly fishing. And there ain't a dang thing wrong with it, either. I will do so happily and not think twice about it.

Fly fishing vs. pinning vs. spin fishing vs. trolling vs.....
As a separate academic debate from:
Artificials vs. bait.
 
I'll go with Fly Rod, Reel and Line with a leader that is one third the amount of fly line you have out ( 9 ft +/- ) for tackle.

Lure should be constructed of feathers, fur or reasonable imitation thereof.

I will say I am not above using weighted nymphs, wooly buggers and the much maligned GW.
 
W. ith your daughter, "she we're just fishin' " Toby sings it better.
 
dryflyguy wrote:
Personally - in my snobby mind - I don't think you're really fly fishing, unless you have a dry fly on the end.

The true traditionalists use wet flies. The history of flyfishing goes way back, and for the great majority of that history, flyfishers used wet flies. Dry flies are a relatively modern development.
 
I agree with pcray. I will do whatever is necessary to catch fish, and actually enjoy all of those tactics.

I will fly fish, spin fish and truly enjoy doing of both.

But, if you like one way or tactic or fly-type only, I got no problem with that either. To each their own.

I never understood the whole fly vs. spin debate, anglers need to stick together not be torn over petty arguments. There is complete jerks on both sides of the fence. I know some. LOL

 
to me real fly fishing is anything with a fly being used. I don't really care what kind of rod and reel you use. IMHO nothing can catch fish better then the natural materials used in flies. I have taken buddies fishing for trout and let them use spinning rods with my flies and in the surf when i'm not fly fishing I use my flies as teasers. I will say there is a difference in the surf. its a lot harder for a fly fisherman but its part the reason I do it.

ill never give up my spinning gear. there are styles of fishing and species of fish that you just cant beat live bait with. my new favorite is fishing for flatties in the summer on a rainy night. my buddies and I have managed some big fish this past summer. the biggest being 40 pounds a few 30's and some 20's. fishing live eels for stripers at night along jetties is another favorite. I have yet to do it but I want to get the snakes out once this fall. its also had to fly fish out of a yak for stripers so I still bring the spinning gear there.
 
When you have to get on da plane to go fishing. That's fly fishing for ya's.


To me fly fishing is when the weight is in the line. And the line is what carries the lure to the location. Also, A flyfisher person will normally wade in the water where as the spin/bait casters stand on shore line or banks.
 
I'll go with Fly Rod, Reel and Line with a leader that is one third the amount of fly line you have out ( 9 ft +/- ) for tackle.

I'm not fly fishing more often as I am, then. With say, a 9 ft leader, that would mean you have to have 18 ft of fly line off the tip. i.e. a 27 ft cast or longer!

I'd say well more than 50% of my casts are under 27 ft. Dang near 100% of them if high stick nymphing or brookie fishing.

Also, A flyfisher person will normally wade in the water where as the spin/bait casters stand on shore line or banks.

Wow, where do you fish? I grew up spinfishing, and we were waders, as are all of the other spin guys I see. The angles and so forth may be different, but when I switched, there was zero change in the amount of time I spent wading.

 
fishbaithohaha wrote:
W. ith your daughter, "she we're just fishin' " Toby sings it better.

It's Trace Adkins.
 
I'm impressed, 2 pages and no argument. To me FF is done with a fly rod, fly reel, and a fly. Casts of 60' or with six" of line out, weighted or not, on top or down under, it's all good.
 
Pcray: I'm in Philadelphia....and I have yet to see someone wading PennyPack other than a fly fisher person. The same goes for Nashiminy Creek.

Is someone looking for a fight? Let us give thanks at this time of the year its THANKSGIVING.
 
Flies must have all material tied to a shank with tying thread, or they're not flies, material don't matter. Fly line and leader must be used. Indicator doesn't matter. And flies may only be used with said gear. Some using a fly rod using a plastic molted stonefly or mayfly nymph does not qualify.
 
I love fishin'. For me it usually with a fly rod in my hand. IMO that's fishin'. However, I have been known to:

Fish subsurface most of the time

Lob a super-heavy sculpin pattern under an undercut much like I used to do with a nightcrawler fished on a fly rod and a fly reel loaded with 4 lb test mono many, many years ago

Sometimes fish with absolutely no fly line out past the tip top on my fly rod

Occasionally use one of those bobber thingys

Have even been known to catch fish on a Green Weenie

I'll fish dries, wets, nymphs, streamers, emergers, trout candy (eggs, sucker spawn, SWJ's) and I enjoy all of this kind of fishin'.

The only time I fished a spinning outfit over the past few years was with a group of friends out on the Susky this summer on a pontoon boat. Fishing was tough..... I finally landed a few SMB and some bluegills and redbreasts after I resorted to casting a Clouser swimming nymph with a large split shot on my Uglystik. Nothing against any of the spinfishermen, I just prefer to have the fly gear in my hand.

Did I mention that I really love fishin'!
 
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