Never fly fished, looking for suggestions

[afishinado]

A lot of good posts above.

Beginners to fly-fishing should try to keep it simple.

Borrow or buy a decent rod outfit with line matched to the weight of the rod. You really can't go wrong with a 8 to 9' 5wt rod to start.

Fish in more open areas where casting is easier. Lakes or more open streams or rivers are good places to start.

You may also want to target warmwater fish (in the warmer seasons) like panfish and bass. They are plentiful and usually easier to catch.

Hire a guide if you afford one or try to fish with an experienced fly-fisher if possible to get you started.

Have someone help you select some basic flies to get started. It's almost always the fisherman and not the flies that make the difference in catching.

Buy a "how-to" book on fly-fishing that covers the basics - equipment, rigging, flies, fishing techniques, etc. Also search the Internet for FFing info. This site is a great source for when, where and how to get started.

Keep at it...don't get discouraged. Always remember it's about enjoying yourself and having fun, and maybe catching a few fish along the way on your journey.

Good luck.

 

[J55tyger88]

Newbie Jam man! Still remember words of wisdom..."there's two ways to skin this cat"

I also agree going out with an experienced FFer. If you really want to get into the sport, the words of wisdom youre told seem to just stick with you, and when situations arise you remember "oh yeah krayfish said hit the seams, or Gencon said add more tippet and so forth" There is tons to learn and it works for me to kinda set goals for each outing, for example, really focus on good drift nymphing this outing, and something different next.


Fly fishing is best when reaching those goals, first on dry, first on nymph, first brown.....it's always something new thats the drive for me to want to go fishing.

Hope you stick with it, as it's one of the most rewarding things.

 

[PennypackFlyer]

I for one, hung it up several times before I caught on. I did not even think about this forum or any other flyfishing forum when I first started. I made lots of mistakes and caught many a trees to say the least.

It is true there is alot of mechanics involved in this art that may seam overwhelming at first. We have a great forum where we can all share ideas and knowledge with each other. If you make good use of it, you will become a better flyfisher shortly.

Take up some of the offerings that you receive from others on this post - Personal Messages (PMs) or NewBee Jam info and also the Flyfishing Jamborees that are held in May each year.

One outing does not make one an expert.

You also mentioned spin casting equipment in this post - You can also get tied up in spending lots of money in it as well. I have several thousands invested in lures alone. Most of my spin/casting equipment setups (rod and reel) run me between $150 - $400.00. I have around 16 setups. (add that up!)

I can also say with the Flyfishing equipment - I can carry a much larger quantity of lure choices (flies/nymphs/streamers) with me than I can with spin casting lures. Thus I can target more types of fish or have more choices to choose when fishing.