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To the ends of the earth for this? Almost …

By | December 1, 2010 | Destinations | No comments
Ricky Sawyer poles from his platform, scanning the shallow Caribbean waters for the elusive silver-gray bonefish. (Ricky Sawyer Collection)

GREEN TURTLE CAY — “Two fish, 90 feet out. Two o’clock . . . 80 feet . . . 70. Go! Go!’’

I followed Ricky Sawyer’s directions. He was my fly-fishing guide and knows the waters around the cay better than anyone. With a shaking hand I swung progressively larger loops of fat fly line into the air, feeding it out to get my fly closer to the elusive bonefish, our targeted species.

“Lay it down now! Now!’’ Sawyer barked. I dropped the fly where he directed. I hadn’t yet seen the fish, which isn’t uncommon in bonefishing. Their silver-gray bodies blend into the ocean making them almost transparent. Often only the guide, who stands on the boat’s elevated platform, can spot the fish.

“Strip! Strip line!’’ I pulled a length of line from the rod’s base, dragging my fly toward me. My rod jolted with energy. The line became tight, rod flexed nearly in half, and the gears in my reel began to scream as cord peeled out. The fish nearly took my entire line.

It was the first hour of my first day of fishing on the trip.

After 20 minutes of tenuous reel adjustment, feeding line in and out, I pulled the four-pound bonefish into Sawyer’s boat. This was my first bonefish, fulfilling a desire to catch one that dates to when I was 8 and became obsessed with the creature after seeing it on the cover of Fly Fisherman magazine. Read more…

Old fishing rods – An Overview Of Fly Fishing

By | December 1, 2010 | Articles | No comments

Fly fishing is a very old form of fishing and requires finesse and accuracy to catch fish, although fly fishing in no way limits you to catching small fish. It is possible to catch nearly any type of fish by fly fishing, but the majority of anglers use flies for salmon and trout fishing.

The best that historians can tell, the first record was in the second century AD in Mesopotamia. Flies were tied using rooster feathers and were cast using a six foot pole with line that was about as long. Modern day fly fishing setups are actually somewhat similar, although they have definitely progressed.

Fly fishing rods are typically longer than a normal fishing rod and very light. The line is heavier than you might expect, and the weight aids in casting. For the most part, the reel is a Read more…

NEW BOOK FOR SALTWATER FLY FISHERMEN

By | December 1, 2010 | Products | No comments

NAFA’s Fly Fishing Editor, Peter Morse, has released a new book titled A Few Great Flies…and how to fish them.

New books about fly fishing are scarce enough in Australia, let alone books that are predominantly about saltwater fly fishing and tropical species. The only other dedicated SWF book on the subject was Peter’s earlier classic book Saltwater Fly Fishing Fundamentals which has been responsible for helping launch many a fly fisherman into the pursuit of saltwater species.

This new book is a much more detailed examination of flies and how we should fish them. The fly selection it contains is pretty straightforward — basically, they are the flies that Peter travels with regardless of where he’s going fishing; and there are instructions for tying these basic patterns. But where this book really shines is in its detail on how and why we should fish these patterns. This instructional component of the book is written in a highly entertaining way with endless anecdotes about his considerable and interesting fishing experiences around the country (and parts of the world). Successes and failures are learned from and applied. Read more…

Saltwater Fly Fishing — The Tide Runs Through It

By | December 1, 2010 | Articles | No comments

Saltwater fly fishing is all the rage these days. This excitement is quite understandable because there’s hardly anything more thrilling to a saltwater fly rodder than a bluefish blitz, a tailing red drum off the coast of NC, or a bonefish battle on the flats of south Florida waters.

If you are just getting started in saltwater fly-fishing, there are a few tips that will make your conversion from freshwater easier and more productive.

Get some gear just for fishing saltwater You’re best bet is to get another fly rod and reel for your saltwater fishing adventures. Your freshwater gear is undoubtedly going to be lighter than may be necessary to deliver that big fly in a stiff offshore breeze, and you’re better off leaving your high-dollar equipment out of the punishing salt air. Read more…

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