Confessions of a "Sin Fisherman"

[Big Skyz]

I have to make a confession or two. I catch a lot of fish and a lot of folks have assumed I was fly fishing. Well the truth is I don't know much about fly fishing. One of my best friends and hard core fly fisherman calls my spin fishing "sin fishing". I fish with a lot of guys that love to fly fish, and with the exception of only a couple of times, I usually out fish them. However, on a recent trip to southern Utah my partner absolutely destroyed me while fishing for trout on Minnersville Reservoir. I only landed two trout while he was yarding them out with his fly rod. He offered to let my try his fly rod out, but I didn't have a clue how to cast it, and didn't feel like embarrassing myself that day. However, I did decide that I needed to get more serious about learning to fly fish. So the very next day after I got home from Utah, I took an Orvis beginners fly fishing class. Mostly what I wanted to learn, and did learn, was how to cast. I figured the fly selection and reading the water I already had a pretty good handle on, but not so much the casting. By the end of the class I was doing pretty good though. I wanted to go try my hand at fly fishing that very afternoon, but Mother Nature decided to rain heavily on my parade. I decided to stay home and dry, which was a good thing, as we got a LOT of rain that evening. However, the next day (yesterday) was a new day, and I decided to run up the mountain, after working in the yard all day.

On my third cast I was lucky enough to land this chunky little rainbow using an elk hair caddis.
http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/hh113/Huntzz/Troy%206-3-15B_zpsipf9w6zo.jpg

I fished for another half hour without a bite. So I decided to change locations and try another area that I knew held some big brown trout. I'd rather fish for them any day, anydangway. Upon arrival I missed a really nice fish with my first cast, and it stirred up the area. I proceed to fish for another half hour, but not a single fish rose. Then all of the sudden a few fish started to surface again. One of the fish looked exceptional, and I have to admit, I got a little too excited. I had a hard time concentrating on my form as I was casting and kept screwing up. This resulted in me spending a lot of time untangling my line, cursing my lack of casting ability, and thoroughly entertaining my wife. I looked like a hyper 5 year old on Christmas morning because I wanted that fish so bad. FINALLY, everything came together and I landed a perfect cast, with a just right presentation. About 30 seconds after my fly rested on the water, my heart nearly jumped through my throat when I saw the fish take it. The battle was fantastic and I worried he would come off at any second. It's been a while since I was this excited over a fish. My reward was my first brown trout on a fly rod, and I got to say I'm more than a little happy about it. It's one of the biggest brown's I've caught on any gear, let alone a fly rod. So sometimes lady-luck even smiles on guys like me despite me doing just about everything wrong...in this case patience and persistence did pay off.
http://i254.photobucket.com/albums/hh113/Huntzz/Troy%206-3-15DD%20First%20Brown%20on%20a%20flyrod_zpsbo3prifp .jpg

[LJ3]

That's pretty cool! My experience has been the same as yours. I wade next to fly fisherman occasionally on the river and outfish them significantly every time. There's still a part of me that would like to give it a whirl but next thing I know I'll be posting a pretty picture of my personage with new LL Bean stuff :)

I suppose it's only a matter of time for me any way I look at it.

I did try it when the wife and I went to The Homestead in Hot Springs Va. I got 1:1 instruction on how to cast from my guide and he had me on a fish in no time. I doubt I would have that luck if I went on my own again. He tied on 5 or 6 different rigs for me and I have not a clue what the hell he was doing.

[BarryBobPosthole]

I'd learn to fly fish if April Vokey was my teacher.

BKB

[Thumper]

I always have the same opinion of hardcore fly fishermen as I do hardcore bow hunters ... many tend to look down their noses at you if your passion doesn't match theirs.

That said, NICE pics! I'll admit, I went through the "I wanna try fly-fishing" phase once, but it didn't last long, because I KNEW how much it would end up costing me in the long-run!

[Chicken Dinner]

I am convinced you are to trout fishing what JB is to a gun give away at a Friends of the NRA or DU banquet. I've got a fly rod and know how to use it. I take it out every once in a while, get frustrated and go back to the truck and get my spinning gear. The problem here in the Blue Ridge is that there's very few places that you can do a full cast. A couple of guys in my Rod and Gun club are serious fly fishermen (not the stuck up kind though) and they tell me that fly fishing for native brookies is the closest thing to hunting you can do with a fishing pole.

[quercus alba]

We don't have trout locally and I know that fishing for them is a whole nother ball of wax, but give me a flyrod for bream over live bait any day. lots of action lots of fun and a lot more forgiving than trout fishing

[Nandy]

Hello, Im Nandy and I am a Fly fisherman... They say it all start by admitting it, right? Although not the uppity type, I do rather use the long rod for top water presentation than a regular spin combo. It is just something different and after fishing over half my life (since I was 4) with a spinning set it was time to change and challenge myself. Dont get me wrong, the challenge is on the change, not the type of fishing.

Trout is a funny fish, depending on the pressure it will behave just like a deer. Specially those large browns that tend to hide during the daylight under the bank or a log coming out to feed freely at night. Go and fish in a trophy fishery river as the South Holston where there is a fisherman standing on every rock and it gets technical with tiny small (22 and smaller) flies, subsurface of course and 14 feet leaders using 6 or smaller tippets... That river kicks my butt every time...

We dont do a lot of "Brad Pitt, River Runs Through It" type of casting, you know, the one that he shows for the first time when he "Breaks from his dad's teaching"... Tight sexy loops achieved with a double haul have no use in Appalachia because of our small creeks, lush and encroaching vegetation. Unless of course, you are trying to catch tree branches which I have plenty of experience with... We do have a few sections here and there where you can let lose but most of the time is tight casting or roll cast.

Just like CD states, going into those small streams (bluelining as we refer to it) filled with the eastern strain of brook trout, or brookies as we call them, is the closest thing to hunt for fish. Slow approach from down stream, hiding behind the trees, starring at the pools for minutes at a time looking for the tell tale signs or fish rising or the flashes of nymphing fish. Once fish is located have a stealthy approach and cast making sure you wont line the fish. Wild fish tend to be voracious eaters and any reasonable facsimile of food is gladly taken...

Ahh, you guys bring me memories of my good years in my early 30's... I can smell the air and I can feel the cold in my skin... Thanks yall, I think I need to go fishing...