Re: [FantasticFishing] Is this flyfishing?

[Drew Zaun]

Hello. Bear in mind that I am a saltwater flycaster, always have been, always will be, so a trout fisher may disagree... >1. Does ff always have to be with a fly? If you cast small lures or a >spoon, would it still be called flyfishing? Yes, if you are flyFISHING you must use a fly, which in turn must mimic a, well, fly. You can however use whatever you can get out into the water on a flyline and call that flyCASTING, which yields the same results, 'cept your lure doesn't need to look like an insect.   >2. Does the fly (or lure, if applicable) always have to be floating on >the surface? Are there any 'diving' flies?   No, in fact most of my flies (I gave you the difference above, but most fly guys call whatever they tie on a fly) are designed to sink, some of them are wrapped with lead and heavy metal eyes to sink rapidly. Hell, even traditional fly fishers use nymphs that are called "wet" flies, and they sink too. The only fly that needs to stay on the surface are "dry" flies, and poppers, unless the fish would rather drown them, in which case I am only too happy to allow that to happen.      >3. Does ff always have to be with an ff reel using standard ff >techniques? Would a spinning reel do? Would cast-trolling off a boat >or a river bank still be called ff? Hmmm, to be honest, unless you are fishing for pretty big fish, the reel is simply where you store the line you are not currently using, HOWEVER, I would not ever use a spinning reel. To start with, it wont hold your backing, line, and leader as the flyline is WAY thicker than the spinning reel was designed to handle, and secondly, the spinning reel will twist your flyline to the point that it will be ruined in just a few sessions. If you want to waste $40+ go ahead, but I would get a fly reel. If you are looking to save money, get the cheapest reel there is, remember, unless you are going after world class fish you don't need the really expensive reels, they are only storing your line for you. While the reel doesn't make the fishing flyfishing, it really does matter.   As for cast-trolling, sounds like roll casting off a drifting boat to me, and yes, that certainly is flyfishing, or flycasting, if you are talking to a traditionalist.   The best definition I can give you is that in flyfishing, it is the line that carries the lure, whereas with all other types (that I can think of) it is the lure that carries the line. To that end some specialized equipment must be used. You can't flycast with a spinning rod, it simply will not transfer energy into the flyline effectivly enough. You can't flycast with any line but a flyline, regardless of what it is made out of. The line is a specialty line, expensive, but then again if you clean it, modern flylines can last many years, whereas mono needs to be replaced frequently. I have already covered the reel, the lures need to be lite enough to be cast by the line. And while you can use a small spoon or spinnerbait or whatnot, the real question is why? Not to sound snobbish, but a crafted fly is much more effective than any old plastic or metal lure. Feathers, hair, and modern synthetics simply move and look better, both above and below the surface, and fool fish much more often than other lures do. Notice I said "fool", as that is really the essence of flyfishing, as opposed to offering them meat, or exceeding their strike thresholds. Plus, tying your own brings a totally new aspect of the lifestyle to you, and IS cheaper once you have all the stuff you need. It doesn't take that long to learn, and in the process you will learn so much more about the fish and natural baits than you ever thought exsisted. To me there is nothing more satisfying than catching a fish on a fly that I tied, and lets face it, flyfishing is harder to do, you will work harder for every fish, so why not take the one advantage flycasters enjoy? Bottom line though, is that this mentality only works for those of us who place value on HOW the fish was caught, as opposed to the size or quantity of fish caught. I have caught larger, or more fish on given days than my spincasting friends, but most days it is I that is outfished. I can tell you though that I rarely get skunked, and my fish mean the world to me, even the little ones. If you like a fight, there is no such thing as a trash fish.   I hope all that answers your questions. If you are looking to get into flyfishing, don't let the expense put you off, like anything else, once you get in the door, the rest is fairly cheap, except flies, unless you tie your own, then they cost like 20 cents a piece, for a big one. And don't let people tell you it is too hard, because once you learn the basics the rest is easy. It really is worth all that you put into it.   Drew Z. [EMAIL PROTECTED] Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ADVERTISEMENT Yahoo! Groups Links To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FantasticFishing/   To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED]   Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to the Yahoo! Terms of Service.