Fishing Flies - Recorded as far back as the Roman times!
Fly fishing is a type of angling where a “man-made” fly or insect is used as a lure to catch fish.
Specialised fly-fishing rods are preferred to cast these (virtually weightless) insect type lures and practitioners also use a variety of specialised techniques in order to encourage a fish to “strike” the bait.
However, almost any species can be chosen to fly-fish as long as the bait type is attractive enough to get the fish to strike.
Very popular on both fresh or salt water "The Contemplative Man's Recreation”, game fishing or coarse fly-fishing anglers are known for their love of the challenge of catching Trout, Salmon & Bass.
Tackle is the collection of equipment usually used by anglers and may be along the lines of:
- Rods – differing lengths from 6 feet to 15 feet, various weights and construction type
- Reels – alternate design elements such as different brakes for heavy or fast fish
- Lines – salt or freshwater lines
- Terminal Tackle – the equipment to attach the fly and make it look good to the fish
Just a "man, his rod and the water" - not these days
Basic Equipment
Most anglers carry quite a diverse supply of things with them in terms of clothing and accessories.
Much is needed in terms of the preparation of fishing tackle in order to catch the fish and clothing in terms of personal comfort and safety.
There is also the need to be able to handle the fish after they are caught.
Not only that, but there will be the rods. lines, bait, reel and especially the storage for the flies themselves.
The fishing rods themselves that are typically used for fly fishing can be anything from 6ft long to almost 15ft long. But even an average length fly fishing rod will be in the region of 9ft in length.
Fishing Flies
To give fishing flies a category, they can either imitate or attract.
Flies that imitate generally look similar to the natural food that the fish prefers to eat
Flies that attract may not be something that the fish itself preys upon, but will instigate an instinctive reaction in the fish to strike the bait.
Within these categories, we could sub-categorise flies as “wet” or “dry”. In other words, those that float on the surface of the water and those that partially or full go under the water surface.
Modern fish “flies” are produced to appear even as such things as worms, reptiles, birds or vegetation.
