Fly fishing for beginners
Flyfishing is an exiting and giving hobby.
We want to give you the best possible start, to your lifetime of adventures with a fly rod .
In Nordic Anglers we are avid flyfishers ourselves, and we gladly share our experiences and enthusiasm for this exiting way of fishing.
Remember, flyfishing doesn't have to be hard - it's all about getting started in the right way.
Fly fishing gear for beginners
What you need in order to get started is:
There´sa lot of great fly fishing combos for beginners, such as these combos:
Those are sets that we have put together ourselves, using our experience and knowledge of what works well, under certain circumstances - We believe we have made the best fly fishing combos for beginners.
We have gathered everything you could ever need for fly fishing, here in our shop .
How to find the best fly fishing gear for beginners
When looking for your first fly fishing combo, it is important to pick the right items.
Especially two pieces of your equipment, will be essential in your beginner's fly fishing gear, and that is your rod and your fly line.
You can find very cheap fly rods, the truth however, is that those very often are also very bad.
There is nothing that will give you as bad a start to flyfishing as a bad fly line.
If you really want to give it a go, you want to find a line that matches your rod.
We know how to match them, and we gladly respond to an email or a phone call - Find our contact information here
Where do I start with fly fishing?
These are the steps to get started with fly fishing:
- Get familiar with the different lingo used to describe fly lines, rods and reels.
- Determine what species you want me to target the most - this is crucial for picking the right fly fishing equipment
- Get the right fly rod, reel and flyline(s) - as well as leaders and tippets
- Practice your casting, and learn the roll cast and the double haul - having solid fundamentals, will save you from many frustrations and help you catch more fish
- Get some flies - a few patterns you trust, is better than having a box full of unused flies
- Get familiar with the rapala knot and the perfection loop
- Learn about catch and release
Remember: you don't have to be an expert to catch fish
Many different species are quite easy to catch, also on a fly rod.
Fishing in a pond, stream or small lake, will give you experience with catching and handling fish, right away.
Even though you do not plan on catching roach or small brown trout, for the rest of your life, there´sa lot of good experiences to be made.
It is important to note that fishing for roach and other small fish might be the best way of getting better.
You will quite easily get success in your fishing, but also be "forced", to make a roll cast or double haul, in order to reach a certain spot in the lake or river.
Give yourself a success
It is way easier to say "hooked", when you actually believe that you will have success down the line.
Your end goal might be to catch an Atlantic salmon on a bomber plane, but that is a tough place to start.
Getting familiar with how to set the hook, how to fish and how to move, allows you to be more effective.
Success will come easy, if you allow it.
There is a huge sense of victory, to do a first of anything, within fishing.
Our best tip reflects that, get out there, and take your practice with you.
Many fish, such as roach, bass, northern pike and trout, are actually quite easy to catch - you really don't have to be an expert caster, before you can have success with fly fishing.
Get familiar with fly fishing lingo
There´sa few terms, that you will hear several times when diving into the universe of flyfishing.
Remember, this is a guide for people new to fly fishing, a lot of rods, fly lines etc. can be used for several things - this is merely meant as examples.
Let's start with fly lines , as it normally is the most important piece of equipment, besides your rod.
WF fly line
WF means weight forward, this type of line is the most commonly used for most fly fishing and a great choice for beginners.
The weight you use for casting the line is a front of the 7-11 meters of the line. This is a complete line, that goes from the head to an shooting line, all in one.
Shooting line
A shooting line or running line, is the part after the "weight". This is used for controlling the line and/or letting it fly as much as possible.
A monofiliment shooting line casts further than a coated line. However, the coated version provides a better control of the line.
Shooting head
A shooting head is basically the weighted part of a line that you use for casting your fly.
Shooting heads are mostly used for spey fishing and longer casts.
Skagit Lines
A skagit line is a type of shooting head. This head is shorter than a spey line, and is used for salmon fishing, often with sinking tips. THis allows the fly fisher to "turn over" big flies, quite easily.
Spey lines
Is a longer form of shooting head, used a lot for Atlantic salmon. This type of shooting head allows for long and precise casts.
Line weight on your rod
The line weight on your rod is extremely important. This tells you what weight the fly rod performs best with, and what types of flies you can cast, as well as what kind of fish you can handle.
Remember that most rods can handle a lot, so one line weight doesn´t exclude you from trying out new forms of fishing, yet some weight might work better for that situation.
#4 is primarily used for nymph fishing
#5 is primarily used for dry fly fishing and smaller lakes and ponds - a great all-round choice
#6 is a good all round pick. It is used for streamer fishing and sinking lines in smaller streams. Also a good choice for light saltwater fishing
When you go up a line weight, the lines get heavier, and you can cast bigger flies and handle sinking lines with more ease. Go down, and you get the opposite effect, but more feel and presentation.
Best fly fishing rod for beginners
Our founder, Daniel, made a large shootout video, testing #5 fly rods.
This is a good place to start, when you are looking for your first flight rod.
A 5 weight an excellent coice for the beginner, as it has decent power and decent presentation. This weight is probably the most used for all-round trout fishing, and pond fishing.
Fly fishing videos for beginners
We have made several fly fishing videos for beginners.
Find them all on our YouTube channel .
Why should I start fly fishing
Being a beginner in fly fishing, you might have yourself wondering: why do I do this?
The answer is simple: b ecause it is amazing !
Having the line in your hand, gives you a very direct line to the fish - literally.
You feel every bump and nibble, and the fight gets very different from what you know from spin fishing.
You get an amazing bonus hobby in fly tying, which allows for a lot of experimentation.
Is it hard to fly fly?
Well, not at all, you can catch fish right away.
You will quickly realize that catching fish on a fly is way easier than you might have thought.
The tricky part is the fly casting, this will only get easier with experience.
That's why practice is important, it simply affects the amount of enjoyment you get out of your time on the water.
Having the right fly fishing gear for beginners will get you a long way.
Tight lines
