Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Unclerichard2]

I would like to start fly fishing but I don't know how to set myself up for it which is holding me back. I have some nice gear that I inherited from my father. He used to fly fish a lot before I was born... Not so much after . I would like to fish the salmon run on the Puntledge river in Courtenay, is well as some trout fishing.

I have a 4 piece, 5 weight, 9ft Sage graphite rod my father built and a Hardy Bros. Golden Prince 5/6w reel. There is also a Hardy Bros Silex reel. I beleive there is a dry line on the reel, but not certain. I have a ton of tackle but am not sure what is fly specific.  I have 2 cases full of flys, fake salmon eggs, pink yarn, small weights, cork floats, various sizes of hooks. I have done a fair amount of salt water fishing but this river/fresh water fishing is all new to me. Any advice on a basic set up or a few tips would be great. Thanks

[HOOK]

5 weight rod will pair nicely with that Prince reel. That is a perfect setup for most trout you will encounter anywhere. If you want to target salmon you will need to step up to a 7-9weight rod and then get a reel to match (possible to use the Silex but its a heavy reel)
Your Silex should primarily be used as a center pin reel for gear fishing rivers, they are a great reel. I would imagine if you have a Silex you probably have a rod to go with it as well 

in regards to the other tackle you listed. Basically anything you can toss on a fly rod is ok to use (within the regulations) things do not have to be "fly specific" to be used on a fly rod.

Your entering a new world, enjoy 

[RalphH]

I have the same Golden Prince reel. It's a great reel and mine is about 30 years old but keep some light grease on the spindle as they were sometimes prone to seize. If the reel hasn't been used in a while give a good cleaning. Remove the spool by pushing the small latch in the front centre and run warm water on the inside part of the frame then wipe it out with a bit of paper towel etc. Lube all moving parts. Is there a dry line on the Silex? The silexes were used for Spey rod before large reels to accomodate thick spey lines became more common. It would to heavy for anything other than a long spey rod. I have one I use for gear fishing and if you don't intend to fish with it it should fetch a couple hundred $ on the used market.

[ajransom]

You will probably need a new fly line too. I would go for a 5 weight Rio mainstream floating line. Will cost you about $30 and has welded loops for easy leader attachment. Pick up a few packs of 9ft knotless tapered leaders (around 4X should be good), and some spools of tippet (3x, 4x and 5x) and you are good to go for 90% of trout fishing.

P.S. The 'X' designates the size of the tippet.

P.P.S. Use a loop to loop connection for fly line to leader, and a double barrel or blood knot to attach more tippet.

P.P.S. Check out the Orvis How to Fly Fish website. Has some great lessons on all aspects of fly fishing and will really help your progression. Tom Rosenbauer (orvis marketing director and fly fishing guru) has a wonderful podcast. I have learned a huge amount from both these resources.

[HOOK]

You will probably need a new fly line too. I would go for a 5 weight Rio mainstream floating line. Will cost you about $30 and has welded loops for easy leader attachment. Pick up a few packs of 9ft knotless tapered leaders (around 4X should be good), and some spools of tippet (3x, 4x and 5x) and you are good to go for 90% of trout fishing.

P.S. The 'X' designates the size of the tippet.

P.P.S. Use a loop to loop connection for fly line to leader, and a double barrel or blood knot to attach more tippet.

P.P.S. Check out the Orvis How to Fly Fish website. Has some great lessons on all aspects of fly fishing and will really help your progression. Tom Rosenbauer (orvis marketing director and fly fishing guru) has a wonderful podcast. I have learned a huge amount from both these resources.

I use the Albright knot in place of these. Its strong and easy to tie plus you can tie mono and flouro together without the flouro cutting through because it will be the one wrapped around the mono

[ByteMe]

If you intend to fly fish the Puntledge for salmon,I would opt for a 9wt flyrod with a large arbor reel with at least 200yds of backing,as The Puntledge chum are big and nasty,averaging from 18-22lbs,with a mean streak for flies(It's my absolute favorite river for chums in October),an annual pilgrimage.I have parked all my expensive rods for them,and have been using a 9wt Dragonfly rod for the past 3years with great success.At only $80,it's my disposable rod,it's not if they are going to break it,it's when,as I have seen too many Sage rods get destroyed over the years.As for flys you only need one for The Puntledge chums...........anything with copper color on it.Hope this helps

[Flytech]

Looks like you're on the right path, spending time practicing at first is key. Don't be afraid to head down to the local sports field and practice with a piece of yarn. Take a lesson if you can afford it, it will help you get moving faster.