re: The Fly Fishing Thread: Questions, pics, discussion all here

Did you fish with Will Vallely? I follow a lot of his media content and that dude stays on numbers of bones unlike anything I've seen.

It's on my list. I'm trying to fish every Bahamian island first. I'm going back to Cat in May (went in October) just because my girlfriend can't get off work, so my compromise was not going to a place she hadn't been. I'm gonna go to either Long, Crooked, or Inagua in the fall.

Cuba is also on my list.

Roatan is supposed to be awesome too. I'd also like to check out the Little Corns and the Seychelles. I went to Nicaragua a couple years ago to surf. I brought a 10wt for rooster attempts but it broke in transit. Ended up being fine because it blew like 25-30kts the whole time we were there.

I had an opportunity to go fish those landlocked tarpon two days with borrowed gear, bu the surf was really good both of those days and blind casting at tarpon wasn't as appealing haha.

After “Casting” or attempting to cast a fly rod a number of times at redfish and failing miserably, I am looking to buy my first outfit. I made a few good throws and got one red to bite, but when I set the hook, the fly broke off… I’ve read through this entire thread, as well as some other info, and I remotely have an idea of what I’d like to get or think I should get. I fish primarily for redfish in the area of Leeville, Golden Meadow, and Cocodrie. This is my first fly rig. I don’t want to spend a ton, but I also don’t want to spend $190 on one of the pre-built outfits, it be trash in 6 months, and I would be spending that money again. Any input on what my best option would be in 8wt?

Rod – TFP Professional II ($170)
Reel – Redington Behemoth ($105)

Also, would it be better to get a “combo” or put my own rig together?

I was looking at this initially - TFO combo Is this worth a try, or skip it entirely? I was thinking to maybe get this combo, and down the road replace the line and the reel.

I was also looking at the Orvis Clearwater outfit, which is ready to roll for $320.

Thanks for all the info in this thread, and sorry for a simple gear question. Fly fishing has a lot of new terms and all that I’m not familiar with!

What bluemoons said on both the rod and reel. I have an 8wt bvk and it's great. I've read good things on the behemoth too. I have a 5 wt tfo pro ii that I use sometimes, and it's a great rod for the price. I've never fished it in an 8wt though. I expect you might want a little more backbone than it has for flinging bigger flies into wind. I've never fished a Clearwater setup, but I think the above might be the most budget friendly rig available without sacrificing quality and reliability.

I am currently in Broken Bow, OK

I trout fished a feeder to the LMF today and had a blast, although I used ultralight spinning gear since I was limited on time and didnt want to spend it trying to learn to cast a fly rod.

I hiked the creek a few miles and saw quite a few people fly fishing. Ive never fished this type of terrain. The fly fishing looks fascinating.

I live in NWLA, it looks like the nearest trout spot would be Little Missouri in Murfreesboro, AR which is only 2hr away, Broken Bow is only 2hr 45min-3hr.

Talk me off of this ledge before I jump, Ive been watching fly fishing videos all evening.

btw here is what we caught, fished this spot starting at 7:15 with ultralights and power eggs, had our 12 by 7:45 and then just released until around 9:30. Hell of a time.

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GEAUXLPOST

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Id look around on Ebay or fishing message boards with classified sections. Fly rods break down into 4 pieces so are pretty easy to ship. Someone from Colorado or North East might buy an 8wt to flats fish and only use it once or twice then decide to sell it after it sits around for a litte bit.

Also factor in $60-80 for line. Line is a bigger factor in fly fishing than conventional tackle.

Nice haul in that pic up there - impressed you read this entire thread.

I'm gonna need to see the rest of that pic, mostly up and to the right, before preparing my response

You aint missing much, I only claim her from the neck down.

Reds, do you think the 4 would have any decrease in performance versus the 5wt in a bass fishing situation as far as casting ability and fishing mild grassy cover?

I imagine the bass would be the typical 1-3lb and hopefully a-hole into a 4 or 5 every once in a while.

I have a 2 acre pond that is loaded with bream of all sizes (no bass to my knowledge) that I can practice in.