Stream/River Etiquette

[Guest cmcrawfo]

in your opinion, what situation is fly fishing more successful/better then traditional spin casting? Only thing I can see is when fish are rising and your using surface flies

I thought about picking up a fly rod and trying it out but i cant get over the fact that spin casting is better in almost every way then fly fishing for catching fish(numbers/sizes), in my opinion....

As someone new to fly fishing, there are times when I ditch the fly rod and pick up the spin gear because I am more comfortable with it, and I don't question my presentation as much. That being said, when I am on the water with guys who know what they are doing, they can out fish my spin gear with fly gear nearly 100% of the time.

[kbrest 151]

Agreed. I have nothing at all against spinning gear. Its what I grew up on and still regularly use my spinning gear. I felt that I wanted to get into Fly-Fishing for the challenge and satisfaction that comes with it. It really is am amazing feeling when you catch a fish on the surface on a dry fly that you tied yourself the night before, even if the fish is only 10 inches lol. Also, its not just successful in dry flies and fish rising to the surface, streamers catch big fish, and I find the hair/fur/feathers usually better imitate prey better than plastic. But....I have caught all the biggest fish I have ever caught on Raps, or Spoons. I usually always have my spinning gear with me when Im fly fishing because sometimes situations call for it. I am in no way an elitist, I just wanted to try a new form of fishing, its challenging, its fun, its relaxing and opens you up to a whole new aspect of fish biology and behaviour.

[Guest FreshwaterFisherman]

It's just fun to learn something new and try something different. I still use my spinning lots. I don't limit myself and that's part of why I wanted to take up fly fishing. This elitist nonsense is exactly that, nonsense. Who cares what anyone uses as long as we are all having fun fishing. I for one don't care wether you fly, spin, bait, centre pin or use a stick. We can sit here and argue forever about steelhead and bass fisherman and who's an elitist and who isn't, were all fisherman , and were all here cause we love to fish. Simple as that. Cheers guys!

[spindilla1 42]

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2-ca0Oq3IMQ

Lyle you better not try and steal my drift!! LOL ... Or else!!!!

All that needed was a nice bow to jump and slap both of them in the face with it's tail.

If you guys thinks that's bad check out footage from the salmon river in New York.

[Guest scavs]

That's also an excellent point FF, having the ability to fish fly/cp/spin gives you that full coverage for no matter the situation on the water.

[Antonio 8]

Honest question because I don't fish with many people around often but if you're fishing with someone about 10 feet down from you, is it not just good manners not to cast in their direction?

I had this happen to me, and I mean I didn't think much of it, till the guy snagged a tree on the shore a few feet down from me. I left because I'd rather keep my eyelids.

[spindilla1 42]

Not really, drift fishing you will cast right in front the other person if they are drifting as well. The key is to watch their float or line to see where they are fishing. In bigger cities people don't really mind this because there is literally hundreds of people sometimes many more on the river at the same time. I witnessed about 20 floats in a pool about 30cm apart while flowing. We would always joke that if someone got one on were all F*cked but no one really cared, it has happened before where a fish would slam someones bait and run straight into like 5 other lines but it is what it is, people who are some what skilled at big city fishing would probably get their rig out on time but not always, like I said it is what it is I'm not about to stop fishing just because there are like 100 people there too. Like the old saying goes if you can't beat em join em. Up here probably a different story however my float has went right in front of people and they didn't seem to care. In bigger cities its all synced everyone casts together and drifts together so it doesn't mess anyone up, if someone gets a fish on everyone pulls out however there are the odd people that just don't get it but that's how I fished in my younger years in the tribs of big ole dirty lake O.

The one good thing about down there is that there are more and bigger fish because not much people keep them, if they do they probably are uneducated as to how polluted lake Ontario really is. All winter long the bows are in the rivers as well because hardly any rivers freeze anymore and that is when you get away from the people when its below zero.

I was once fishing a trib in Illinois for skamaniaks and it was so cool to see how all the fisher people worked together, no arguments all jokes, overly huge fish, saw a girl with pink waders, while there was literally 20 floats flowing in one pool. Some places people are welcoming when you approach the pool but not everywhere. I found MN and WI people not as welcoming as NY, IN, MI and Il, just my opinion though......Toronto on the other hand people were just as welcoming as NY and MI unless your going to Gbay tribs.......in that case the locals hate everyone that fishes their waters because most of the people are from Toronto and that water is apparently clean enough to eat from so people harvest plenty. BC no one really cares because there are so much tribs off the pacific and the rivers are huge, I haven't ran into any unwelcoming person in BC on the rivers, NFL is a different story, when Atlantic's are running people fill tags quick so there isn't much people from what I saw........and yes I said tags there is tags for Atlantic's out in NFL.....Random fact, recently I've been seeing Atlantic's popping up in the pacific, don't know how but I can tell you where.......

This is just all my opinion though.......Oh and to anyone who doesn't know what a skamaniack is its a hybrid salmon/trout (king/steel) basically a huge salmon that looks like a trout and doesn't deteriorate when it enters the rivers, it's actual name is a skamania but everyone calls them skamaniack's because they fight like a steelhead just 10000000000000000000 times better. They really are maniac's, Steelhead face salmon body and chrome for dayz........A product of the future of genetic engineering.........

[Guest Wes]

As mentioned many times on the board, if you "must" fish a pool that someone else is in, ask them before you just barge in. Then when they say yes, don't stand in their waders. Give them room. If the angler is a float fisherman, then expect their drift will be start in front of them and traveling to the end of the run. Time your casts with them, don't expect them to adjust to you. If you follow those rules then most anglers will gladly accommodate you. I would.

Having said that, if the pool is large enough the courtesy of asking is not required. Eg. Central Ave pool on the mac. Just stay out of people way is all. Sit back and synch your casts with everyone else.

If the the river is large enough and the other angler is a spey fisherman, don't even ask to fish downstream of them, that is where they are going. They usually move quickly. cast, swing, take two step down, repeat. Something along those lines. I'm not a spey angler so I don't know the routine.

Doesn't matter where, never walk through a run that someone else is working. Your not making any friends doing that.

If you on a river that is larger with lots of places to fish and no one around but in the one pool, go to a different pool. There is no need for you to be crowding someone in a pool when the pool up or downstream is open.

And for the love of pete, if the other angler hooks up, get your line out of the water as fast as possible. Some days, I swear I'm surrounded by halfwits down there on the Mac. And Terry is not even around. BAZINGA!

Wes

[Some Old Guy 968]

I guess I should pin this

 

Roger

[Tailout 8]

Now you show this. Why wasn't it shown before. Only because I said something. Lame.

[hunt or be hunted 59]

Mabey try hittn the search button and looking thro the treads over years and what has been discussed on hear and read a little before being so quick to jump the gun about a public site that isn't hurting anyone except  YOU it seems ! Rather then go out their and educate the the newer fisherman of their practices and ways ur just another TROLL on the site looking to cause problems, ur not helping the stealhead by coming on hear and blaming a website! I'm die hard steelheader at heart and everything I learned was from being on the rivers, asking questions or watching the guys do it, and I was approached by avid steelheaders on my practices and techniques to properly handle or care for the trout, that's how I learned and most others do as well, so instead of being a TROLL why don't u go out their and be a teacher to those inexperienced anglers and not worry so much about a public forum that isn't the case of anything here!