Don’t be intimidated by all special terminology used by fly fishermen. For most part, terms are there for a reason and will help you be more specific when narrowing down your decisions and your gear.

Your first piece of sporting equipment should be your fly rod. Fly fishing is much easier and much more enjoyable when your fly rod is properly matched to type of fishing you will be doing. The two main considerations you must think about are length of rod and weight of fly line. Fly line weight can be described as diameter and density of line. For optimal performance, it must match fly rod you will be using. Here is a general guideline to help you choose proper fly rod.

Fly Rod Length

For fishing tight spots such as small streams and creeks with overhanging brush and minimal casting space, a shorter rod in 6’ – 7’6” class is ideal for these conditions. A shorter rod will make your day much more enjoyable and allow you to effectively fish these areas without donating too many flies to Mother Nature. Medium length rods in 8’ – 8 ½’ range can be used on medium-sized streams and small rivers or any time when long distance casts are not norm. These rods can still be used on larger, more open waters, but don’t expect to achieve maximum casting performance to reach those rise forms across river.

In situations when long casts are required, such as fishing large rivers, fishing from a float tube, or fishing from shore, a longer rod is necessary. Longer rods also make mending your line a much easier task. This is true because longer rods will allow you to hold more line off water. For float tube fishing or deep wading, a 9’ rod is needed to cast effectively because of your low position in water. Many float tubers even opt for longer rods in 9’6” – 10’ lengths. The more line you can hold off and away from water, better you will be able to pick up line and cast.

The Drag System on a Fly Reel

There are two different types of drag systems on a fly reel that trout fishermen need concern themselves with. The drag of a fly reel is what provides tension on line. In other words, it is what regulates how easy or difficult it is for a fish to strip line off fly reel. If all you ever catch are tiny trout or small pan fish, type of drag on a fly reel is immaterial as it is unlikely a fish will ever pull out line from fly reel. On other hand, if you get a good-sized trout or bass on your line, story changes completely. Once a big fish starts pulling out line from your fly reel, fly reel suddenly becomes most important piece of equipment that you have.