Fly fishing vs. ????

H
hawgin
Okay from what I've gathered do some fly fisherman only fish with fly rod? I see a lot of different posts from fly fisherman that claim they haven't caught a steelhead or salmon in years? Does this mean you haven't tried or given up other styles like drift fishing? I know not everybody is the same just curious?
 
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markasd
Lotta history behind my methods of fishing, started fly - learned bait - back n forth between em both for a while. Now mostly fly rod, but not only. Still like to use the long rod for hitting far sides of the river I can't reach with the fly rod.. I'm back and forth. I would consider half of how I fish with my fly rod to be drift fishing! Other day was set up with just an egg pattern and single split shot - drift rig... same set up all morning hooked 4 steel, I consider it drift fishing - I just happen to have a fly rod in hand!
That always confuses me though when I hear folks say things like "been at it for 3 years now and still no steelhead"... hooked and landed one first trip out and seldom get a skunk.. so?
 
Irishrover
Irishrover
Well I'll confess I'm one of those guys. I know I can catch steelhead and have done so using other methods than a spey rod. I have caught them on spoons, spinners, plugs and drifting eggs. But I have never caught one on a fly and being stubborn I,m going to stick with it until I do. It's not about catching a steelhead it's about catching a steelhead while swing a fly.

During the summer I spend a fair amount of time pulling gear in the ocean and end up filling the freezer with good fresh fish. Since I have all the fish I need from the ocean not catching a fish in the river is no big deal. It sets me free to complete a task or challenge I have given myself. I have nothing against gear fishing I did it for years. I even still enjoy making spinners. But I really enjoy casting that spey rod and being on the river it's relaxing. A perfect picture of happy is me standing in the river on an overcast drizzly day with my spey rod in hand.

I guess the other thing is that I've been fishing since I was a young kid and I'm now old enough to collect social security, so going to the spey rod was about change and trying something different. As for not catching the first fish, don't know what to tell you I'm confuses too. I think part of it is I mainly fish the Sandy River for steelhead. I have floated the river with the best guides the river has to offer and on those guided trips no one caught fish. The good thing about it is that it doesn't bother me, I loose no sleep over it. I enjoy being on the river and landing that first fish on the spey rod is something I look forward too. After I catch that fish my next challenge is to land a steelhead on a copper spoon that I hand made from a piece of old copper pipe. ;)

Markasd......get your hand on a spey rod and you'll be able to reach that far side of the river with a fly. Of course I can't gaurantee how the catching will be.:lol:
 
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G
GDBrown
I prefer to use a fly rod but I'm realistic when it comes to fishing. I tend to fish for what is biting and use what I have to to keep my wife satisfied that I'm catching fish not just spending money on toys that are show pieces. I started fishing with my dad when I was about 5 years old and have always enjoyed it. It is more about being outdoors and doing what I can to forget about work and the challenges of everyday life. I can't fish and think about something else at the same time. For me fishing is not something that can be multitasked!
 
M
Markcanby
GDBrown said:
I prefer to use a fly rod but I'm realistic when it comes to fishing. I tend to fish for what is biting and use what I have to to keep my wife satisfied that I'm catching fish not just spending money on toys that are show pieces.

Oh so thats why my wife is always pissed.
 
GungasUncle
GungasUncle
I consider myself a fisherman - but fly fishing is my favorite type of fishing. There were a few seasons where yes, I still owned gear rods, but never fished them. A few years where I *only* fished flies, and probably would've claimed being a fly fisherman back then. Now - I'm finding my level - I spend probably 50% of the time with a flyrod in hand, and the other, it's gear. I probably made 15 trips between September and February this year targeting salmon or steelhead. I drifted eggs. I drifted yarn/corkies, yarn by itself, yarn balls (giant glo-bugs). I fished bobber & jigs, I fished bobber & bait, I threw spinners, I threw spoons, and I threw plugs. The most I got were a few hook ups that lasted less than 10 seconds a piece. I was the luckiest out of my companions this year. Damn near each of those trips, I was hoping to get my nephew - youngfishtyler - into his first salmon or steelie. He's done well with bass and panfish and stocker trout - but I wanted to get him into his first BIG fish. Nada. He wound up getting the hershey squirts our first trip out. Second or third trip out, he fell and broke his finger. Another trip, he twisted his ankle. (Maybe that was the same trip as the broken finger, details are fuzzy).

I lost a bunch of jigs, spoons, a few spinners, and a few drift rigs. Lost some expensive bobbers, lost some home made bobbers. It sucked. I have not landed a big fish in 3 years - last one I got was a native salmon on the Wilson, that came to a pink & white jig...

I WISH I could say my lack of success with the salmonids was due to the fact that I was swinging a spey setup and thus not fishing THE most productive methods - but I wasn't. I just had/have really bad mojo or something. We fished the same waters other people had/have fished since and caught fish. The thing that always got under my skin - was after spending 10 hrs on the water to drive home fishless, I'd find a post on sites like this one, or iFish, of guys grinning ear to ear, holding big, bright fish caught from the same rivers we were fishing, or worse - from the rivers were WERE going to fish but decided against it in favor of another river.

We've pounded the banks of the Wilson the most this season, the Clack was the 2nd most fished water for us, and nada.

Steelhead and salmon, I have come to the conclusion - are figments. They don't exist, and anyone claiming to have caught one is a damn liar. Photographs of fish? Those are 12" long rainbows and cutthroats, that have been blown up, and colored differently thanks to the magic of photoshop, (some might be kokes). That's my story and I'm sticking to it - at least until I get another salmon or steelie... :)
 
K
Kais
Ha!

Ha!

GungasUncle said:
Steelhead and salmon, I have come to the conclusion - are figments. They don't exist, and anyone claiming to have caught one is a damn liar. Photographs of fish? Those are 12" long rainbows and cutthroats, that have been blown up, and colored differently thanks to the magic of photoshop, (some might be kokes). That's my story and I'm sticking to it - at least until I get another salmon or steelie... :)

Same this my Dad says. Thats why i don't get out as often as id like
 
S
skunk
GungasUncle said:
I consider myself a fisherman - but fly fishing is my favorite type of fishing. There were a few seasons where yes, I still owned gear rods, but never fished them. A few years where I *only* fished flies, and probably would've claimed being a fly fisherman back then. Now - I'm finding my level - I spend probably 50% of the time with a flyrod in hand, and the other, it's gear. I probably made 15 trips between September and February this year targeting salmon or steelhead. I drifted eggs. I drifted yarn/corkies, yarn by itself, yarn balls (giant glo-bugs). I fished bobber & jigs, I fished bobber & bait, I threw spinners, I threw spoons, and I threw plugs. The most I got were a few hook ups that lasted less than 10 seconds a piece. I was the luckiest out of my companions this year. Damn near each of those trips, I was hoping to get my nephew - youngfishtyler - into his first salmon or steelie. He's done well with bass and panfish and stocker trout - but I wanted to get him into his first BIG fish. Nada. He wound up getting the hershey squirts our first trip out. Second or third trip out, he fell and broke his finger. Another trip, he twisted his ankle. (Maybe that was the same trip as the broken finger, details are fuzzy).

I lost a bunch of jigs, spoons, a few spinners, and a few drift rigs. Lost some expensive bobbers, lost some home made bobbers. It sucked. I have not landed a big fish in 3 years - last one I got was a native salmon on the Wilson, that came to a pink & white jig...

I WISH I could say my lack of success with the salmonids was due to the fact that I was swinging a spey setup and thus not fishing THE most productive methods - but I wasn't. I just had/have really bad mojo or something. We fished the same waters other people had/have fished since and caught fish. The thing that always got under my skin - was after spending 10 hrs on the water to drive home fishless, I'd find a post on sites like this one, or iFish, of guys grinning ear to ear, holding big, bright fish caught from the same rivers we were fishing, or worse - from the rivers were WERE going to fish but decided against it in favor of another river.

We've pounded the banks of the Wilson the most this season, the Clack was the 2nd most fished water for us, and nada.

Steelhead and salmon, I have come to the conclusion - are figments. They don't exist, and anyone claiming to have caught one is a damn liar. Photographs of fish? Those are 12" long rainbows and cutthroats, that have been blown up, and colored differently thanks to the magic of photoshop, (some might be kokes). That's my story and I'm sticking to it - at least until I get another salmon or steelie... :)

Actually they are figments of the fishing industries imagination to get us all to buy more gear!!!!
 
GungasUncle
GungasUncle
See, that's what I"m sayin :) IN the last couple years I probably dropped close to a grand on a few new rods, reels, line, jigs, spinners, plugs, hooks, corkies... not to mention the gas, bait, and food for those outings. Some fishing tackle execs are sitting in a board room, in plush leather chairs, drinking brandy and smoking hand rolled cuban's right now, laughing their arses off at all us gulible "steelhead" and "salmon" fisherman.

I want to invent a new fish, and market a whole new slew of rods, reels, lures, and baits for them... I'll be a millionaire! Especially if I convince people they need a new special boat or something to fish them too! Kick backs baby, kick backs!
 
O
OnTheFly
All of us start out learning how to catch fish with bait. Then someone comes along and introduces you to spinning reels and lures. But if you are lucky enough to be taught how to fly fish and discover for yourself that there is more to it than just slinging line then you'll never want to fish any other way.
 
GraphiteZen
GraphiteZen
OnTheFly said:
All of us start out learning how to catch fish with bait. Then someone comes along and introduces you to spinning reels and lures. But if you are lucky enough to be taught how to fly fish and discover for yourself that there is more to it than just slinging line then you'll never want to fish any other way.

Well said.

As for the whole steelhead/salmon thing, I suspect it's the crap they pump through the vents at the sporting goods shops that make us hallucinate. Ever been to an Expo?! Yeah... Don't drink the soda.
 
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H
hawgin
I recently acquired a fly rod and was curious if I fished with it, I would somehow never fish with my other rods lol. I know it doesn't take a fly rod to find oneself on the river? Hooking into a steelhead either style is difficult I am sure. I have caught only two this year one on the sandy the other on the molalla out of the handful of times gone out. I do want to set this old fly rod up and give it a swing tho...
 
J
Jasony
my dad is a fly fanatic (winston rods and ties all his own flies). So I started fishing with a fly. I was taught that the fly fisherman is morally superior and the only true sportsman on the water. I don't really see what the big deal is. I fish with flies, lures and bait, whatever is working best and I catch a lot more fish than my pop. If you were a true sportsman I think you should crawl in the water an catch them with your teeth...baring that, it's just fishing! So for the rest of us, who like a good fresh fish supper and the thrill of a fish on any kind of line I would suggest having an open mind and a big tackle box!
 
B
bigsteel
I fished bait til i was 12,then i evolved:D
 
O
OnTheFly
Jasony said:
I was taught that the fly fisherman is morally superior and the only true sportsman on the water
Not true. Hope your dad didn't tell you that.
 
O
OnTheFly
bigsteel said:
I fished bait til i was 12,then i evolved:D
It's....it's ALIVE!!!!!
 
T
troutramp
I have ran into this question a number of times. I know guys that fish gear for bass and flies for trout, and other guys that only fish streams for trout. I worked in a fly shop for three years, and I met people that had the strangest ideas about what fly fishing is. I fish with a fy rod because for me personally it is the most productive, and I enjoy catch and release fishing, my personal beliefe is that fly fishing is the best (read that not only) method to fish if your going to be releasing fish in most circumstances. That being said I am from Arizona so small streams and lakes are the prevailing waters fished and they lend themselves well to the technique. In oregon the rivers are much larger and I can see where fishing with gear rods could prove more productive. Now keep in mind in AZ fishing with an indicator is still considered fly fishing where as in the PNW its an article of great debate. I find it interesting that drift fishermen and flyfishermen are essentially using the same fly/lure.
 
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T
troutramp
ditto
 
O
OnTheFly
Catch and release is easy with any type of fishing as long as you crimp the barb and don't use trebble hooks.
 
T
troutramp
hooking them in the corner of the mouth is the easiest in my opinion with a small nymph !!!!
 

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