Casting Rules

1 | Begin with a light but solid hand grip with your thumb on top of the handle. Squeeze grip during forward casts and backcasts.

3 | Make the thumb a casting sight. Rod tips follow and stop with the thumb. Lines go where rod tips go. Roundhousing and jerky or pounding rod motions ruin line-loop aerodynamics. Cast smoothly.

2 | Remain relaxed but make your forearm an extension of the rod, stiffening the wrist and allowing only the elbow to hinge during casting.

4 | Aim casts above the water. As the rod tip stops, it creates the desired aerodynamic tight line loop to propel a perfect forward cast. Eliminate disastrous loose-wrist activity that hurls backcasts and forward casts downward, killing the line trajectory.

5 | Most poor casts result from not waiting long enough on the backcast. The best forward casts are born from good backcasts. Stopping the fly rod almost vertically during the backcast keeps lines high and straight. Fly lines are designed to make a specific fly rod weight perform, i.e. a 6-weight line suits a 6-weight rod. Good casters wait on the backcast for the line to straighten fully and load their rod before beginning their forward cast.

8 | Skillful fly casting requires study and practice. Many excellent how-to casting books and videos are available. Happily, fly casting is mastered by all ages of men and women. Many believe fly casting is the most challenging way to fish. When one relishes fly casting, it becomes the most enjoyable way to fish. JH

6 | Firmly control extra (running) line in the hand not holding the rod. Allow the line to slide through fingers only after a forward cast is underway. Otherwise, the backcast pulls loosely held spare line out and sabotages the forward cast even before it starts.

7 | Keep extra fly line on the reel to avoid tangling, twisting, or dragging it in dirt and mud. Stretch fly line and leader physically before casting and fishing. Removing invisible dirt improves casting ease and accuracy. Frequently polish 30 to 40 feet of fly line with several pulls through a clean cloth.

// BY DINA MISHEV