Fly Blog

Here are this week’s photos:

Some people spend most of their lives trying to throw a Javelin further. You don’t hear, “Well let’s see some accuracy now”, or “I can’t throw javelins but I catch woolly mammoths”. And yeah ok, I admit it, I’m a flyfishing fishcatcher first and foremost. Always will be. And yes of course learning to cast further will make you a better caster, which in turn will catch you more fish and make you better in bed, because if the fish doesn’t see your fly you’re not even in the game. We all know that.

Distance casting is actually really very easy. I’ll admit it didn’t use to be. Five years ago I had no idea what it was I needed to do. But now that I’ve worked it out, it’s suddenly become very much easier. So what is it? What is the “secret to distance casting”? It’s really very simple: you have to work out the right amount of line you need to carry – with an XXD5 that’s around 86ft, with a 90ft DT5 it’s 90ft (unless you want finger burn) – and then get it moving as straight and as fast as you possibly can.

Now that may seem very simple – and it is – but for some reason there are many people out there who think a shorter slower stroke is going to cast further than a longer faster stroke. To them I say, “how?”

The Casting Lane at Latohead. Not much room for error there!