Your first flyfishing gear

Flyfishing is a wonderful hobby. It gives you a nice connection to nature, and creates memories that stays with you for life. It is also very social, and connects people of all ages. As a fly fisher, you can always keep on evolving your skills, both within your fishing, but also your casting technique. It is an hobby which easily will follow you through life, and from generation to generation.

Like many other hobbies, it can feel a bit overwhelming in the beginning in terms of getting your first equipment, and there is a lot of products to navigate through. To make it easier for you to find the right gear, we have put together this guide, with products that we would recommend for you that is new to fly fishing. This, to ensure you that you get the best possible experience by the water.

Rod, reel and line – the fly fishing essentials

So where do you begin? By figuring out which sort of fish you are targeting, the choice of rod, reel and line becomes easier. In fly fishing, the rods are divided in different classes. A higher number class means that the rod is heavier built, handles bigger fish and generally is less affected by the wind. A lighter rod class is more suitable for fishing in smaller streams, and places where the fish is more timid, and it is important to present the fly carefully to the fish without spooking it.

As your first rod, we can recommend you to get our complete kit, which includes rod, reel and line. They come in many different classes, so it is a good chance that there will be a kit suitable for the typ of fishing that you want to do. If you rather want to build your own rod/reel/line combination, we have listed our best tips down below.

For rods, we can recommend ”Stoked”. It is a excellent entry level rod, which is available as both one handed, switch and double handed models. It is a well balanced and forgiving rod, which will suit a novice caster. It will also grow with you for a long time as you become better at casting.

You will also need a fly reel to your rod. It works partly as a way to store your line, but is also equipped with a brake system that will stop, and tire out a rushing fish. As your first fly reel, we can recommend our solid ”Favo”, which is available in several different sizes, both for lighter trout fishing up to heavier salmon fishing.

Which fly line should you then choose? A good tips is to start of with a fly line that has a short head, which will provide easy and long casts for the beginner. Our ”Control-line” is perfect in that way. It is a floating line, which opens up the possibility to fish with dry flies, or other surface going flies. If you want to fish deeper, it is always possible by using sink tips or weighted flies.

Lighter fishing for trout, perch and other fish in similar size

For the lighter trout and perch fishing in lakes, a rod with weight class 5 or 6 is usually perfect. If you want to fishing smaller waters or tiny streams, you can go down to class 4 or even 3. The lower rod classes are usually less resistant to wind, but instead offers delicate presentations of the fly on the surface, which is crucial for luring a shy fish.

Recommended rod classes for trout and perch fishing: #3, #4, #5 #6

Fishing for sea trout and other species at the coast

At the coast, there is usually more windy, so going up one or a few rod classes can make casting easier and less tiring, especially when fishing with a a headwind.

Often you want the fly to go down a bit under the surface. In order to do that, it is recommended to choose a intermediate fly line, which slowly sinks under the surface.

Recommended rod classes for sea trout fishing at the coast: #6, #7, #8

Pike fishing

It is not only the pike which grows large. The flies used for pike fishing is also generally bigger than those used for trout or salmon fishing. To be able to turn over bigger pike flies, you usually choose a heavier rod class when targeting pikes.

Recommended rod classes for pike fishing: #7, #8, #9

Lighter fishing for salmon in smaller rivers:

For salmon fishing in smaller rivers, a so called ”Switch-rod” is recommended. They are built in a way that makes it possible to grip the rod with both one or two hands, to make the cast.

Recommended rod classes for lighter salmon fishing: #7/8, #8/9

Heavier fishing for salmon in bigger rivers:

When targeting salmon in a bigger river you usually want to have the opportunity to cast a little bit further. By choosing a double-handed rod, enough power will be generated to make that longer cast, and reach further into the river. It will also be powerful enough to fight at big, strong salmon.

Recommended rod classes for heavier salmon fishing: #8/9, #9/10, #10/11

Wading clothes

Often when fly fishing, wading is inevitable. Compared to fishing with a spinning rod, you won’t cast nearly as far with a fly rod. Also, there is often need for space behind you in order to cast unhindered. Therefore, it could be a big help to be able to wade out into the lake, sea, or the river you are fishing in. Besides keeping you dry, our waders are crafted with a membrane that breathes, which keeps you cooler on a hot day compared to waders manufactured in for example neoprene or PVC. Combine this with one of our wading-friendly jackets for maximal protection agains weather and wind.

Tapered leaders and leader materials

On the very top end of your fly line you usually tie on a so called ”tapered leader”. It is fabricated in either nylon or fluorocarbon, and goes from thicker in the back, to thinner in the front. This, to create a better distribution of energy which will turn over the fly while casting. To avoid cutting of parts of the tapered leader every time you change your fly, you can tie on some leader material after the tapered leader. It will then be on the leader material which you tie on your fly to.

Accessories

There is of course lots of accessories within fly fishing. But to make things simple we have handpicked those who we think is the most important to bring with you to the water when it is time for fishing.

We hope that this article has given you some help on your road to finding the right fly fishing gear for your type of fishing. If you feel that you need some more guidance, you can visit one of our ProShops or dealers to get professional help, and feel the products. You are also welcome to reach out to us for some help. Please email us at info@guidelineflyfish.com and we will respond as quickly as we can. Tight lines!