learning to cast a sinking line..

I went to my local fly shop here in Wa Pacific Fly Fishers http://www.pacificflyfishers.com/ (great shop if you're in the Wa area) and got me set up for a sinking line to get those pinks at my local spot that like to hang out at 60-80 feet. But first and foremost I needed to learn how to cast this new line. (Airflo Depth Finder 300 grain)

My fly casting experience is only a few weeks old so crossing over was a little difficult but after a day on the water casting a clouser around it got pretty comfortable. I still make plenty of mistakes and botch it all w/ some funny mistakes but it's part of the game for now. When I get it right, the funnest thing about this line is the distance you can get. I've got another 10-20 feet of cast w/ this line and helps when sinking to depth. Anyway, I was just out there to cast around and didn't count on even a nibble but did get a decent hookup. It busted off the line on a nice aerial so wasn't too sad. Looked like a 4 pound Coho.

This fly fishing thing is awesome.. I'm hooked. Will be doing a Coho tourney this weekend all on the fly.. should be fun! Now to build ton of WAF!

Z

Z my tip of the day is to keep your flyline on your downwind side when casting, so the fly hopefully will not hook you. I was fishing for Silvers with some guys on a small river in Alaska and one guy buried his fly into his cheek on his back cast. Big heavy shooters will set a hook good! He was right handed and the wind was blowing to the left, so the backcast blew into his face. Lucky he didn't hit his eye. Practice casting backwards or across your body in cross wind situations and wear sunglasses. We were an airplane ride away from medical attention so he toughed it out while we pushed the point through and cut it off.

Is it a full sink, sink tip or shooting head??
Definitely wear a wide brimmed hat, something that will cover the ears unlike a ball cap.
I like to double haul when I need to get a lot of line out. As you get more proficient you can pull more line off the reel as you false cast. Don't be afraid to have a little more out of the reel than you think you can shoot on the final cast. You can always reel in the excess.

Thanks guys! I've been able to keep the fly away from myself w/ and w/o wind pretty well so far. I read a great article in the Canadian Fly Fisher that's been really helpful. It basically said that when using a weighted system go sidearm (45 deg.) on the back cast and over the head on the fore. That way you get a big oval going and keep the tension on the line for a longer period of time. It also helps to control the line/fly away from yourself and get good distance out of the cast.

I applied those lessons and got some great casts and even controlled the fly in some pretty windy conditions. It is pretty obvious though that you need to be aware of the conditions around you. That fly in the face story sounds baaaad.

Is it a full sink, sink tip or shooting head??

It's a sink tip which is 30'. I get that sinking part in the air and then let it go on the forecast and it usually takes off another 20' or so. Very fun!!

Z

While fishing for American shad among a group of flyfishermen on the Sacramento River a few years back, one of the flyfishermen was casting a sinking line. Instead of casting the line forward and backward in an easy manner while letting out more line for a longer cast, he would snap the line forward like a stagecoach rider cracking his whip. He got his distance, but in the casting process, he lost all the feathers on the fly lure. I thought that would be a difficult thing to do, but he did it.

I'm not a fly fisherman but one tip I can give is this: Always wear sunglasses  Especially when your in the learning process of casting    I speak from my ONE time experience of trying to cast with a fly rod and nearly hook my eyeball 

While fishing for American shad among a group of flyfishermen on the Sacramento River a few years back, one of the flyfishermen was casting a sinking line. Instead of casting the line forward and backward in an easy manner while letting out more line for a longer cast, he would snap the line forward like a stagecoach rider cracking his whip. He got his distance, but in the casting process, he lost all the feathers on the fly lure. I thought that would be a difficult thing to do, but he did it.

yep, that's a roll cast. Works good on light flies and floating line that are going a moderate distance. Sounds like that guy was trying to muscle out some distance... muscling doesn't seem to do anything good in FF.

And w/ ya there Mooch. casting w/o eye protection feels like riding a motorcycle w/o a helmet, you feel free but also feel the danger...

Z

Zeelander,

Talk with a local fly fisherman that is accomplished at fishing sinking lines from a float tube, pontoon boat, raft or drift boat. There are some aesthetically-challenged techniques that are really effective for sinking lines and "biggish" flies (2/0 Clousers, for instance) Specifically: using a roll cast pickup, and using a water anchor on your backcast. A 30 second video would illustrate this perfectly. I tried coming up with a written explanation, and only wound up confusing myself. I couldn't find anything really worthwhile on teh intarweb either...

Hojoman,

Likely you were seeing someone attempt to roll cast. Done properly, the feathers should stay on the fly

Regards,
Scott

While fishing for American shad among a group of flyfishermen on the Sacramento River a few years back, one of the flyfishermen was casting a sinking line. Instead of casting the line forward and backward in an easy manner while letting out more line for a longer cast, he would snap the line forward like a stagecoach rider cracking his whip. He got his distance, but in the casting process, he lost all the feathers on the fly lure. I thought that would be a difficult thing to do, but he did it.

Any time you "crack the whip", you are wasting energy. On lighter lines, the line will actually snap and the fly will be gone.

Good choice on the line. It was another to make the plunge and get a good shooting head set up. One thing all yak fly lingers should know is how low you can actually cast to the water. just make sure that you always have your back to the wind.