It is a nice fish and very educational illustration of your approach. When the water is clear and there is no wind, it requires longer casts (just like you are doing here) so that the fish are not spooked. In these conditions, there is a high chance the fish hits as soon as the fly lands. One suggestion (from my experience) is that in most of your long casts you are letting go of the line with both hands. If the fish bites immediately, this increases the chance for the fish to spit the fly. What you did at 2:51 is a better way of finishing the cast that the line stays in your hand. Similarly, during the retrieve, if the tip is only couple of inches above the surface (much lower than in the video), it increases the likelihood that the fish will stay on the line. Luckly, you had just retrieved the slack (15:05) when the fish hit, and you did not experience one of the many frustrations that caused me to inculcate this retrieve technique in.
Thanks for the comments. Even after 55 years of fly fishing, I am still learning. When I am casting (I would say 90% of the time), I am casting all of the line out, so the line from my fly to the reel has very little slack in it. If I am casting to an opposite bank, a fallen tree or obstacle, I only have enough line to reach that obstacle and not overshoot it. So once I have cast a couple of times, I adjust the strength of my cast so the line does not hit the end and bounce back, keeping as much slack as possible out of my line. If a fish takes it right away, I still strike the fish relying on there being sufficient drag on the reel to set the hook. I have become comfortable doing this, but with barbless hooks, I do lose my fair share of fish and most of the reason is lack of concentration and a poor hook set. Where are you from? It would be interesting to spend a day fishing with you.
@@LetsGoFishin60 I mostly fish the west coast states of the US. Of course, however you are feeling comfortable is the way to go. What I was suggesting is not related to the distance. Even when I shoot the whole line, the line still slides through my lefthand fingers and end up in my hand/fingers at the end. Otherwise, if I just rely on the reel drag, when the fish hits, I cannot keep my right hand rigid enough until I grab the line from the rod with my left hand. (I usually get excited and bring both hands in front of me) This gives the fish slack. So, at the end of my casts, I prefer ending up with the line in my fingers.
It is a nice fish and very educational illustration of your approach. When the water is clear and there is no wind, it requires longer casts (just like you are doing here) so that the fish are not spooked. In these conditions, there is a high chance the fish hits as soon as the fly lands. One suggestion (from my experience) is that in most of your long casts you are letting go of the line with both hands. If the fish bites immediately, this increases the chance for the fish to spit the fly. What you did at 2:51 is a better way of finishing the cast that the line stays in your hand. Similarly, during the retrieve, if the tip is only couple of inches above the surface (much lower than in the video), it increases the likelihood that the fish will stay on the line. Luckly, you had just retrieved the slack (15:05) when the fish hit, and you did not experience one of the many frustrations that caused me to inculcate this retrieve technique in.
Thanks for the comments. Even after 55 years of fly fishing, I am still learning. When I am casting (I would say 90% of the time), I am casting all of the line out, so the line from my fly to the reel has very little slack in it. If I am casting to an opposite bank, a fallen tree or obstacle, I only have enough line to reach that obstacle and not overshoot it. So once I have cast a couple of times, I adjust the strength of my cast so the line does not hit the end and bounce back, keeping as much slack as possible out of my line. If a fish takes it right away, I still strike the fish relying on there being sufficient drag on the reel to set the hook. I have become comfortable doing this, but with barbless hooks, I do lose my fair share of fish and most of the reason is lack of concentration and a poor hook set. Where are you from? It would be interesting to spend a day fishing with you.
@@LetsGoFishin60 I mostly fish the west coast states of the US.
Of course, however you are feeling comfortable is the way to go.
What I was suggesting is not related to the distance. Even when I shoot the whole line, the line still slides through my lefthand fingers and end up in my hand/fingers at the end. Otherwise, if I just rely on the reel drag, when the fish hits, I cannot keep my right hand rigid enough until I grab the line from the rod with my left hand. (I usually get excited and bring both hands in front of me) This gives the fish slack. So, at the end of my casts, I prefer ending up with the line in my fingers.
Nice fish!!
Thanks Chris for the feedback. It was my first year doing videos so hopefully a lot more adventures this season.