Posted by Jim E (24.116.99.140) on February 26, 2004 at 18:37:24:
Rod hand and line control
The proper handling of the fly line with your rod hand is very important. Important enough, to the point that with doing everything else right i.e.; casting, fly selection, presentation, retrieve, etc., can all be ruined by not controlling the line immediately before, during and after the hookset.
Most fly fisherman use the middle finger of their rod hand to control the line as it leaves the first stripper guide during the line retrieve. But some might use their index finger instead. Which one doesn’t matter, as long as it is comfortable and natural feeling.
Face it, we’ve all done it !! Setting the hook on a fish, raising the rod and ending up with the rod held high in one hand and the fly line in the other. We must have looked like we were doing the jumping jacks or something, but with one difference, we had a stupid look on our face of “now what do I do ?” !! You remember !! Putting the line in your mouth in order to reach up and take another arms length of line, all still while you are sprawled out like you’re under arrest, but really trying to land your catch. This is partly where the line control issue comes into play.
Keeping the fly line hooked by your middle finger of your rod hand allows you to pinch the fly line against the rod grip while you set the hook, giving you the fastest reaction time. Then, keep tension on the fish as needed and strip in line through your line finger and rod grip, never letting the line leave that control. This is fundamental and anyone that has been fly fishing very long at all, will have already mastered this. But the mistake many fisherman make in their early years is doing the “death” grip on the fly line when they set the hook. For about 70% of the fish caught, this works just fine, but with the other 30%, it leads to missed fish, broken tippets and/or hooks ripped out of the fishes mouth immediately after the hook set. Adding insult to injury, the vast majority of that 30% can be the bigger fish that you are able to fool into biting.
It’s all about controlling the line and reading the strike. Adjusting the tension your “line finger” places on the line can and will connect you with more fish once you learn to read/feel the strike. Click HERE for some info that has been offered in the past regarding hooksets.
When stripping in line, your line finger should just about completely encircle the line to maintain full control. Setting the hook would usually be a short strip strike, followed by your line finger tightening down and the raising of the rod. But, those 30% fish are where reading the strike becomes very important. Your next action might be to immediately loosen your line finger just as fast as your hook set while the fish runs and takes out line. A death grip in this situation could certainly end in a limp line. Sometimes, even much of a strip strike would mean a broke off fish. Or, after the strike, set and hook up, you might need to strip in line fast to keep up with a charging fish. Sometimes just holding what you’ve got after the hookup is all that is needed for a while as the fish just sits there and does the head shake. Reading the strike again, will dictate what to do with your line finger and I won’t go on into that any more, believing the link above will cover much of that.
Now, on to controlling the line. After completing your cast, it is imperative to gain to full control of your fly line as soon as possible. In continuing to teach my 9 year old son to fly fish and be able to catch fish, this aspect of it has been the most frustrating. He has missed countless strikes while fumbling to gain control of the line, especially when nymphing. Often, half of the drift is over before he would be able to set the hook when fishing the faster waters of the creek.
Learning to get the line from the line hand after casting to the rod hand’s line finger should become second nature. To help accelerate this learning curve, act as if you’re going to clap your hands. Having your line finger outstretched, catch and “hook” the line. Then be ready to strip in line fast, if need be, through your line finger to gain control of the line so whatever your next move is, you’re ready. You may need to line mend, take up some slack line from the water or, better yet, set the hook.
I’ve witnessed fisherman that can cast quite well for a new fly fisherman, but once it’s all “presented” on the water nothing seems to go right. It’s all about line control and without a good “trigger” finger, you’ll always miss your best “shot”.
Thanks for reading. Comments are welcomed. If there are any helpful hints or tips that you would like to share, email them to me and you will be given full credit. (I don’t know why I keep putting that there. No one has contributed a tip in a long time. ?)
Jim Enns <*;))))))))><