I’ve waxed lyrical in the past about my belief that presentation is the major factor in getting a fish to eat your fly. To put it another way, a sensational fly choice can never make up for a bad presentation. This is no more so than when fishing dry flies Read more…
I was really struggling with a subject for this issue of FlyStream, but then, on absolute deadline, a topic dear to me came to mind. It was brought to my attention by Tim Rajeff at a talk he presented to a group of 60 flyfishers in Launceston. I will do Read more…
Peter Haze
Published in FlyStream Autum 2017
Australia’s Best Trout Flies – Re- visited
If your flyfishing experience is limit- ed, you might be easily fooled into believing you MUST have this or that particular pattern. You’ll end up with boxes full of all sorts of flies, often several of the same pat- tern and in several sizes too. Then you’ll listen to the experts – on the water, on the internet or at the fishing club meeting. They will reel off names of killer patterns and it won’t be long before you feel under-gunned if you don’t have boxes full of them too. Then there are the guides, fly tiers and fishing writers. You will need sever- al more boxes to for their ‘must-haves’! (more…)
I’ve seen this alternative method of doing a figure 8 retrieve from several people now. Peter Austin kindly demonstrates it here. The benefits are great speed and control, entire flyline in hand, without ever the chance of a tangle. Downside is that the line will end up with little kinks Read more…
Exercise 1 One Foot at a Time – Smooth controlled tight loop false casts This is a rod loading and loop control exercise with focus on smooth progressive acceleration of the rod tip in a straight line path with a positive stop. Cast side on to the wind with the Read more…
Exercise 2 The Pick Up Lay Down Cast – Haysie’s three chances to shoot. Lay out 30 feet of line on the water and retrieve it all in to just a rod length of line out the tip. Do a pick up and lay down cast shooting line on the Read more…
Exercise 3 Haysie’s Tasmanian Triangle Roll Cast Side on stance, draw the rod tip back smoothly and slowly until it is as far back as you can get it. Next move the tip vertically up the invisible post and stop. Move the tip down the hypotenuse and do not rotate Read more…
Exercise 4 – Lean, Tap, Squeeze and Flip This is a simple but important roll casting exercise Lean into it, tap your wrist, squeeze your fingers and flip off a tiny loop Set up: With 45 feet of line out stick the yarn under a rock – (I use the Read more…
by Peter Hayes and Ron Penny Trust me, this is the only knot you ever need to know to tie a hook on. I’ve taught it at Fly Casting Schools all over the world and once you learn it you will never use another knot. In most trout tippet strength Read more…