Going to try SW fly fishing.

[joeksr]

Let me start out by saying I know absolutely nothing about fly fishing.

So,
I've been chasing down posts and Q&A threads trying to get a grip on what I need.
Let me tell you what I plan on doing.
Will be fishing the rehobeth and Indian river bays.
Looking on a chart of the Bay's doesn't seem to be any water over 6-7' except at the inlet.
Expected catch, Flounder, Occasional striper, croaker, Small blues. Not sure what else to expect on fly.
Lots of sand bars in these bays bordered by channels, If you can call 3-4' a channel, but seems like it's as good as it gets.
Some of them difficult to fish by boat due to narrowness etc.
Would like to beach the boat and Try my luck with a fly in the channels. With plenty of water in front of and behind me I might be able to get a fly out without having to do all that fancy stuff that usually gets me tangled or hooked.

OK,
I bought some flies, Now I need a fly swatter, er, rod, a fly rod. found a 7 wt rod and reel that I bought about 30 yrs ago in an aborted attempt to become a fly fisherman. Not the best equip but It will do for a start. Thought I would need sinking line but not so sure now. Heres what I think I need, any and all opinions or advice appreciated but be gentle with me. I am a timid soul with a very fragile aura.

1. rod got that
2. reel got that
3. Flies got that
4. 250 gr weight forward floating fly line. (50' ?) Can get that,
5. Backing 20# momoi diamond. Can get that
6. 7' 20 # flouro attached to fly line. got that.

Cast out, Fly line floats down current, fly ticks along bottom,
fish his, fish gets cooked, and a good time is had by me
And maybe my grandkids.

do you use a snap swivel from leader to fly or tie each on as you change them ?
Sounds simple. Again, Any and all input appreciated.

thanks folks.
Joe.

[joeksr]

Oh, I forgot the most important thing, What type of mask should I wear while fly fishing so my off shore trolling buddies dont recognize me.

[jemche]

here is my 2cents... 250 grain sounds good. use some sort of loop knot to connect the fly. this allows the fly to "breathe" when you are fishing in the current.

on the hook set... use what is called a strip-strike.first pull back on the line, then once you feel a little weight. you can lift with the rod. when i first started fly fishing i wanted to set the hook right when i felt a tap. there is a much higher hookup percentage when you wait a half second IMO.

maks.. on a serious note wear sunglasses... for protection, not disguise..

if you want to PM me and we could fish together one day. good luck

[OneMoreCast]

Glad you are getting into the sport.
Right off the bat, I'd say you are in a primo flounder on the fly spot.
Here are some basic answers
1) For sinking line use no more than a 4' leader. You'll never feel the strike.
2) Stick to a 20lb dacron line for backing
3) 7wt is fine.. but.. I gotta say this.. if it wasn't meant for saltwater was that sucker out big time when you get home.

Now.. how to fish tidal cuts....
At 3 to 4 feet deep a 250 line will get hung mercilessly. A floating line with an 8ft leader will catch fish with impunity.
A 250 would be ideal for the inlet or any structure from 8 to 15 feet deep.
Repeat after me.. swing the fly... swing the fly.. I can out catch a bait fisherman under certain conditions with a fly rod. Why? Because I can make the fly move naturally in the water. No sinkers.. no lead heads.. just me and the fly.. You want to cast quartering upstream and allow the current to take the line. Keep in contact with the fly...the strike will come when the line straightens out.. 90 % of the time.
What flies did you buy??? Those will be important..
Have you ever had a casting lesson? That's important too..
Snap swivels are the devil... I think Cape May Ray uses a small snap on his flies.. but a normal swivel won't help your cause.

[joeksr]

here is my 2cents... 250 grain sounds good. use some sort of loop knot to connect the fly. this allows the fly to "breathe" when you are fishing in the current.

on the hook set... use what is called a strip-strike.first pull back on the line, then once you feel a little weight. you can lift with the rod. when i first started fly fishing i wanted to set the hook right when i felt a tap. there is a much higher hookup percentage when you wait a half second IMO.

maks.. on a serious note wear sunglasses... for protection, not disguise..

if you want to PM me and we could fish together one day. good luck

Thanks for the advice. And a hat. Hate when the top of my head gets burnt, not much cover left up there.
Boat getting some modifications, when I'm back in maybe we can hook up and try some of these area in the bay.

Glad you are getting into the sport.
Right off the bat, I'd say you are in a primo flounder on the fly spot.

Looking at the charts thats what I thought. Couple of cuts from indian river to rehobeth bay looked perfect. Any fish getting in or out of rehobeth bay have to come thru them and the channel is close enough to the bars to cast into.
To much work trying to drift them and stay off the sand.

Here are some basic answers
1) For sinking line use no more than a 4' leader. You'll never feel the strike.
2) Stick to a 20lb dacron line for backing
3) 7wt is fine.. but.. I gotta say this.. if it wasn't meant for saltwater was that sucker out big time when you get home.

I think I'll try the floating line and leader.
20lb dacron it is.
Rod and reel have been around for 30 yrs. Bought them at sears. Not made for salt but good to start. Probably just found my next expensive hobby.

Now.. how to fish tidal cuts....
At 3 to 4 feet deep a 250 line will get hung mercilessly. A floating line with an 8ft leader will catch fish with impunity.
A 250 would be ideal for the inlet or any structure from 8 to 15 feet deep.
Repeat after me.. swing the fly... swing the fly.. I can out catch a bait fisherman under certain conditions with a fly rod. Why? Because I can make the fly move naturally in the water. No sinkers.. no lead heads.. just me and the fly.. You want to cast quartering upstream and allow the current to take the line. Keep in contact with the fly...the strike will come when the line straightens out.. 90 % of the time.
What flies did you buy??? Those will be important..
Have you ever had a casting lesson? That's important too..
Snap swivels are the devil... I think Cape May Ray uses a small snap on his flies.. but a normal swivel won't help your cause.

Sounds like the same type of fishing I did in Utah for trout.
I thought of it as fly fishing for dummies, That would be me and my son.
Cast up stream, Keep the rod tip high to keep as much line out of the water as possible to prevent belly.

Basically was able to bring the line and lure all the way back and let it lay on water behind us then cast forward. Seems like it will work here untill I can get the hang of a proper cast. NO casting lessons yet.

Not sure what flies I bought. Picked up an assortment from the auction for the Kids. Don't know if I'll catch fish with em but they hooked me.
Seemed like a good way to try what I've been thinking about and help out a little.

Gonna go look for a store with fly supplies in the area.
Can't wait to give this a try.


Thanks guys.

Joe.

[OneMoreCast]

Joe,
Did you get the flies from the Barta auction?

Also.. rod tip as low as possible. No slack at all in the line or you will never feel the hit.
High sticking (nymph fishing for trout) is a bit different.

Joe... if you got those flies from the auction, please let me know. That was a donation from my club MAFA.. mid-atlantic fly anglers.. I'm the pres.. Sikorski is one of the first MAFA members. We knew he did work for the Barta kids and wanted to chip in. The contribution is from some great guys in our club.
Anyway, if those flies 1) went to help the kids 2) Got you involved in the sport again.. Well, that makes my stone heart flutter.
I'd really like to send you a starter care package of fly fishing items as a thank you. It'll help tremendously. Also, if you would like to join the fly fishing get together that jemche is trying to organize, I'll give you a free casting lesson... been giving them for a loooong time.. It'll help.

[CapeMayRay]

Great comments especially the let your fly swing! One More Cast is right. When fishing structure or current break a fly swings accros current or looks natural. Even when it hits the water and starts to move away slow it stays in the catching zone longer. With a plug you do not get any action til it gets going. So many times the fly will out fish other methods.

The key it to just get out and do it. You will learn a lot the more you do it. Observe you flies in the water. See how the move and look with different types of retrieves and wt lines.

I have an offshore fishing friend that takes a lot of kidding from his offshore buddies, about catching small fish. Funny they all like using light rods when mahi are around offshore pots.

Just have to tell them real sportsmen will bait and switch the offshore fish to a fly.

With the high price of fuel and the long runs offshore and so few shots at white marlin, I can't get my guys to try it. They are afraid they will miss a fish if they can not spoon feed them a bally. Usually when I go offshore they will stop a some pots at the end of the day so I can catch my poor man's marlin. Mahi on a fly is as much fun as a white on a rod.

[joeksr]

Joe,
Did you get the flies from the Barta auction?

Yep. Looked good enough to eat.
Seems like a good match for this area.

Also.. rod tip as low as possible. No slack at all in the line or you will never feel the hit.
High sticking (nymph fishing for trout) is a bit different.

OK. thanks.

Joe... if you got those flies from the auction, please let me know. That was a donation from my club MAFA.. mid-atlantic fly anglers.. I'm the pres.. Sikorski is one of the first MAFA members. We knew he did work for the Barta kids and wanted to chip in. The contribution is from some great guys in our club.
Anyway, if those flies 1) went to help the kids 2) Got you involved in the sport again.. Well, that makes my stone heart flutter.

Cool. Looks like it did both.


I'd really like to send you a starter care package of fly fishing items as a thank you. It'll help tremendously. Also, if you would like to join the fly fishing get together that jemche is trying to organize, I'll give you a free casting lesson... been giving them for a loooong time.. It'll help.

I'll look up the meeting, It it's in the area I'll try to make it.
Starter care package, WOW.
I definately NEED casting help.

Great comments especially the let your fly swing! One More Cast is right. When fishing structure or current break a fly swings accros current or looks natural. Even when it hits the water and starts to move away slow it stays in the catching zone longer. With a plug you do not get any action til it gets going. So many times the fly will out fish other methods.

The key it to just get out and do it. You will learn a lot the more you do it. Observe you flies in the water. See how the move and look with different types of retrieves and wt lines.

I have an offshore fishing friend that takes a lot of kidding from his offshore buddies, about catching small fish. Funny they all like using light rods when mahi are around offshore pots.

Just have to tell them real sportsmen will bait and switch the offshore fish to a fly.

With the high price of fuel and the long runs offshore and so few shots at white marlin, I can't get my guys to try it. They are afraid they will miss a fish if they can not spoon feed them a bally. Usually when I go offshore they will stop a some pots at the end of the day so I can catch my poor man's marlin. Mahi on a fly is as much fun as a white on a rod.

Your absolutely right. To me a small fish on a light rig is as much or more fun than catching medium fish on a 50# class rig. Always liked fishing light gear. You get to fight the fish not the gear. Kinda got away from it going offshore but looking forward to doing it again

The price of gas, lay of the water here, an opportunity to pick up some quality flies and contribute to the kids at the same time is what decided me to go for this new adventure.
The kidding I'm sure to take from my off shore buddies is the reason for asking what type of mask you guys wear