A couple of years ago I posted a question about fishing small streams with so much cover there was practically no room to cast, and got some great responses. (For anyone interested, that thread was here: http://www.flyanglersonline.com/bb/showthread.php?t=11121
I have one more questions: What’s the best sort of rod to use in those situation? I was originally thinking a slow-to-medium action rod would make sense, because it would flex even with very little line out, so you wouldn’t need a big backcast to get at least some power. But now I’m thinking I moderately fast or fast rod might be fine, just overline it by one or two weights, and get the same result.
It’s really the same solution. By overlining a faster rod, you are in essence making it a slower rod. I myself prefer a moderate to moderate fast rod for most situations with length and line weight being the main variables depending on the situation (how big is the water, and how big is the fly/fish). I think it would come down to what you own already. If you have a fast rod you like, overlining it for those tight occasions gets you on the water more inexpensively than buying a new rod. If you’ve got a slower rod already, then there’s no need to change anything.
All this season I’ve been using my c.1961 W&M Featherlight, an rod from the ‘broken rod pile’ that I brought back from the dead.
It a fiberglass 6’6" rod rated for a 5wt line.
I’ve been fishing it with a 4wt line and even underlined like that it loads with only 2’ of line out of the tiptop
I like this rod so much that I bought one of the modern equivalents (?) at close-out the other day at W*mart
An Eagle Claw Feather Lite …$9
I don’t expect this cheap rod to cast as well as the vintage rod, but for $9 I’m sure I wouldn’t be too disappointed
Dudley, you have to tell me how that eagle claw casts. I have been thinking of getting one for a while now as a knockaround rod, but have been leery of getting a poor quality (not that I am expecting much, but seriously) rod.
In tight situations like that you can also use the bow and arrow cast. Just becareful of the hook point. It works great and with some practice to can hit your target with ease.
I know, I know, there’s always one in the bunch, but I prefer a fast action rod for fishing small stream. With a faster rod I can cast a tighter loop under, over or around cover. I have no problem bow and arrow casting, roll casting, or casting just a foot or two of fly line, or even just the leader alone with my rod.
I do a lot of small stream fishing, and I do most of it with a 7’ 4wt 7 piece March Brown Hidden Waters rod. It also converts to a 6’ by leaving out a section. I can carry the 14" rod tube in my packpack for the hike in. I have a boo banty rod that I bring out for show once in a while, and have several other graphite moderate and slow action rods that remain in my rod rack. I lend them out to friends when we fish small stream together. Small stream fishing is a lot of fun and a real challenge. Good luck.
I have a 5’3" Fenwick glass rod that I have used for tight areas. It roll casts very well. Roll casting is how I always fish the tight spots. I also have a 6’6" 2wt that I use now.
to read that covers small streams and a lot of good ol boys fishing stories is “Le Shack” by the late Jim C. Chapralis. In the book there is a chapter on your question called ‘‘5 minute course for small streams’’. It includes bow and arrow casting and puts the emphasis on practice, practice, practice.
I fish small streams in the Sierras and have applied some of these principles. The result? Less lost hooks, fewer tangled lines and leaders and a few more fish caught. G’luck, Jim
Oh, your question was about tackle. I use a 6’6 glass or 7’ graphite 4 wt with 4 wt DT floating line and usually a 7 1/2’ #4 tapered leader. Jim
Dudley I have the same era W&M featherlight mine is a 7’ 6wt but it casts all the way down to a 4dt with no troubles. It is one of my favorite rods to use in the spring/summer. I bought mine off someone online for $2.50 because it was missing a snake guide. I just sized up the missing guide and bought the right color thread and it was as good as new…I also recently sold one of the newer versions to a member here. They are very good rods. A different taper than the older ones but they roll cast with ridiculous ease and are very forgiving on the line that you choose to use. For short casting these are great rods to try.
Janus
Fishing the Wood River this year in RI I used my 8’6" 4WT that has medium Fast action, do to over hanging trees I had to roll cast the whole time (actually most of the places I’ve fished in RI have required rollcasting). Places were I need to cast out only about 4’ of flyline plus 9’ of leader I try to only flick it with the tip so I can just get the leader to turn over. It feels awkward and I wouldn’t really call it a cast but after a couple attempts I can work out how to flick my wrist to get the fly to do what I want. You can also rollcast a small amount of line by holding the rod low to the water and bringing it up a little over 45 degrees above it and about 2 o’clock to your outer side (to your right if you’re right handed) then whip forward. Also if you have to you can choke up on your rod above the handle onto the blank, just remember to stay below the first furrel or might lose your but section of your rod.
What I consider a small stream is on the original post. Those places are streams where a 7’0" rod is too long. I like my small stream rods to be slow so they load with a minimum of line out, like a few feet.
I never have any problem making a tight loop on a slow rod but to be honest, a backcast or rollcast is a luxury where I fish so it’s more flipping and bow & arrow casts.
Another discovery I made since that post is really short furled thread leaders. If you can make them or talk someone else into making them; a 2-3 foot furled leader with two feet or so of tippet is the ticket for this kind of fishing!
I fish a old 6 foot 5wt 70’s Fenwick glass rod for all the small streams here in So Calif. The short size makes it easier to manage the rod and the line in tight situations. It is more of a medium action.
This is a great post. I frequent a stream that fits your description exactly. I have used several different rods with different actions and have found great success regardless.
Here are a few images… enjoy:
This is an anadramous stream that contains sockey and coho salmon (not legal for fishing) as well as rainbow trout and dolly varden (legal for fishing)
Some of the spots are very tight as you explained. Here we are using a 9’ TFO Pro series 4wt.
This nice dolly was caught on a 9’ Sage SLT 5wt
This sockey salmon wasn’t caught by us, rather the bear that was right in front of us… I guess we inturrepted his lunch!!!
I fish a lot of small streams. Those of us who fish the small brush choked streams in the Appalachian Mountains in the East are very unconventional.
Where conventional logic suggests using a short rod for small brushy streams, many of us use long rods.
With the long rod (9’ or so) one can use the high sticking technique. Frequently there’s only about 6" or so of fly line out past the rod tip and all we’re doing is flipping the fly into the riffles or pools and holding the rod tip high enough that the fly an tippet are the only things in the water.
With so many of our streams, there is no room for any kind of a back cast and most of the streams are so small that a 9’ leader is going to stretch all the way across the stream anyway and a long rod to just “dangle” the fly in the stream is the most effective way to fish it.
I do have a short 7’6" 3wt rod that I use on some of the more open small streams that offer some room to cast. My “short” rod is just a lot of fun, but when I go to a really brushy small stream, I grab my 9’ 4wt or my 9’ 5wt and go “highstickin”.
I occasionally fish a couple of small brookie streams around here that are 3-4 ft wide and I’ve bounced back and forth on this issue, but I think I’ve pretty well settled into the longer rod camp.
The only situation now where I prefer the short rod is where there’s enough water (say 10 feet wide) to cast but lots of overhanging trees. Similar to jeffnless1, on the truly small streams, I’ve gone to the 8 1/2 to 9 rods to dap or just flip a little line up stream. I stay well back from the water and reach over the bankside vegetation. Or I’ll feed line downstream with a soft hackle or dry, again out of the water.
I also use longer rods on very stream for the reasons jeff stated. Also, on some of the small streams I fish the banks are extremely bushy but directly over the water there is enough of an opening to hold the longer rod out and do some short sidearm casting. The longer rods can also help keep you back from the water to avoid spooking small stream fish. Right now my favorite small stream rod is a 8’6" 3wt but I’m still evaluating others.
I do have 5’ and 6’ rods that are nice when things open up a bit for casting dries or when situations demand crawling through brush. But I feel my longer rod offers more utility. Of course I’m still just figuring all this stuff out.
Every year it seems I try something new that alters my opinion. That’s why forums like this one are so beneficial. You get to hear from both newbies and well seasoned anglers with different backgrounds and experiences.
I’ve never seen a golfer with just one club in their bag. Now if I could just find a caddy to carry my rods for me.
Get this video: A CASTING APPROACH DRY FLY TACTICS IN BRUSH [COLOR=Black]to start…then you might like the rest of them too. In my opinion Joe Humpreys is the one of the best if not THE best small stream fly angler out there.
He has a new web site and the links to the DVD (s) are there. Joe Humphreys
I have the Joe Humphreys video on small creek brush casting and it is excellent.
I believe he is using a 6 ft. rod and the creeks he is fishing have dense canopies.
His instruction on the bow and arrow cast is especially useful, and the video may change your thinking about the necessity of bending your wrist in making casts in tight spaces.
I use a fast 5 foot 3 wt. overlined with a 6 wt. line with about half the back taper cut off so it will fit on the spool. Almost all the casts will be short roll casts and a lot of mending. Fish them down. It’s way easier.
small waters are my absolute favorite, and i find the a 7’6" fiberglass rod (like my old fenwick FF756) has enough reach, roll casts nicely, and is super durable when climbing over slippery rocks. it protects light tippets, and handles real fish and shakers nicely. a very nice fishing tool.
-mike