Who Remembers their first fly rod caught trout?
Mine was 40 years ago, a 12-inch stocked rainbow, on a fly I tied myself, a big thrill for me. I also caught another that same day, both released.
Once that occurred, I had enough confidence to make fly fishing my main method.
I still fish that same spot, because it holds some great memories for me.
My Dad and I caught a lot of brook trout when i was young dunking worms and minnows. I was 11 or 12 when i started fly fishing - fly tying . i remember the first time catching brookies on a fan wing royal coachman dry fly I had tied. They would jump over the fly and take it on the way down… simply amazing!
I clearly remember my first fly rod fish but it wasn’t a trout. It was a bluegill along the Maryland portion of the C&O canal. I still have the rod … a 2piece metal thing about 9 ft long marked union hardware. I have no idea what line weight was on the improvised reel.
Gerri
I remember. July 8, 2010. Caught 8 of them from a lake.
My first fly caught fish was a Bluegill. On a Parmachene Belle wet fly. Caught about 12 of them and a couple small bass that day. Right about 42 years ago. First trout was late that same year…a stocked Rainbow on a Cow Dung wet fly.
It was a 16" trout from the Firehole River on a Gary Borger Strip Leech.
- 14 yrs old. First fly rod fish. July. Family camping trip up from CA Bay Area. North Umpqua River at Susan Creek campground. 8ft Garcia fly rod, Olympic Daisy Medalist knock off reel, SA Air Cel flyline. Adams irresistible. About a foot long. Maybe it was a a juvenile steelhead. Caught several during a week stay and a few juvinile salmon too. Also caught a bunch of stocked fish down River outside fly only area. Later fished around home in Bay Area for bass and panfish in fly.
Moved back to Southern CA in 1979 and got deep into LM bass fishing with conventional gear. Didn’t pick up fly rod again until 1993. Since that first rainbow trout have added more than 70 other species on the fly, the majority in Southern CA.
First fly-caught trout came on the North Fork Shenandoah in VA. on a hellgrammite nymph while attending one of Harry Murray’s flyfishing classes. Apparently a stocker rainbow from one of the feeder creeks had drifted down and was swimming with the local smallmouths.
Regards,
Scott
My First:
1963, Eagle Claw 5/6 wt 7’ rod purchased at Cabella’s ORIGINAL store in Sydney Nebraska on way to UW Laramie for my Junior year. Bought the flies at West Laramie Fly Store and fished the Little Laramie R where it crosses WY 130 on way to Centennial WY. 3rd(?) cast , BEAUTIFUL 12" brown, 10th(?) cast , same. I WAS HOOKED. The caught trout was for sure a thrill but also the WHERE it was caught. Someone once had “'signature” here " Trout must be God’s favorite fish because He put them into His most beautiful waters". THAT has to be a MAJOR factor as to why I continue to enjoy fly fishing.
Mark
I tied my first flies using my father’s table vise in the basement. They were constructed with various colors of wool yard and feathers plucked from chickens that my father, brother and I had killed and later eaten.
After tying these flies I rode my bike about 5 miles to a local trout stream that I often fished, and promptly caught a trout that rose to my fly. I still have a memory of that rising fish, and the thrill of seeing him come up from behind that rock. The fish was hooked, and so was I. I was about 12 years old at the time.
10" Brookie on a #10 Dave’s Hopper from the East Fork Sinnemahoning River, Wharton Twp, Pa. June 2000. Still have and fish that Orvis 865-2 Clearwater fly rod I received as a Father’s day gift just a week before!
My first fish on a fly rod was a small rainbow caught from the Current River in Missouri. I had fished for trout since I was about 6, but never with a fly rod.
I caught that first “fly rod fish” on a #18 BWO. I was moving upstream from one hole to another when I saw some splashing in a very narrow, shallow run.
Since the water was pretty skinny, it was moving pretty quickly. I couldn’t see any trout in there, but the splashing caught my eye.
I waited and observed for a few minutes…and sure enough, there were some trout rising. I could see some small gray bugs flying about so I figured a BWO was the closest thing I had. I tied it on and had a strike immediately. I have a picture of that little fish somewhere. It was no great fish by any means. But it was my first with a fly. I was probably hooked better than that little rainbow was.
Dont remember my first fish on a fly rod but I do remember my first wild brookie. Caught on the Rapidan in the SNP .a beautiful 8 " one that would have rivaled the finest French watercolor. Caught a bunch that day and while I enjoy catching large trout, there is something special about a mtn. stream wild trout on a two or three wt.
1954, Reverse Creek, June Lake, CA…
[
.](http://s305.photobucket.com/user/planettrout/media/FLY FISHING BOOKS/p1020152_zpsj64cl7lr.jpg.html)…on a custom fiberglass rod made by Ralph Dadasman of the Long Beach Casting Club…
PT/TB 
Little stocked brown on the Clear Fork in central Ohio!
Brown trout on a hornberg, I think it was 1967 or 68.
Rainbow trout on a hare’s ear nymph, Gold Lake, Colorado, 1978.
Ted
Barber Park, Boise Idaho. Don’t rember the date, but it was late 90s. It ate an Adams and was about 13 inches long. And it tasted really good.
Just caught my first trout on the fly, and a fly I tied myself at that, last summer while up at our land in the UP. Brother in law and I found a little alder choked stream and I roll casted a copper colored wooly bugger along a log. Caught this little brookie and then caught his brother on the next cast. Wasn’t much, but it was enough to hook me on both fly fishing for trout in the UP and fly tying.
Four years ago I started going to Healing Waters in Murfreesboro, TN and this is where I meet a man almost everyone on FAOL will know. His FAOL handle is WarrenP. With-in a month the group were going to take us Fly fishing on the Duck river at the Arrowhead Ranch. I was lucky and got Warren. He took me under his arm and began teaching a 65 year old man how to fly fish. Because of his need to help someone and my need to have some one show me how, I caught my first trout. Thank you Warren for everything you have taught me over the years.
Grateful
WayneC