Fly Fishing For Beginners: Fly Casting Pt. I

Well, it is time in our fly fishing for beginners series to have a look at fly casting. While certainly different from casting standard tackle with a spinning or baitcasting reel, fly casting is not the mystical or magical thing it’s meant to be.

Really it comes down to very simple physics. The rod loads with line, and the line is shot at the target. 

Today we are going to look at the very basic pick up, and lay down fly cast.

How To Start The Basic Fly Cast

If you recall the scene from A River Runs Through It where the boys are learning to cast with a metronome as their guide. Their hand runs from 10 o’ clock to 2 o’ clock at the same pace as the metronome arm.

As quaint as that scene is, and as much as I love that movie, it is complete fiction.

All right, let’s get into the set up for the basic pick up and put down cast. First, let out some line. I suggest around 25-30 feet. Let that line lay out on the water. Make sure your feet are set up correctly. If you cast with your right hand, your left foot should be out in front, and vice versa.

Now that your feet are set up properly, and your line is out, you need to set up your forearm and wrist. Your rod should be in a relatively straight line with your forearm. There should not be too much of a gap between the rod butt and your forearm. If this happens it is an indication you are using too much wrist.

The Casting Motion

The basic pick up and lay down cast can be thought of as having three stops. There is the pick up, the back cast, and the forward cast.

With your line out, and your rod tip low, you will initiate the pick up. Simply lift your rod tip to pull some of the line off of the water. That’s it—you’re a third of the way to performing the cast!

Now that you’ve picked up some line, you need to get the back cast going. It is very important that your back cast not be done with the wrist! The forearm must be in charge of the back cast motion. Once the line loads, it’s time to start the forward casting motion.

Simply reverse  the exact same motion with the forearm, again keeping the wrist in place. When the rod tip reaches about your eye level, stop it and pause briefly, then lay the rod tip down. Believe it or don’t, that is all there is to the basic pick up and put down fly cast!

Fly Casting Videos

Here is a video demonstrating what I am speaking about on this one. The video is a bit hard to hear in places, but the visuals are very good.

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKkDbDQp-Co]

And what would a fly casting article be without some mention of the great Lefty Kreh? Here he demonstrates his first principle of fly casting in a way only Lefty can do!

[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2nJ9xGuSH7g]

Practice this cast on a regular basis until it just becomes second nature. The great part about fly fishing is that you can practice casting anywhere. Since the line does all the work, you don’t even need a fly tied on.

So get out in the back yard or driveway and practice!

See ya on the water…