Got A Line On You

I've read frequently that fly line selection is the most critical element in the equation. At first, I dismissed this as line manufacturers wanting to sell more $70 fly lines. As my skills grew, I figured out that there's a lot of truth in this philosophy.

My brand of choice these days is Rio - they offer a line for almost every specialized purpose, as well as some great general purpose lines. My first Rio line was 6 wt. Rio Gold on my Scott A2/Ross CLA set-up. I really recognized its value on a windy evening on the Two Hearted river. I found I could just punch casts to exactly the spot I wanted consistently with this line. Previously I'd been using the generic cheap-o line that came on my Ross Flystart reel package. When I bought the CLA, I upgraded to a good line. Worth every penny.

Since then, I've added Rio Selective Trout on my 3 wt. spring creek rig, as well as 200 and 300 grain sink tips. Eager to put all three to use this season. I'm particularly intrigued by stripping streamers looking for monster brown trout.

I would also put in a plug for the Orvis Wonderline series - I have the steelhead/salmon version in 9 wt. on my steelhead indicator rig. Cast well, mends even better! Now that I'm more comfortable with my indy rig I realize how much I like this line.

So, if you're in doubt of your casting abilities, try a better line. I found it to make a world of difference.

-Sean-