Fly Fishing Gear Basics | An Introduction

By Jen Ripple / Wired2Fish.com

Fly fishing has intrigued me since childhood growing up on a small lake in Wisconsin. And now I am able to pass it forward much in the way it was passed to me. So I spend a lot of time helping folks learn about fly fishing gear as well as techniques. So we’ll share some of this lifelong passion and insight on fly gear to help others get into this amazing sport fishing method.

Although my grandfather was a passionate fly angler, he pursued his skills in remote destinations like Alaska and not on our home lake. Nevertheless, I found myself enchanted by the videos he watched in between episodes of Wheel of Fortune and the graceful casts of local fly anglers on the river. Films like A River Runs Through It further fueled my fascination. Unfortunately, my family’s affinity for scuba diving overshadowed any opportunity I had of learning to fly fish from good old pops.

With no internet in sight for years, I turned to books and old movies to keep up my curiosity. When I finally summoned the nerve to walk into my first fly shop to take a fly-tying class, I felt like I was home. When the ice finally cleared from the nearby Huron River, I knew enough to be dangerous. And dangerous I was, to every tree, bush and bystander in my path. The fish, however, were safe.

It took me many trips to the river to figure out the water, the cast, the flies and everything else that hindered my first fish. Yet, even during my clumsy attempts, curious onlookers would approach me expressing their desire to try fly fishing but feeling intimidated by its perceived complexity and expense in fly fishing gear. I understood that sentiment completely. I had been there. READ ON