[Fish Finder]

Some call it a fad that will eventually faze out. I beg to differ. :thumbup: There has been an explosion of new double hand anglers on the LM/South Coast rivers. Fly fishing in general has become even more popular on the rivers and lakes in the province of B.C.. Not more people buying licences per say, but more anglers making the switch.
With Fly Fishing/Adventure DvD's such as Trout Bum Diaries series coming onto the market, and giving the sport even more exposure to the main stream of anglers, this growth in the poplurarity of the fly rod will only get stronger along with the sub culture that comes with it. This is especially evident in Spey casting. Runs that used to be packed w/ drift fishers are now being occupied in some cases by more and more fly fishers. It is becoming more of a common sight with our milder winters we have been experiencing.
My question is, What and why, did you choose to jump into spey casting?, and was it a natural progression from the single hander?

Finder

 

[anthony]

For me its the challenge of casting after watching FishFinder and baerg they make it look easy LOL !!!

Chuking bigger flies, covering more water, and YES to be different then most poeple on the river..

 

[professori]

A few year back, I developed tendonitis in my right elbow (too many hours with a screw gun in my hand). It became increasingly difficult to flyfish, as the constant false casting wuld cripple me in an hour or less. I took up the spey as a way of getting the fly in the water with no strain on my elbows. In the ensuing couple of years, I have had cortisone treatments and the tendonitis has cleared up and now I get to
spey cast for the fun of it.

 

[Jack Straw]

Why spey fishing? That is a tough question alright :-X It can't be for the numbers. It's tough to fish right next to your partner. It takes hours of practice to learn to cast. Tying nice flies is time consuming & difficult. It might take seasons to get some success. It can be very expensive. Good fly water is rare on our gear-dominated winter steelhead beats. Quality summer run flows are great distances and require organized planning months ahead of run-size knowledge. If you've gear fished for any length of time you must eat your pride & become a rookie again ??? And then there's the weather, steelhead don't live in Maui....Why do we do this?

I love the challenge of moving fish to a swung fly, the big grab. Spey casting is also the funnest thing since sex. Once ya lay out a long straight wedge that sails to the other side of the river you are 'hooked'. It is super easy to swing a fly and rarely have to worry about depths or snags. No 60 lb vest required, just a few flies & some leader. No smelly bait bucket or fingers ;D I love the fact that it is hard work. When you see a pic of someone with a fly caught steelie you know they put in their time :beerchug: Rewards are rare in spey fishing but the most prized steelhead in our memories are the ones we worked hardest for.....spey fishing is about the rewards!!

Tight loops

 

[Thrasher]

For me its the challenge of casting after watching FishFinder and baerg they make it look easy LOL !!!

Chuking bigger flies, covering more water, and YES to be different then most poeple on the river..

I think that you are different than most people, even without holding a double hander ;D

 

[eimaj]

For me it was a the natural thing to do, after swinging a 2 handed rod all my life using a single hander never felt right. ;D

 

[anthony]

For me its the challenge of casting after watching FishFinder and baerg they make it look easy LOL !!!

Chuking bigger flies, covering more water, and YES to be different then most poeple on the river..

I think that you are different than most people, even without holding a double hander ;D

I thought Rick was gonna be the first one to say that about me, but i guess You got in there first !!! I may be different but you still fish with me and come to my house LOL !!!

 

[dereke]

For me it has been about styles of casting. Pretty cool to watch someone who really knows what they are doing with a spey. Im just beginning and cant wait till ive had a few years on the river with one. I also agree with Jack Straw about the challenge of the whole thing. The rewards you get from something that is difficult far outweigh the rewards of something that comes easy. :cheers:

 

[Fish Finder]

For me it was a natural progression from single hand river fishing. Even though I waited a little longer to make the jump. Although I'd still never give up my single hand outfits. Every rod and set up has it's place and time to be used. ;D I find it ( double hand casting) to be much more efficient having the offering in the water more, than the work put in to single hand casting. At least when it comes to swinging flys for steelhead. The whole sub culture of fly fishing has bitten me big time as well. From reading books written by the pioneers of fly fishing, to watching all these new fly/adventure videos. Tying crazy patterns, writing about my experiences in the things I have and continue to learn, down to my time on the water. As stated above, making that perfect cast, having that perfect presentation and swing. Letting my mind wander, then getting the heart stopping pull. What a bonus! Your right, I feel it is much harder in most cases to get a winter run steelhead to take a swung fly. However for me personally the challenge and the reward is much more satisfying, than doing it any other way. My only regret about spey casting is, that I didn't pick it up sooner. :wallbash: ;D

Finder :cheers:

 

[xgolfman]

love the challenge of moving fish to a swung fly, the big grab. Spey casting is also the funnest thing since sex. Once ya lay out a long straight wedge that sails to the other side of the river you are 'hooked'. It is super easy to swing a fly and rarely have to worry about depths or snags. No 60 lb vest required, just a few flies & some leader. No smelly bait bucket or fingers I love the fact that it is hard work. When you see a pic of someone with a fly caught steelie you know they put in their time Rewards are rare in spey fishing but the most prized steelhead in our memories are the ones we worked hardest for.....spey fishing is about the rewards!!

Tight loops

I think the above sums it up pretty damn well...but what moved me was fishing behind a spey guy last year who was using a mid bellied line and I had my 9wt single hand...We waded out to the middle of the run and he worked both sides with ease and NO STRIPPING and I was having to strip like a monkey and even with a good double haul not getting out to where he was fishing...He fished the run in about a half hour and I hadn't made it half way fishing one side...

It doesn't take long to figure out that your going to catch more fish with your fly in the water then in the air..So that was it for me....Also too damn much fun!!!

 

[speyce_cadet]

For most Flyfishers....it's an evolution to move from early beginnings of learning to cast - awkwardly swishing flies thru the air, to delicately landing a perfect dry presentation, to learning a more challenging style of casting....etc.

For others including myself - it's an effective method to cover more water more effectively.....and increase chances of a hook-up.......
Throw in the idea of doing something challenging and mastering a new skill - then that becomes very attractive.....

 

[Merc]

We waded out to the middle of the run and he worked both sides with ease and NO STRIPPING and I was having to strip like a monkey and even with a good double haul not getting out to where he was fishing

You are a monkey and even worse, you're a stripping monkey who likes to strip for Cupcake! :happy: :happy:

I started the spey thing yesterday. Bottom line, it's fun. Watched my stripping monkey buddy for a year, struggle to develop his cast and knowing how challenging it is, I still wanted to do this. It's pretty cool to tie your own flies, fish them and it will be really satisfying when I catch my first fish on the spey, using a fly I tied. It also brings another dimension to fishing, or at least a different one. Understanding how the fly, fly line and rod works in order to make sure your presentation is just right, learning to tie flies that are classic styles or playing with ideas in your head to make something that you believe will work, etc, etc.
And for the record, peer pressure had nothing to do with this.

 

[Fish Finder]

And for the record, peer pressure had nothing to do with this.

;D ;D

 

[speyce_cadet]

more thoughts on Why Spey CAsting......

Simply put.....what about the idea of just having a really huge ROD......is there something Testosterone about that? Some guys get off on Horsepower...some guys are Tech freaks...maybe some of the Spey crowd just like the idea of having the biggest pole on the river?

And I wonder about the Elitist aspect of Spey? Most outdoor activities, if not all, have the elitist aspect to consider. Climbers need to find harder, higher and more hazardous First Ascents....Skiers need to find lighter, deeper, more remote untouched powder, golfers need to shoot lower scores, drive longer and straighter, kayakers need bigger waves, more rapids and higher drops.
And most flyfishers fantasize about bigger fish, faster-more powerful fish making reels scream and burn up.......Fresh, chromy Steelhead, BoneFish, Tarpon, Trevally, etc.
Where does it all end? Where does the pursuit takes us? Flyfishers have their own summits to climb....perhaps Spey casting is one of these Quests that lures us in. Something more challenging, higher, longer, bigger, more powerful......more artistic, huge aerial curving lines.
But down deep in our reptilian brains....there is something very attractive about a Huge, Big Powerful tool that can gracefully throw line across a sweeping river that is accessible to only a handful of priviledged casters
It seems like every sport has its Everest......it becomes attractive when its only accessible to a few.

 

[speyghillie]

Why Speycasting,
I guess for me it was growing up fishing on the Spey,( the river Spey is 90% fly only all year round) and watching all the older guys casting across the river with ease.
I still fish with my single-handed rod at times, its still the best tool for Sea-trout fishing , but there is always something about casting the double-hander, its just a great way to fish.
Gordon.

 

[Whistler]

pretty much comes down to having the best tool for the job. Interesting to also note the variety of two handed tackle and how the different line styles are adapted to their intended fishery. Everything comes down to how best(and easist) to present the fly to the fish

 

[Fish Finder]

Yes seems like there's a new line style coming out all the time.

Finder

 

[Merc]

more thoughts on Why Spey CAsting......

Simply put.....what about the idea of just having a really huge ROD......is there something Testosterone about that? Some guys get off on Horsepower...some guys are Tech freaks...maybe some of the Spey crowd just like the idea of having the biggest pole on the river?

So basically you're saying, "We're men and we get off on big rods in our hands?" :happy: :happy:

Uh...if that's your theory, I'll stick to the added dimension thing for my reason! :beerchug:

 

[xgolfman]

more thoughts on Why Spey CAsting......

Simply put.....what about the idea of just having a really huge ROD......is there something Testosterone about that? Some guys get off on Horsepower...some guys are Tech freaks...maybe some of the Spey crowd just like the idea of having the biggest pole on the river?

So basically you're saying, "We're men and we get off on big rods in our hands?" I know i do... :-*

I always like to feel a guys big rod in my hands...maybe that's not just me... :beerchug:

Dude, i'm not fishing with you anymore...

 

[SteelieCrazy]

I chose spey fishing because I was looking for a challenge and adrenaline rush I just couldn't get from gear fishing