Dating a Fly Fisherman 101

By: Karli Quinn – @karliquinn7

My first memory of fishing was sitting with my grandpa on a river bank with our fishing poles in the water while periodically checking if we still had worms. Needless to say, I was not so thrilled to meet a boy whose first love is fly fishing. He promised it was fun, I promised I would do it once. Heading out to “fish” for the first few times showed me that fly fishing was a lot more work than sitting on a bank eating watermelon with my grandpa. 

“Cast, strip, wiggle wiggle wiggle, make it move, ok now you can recast but don’t slap the water, strip, strip, strip a bit faster, ok recast but make it lightly land on the water…” This meant nothing, I could hardly understand what I was meant to be doing. Where was the worm? Let me save you some time and help you get caught up on the lessons my kind, generous, yet completely oblivious boyfriend should have taught me. 

Welcome to “I just started dating a fly fisherman” 101! 

Let’s start with condensing “fly fisherman/ fisherwoman” and correct that to read “angler.” An angler is defined as a person who fishes with a rod and line. That is going to be us!

If you are reading this you are now officially an angler, welcome. However, you cannot be an angler without a rod and line. 

I used to think women liked shopping and accessorizing until I met my hunter, fisherman boyfriend. Going with him to a fly shop makes me feel like my grandpa when my grandma would take my sister and me to the mall. Thank goodness most fly shops have a bar and comfy chairs. 

When it comes to fly fishing, buckle up for a shopping experience of a lifetime. Start with a rod, I love Temple Fork Outfitters and started with a TFO Axiom II 5wt. Now you need to add on the reel. For me, it was a Redington Rise ⅚, why? Because I liked the color and my boyfriends said it was a good reel for the money. Continue with some backing, fly line, leader, tippet and finally your flies and you have completed your setup. I found after a while that I really enjoyed having a textured fly line and was able to cast better with it. Scientific Anglers Amplitude is now what I have on all of my reels. Once you secure these assets, you can get out on the water. I’ve linked some of my favorites above. 

A majority of the time you will be wade fishing, meaning you are fishing from the water – usually aiming to be in the middle of the river. Most of these waters are great to wet wade in the summer months but most of the time are too cold to fish without waders(comparable to a surfer wearing a wetsuit.) So the final step to achieving looking the part would be to get waders and wading boots. 
My eyes were set on the Patagonia Waders, insert heart eye emoji! I ended up with the Simms Freestones and three years and many rivers later I am happy with my purchase. My Korker boots are a little less aesthetically pleasing. I got my boots before many companies started making boots for women. However, Korkers was the leading women’s boot maker at the time and offered convertible bottoms allowing me to swap from felt (better grip on the rocks) to spiked bottoms without having to. I have been eyeing the Simms Ladies Boots. The best tip I got from a fly shop full of men after embarrassingly admitting out loud my boots looks like Frankenstein boots – no one sees your boots so get the ones that are most comfortable.

Ok to quickly recap what it takes to get out on the water we have our rod outfitted with a reel, line, leader, tippet and appropriate fly and we are in our waders, wading boots and usually a sun shirt, hat and sunglasses. 

My first time golfing, my brother told me I played like crap but at least I looked the part. I always think my outfit allows me to start out ahead, adding some points into my fishing bucket before I hit the water. 

Now we break down what the point of fly fishing is and why we have no live worms. Contrary to my first belief, fly fishing has nothing to do with the line flying through the air… I will make that mistake for you and spare you the embarrassment. Fly fishing is based on the premise of your fly emulating a real bug. A bug that is “in season” is similar to speaking produce terms: an in-season bug is one that the fish deem edible. 

I had the opportunity to talk with George from the Missoulian Angler about flies and how to present my fly to the fish below. George asked me if I would eat a cheeseburger that randomly started moving off my plate. Of course, I would not, that would mean something was wrong with the pile of meat on my plate. He countered with “Then why would a fish go after a bug that is sliding unnaturally on the water??” Ok, point taken, George and we will get to casting in another article. I may not be the best resource for that topic just yet… 

Back to fishing with “in-season” flies. You will often hear anglers mention “matching the hatch” which simply means they are paying attention to what bugs are hatching and flying around with the potential to land on the water. Have your new “guide” tie all your flies on and set up your gear. This becomes a huge perk when you are dating someone that has been fly fishing their entire life. Match the hatch and try, you are one step closer to catching a hungry fish. 

The last lesson we will touch on to provide you with some knowledge to bring to the river and help with your angler credibility is fishing the football field. No, I am not going to give you advice on how to cast to achieve the perfect fly landing gracefully on the water. However, I can tell you to not fish the same spot over and over and over. I heard it best from Neil at Tailwaters, “fish the football field.” Meaning adjusting your cast to a wide range using your line to adjust the length and areas you are fishing. 

I like to start out with a medium(super official term I know) amount of line and see how my fly is landing and how my fly is drifting with the water. After 3-5 casts at that length and at that spot, I adjust and move up steam a bit and see if I can use that same length to find a different pocket and different drift line. Once I get comfortable I let more line out and start fishing the football field. This requires making a few different casts at multiple lengths to find new pockets of water where fish could be sitting. Imagine a football field in front of you, the goal is to cast at different yardage markers to cover the entire hole. 10 yards, 12 yards, 15 yards, 20 yards, then rinse and repeat. Once you have exhausted that hole(10-15 cast at different distances) then you can physically move away from that section and start all over again on a different run. 

Once you have achieved this you are officially an angler wading on the hunt for beautiful fish! One thing you will quickly learn when picking up fly fishing with your significant other is that not only will it take you to beautiful places but it is a great opportunity to spend quality time with your human. So if you are looking to make the jump into a new sport, go for it! Don’t let the stereotypes of this industry keep you sidelined from catching fish and having a blast. Ask questions, make mistakes and most of all, enjoy the experience. If you want to connect with Karli or have any questions about how she got into the sport, you can find her on Instagram @karliquinn7. As always, you can also reach out directly to us at cowtownflyco@gmail.com should you have gear-related questions or need help with fly selections for different areas.