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Some Solutions to Fly-Casting in the Wind
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November 12, 2012
Some Solutions to Fly-Casting in the Wind
By John Merwin
Sometimes when fly-casting in the wind, I can do some really dumb things. Whether it’s on a bonefish flat, as in the photo, or on a trout stream, I can usually handle the wind okay. At other times, experience and judgment seem to vanish. I am suddenly way off target, or worse, wind up hooking myself.
In a wind crossing my rod-hand side, I would normally cast the rod to the left so the wind will blow the unrolling line away from my body instead of hitting me on the right side. But once on a local trout river I took a chance and paid the price.
I was dry-fly fishing in a breeze. Casting normally, I was getting away with fairly short casts despite the wind from my rod-hand side. So even knowing the risk, I attempted a much longer cast toward a distant trout.
Wrong idea. As I extended line, the increased line took a bit longer to travel past my body. That gave the wind enough time to blow it against me, and I wound up with a size 18 Griffiths gnat embedded in my back. It took a healthy martini and a lot of explaining to my wife as to how to yank out a hook using a loop of line before everything was resolved.
Casting into a headwind is another common problem. One good tip is to not shoot any line on the final cast. Shooting line robs the unrolling loop of some momentum, which allows a headwind to kill the cast. Shortening your tippet can also help, as will using a weighted fly.
Casting in the wind is a ubiquitous puzzle. Now you’ve read most of my solutions, what are some of yours?
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Comments (6)
On the flats, I stop my rod at 12 o'clock on the backcast. It helps me to tame the line and lessens the distance the rod has to travel forward into the wind.
Wind is the bane of my fishing existence. Here's my surefire way to beat the wind: Sit down, have a beer and wait it out! But seriously here's a little trick I've picked up. You can use the plane of water surface as a buffer. When wind blows it will follow the path of least resistence. When the wind hits the water and deflects, a soft wind cushion develops. I've found the stronger the wind the better the cushion (look for strong gusts on on water surface). Now even though I say this is a 'trick' it still takes quite a bit of time to develop accuracy. Once you locate the head wind gust and have the length of line needed out, pretend you are snapping a towel but backwards (bring your rod hand into your body as opposed to away, like your skipping a stone). Bring your rod tip down sideways. Keep your rod tip no more than a foot above water. Like the previous post, you want to stop at 12o'clock on the back cast and just a bit further on the front cast (no more than twice or you will lose your loop). When you snap the rod forward the loop you have created in the false cast before the side-snap will tighten but keep the force load and a vertical trajectory like a roll cast. Now as the line shoots forward the 'air cushion' will hold up your line at a low profile against the wind for just a brief moment but that is more than enough time for your line to get out. Once the line is about 3/4 out the gust will slap the line closer to your rod tip down on the water and work its way to your leader ensuring a straight line that will not blow off course. This does take practice but you will reap the benefits (at least an extra 10ft if done right). Note: If you are in a situation where the wind is creating a good chop, wind will shoot off the crest of the waves which you can also use to 'cushion' your line.
I find moving up a few rod sizes helps cut the wind. A good WF line and fast action rod also come in handy. Cannot say I change a whole lot of casting mechanics but I do switch hands when the wind is coming from my casting arm.
I will use a heavier rod and even heavier line, usually a weight or two above what's specified for the rod. Seems to work well.
I cast with the wind (never had a guide) and often consider the approach akin to "leading" the target. I don't fight the wind, just work with it. Often not much of a cast, but more like a whip or a flip - drift the fly(s) downstream, let current load the line, lift the line off the water, and send the train upstream with the wind toward the target. Side-arm cast works great. Aren't most people drifting nymphs or streamers in windy conditions anyway?
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I will use a heavier rod and even heavier line, usually a weight or two above what's specified for the rod. Seems to work well.
On the flats, I stop my rod at 12 o'clock on the backcast. It helps me to tame the line and lessens the distance the rod has to travel forward into the wind.
Wind is the bane of my fishing existence. Here's my surefire way to beat the wind: Sit down, have a beer and wait it out! But seriously here's a little trick I've picked up. You can use the plane of water surface as a buffer. When wind blows it will follow the path of least resistence. When the wind hits the water and deflects, a soft wind cushion develops. I've found the stronger the wind the better the cushion (look for strong gusts on on water surface). Now even though I say this is a 'trick' it still takes quite a bit of time to develop accuracy. Once you locate the head wind gust and have the length of line needed out, pretend you are snapping a towel but backwards (bring your rod hand into your body as opposed to away, like your skipping a stone). Bring your rod tip down sideways. Keep your rod tip no more than a foot above water. Like the previous post, you want to stop at 12o'clock on the back cast and just a bit further on the front cast (no more than twice or you will lose your loop). When you snap the rod forward the loop you have created in the false cast before the side-snap will tighten but keep the force load and a vertical trajectory like a roll cast. Now as the line shoots forward the 'air cushion' will hold up your line at a low profile against the wind for just a brief moment but that is more than enough time for your line to get out. Once the line is about 3/4 out the gust will slap the line closer to your rod tip down on the water and work its way to your leader ensuring a straight line that will not blow off course. This does take practice but you will reap the benefits (at least an extra 10ft if done right). Note: If you are in a situation where the wind is creating a good chop, wind will shoot off the crest of the waves which you can also use to 'cushion' your line.
I find moving up a few rod sizes helps cut the wind. A good WF line and fast action rod also come in handy. Cannot say I change a whole lot of casting mechanics but I do switch hands when the wind is coming from my casting arm.
I cast with the wind (never had a guide) and often consider the approach akin to "leading" the target. I don't fight the wind, just work with it. Often not much of a cast, but more like a whip or a flip - drift the fly(s) downstream, let current load the line, lift the line off the water, and send the train upstream with the wind toward the target. Side-arm cast works great. Aren't most people drifting nymphs or streamers in windy conditions anyway?
Post a Comment