With the growing interest these days in fly fishing — especially in saltwater — I thought I’d have a close look at one of the more readily available estuarine and inshore species, and one that represents an ideal starting point for a bit of “swoffing”. That fish is the humble flathead. But first, a few thoughts on fly-fishing in general: WHAT IS FLY FISHING? Fly-fishing has a reputation for being a mysterious and difficult art, mostly practiced by crusty, pipe-smoking old toffs in tweed jackets resplendent with leather elbow patches… But the times have indeed changed! These days, fly-fishing has largely been de-mystified, and it’s also no longer solely about catching trout… nor even fishing only in freshwater. The biggest trick to breaking down any remaining misconceptions surrounding fly fishing is to accept that it’s really no more than a specialised form of lure fishing, in which the “lure” is too light or too wind resistant to be cast any serious distance using conventional spinning or baitcaster tackle… Simple as that! Flies are just artificial baits, exactly like any other lure. However, being made from fur, fibres, tinsel and feathers lashed to a hook with thread, they’re virtually weightless. This presents a challenge from the casting perspective. Through the centuries, that challenge has been overcome by incorporating the necessary casting weight into the line instead of the lure. So, a fly line is effectively no more or less than a long, skinny sinker or float! Its weight or mass is used to deliver that lightweight lure to a fish. The best way to throw such a long, skinny casting weight is to swish it back and forth through the air in order to form a travelling loop that can be extended and then unfurled...

For many years, the lightest fly rods I owned were #5 weights. It’s only in the last few seasons that I’ve added a couple of #4s to my arsenal, specifically for smaller water trout work and ultra-light saltwater shenanigans on the likes of mullet and garfish. But I had to admit that there were times when I lusted after an even lighter “twig”, especially to wave at wee trout in tight streams. During my last visit to Tasmania I spent a couple of enjoyable creek sessions throwing minuscule dries off a diminutive #2 or #3 weight (to be honest, I can’t remember exactly which weight, nor what brand it was). This rod came from the collection of affable fishing guide, Roger Butler of Red Tag Trout Tours. Once I got my head around using this soft, short little noodle of a rod (it was just under the 7 foot mark, from memory), I really enjoyed it. Much to Roger’s amusement, I continued to disparagingly refer to that particular twig as “Arthur Rod” (as in “half-a rod”), but he had trouble prying it out of my grip at the end of the day… There’s something about these super light sticks that makes you grin. Recently, I was fortunate enough to be able to borrow a #3-weight Airflo Creek Series rod from David Anderson of twigwater.com (a wonderful on-line resource for those smitten with the featherweight fly bug). David reviewed this delightful little 7′ 6″ rod here on his Twigwater site, and he has done a much better job of describing it than I could ever hope to. I strongly urge you to not only read that review and check out the rest of the site, but also to subscribe to David’s free monthly newsletter, and...

Source: Fix.com

For those who missed it. I’ve attached my recent feature on catching big bream on flies from “Barra, Bass & Bream Digest” magazine. And in case the text from the magazine layouts is too small to read on your screen or in this format, I’ve also included the straight text at the bottom of this blog post. Also, if you’d like to find out how to purchase or subscribe to “Barra, Bass & Bream” on-line, go to: http://www.nafa.com.au/ Big Bream On Fly The Ultimate Challenge? What’s the ultimate prize in modern day barra, bass and bream fishing? Catching a metre-plus ’mundi on a surface lure and light tackle? Landing a 60 cm wild bass from a kayak? Pulling a 2 kg bream onto a wave-washed rock ledge in the middle of the night? Starlo rates all of those milestones, but reckons there’s another one that presents even more of a challenge. In his opinion, mastering big bream on fly is the toughest (and perhaps the most rewarding) game in town… Read on and see if you agree! The average, weekend angler no doubt struggles to understand why some of us might actually choose to make our fishing any harder than it needs to be. For many hopefuls, simply catching a feed of fish is a daunting enough prospect, without deliberately adding extra layers of difficulty to the process. Yet, as with any endeavour, those who are seriously engrossed in their passion and spend a lot of time pursuing it eventually look for extra layers of challenge: new peaks to scale and higher marks to attain. In preparing to write this feature, I spent considerable time pondering the bigger challenges fishing has presented me with over the years. In my late teens and early 20s,...