Question:
Any suggestions on Rod, Reel, line and anything else that I need to get started
would be greatly appreciated. I've looked at Orvis equipment - one of the guys
I was fishing with was the Manager of their store near Philly where I lived.
Answer:
You will probably need separate outfits for the different fishing you
mention, unless you live somewhere with enormous trout and pitiful stripers.
No stripers in my area, but I can give you some tips on trout gear.
Rod: IMHO, there are a lot of really good affordable rods out there, you
don't need to spend a ton of money on your first one. Take a casting class
so you have some basis to judge what casts well, then pick out a <$100 rod
after test casting it. (Any real fly shop will let you test cast a number of
rods to help make your decision.) This will be your workaday rod that you
will still have use for after you have become a hopeless addict and taken
out a second mortgage to fill your closet with pricier gear. I have such a
closet, with more >$500 rods than I care to think about, and I can tell you
that I have cast $80 rods that I preferred to some very rarified graphite
that's out there.
For most trout, a 4 or 5-weight rod in about 9 or 9.5 ft length is a good
choice. I fish a 3-weight a lot because I live in an area with more 10"
trout than lunkers, but when I am going somewhere with chances for fish up
to a couple of pounds, the 4 or 5 are much better. Again, depending on the
size of the stripers you are looking at, you will likely need a separate,
heavier rod for those. Ask someone at a shop that caters to striper fishing
in the areas you will hit.
Reel: Ditto for trout reels, many of the folks here with $400 Abels in their
bags probably still have an old $23 Pflueger stashed away too, and that will
do you. And extra reels are cheap. I have also seen some other
recommendations here for inexpensive trout reels, so if someone tells you
the Pfleugers aren't made anymore, or aren't what they used to be, go with
their suggestion if they have one. (Fishing in the salt, you probably want
to get something more corrosion resistant, expect to pay from $100 to
$ridiculous, with a whole bunch of excellent choices in the $250-$500 range
depending on size.
Line: This is where you can afford to buy the best, and can't afford not to.
A lot of shops will put people into a "double taper," which theoretically is
a bargain because you can turn it around when one end wears out, or some
such thing. I strongly recommend getting a weight forward line of some kind.
I have been using Wulff Triangle Tapers for years, which have a unique shape
with some advantages, but any really good weight forward should serve you
well and make casting a lot easier than a double taper when you are first
learning. Expect to spend $40-$50 for a top of the line line. It's worth it.
Oh, and of course, make sure the weight of the line matches the weight of
the rod. Any shop you go to would not let you out the door with a mismatch,
anyway.
But by all means, take a weekend's worth of casting lessons from someone who
is a certified teacher. A general fly fishing class is probably well worth
it too, but two solid days dedicated to casting will pay dividends
immediately and for years to come.
