What Salmon line to use?

[simon-s]

Hi All,

 

I have been fly fishing for trout for about a year now and have been given the opportunity to go salmon fishing at Helmsdale, Scotland around the start of next year.

 

I have started to kit myself out with a 13ft Shakespeare Oracal IV rod and a shakespeare Condex 4 salmon reel but I am stuck when it comes to choosing a suitable salmon fly line.

 

I have been told that fishing in mid-january, I should be using a sinking line...but aside from that I have no clue.

 

Could anyone suggest a good fly line for a salmon fishing novice? (I don't want to be spending over £40 really)

 

Also is there any other vital piece of kit that I need for salmon fishing apart from stronger tippet?

 

I am also wondering if I should be practicing my cast in the garden before I as the Salmon fishing cast looks very different to my normal fly cast when fishing for trout?

 

Any help would be appreciated.

 

Thanks,

 

Simon

[Worms]

I would pick a line that suits the weight of the rod, it should be marked somewhere. As for floating, intermediate or sinking then it depends on the water at the time. Low and clear? Thick and fast? Unfortunately it's a bit of a lottery and the best way to have the right tackle on the right day on a given water is to buy it before you start fishing. You can bet your boots though, that for the following fortnight it'll piddle down and you'll need to change your line/tactics.

 

As for practising, yes, do lots. Read the books, check the internet youtube sites and, unless you've got a huge garden then go to the nearest playing fields with a cheap hula hoop from the nearest pound shop and learn to cast into that when it's calm, then build up to windy days........You know really that the first trip you have that it's going to be blowing a gale, the river is going to be 2 feet above normal and the colour of oxtail soup! Practice, practice, practice. A size 14 trout hook in the arm of your jacket is inconvenient, a size 2 salmon hook in the back of the neck is significantly more so!

 

Tightlines and get reading

[simon-s]

I would pick a line that suits the weight of the rod, it should be marked somewhere. As for floating, intermediate or sinking then it depends on the water at the time. Low and clear? Thick and fast? Unfortunately it's a bit of a lottery and the best way to have the right tackle on the right day on a given water is to buy it before you start fishing. You can bet your boots though, that for the following fortnight it'll piddle down and you'll need to change your line/tactics.

 

As for practising, yes, do lots. Read the books, check the internet youtube sites and, unless you've got a huge garden then go to the nearest playing fields with a cheap hula hoop from the nearest pound shop and learn to cast into that when it's calm, then build up to windy days........You know really that the first trip you have that it's going to be blowing a gale, the river is going to be 2 feet above normal and the colour of oxtail soup! Practice, practice, practice. A size 14 trout hook in the arm of your jacket is inconvenient, a size 2 salmon hook in the back of the neck is significantly more so!

 

Tightlines and get reading

 

Thanks for the advise. Thats a really good point about the casting practice...I really dont fancy a salmon hook in the back of my neck.

 

Looks like I'm going to be down at the local park casting away over xmas.

 

Cheers

[Richard!]

Hello people, I wonder if you can help me with this one....

 

I recently bought a Hardy "The Glaskone fly" 8ft trout rod at my local auction.

 

Unfortunately I don't know anything about the road and I can't seem to find out much about it on the internet either!

 

Can anyone help me with information about the rod such as age etc?? Value?

 

Thankyou!

[Hakai]

Hi All,

 

I have been fly fishing for trout for about a year now and have been given the opportunity to go salmon fishing at Helmsdale, Scotland around the start of next year.

 

I have started to kit myself out with a 13ft Shakespeare Oracal IV rod and a shakespeare Condex 4 salmon reel but I am stuck when it comes to choosing a suitable salmon fly line.

 

I have been told that fishing in mid-january, I should be using a sinking line...but aside from that I have no clue.

 

Could anyone suggest a good fly line for a salmon fishing novice? (I don't want to be spending over £40 really)

 

Also is there any other vital piece of kit that I need for salmon fishing apart from stronger tippet?

 

I am also wondering if I should be practicing my cast in the garden before I as the Salmon fishing cast looks very different to my normal fly cast when fishing for trout?

 

Any help would be appreciated.

 

Thanks,

 

Simon

A good line for different conditions would be the rio versitip ! I use this line on my 9 wt for salmon,steelhead and monster trout in both rivers and lakes. It comes with 4 15' sink tips that will cover just about any conditions you may encounter. Here in Canada the cost for the complete setup is around $140 cdn. Or you can purchase the tips individually in 5 ft, 10 ft or 15 ft lengths, prices ranging from $4.50 to $10 cdn depending on the length of the tip . If the tips are not for you, go with a fast sink line.(Say 8 to 11 inches per second) And use a countdown till you think your in the zone! As far as a vital piece of kit that you need for salmon fishing. IMHO would be the drag on your reel ! I'm not sure of how big of salmon you may encounter while fishing? But in the rivers and off the beaches here where I chuck flys for salmon,its not unheard of to hook into a 60 pounder. That makes large arbour reels with lots of backing and a strong drag, imparitive to bringing them to hand ! Whatever you decide on, I wish you the best of luck !