IN taking a fly rod there are many different lengths - 7 foot, 8 foot, 9 foot, 10 foot and many in between. When fishing from a canoe what do you think is the best length for a rod?

I generally use 8.5-9'......preferring the 9'.....I've never used a 10' though.....

Mike

10' will be too heavy from a canoe in a 7 or 8wt. Not bad as a switch type rod for stream steelheading though.

If you are buying a rod and are spending a bit of dough, something like the sage 8wt bass rods, in 8' long is great. Overall though, 9' in a 7 or 8wt. would be best. 9' is the most versitile length by far. An 8' rod rated at 4 wt can be a sweet stream rod, but in canoe country you want a 7 or 8wt, and the 9' length is best for that use.

Moonman.

quote Moonman: "10' will be too heavy from a canoe in a 7 or 8wt. Not bad as a switch type rod for stream steelheading though.


If you are buying a rod and are spending a bit of dough, something like the sage 8wt bass rods, in 8' long is great. Overall though, 9' in a 7 or 8wt. would be best. 9' is the most versitile length by far. An 8' rod rated at 4 wt can be a sweet stream rod, but in canoe country you want a 7 or 8wt, and the 9' length is best for that use.


Moonman."

+1

I think a 8.5 - 9' rod is ideal. You need the extra length to help pick up your line while sitting in a canoe. Shorther than that, I have seen many struggle, and longer, well, its can becoem a bit unmanagable in a canoe.

9' is standard because it mostly works in a wide variety of conditions. So unless you have good reason for something else, stick with a 4-piece 9' rod. I use an 8-wt.

Shorter rods are easier to cast and the Sage bass rods (8') are easy to cast because they use very heavy line and don't require false casting. However, if you are a beginner and cannot haul line then you will be false casting that rod which is very inefficient. So unless you can lift up a good length of floating line and fire it with a single haul or double haul, then I would stick with a conventional 9' rod.

A longer rod can work great in a canoe. The extra length gets the line off the water and some people can cast farther while sitting using the longer rod. My friend uses a 9'6" rod with good results. I don't like the longer rod though because it wears down my casting arm. That extra 6 inches makes a big difference over a full day of false casting. Also, fish handling close to the canoe is a little more tricky with a longer rod.