I've been intrigued by fly-fishing for some time. How do you suggest getting started? Lessons? Guided trips? Books? Just go to the Northshore rivers and hope for a steelhead?

Thanks!

If I were starting out fly fishing I would target Smallmouth Bass or Pan fish. I learned by taking a class a long time ago. Many books and magazines. I also tied flies for many years, teaching me what the flies represent in the wild. Cabela's has some great starter rod/reel combo's. If you do get a fly rod go out to a park and practice casting without a fly on, just the line to get the hang of it. Then when you think you know how to cast put a fly on. If after a few casts you still have a fly on you might have it down. That cracking sound is like a bull whip. The line is moving so fast at the end of the leader. All the energy is being transmitted to the tiny knot holding on the fly. Have fun learning.

I started with a simple 5-6 wt. rod cheap reel and weight forward floating line. Fished local ponds and lakes for bluegills, WHAT A BLAST!
Just like paddling a canoe, it can be technical or as simple as you desire. I have been primarily flyfishing for 15 years and still don't know what X tippet/leader I am using, but I hand tie my own leaders for panfish, bass, and pike from Trilene (according to leader recipes found in books), and manage to have fun and catch fish.

butthead

Welcome to the dark side! I started fly fishing about 10 years ago, and now I don't think I have used my spinning gear more than a few times since!

If you are planning a BWCA trip, I would encourage you to get a minimium of a 5wt but preferably a 7wt. A 5 will work for a majority of the fish you catch, but a 7 is nice if you hook into a large smallie or northern. And it allows you to be able to handle some of the large bass bugs. I would also encourage a longer rod, as it makes it a bit easier to pick up the line when fishing out of a canoe.

I would also encourage you to take a casting class if possible, so that you don't develop bad habits in your casting. Take it from me, bad habits are hard to correct! Good Luck!

Here's what I'd suggest. Your learning curve will be quicker if you have a buddy or know someone in a shop who can give you some good intro pointers, with no BS. Fly fishing can get expensive real fast, you don't have to break the bank to have success and enjoy it. Read everything you can. In terms of gear, the most important thing by far will be the rod, then the line, then the reel. If you get a low quality rod, you will have difficulty throwing longer casts and dealing with the wind. Note I didn't say cheap - cheap can be okay!. Sometimes deals can be had and some entry level rods are actually quite good. You want something that has a medium action upper section, with a stronger stiffer butt section. Don't go for a super fast action rod, even if you can afford it. When you are learning, you want to feel the rod load on the cast (the bend in the rod the line makes), because this will give you feedback as to what you can change, cast wise, to improve your casting. A lesson would be invaluable to speed you up to proficiency, but it is not needed if you are serious and work at it. I would bet most people who have fly fished for years have never taken a lesson. Still with a lesson, you will learn and get better faster. In terms of line, the good stuff is expensive and sometimes shocks spin fishermen at their cost. It is worth it but you can pay 75.00 (or even $100.00)so might be more expensive than your reel!. If you can swing it, scientific anglers mastery lines are the best in my opinion. For the boundary waters, I'd suggest their Bass Bug taper. The best line deal, quality/price in my opinion is the Scientific Anglers Supra line. About 45.00 bucks, good slick coating, not bad overall. Reels don't matter much. A good disc drag is nice, especially if chasing steelies but really, a good click pawl drag will do the trick, especially on a beginner set up. A great reel for relatively low cost would be the Okuma SLV series. Really smooth, light and between $60-75.00. If you have the cash, my favorite reel is the Lamson Velocity. not the most expensive but not cheap either. If you are starting mainly on lakes, Boundary waters type fishing, I would definitely recommend a 7 or 8 weight. personally I'd take the 8wt but if also doing trout in streams, get the 7 (or an 8 and a 5 or 6 if you can afford it). For flies, lots of info on this Board and elsewhere on the net. As with all fishing, presentation is usually more important than the lure, or fly. Think of using the same approach you'd use with spinning gear, just using flies. Deer hair poppers replace Pop R's and jitterbugs, Clousers replace jigs, Deceivers replace rapalas and so on. You will love it. Seeing your deer hair bug sit on a calm wilderness lake, then disappear in an explosion is just awesome. A big smallie or pike on a fly rod, kicks butt.

Moonman.

I do not know where you live or what you might be close to, but if you are near an Orvis store, they give free casting lessons (Fly Fishing 101). You can find more at orvis.com.

Thsnks for all the advice. I picked up the Orvis guide to fly-fishing at Gander yesterday. There's a lot of information. There's a fly shop in Blaine MN that offers casting classes that I'll go to once it gets a little warmer. I'm anxious to just get out there and give it a try. I have a feeling the book will mean a lot more once I do.

Great advice though. Thanks again!

-Nick

One thought is to find the nearest trout unlimited group and join. Most of them are likely fly fisherman. There is nothing old fly fisherman like to do more than coaching a newbie.

Get some dvd's on casting starting with the Lefty Kreh video. Many youtube videos are available.

Believe it or not, the little Echo $35 practice casting rod is helpful for getting the feel and timing.

I agree with others to first spend the most money on premium fly line. I would not bother with double tapered line. Get a bass taper or something like Rio Clouser line.

Pinch your barbs, wear a hat, and wear glasses. Start with a 6 wt if you are thinking of smallies, although I prefer an 8wt out of a canoe.

Prepare to be humiliated. I gave up in disgust many times trying to teach myself several times. Somehow I had the idea that I could throw pike flies in the wind with a 5 weight on a Canada trip. I was back to the spinning gear.

Try to go fishing with someone who knows what he is doing. Watching a nice loop unfurl, the deer hair popper drops silently next to structure, pause, twitch,...blow up. You will be hooked.