Finish Cast
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How to: Finish/Cast Off on a Loom Knifty Knitter
Long Distance Fly Casting Techniques
To be able to fly cast 80 feet or not. Does it matter?
No, argue many dry fly anglers. After all, since we fight drag by having slack line on the water, we can't mend or set the hook with 80 feet of line out.
But wait, insist streamer anglers. Since we feel strikes by having tight line on the water, we can set the hook with 80 feet of line out.
Well, like they say: there are two sides to every argument.
And sometimes a third or fourth.
Consider this scenario: You're fishing a fast, rocky river, so instead of wading you're making long casts. But you keep missing your targets. And even though it's the first day of your fishing trip, you're already exhausted.
Is there any way around these problems?
I'll answer the question this way: you show me an angler who can cast 80 or 90 feet,and I'll show you an angler who can accurately and almost effortlessly cast 50 or 60 feet.
And so for many frustrating and often discouraging years I experimented with long-distance, fly-casting techniques. Now that I have dramatically increased my casting distance, I'd like to share those techniques with you.
Before I begin, let me say I'm well aware of Lefty Kreh's way of long distance fly casting. (A right-handed caster puts his right foot well behind his left.) My purpose is not to compete with
Lefty's or any other way, but simply to describe another. In the end, I believe each caster should experiment with as many techniques as possible and see what works for him.
I believe, however, that the casting method I describe will allow anglers to dramatically change casting trajectories, which is often very useful, for example, if we want to make a high back cast to avoid a bush.
GETTING STARTED. I prefer to use a short piece of string or yarn for a fly. A long 9-foot leader will help reveal some of our casting defects. During each practice, I like to focus on one technique and not worry about putting all the techniques together until I feel I've become good with each one.
THE OPEN STANCE. (For purposes of instruction, I'll assume we're right-handed.) Start with our feet about shoulder-width apart, a little closer for more power, a little wider for better balance. If we're casting vertically, we'll put our left foot forward about eight inches and point it at the target. We'll point our right foot about 30 degrees to the right of the target. If we're casting with our rod pointed outward—somewhere between vertical and sidearm—we'll point
both feet a little more outward. With our shoulders facing the target, we bend our knees and put our weight on the ball of our front foot. To make a long-line pickup, we bend forward and hold the line just behind the stripping guide. We point the rod at the water, with the rod tip about an inch above the surface.
THE CLOSED STANCE I believe there is nothing wrong with using an open stance. In fact, an open stance will make it easier for us to look over our casting shoulder and watch our back cast unroll—something that I believe is essential for executing a long distance fly cast. I also believe, however, that when we cast a fly rod, unlike when we throw a ball, we don't bend at the waist to generate leverage and power. Instead, we rotate our hips as much as possible, like a batter hitting a ball or a boxer throwing a punch. If my left foot is forward, I will not be able to fully rotate my hips and get all my weight into the cast. Therefore, I often prefer to use a closed stance and place most of my right foot in front of my left. At first, this will probably feel awkward for many casters, but with time, I believe it will become more comfortable.
THE GRIP. We start by holding the rod lightly, then tightening our grip as we increase our casting acceleration. I prefer to slightly bend my thumb and place it directly on top of the handle. Other casters, however, place their thumb slightly on the side of the handle. This is often called a V-Grip.
LONG-CAST SEQUENCE. As a general rule, casting slightly upward will help keep our loops
tight; so, if there is no head or tail wind, we aim our first back cast upward about 30 degrees. We then aim our next false casts and our presentation cast at a slightly lower angle or even parallel to the water. (Aiming our presentation cast too high, especially if we're casting a long-belly line, will cause the belly to pull our cast down and kill it.)
For maximum distance, our back and forward cast must form a straight line (180 degrees). If we're casting weighted flies or sinking lines, we aim our false casts upward about 20 degrees. And remember: We apply maximum force (by reaching maximum acceleration) only at the end of our presentation cast.
However, at least four basic casting defects will cause our cast to lose power and therefore change our intended trajectory: 1. Starting our cast after, or well before, our cast has unrolled and, thereby, in effect, shortening our casting stroke. 2. Accelerating our back-cast haul too slowly. (Because there is no back-cast wrist snap, our hauling acceleration should be faster on our back casts than on our forward casts.) 3. False casting, especially a weighted fly,
too hard for the length of the line we have out. (When the line unrolls it will snap like a rubber band and create slack) 4. Shooting line without increasing the acceleration of our casting stroke and our haul. 5. Our back and forward casts form an angle greater than 180 degrees, and we therefore lowered the rod tip from the target line. As a result, our fly rod unloaded too early.
ANGLE OF THE ROD. Some casters argue the vertical cast is the most efficient. Others disagree and cast with the rod tip pointed outward. Besides, they say, this is a safer way to fish that makes it easier—especially for us older guys—to turn our heads, and watch the back cast unroll without turning our shoulders and then inadvertently moving the rod. Maybe so, but the important point is: If our cast is not under powered, and if we do not move our rod hand in a convex motion and lower the rod tip from the target line, the fly will not hit us or
the rod. The following casting defects will cause us to move our hand in a convex motion: 1. Pulling our elbow back. (Our elbow should move back because of our rearward body rotation. To me, making a back cast is more of a flexing up motion than a pulling back.) 2. Beginning our forward cast with our elbow behind our rod hand. (We always want to lead with our elbow.) 3. Breaking our wrist more than halfway during our forward-cast power snap. (To prevent this, try to pretend you're hammering a nail.) 4. Lowering, instead of just rotating,
our shoulders. 5. Stopping the rod too late. (This sometimes happens because we started our weight shift before we started our casting stroke, or because we quickly accelerated our back cast, but didn't abruptly stop the rod with a slight upward, stabbing motion.) 6. Beginning our cast with our rod hand too low for our intended trajectory. (For example: If you want to execute a cast parallel to the surface, you must finish your back and forward casts with your
rod hand at the same level.) 7. Casting with our elbow too far out from our body. 8. Using an open stance but having our right foot too far back or pointing too far outward.
In short, a lot can go wrong that can cause us to get hit with the fly. Besides, even the best casters make imperfect casts, so I recommend wearing sunglasses and a broad-brimmed hat, and casting heavy flies and sinking lines with the rod tip pointing out to the side.
To simplify my descriptions, I'll assume we're casting vertically. (If you're casting with the tip pointing out, adjust your rod-hand position more outward and less upward.)
BACK CAST. First, remove all slack from the line. Aiming upward, we slowly start our cast by slightly lifting our elbow, and moving the rod in sync with our rearward body rotation. Slowly, we tighten our grip. When the rod butt reaches 12 o'clock to the target line, we quickly increase our acceleration—I call this my power acceleration—and execute our downward
haul. (More about hauling later.) For maximum power, I like to keep looking straight ahead. When the fly comes off the water, we squeeze the handle and abruptly stop the butt at about 1 o'clock. Our forearm points to 12 o'clock. Our weight should be on our rear heel.
We ease up on our grip, and turn our head and watch the cast unroll. If we stopped the
rod by stabbing it upward, we lower our rod hand to casting-level. (Some casters feel they increase their power by rotating their forearm and palm outward during their back cast so that they can then execute their forward power snap with a sharp twisting motion.)
Now we make our forward false cast. Because we probably won't be able to accelerate
our false back casts as fast as we accelerate our false forward casts, I like to begin my false back cast when my forward loop is about two or three feet long. This will prevent my forward cast from unrolling and then bouncing or falling.
We aim our second back cast a little lower, but again we stop the rod butt at about 1 o'clock to the (new) target line. If we're casting vertically, our casting elbow should point outward at an angle of about 45 degrees to the target. Our wrist should be at about eye-level.
If our loop turns sideways or swings open, we moved the rod in a curving motion or pulled our elbow out and back during our back cast.
HAULS AND DRIFTS. First, to keep the line from tangling during the haul, we pull off about 3 feet of line from the reel.
The more line we're false casting, the faster and longer we have to haul to keep our casting loops tight. To do this, we usually execute our haul faster than our cast.
If we're casting a weight-forward line, we begin hauling when most of the belly of the line is outside the rod tip. During our back cast loading move, we keep our hands at the same level. When the rod butt points to about 12 o'clock, we begin our power acceleration and our downward back-cast haul. On most back cast hauls we haul at an angle of about 60 degrees to the water. We stop our cast and haul at the same time. Our line hand will be at about 8 o'clock. If we're false casting more line, we want to increase the length of our haul (as well as our casting stroke.). To do this, we haul at a steeper angle. Also, just before we finish our haul, we generate additional power by snapping our line hand down.
Immediately, we begin our upward haul, giving back line at the same speed it is unrolling.
(If we still add slack, we probably stopped our downward haul too late, or our cast was underpowered.) Do not prematurely move the rod tip back! (You'll add slack.) When the fly passes us, we turn our head, but not our shoulders, and watch the line unroll. Next, we move our line hand up to, but not past, our rod hand.
Not moving our line hand up far enough may cause us to then begin our forward cast by moving our rod hand before or faster than we move our line hand. Because this will add slack between our hands, we won't be able to fully load the rod, and our cast, therefore, might collapse. And remember: The stronger the wind we are casting into, the shorter, but faster we have to haul.
At the end of our forward false cast haul, our hand, depending on how much line we're false casting, will point to between 8 and 6 o'clock. To make a long presentation cast, we can add a drift move after our last back cast. That way, we'll increase the length of our forward casting stroke. We can execute a drift move in two different ways. The first way is to we keep our
wrist stiff, our elbow in place and our shoulders level, and wait until our back cast has unrolled about three-quarters of the way; then we move our foreman back to about 12:30, and slightly break our wrist down and point the rod lower, to about 2 o'clock.
However, at least five casting defects will cause us to add slack during this drift move: 1. Drifting too fast or too far. 2. Not hauling fast or far enough. (Our cast will be underpowered.) 3. Beginning a cast after the false cast has unrolled. 4. Stopping our downward haul too late, so that we then have to execute our upward haul faster than the line is unrolling. 5. False casting too much line.
(When false casting, unless I'm trying to change trajectories, I do not drift and therefore reduce the risk of adding slack.)
The second way of drifting is to instead move the rod back so that the tip travels along the path of the target line. We then begin our forward cast by leading with our elbow and moving our casting arm forward before we begin to rotate our body. (Our arm will catch up to our body.)
On our presentation cast, we haul as hard as possible and concentrate on stopping the rod and letting go of the line at the same time. (Momentum should force our hauling hand well behind our front thigh.)
To make an effective back-cast haul, I find it helpful to visualize a loose rope connecting my rod and line hands. When I stop my rod, I imagine the rope snapping tight and stopping my hands.
Finally, to me the secret of becoming a really good hauler is to practice throwing a ball left-handed.
FORWARD AND PRESENTATION CASTS. When making a long cast we should start it before the back cast loop opens. (The heavier my fly or the faster my line is unrolling, the earlier I begin my cast.) To start our forward false cast, we keep looking over our rear shoulder and push off our back foot. With our wrist locked, we begin our forward cast in sync with our body rotation. (Watching our rod hand during the cast will help prevent our casting arm from getting ahead of our rotating body.) Move the rod butt perpendicular to the target line. When our casting arm is extended at about halfway, we begin our power snap and haul, and then abruptly stop the rod and our haul when the rod butt points to about 10:30. We
ease up on our grip. Our right shoulder should be slightly ahead of our left. Our weight should be on the ball of our front foot.
If we want to finish our forward false cast in position to increase the length and power of our back cast we can: 1. Speed up our forward false cast—if we get a tailing loop we should slow down our haul— and end our cast with our weight on our toes and with our right shoulder well ahead of our left. 2. Execute our cast parallel to the water so that we'll begin our back cast with our rod in a lower position. 3. Add a drift move by slightly lowering the rod tip.
As soon as we finish the cast, we can shoot up to eight feet of line. (As the line slides through our curled fingers, we keep moving our line hand up so that we'll be able to reach our rod hand before the cast unrolls.)
To make a long presentation cast, we begin with the rod drifted back, and then push off our back foot. Again, we move the rod butt perpendicular to the target line. When our arm is extended about three-quarters, we execute our power snap and haul. Reaching maximum casting acceleration, we fully rotate our body and fully extend our casting arm. We again stop the rod when the butt points to about 10:30. Our front leg should now be straight, and all our weight on our front toes.
To reduce friction between the line and the guides, we immediately raise the rod butt, so that the rod points to the target line. Do not lower the rod tip from the target line!
Finally, if we do everything right, but we still can't get the fly to turn over, try lowering our casting trajectory, or by beginning the cast with a little less line off the reel than we want to cast.(When the cast unrolls, line tension will help the fly turnover.)
ROLL CASTS. To increase our distance, we start the cast just before the fly stops moving and slack forms in our D-loop. Also, we can use a short single (downward) haul, or we can hold the line against the bottom of the rod handle, then let go when we stop the cast.
OVERHANG. Overhang is the amount of running line between the rod tip and the belly of the
line. As we increase our overhang, we must also increase the acceleration and length of our casting stroke and haul.
If we use too long of an overhang, our cast will be underpowered, and our loop will not turn over. If we use too short of an overhang, we'll probably get a tailing loop. We should, therefore, experiment to find the longest overhang we can handle. Keep in mind that the more long false casts we make, the more we risk adding slack; so once the belly of our line is outside the rod tip, we should try to make our presentation cast after our second back cast.
To increase our overhang, we can try: 1. A heavier, stiffer rod. 2. A fly line one weight lighter than our rod. 3. Shooting line as our last back cast unrolls. If we're casting a shooting line, however, we'll probably have to shorten our overhang.
HOW MUCH LINE DID I SHOOT? To answer this question, I use the counting method. For
example, if I fully accelerate my casting stroke, and then I shoot line for as long as it takes me to count to 3, I know I shot almost 10 feet of line.
TAILING LOOPS. Some common causes are: 1. The rod tip is moved in a concave path because too much force is used too early in the casting stroke. 2. The casting stroke is too narrow for the action (bend) of the rod. 3. Executing a presentation cast with too short of an overhang. 4. Beginning our downward haul too early or quickly.
WEIGHTED FLIES. If we use the same casting and haul acceleration as we use with lighter
flies, our loops will open up. Many casters prefer this, as they feel a wide loop will help prevent the fly from hitting the rod tip. I believe, however, if a cast is executed correctly, it will not hit the rod tip; so, for maximum distance, I actually increase my casting and hauling acceleration. How much do I increase my acceleration? To me, the answer is as much as possible as long as my fly doesn't bounce at the end of the cast.
(To me, finding that "sweet acceleration" is the biggest challenge to casting heavy flies.)
Also, I'll use shorter leaders and a shorter casting stroke. If my loops are still too wide, I'll then shorten my overhang.
Remember: At high speeds, weighted flies, if they hit your rod tip, can break it. To fish
below the surface, therefore, I like to use lighter flies and sinking lines.
IF YOU DECIDE. Whether it is necessary to learn to cast 80 or even 90 feet and endure hours and hours of casting trials and tribulations is up to you.
But if you decide it is, try not to get discouraged. Long-distance fly casting, like hitting a good tee shot, is a lot harder than it looks. Luckily, however, studies have shown that frequently visualizing proper athletic techniques is often more effective than practicing them.
For us older guys, isn't that something to be grateful about!?
About the Author
I'm a native New Yorker. My writing has appeared in many publications, including The Flyfisher, Flyfishing & Tying Journal and Fishing And Hunting News. I'm also the author of the historical novel, The Fly Caster Who Tried To Make Peace With the World.
Much of my writing is about the techniques of spin and fly casting and about the spirituality/recovery of fly fishing. I often fish the streams of Westchester, the piers of New York City and the lakes of Central Park.
