4 habits of highly successful fly anglers

#1  PRACTISE YOUR CASTING

Almost every fly-fishing guide I’ve ever met has one wish—for anglers to practise casting before arriving on the water. We all get rusty, but it’s a shame to waste fishing time as you work out the kinks. Even a few 20-minute sessions on the lawn will do wonders, especially if you focus on accuracy and consistency, which are usually more important than distance. Just remember that actual fishing, with wind, trees and other complications, is always harder. So, you need to be good enough that even if your skills are diminished by on-the-water adversity, you’re still competent.

Legendary fly angler Flip Pallot has observed that a credit card will get you almost everything in fly fishing, except what matters most. Money can provide you with the finest gear, skilful guides and take you to the world’s best fishing destinations, but you can’t buy the last 40 feet. Only skill, developed over time, will put the fly in front of the fish. So that last 40 feet is the true measure of what you’re willing to invest.