Returning to FF and still a Noob

[Shawn McCurry]

I got into FF after Iraq and moved to Maine. I was looking for recommendations as I was looking to get two rods as I get set for the area. I was considering an 8 wt for the Belvoir area and then ... A 5 wt for the blue ridge area. Would that be about right?

[Lane Thurgood]

My last reply (from my phone) ended up in a new thread.  Sorry about that.

I'd say an 8-weight and 4-weight make the perfect two rod set in this area.  I have every line weight from 2- to 10-, but do the vast, vast majority of my fishing with a 9' 8-weight and an 8' 4-weight.  I use the 8-weight for almost everything on the Potomac and I take it on every trip on the Bay, too, half the time accompanied by a 9-weight if the winds are heavier and the other half accompanied by a 7- if the winds are lighter.

You can certainly use a 5-weight in the brook trout streams, but I think in a short time, you would want something lighter.  The 4- is the perfect blend (for me) for the trout fishing I do.  

Happy to talk more off-line if you're interested.  (thur...@yahoo.com)

[Jeffrey Silvan]

Personally, I rarely throw anything other than a 7wt in this area, but for the brook trout streams, I'll throw a 7'6" 3wt. I use the 3wt on the Gunpowder too. If you're hitting somewhere like Mossy where you'll have a chance at hooking into something bigger, you'll probably feel undergunned with a 3wt though. 

The biggest thing to remember about selecting a rod weight is that, within reason, you want to size it for conditions and the fly rather than the fish. If you're used to conventional tackle, think about the bass anglers that have their very light set ups all the way to the big boom sticks for throwing heavy lures into heavy cover. Of course throwing a rod that's significantly undersized for the size of the fish can prolong the fight and risk the fish's health if you don't know how to properly use your rod to fight a fish. If you think you're going to be throwing lots of heavy flies for smallies/largemouths or in windy conditions, it'll make your life easier to throw an 8wt. For the smaller rod, if you're only going to be hitting brook trout streams, you're fine with anything from really a 1 to a 4wt. If you're going to be fishing trout anywhere in the region with weighted streamers with consistency - particularly if there's big fish - you'll want the 4 or 5 weight. Heck, if I go to Mossy in high water conditions where I'm throwing big flies, I'll toss a 6wt.

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[Andrew Sarcinello]

I agree with this - I have this same setup, the 8 wt is new but will probably replace my cheap 6 wt.  The 6 was too light for shad last year. I used to use a 5 wt for all small stream stuff, but found the 4 greatly improved my dry fly presentation, and the mountain wild trout streams in the region are very dry fly friendly.