What is Fly Fishing?

Series Summary

Modern fly fishing is centuries old, having begun in North England and Scotland; however, the history of fly fishing can be traced back over one thousand, eight hundred years to the now mysterious Astraeus River in the Roman Province of Macedonia. In the 2nd Century A.D., Marcus Aelianus described Macedonian fishermen's use of fastening feathers and wool to hooks to attract fish to their lines. Fly fisherman today continue the adventurous yet relaxing sport of fly fishing in some of the most beautiful and tranquil places on earth, casting their flies in waterways of the Colorado Rockies where all that is heard is the flowing stream and soft breeze in the aspens. Would you like to learn how to fly fish and vacation in peaceful places casting your line in clean mountain streams? Learn from a certified fishing guide.

In this free online video series learn how to fly fish from expert fly fisherman Alvin Dedeaux. Learn fly fishing tips and techniques such as what equipment is needed, how to setup the reel, how to attach the tippet to the leader, how to attach the fly to the leader or tippet, how to cast, how to strip in, how to fly fish in technically difficult areas, how to reel in a fish and revive it in a catch and release area.

Video Transcript

"ALVIN DEDEAUX: Okay, so people ask all the time, what is fly fishing? And basically, fly fishing is using the weighted line to deliver a basically weighted--weightless fly, and fly fishing is actually one of the oldest forms of fishing. The fly fishing equipment has been around much longer than any other modern type of fishing equipment with the mechanical reels and the monofilament line. Those are all fairly modern inventions. Nobody is really sure of the origins of fly fishing, but they're pretty sure it's been around at least since the 1400s, maybe even sooner. They used bamboo rods back then. Now, we use graphite rods, and they used catgut for the actual fly line and leader. Actually, silk was used for fly lines for a long time and they used catgut for leaders. Now of course, we're using these modern plastics and monofilaments, but it's a very ancient form of fishing. So it's something that's been around for a long time, and it's really hasn't changed a whole lot since its very beginnings."