Learn to Shoot the Line When Fly Fishing

Video Transcript

"Hi! I’m Jim Dowd at zoaroutdoor.com. We are here for expertvillage.com, and this session is all about fly casting and what you need to know to sling it out there. I’m out here fishing this fly and I’ve made my retrieve, and I am bringing a line in, and I’ve just about finished my retrieve and the fly is in near. Now what do I do? Well, I want to get the fly back out there where the fish could be. What I need to do is shoot the line. So I start with the basic pick up and back cast and forward cast, just as I did with false casting in a 4 part cast. In order to shoot the line, I have to introduce the line hand and letting the line hand go. So I let the line go from my rod hand, I begin false casting, and each time I stop, I let go with the line hand. Just a little bit of line. So I add stop then shoot, stop then shoot. What I am doing is I am lengthening the line that I am casting. So I retrieved the line in, I lift, back cast and I shoot. Lift, stop, shoot. Lift, stop, shoot, stop shoot. That shooting line. All you need to do is remember that you stop with your thumbnail pointed up on the forward, 45 degrees on the forward cast, and release and you can shoot all that line after the stop. Stop, release. So shooting line is a very simple thing to do. Make your back cast and release after you stop the line on your forward cast. Stop, release. "