In a new article for beginners, Terry Lawton explains some of the fundamental aspects of fly fishing to help you catch that first fish. Every beginner wants to catch fish. And why not? Although beginners will soon find that there really is more to fly fishing than catching fish, we all want to catch that first fish, a most important step towards becoming a real angler.

New visitors to the site may not know the following quotation from Fly Fishing, Some New Arts and Mysteries by JC Mottram, but for regular visitors who receive our e-mail newsletter and know the quotation, it is still worth repeating.

"There is one great difference between running and still water which stands out above all others. In running water the fish is stationary, its food is brought to it, also the angler's fly. In still water the food is stationary, floating on the surface, and the fish wanders in search of it; so the angler's fly must be stationary, and it should be placed on the surface just where the wandering fish is most likely to come across it. There is, however, one exception: floating flies may be blown along the surface of the water, and the fish may remain in one place, taking them as they drift by."

What is the basic principle of fly fishing?

To fish with an artificial representation of some stage of a fly that is likely to be of interest to a trout as a food item. The purpose of this article is to help you catch your first fish. Every beginner wants to catch fish - or just one fish to start with! But to be able to catch fish reasonably consistently, you need to start to learn about a trout's habits and needs so that you have some idea of the most likely places to fish, and about a trout's food - flies, fry, other fish etc according to the season and weather conditions etc. As your knowledge increases you can start to think of yourself as an angler not simply a fish catcher.

In contrast to some methods of coarse fishing where the object is to cast a baited hook to a particular spot and to keep it there, flies - and their nymphs which is the stage of a fly before hatching - move. Some more or less than others. Some under their own steam, others drifting in the current. This fact would suggest that once you have cast your fly on to or into the water, to give it life and movement, you are going to have to start retrieving line. Although this is the primary reason for retrieving line, it is also necessary to reduce the length of line beyond the rod tip so that you can pick-up the line and cast it out again. You cannot cast out say 20m (or yards) of line, leave it there for some time and then try to cast the whole lot out again. Even when fishing a dry fly on a stillwater, for example, that you leave static ie no retrieve, you will, eventually have to retrieve some line to be able to cast again.

Whether fishing stillwaters or rivers, after you have made a cast, keep your rod tip low and pointing down the line towards your fly. Start to raise the rod tip only at the end of the retrieve as you start your next cast.

Stillwaters

When fishing a stillwater, from a small pond to a big lake or reservoir, you need to let a wet fly (ie anything other than a dry float which is meant to float) - whether a nymph or lure - sink to depth at which the fish are feeding or are likely to be feeding. This can be from just in or under the surface film to very near or even on the bottom. It is not simply a question of casting out and starting to retrieve line straight away or waiting a set amount of time regardless of season or type of fly being used before starting to retrieve.

If you are trying to fish some way below the surface, each time that you cast out, count as you let your flies sink. For the first cast, you may count up to five and then start your retrieve. If at the end of the retrieve you have not hooked or felt a fish, try fishing a bit deeper. So cast out again and this time count to 10. If this time you hook a fish, the next time you cast and count to 10 should mean that your fly will be at approximately the same depth.

Obviously there is more to finding the best depth at which to fish, but this counting technique is the only way to be able to fish consistently at a given depth. If you are trying to fish within the top 150mm to 300mm (6 to 12 inches), you will need to start retrieving as soon as you have cast your line out. Counting down each time you cast is a good habit to develop right from the start.

How shallow or deep you will need to fish depends on a number of factors: water/air temperature, season of the year and whether or not you can see any flies actually hatching. Don't be afraid of trying fishing at different depths. Even when you think that you have found the correct depth, 'things' can happen or change, making it necessary to change depth.

How do you know how fast or slow to retrieve your flies? To begin with by experimentation. Sometimes you will simply leave your flies alone so that they do not move. At other times a very slow retrieve, retrieving just an inch or two of line at a time will do the trick. This is the classic figure-of-eight retrieve when you retrieve line slowly and coil it in your line hand in a figure of eight. Then on other occasions you will find that you need to retrieve line very quickly in coils in your line hand, ready to be cast out again.

I think that beginners should resist the temptation to use a long leader and
more than one fly. it is all right to use long leaders of, say 6m (18 feet) and two or more flies when you can cast proficiently and know what you are doing. For thebeginner anything over about 3m (9 foot) will be more trouble than it's worth. Also resist the temptation to cast as far as you can every cast. Fish can be found close to the edge of most stillwaters. Casting a long line badly will guarantee that you frighten away the fish close to the bank and simply drive them into deeper water and out of casting range

Rivers

Generally speaking, you can use existing stillwater gear for your first few attemptsat river fishing, and vice versa. Wait and see if you enjoy it and will want to fish rivers and streams regularly before buying a new rod, reel (or extra spool for an existing reel) and line. You will need a floating line and leader. There will be no need for sink tips or full sinking lines.

You will find quite quickly that you do not need to cast long distances. Careful observation will show you fish lying close in under the bank you are standing on, as well as further out into the river. So don't start by casting right across the river to a fish seen lying under the far bank. Try to catch a fish closer to your bank. Casting across the river will simply scare any fish over which you have cast a heavy reservoir line.

Although there is some movement of the water in stillwaters (usually caused by the wind), a lot of the time it will be barely noticed. But in a river the water is moving all the time. So as soon as your fly lands on or in the water, it will start moving. If you are fishing upstream, it will return quickly to your feet and if you are caught unawares, it will float on past you and downstream. On a fast river this will happen surprisingly quickly. To reduce this effect, try to start off on a slower flowing stretch if possible. And do not make your first cast too long either.

As your fly lands on the water, hold the line with the fore finger of the handholding the rod, against the rod handle. Use your other hand to pull-in line so that you keep the amount of slack line between rod tip and fly to the minimum. Trap the line with your rod hand as you build up a series of coils in your other hand. When you judge that you have retrieved as much line as you need - leaving enough line beyond the rod tip to be able to cast again - raise your rod, trap the line so that it starts to move over the surface of the water and then lift-off and cast again. Try to keep your false casts to a minimum. False casting serves two main purposes: originally it was used to dry flies before the days of floatants, and secondly, to help you to extend line to make a longer cast. Modern floatants and lines that shoot well mean that the amount of false casting can be much reduced. Try tostick to two or perhaps three false casts at the most.

When fishing a river, there are two methods to employ: fishing the rise or fishing the water. The first is self-explanatory in that if you see a fish rise and take a surface fly, then you cast a dry fly to where the fish has just risen. But if there are no fish to be seen rising, then you can fish the river ie cast either a dry fly or nymph to spots that you think may hold a trout. This is different from simply casting a fly aimlessly at the water.

How do you know where to cast to a feeding or rising fish? Often the fish will follow a fly downstream before taking it. This means that you will need to look further upstream than you might imagine to try to see where the fish is really lying. How far upstream you need to cast depends on the speed of the current and, if fishing a nymph, how far you want it to sink before it reaches the target fish. Be aware that a fish will turn and follow a fly downstream before rising and taking it. So don't assume that just because your fly has drifted passed 'your' fish, the fish has spurned it.

The key to successful river fishing is PRESENTATION. I am convinced that if you can place an artificial fly in a place where a trout is expecting to see a food item, without frightening the fish, you will have a very good chance
of catching that fish.

Have I caught a fish?

How do you know when you have caught a fish? You won't always feel or see a
fish take your fly. When dry fly fishing on stillwaters or rivers, you will see the fish rise and take your fly. Wait until fish turns down before tightening the line to set the hook. Tighten your line too quickly and you risk pulling hook straight out of the fish's mouth.

Sub-surface takes can be difficult to detect on both rivers and stillwaters. Not every fish will hit your fly so hard that your rod is nearly pulled out of your hands assome pundits would have you believe. The key to detecting subtle takes - and much of successful fly fishing - is concentration. Watch what the line is doing all the time; hold the line so that you can feel what is happening below the surface; and watch for movements of fish and, perhaps, a flash of white as it opens its mouth to take your fly. When fishing a nymph upstream on a river, be prepared to tighten your line the moment the line stops, dips down or does something unexpected. There will be times when you find that you have hooked the bottom or weed and, more important, times when you think you have hooked a piece of weed and it is a lusty fish.

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Terry Lawton is a passionate nymph fisherman who caught his biggest wild brown trout (in the UK) - 4lb 2oz - on a home-tied variant of a goldhead, Sawyer-style pheasant tail nymph.