recommendations for beginner

nOObmaster said:
lackawaxen lot of private property. i need to get some waders for late season fishing. for now wet wading will do. rivers are fast moving and water is high due to wallenpaupack water getting dumped. i will give it a few days. i can practice in shohola reservoir in the interim.
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Dear NOObmaster,

If you practice in Shohola and the fish are biting you won't want to go anywhere else!

There are a lot of nice bluegills, perch, and bass in that Lake. It's been years since I fished it, but a friend of mine sent me a video of her granddaughter catching 8 and 9-inch bluegills one right after the other. If you put on a size 8 panfish popper and tie 24 inches of tippet to the bend of the hook with a size 12 Bead Head Prince nymph and get a double, you will be very impressed.

A boat, canoe, kayak or float tube will help you reach fish, but I've caught plenty of nice fish by fishing from the bank.

Just have fun!

Regards,

Tim Murphy 🙂
 
I think you made the right choice to go with a 6-wt. When I began and didn't have much money, I used a pair of 6-wt rods ( 7'; and 8.5') for many years. They served me well.

Anecdote: This spring I was using an expensive 8.5" 5-wt on a famous central PA stream. It made nice, long casts, but on larger trout, I couldn't "give them the butt" to play them very hard. So, I dug out an old 8.5' 6-wt rod but used the 5-wt line on it. Admittedly, it did not cast as well (and I'm not a great caster), but I could play the fish harder and faster with it.

Really, most rods are compromises, gaining something while losing something else. Anyhow, fishing the waters you're going to fish, I think you did make the right decision. Good luck and have fun.
 
My buddies and I fish Shola frequently. It's a good place.
Caught this one from one of the boat ramps.
P5240265 (2).JPG

These from a boat
P5220478.JPG

P5250482.JPG

You definitely made the right choice with the 6 wgt. I used a 6 wgt for trout for a couple of years until I built myself a 5 wgt.
 
lycoflyfisher said:
Agreed with AFish, for the streams you are most interested in a 6wt is likely a good choice.
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I agree also. Especially since you want one rod for trout and bass. A 5 wt is light for bass, a 6 wt is better.

And a 6 wt is fine for trout, especially since you'll be fishing big water.

For throwing streamers for trout, a 6 wt is better than a 5 wt.
 
Went to local fly shop and Owner put together a starter kit for me. Now i just have to wait for my fly rod to arrive.

tackle.jpg
 
poopdeck said:
A heavier rod casts smaller flies better than a lighter rod casts larger wind resistant flies.
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Bingo. When deciding between two line weights for a given application, go with the heavier, every time.

Realistically, you probably will only notice a marginal difference between the 5 and 6 in most situations you’ll put them in. But if buying only one, buy the 6.

If you made me fish PA, everything, Brookies, larger Trout streams, and warmwater, with one rod only for the rest of my life, it’d be a 9’ 6wt. IMO the most versatile freshwater rod there is.
 
nOObmaster said:
Went to local fly shop and Owner put together a starter kit for me. Now i just have to wait for my fly rod to arrive.

View attachment 1641231695
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Very nice!!!

Get yourself a few smaller cork or balsa poppers too. The sunnies & bass love them and you will find them less wind resistant and therefore easier to cast for a beginner.

Also, keep your initial leader choices shorter (7 foot or less) and heavier (3X, 2X, 1X) with the bigger flies and poppers. That will help those bulky flies to turnover and make your life a lot easier as you are learning.

Good luck & have fun!!
 
nOObmaster said:
i am from NEPA. do spin fishing every summer. looking to get into fly fishing. SMB and trout. Preferably a 6wt. after looking around narrowed down few combos. orvis clearwater outfit, sage foundation outfit. should i get a combo or build one like TFO blue ribbon, lamson reel etc.
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The Clearwater outfit in a 4wt is great for trout. My wife has one and sometimes I will use it. I have a more expensive Orvis rod and I can feel the difference, but for an outfit to get started I would recommend the Clearwater.
 
Looks like a pretty good starter selection. Hope your rod comes soon and that you can get out there and have some fun.
 
Welcome fellow n00b to the forum. While I am relatively new to PA, my best advice is to just play with it and have fun. There a tons of free or cheap casting classes all over if you really want to get into it, and also, don't overlook the chub and fallfish. While they are sometimes a disappointment when trying to land a trout, they are fun to fight on a fly rod.


Mostly, have fun and enjoy the adventure of fly fishing!
 
To back track a bit, I think the argument of a 6wt vs 5wt is silly as there are so many manufacturers and models that there are more particulars than "a 5wt is this and a 6wt is that". I have handled 5wts that were tack drivers and a 6wt (Orvis H3F 9ft 6wt) that was such a flimsy POS I would have broken it apart had it not had a high sticker price (traded it, THANK GOD!). I severely doubt there'd be much of a difference between a 5wt and a 6wt Clearwater. It's not like the 5wt is some dainty trout rod and the 6wt is a saltwater rod. I don't have much to say on the Clearwater other than it will fulfill what you need it to do... for now.
 
Bamboozle said:
Also, keep your initial leader choices shorter (7 foot or less) and heavier (3X, 2X, 1X) with the bigger flies and poppers. That will help those bulky flies to turnover and make your life a lot easier as you are learning.
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^^^^^ Definitely do this ^^^^^
There's a lot of added frustration when one uses tippet that is under- or oversized.
You can also make your own tapered leaders specific to which fly or method you're using. There are more leader recipes than I care to count, but there may be a related leader-building thread on the Gear Talk or Tips and Tricks forums.
Another benefit of building leaders is that you'll get a lot of off-the-water practice tying blood knots and double surgeons knots.
 
My first "decent" rod was an LLBean Angler rod from 1989. it was a 2pc 9ft 5/6 wt rod. $100. I bought a spare spool for my reel and threw DT6 and WF5 and covered a lots of bases. Certainly wasn't as specif or as light as newer rods but my kid learned on that same rod and when he got a better rod, was able to really appreciate the newer technology and casts really well. Broke the tip on a smally and send it back and LLBean put a new rod in my old tube and sent it back. NQA

I also learned to drive in a humongous Chevy wood-sided station wagon so my newer vehicles seem to handle really well also.😉
 
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