Fly Casting from pontoon boat

[w7co]

This is my second try at casting from my Colorado 9' pontoon boat. In the first case I actually hooked, landed and released a trout. ( I should mention I am really new at fly fishing) Later I managed to snarl the whole mess up.

Last night I went to a local lake (WYE) and tried my hand at it again. There was a little wind so that may account for the mess I got myself into again. I didn't give up and found I could cast better down wind. Of course I wasn't even thinking about targeting any fish, just keep from messing up.

So, what is the best way to cast from a pontoon boat? I am using a 9' 5wt rod with 5 WF floating line, leader and a small tippit. I tried both a dry fly and a nymph.

After a period of no action I broke out my spinning rod and using a small jig managed to hook, land and release a small bass. Didn't want to go home skunked.

Mike

[raffensg64]

It would be kind of hard for anyone to say without having been there. We'd have to see your technique in order to help you correct it. Do you have any problems casting while standing in your back yard or on a river? If not, then apply the same casting motion while in your pontoon and be conscious of the fact that your back cast could hit the water if you're not careful. Your 9' 5 wt shouldn't be a problem, plenty of length to keep your line above the water. You mentioned the wind.....were your "foul-ups" coming off the back cast while fishing down wind? Often times our lines will not "load" properly in windy conditions when we fail to account for it. Feed us some more info and particulars!

I often times find myself getting lazy when fishing for prolonged periods of time. My casting begins to suffer and "foul-ups" become a real possibility. Could be that you just have to stay at it.....your fly casting will improve with every trip.

Good luck and have fun with it! Trust me, you are on the verge of experiencing some of your most memorable fishing experiences!

[Marc Martyn]

W7CO-
Have you ever seen a professional basketball player make every shot? If that happened, it would be a pretty boring game to watch. Casting is like shooting a basketball, it is all about timing. Every experienced fly caster makes foal ups from time to time. You never become perfect, you just get better.
I might suggest that you try to keep the casts shorter and more accurate while in the pontoon boat until you get more accurate line control. A low forward cast may bring that fly hook right into one of your pontoon chambers. It could be a long swim to shore.
Practice your casting in the yard. Learn your controlable distance and use it while in the boat. As time goes by, your distance will improve. When casting in wind, cast 90 degrees to the wind direction for now. When you learn how to "read" the wind, then cast either with or against the wind. When casting with the wind, you need more power in your back cast. Casting into the wind, you need more power in your forward cast. Judging the amount to apply in either direction comes with experience. Even then you can have foul ups.
The whole key to casting is keeping the line speed consistant.
I hope that I haven't totally confused you.

[Anglinarcher]

W7CO-
Have you ever seen a professional basketball player make every shot? If that happened, it would be a pretty boring game to watch. Casting is like shooting a basketball, it is all about timing. Every experienced fly caster makes foal ups from time to time. You never become perfect, you just get better.
I might suggest that you try to keep the casts shorter and more accurate while in the pontoon boat until you get more accurate line control. A low forward cast may bring that fly hook right into one of your pontoon chambers. It could be a long swim to shore.
Practice your casting in the yard. Learn your controlable distance and use it while in the boat. As time goes by, your distance will improve. When casting in wind, cast 90 degrees to the wind direction for now. When you learn how to "read" the wind, then cast either with or against the wind. When casting with the wind, you need more power in your back cast. Casting into the wind, you need more power in your forward cast. Judging the amount to apply in either direction comes with experience. Even then you can have foul ups.
The whole key to casting is keeping the line speed consistant.
I hope that I haven't totally confused you.

I think Marc pretty much summed it up.

My guess is that you are casting with too wide a loop. If you don't know what I mean, there are books and tapes that can help you out. It is really not different casting out of a pontoon, but it shows up form flaws.

For starters, I have heard the comment that the rod motion should be like you are "painting the ceiling". I often tell people to learn to use less arm, and more wrist, by doing the old "British" method - cast with a book under your arm pit.

Most of all, don't ever give up. I tought myself when I was 8 or 9 years old, by stealing away with my dad's flyrod when he took a nap during the day. Little did I know that dad was watching the entire time, and loving the fact that I was "hooked on fly fishing" already.

[Marc Martyn]

I might add one other thing. Don't get hung up on trying to make the real long casts. That is the beauty of a pontoon boat......stealth. You can quietly come up on a trout that is in a feeding zone on a lake. Long casts are necessary on rivers when you are wading. Too much emphasis is put on "how far can you cast". When I was playing golf, guys would tell me how real long their drives were. I would let them brag for a moment or two and then ask them "how's your putting?"
Concentrate on shorter, more accurate casts. While practicing, I used to use a 5 gal. paint bucket lid in the yard as a target. As your accuracy improves, start adding more line in your casts.