Winter Trout Fly Fishing It is winter time now. One step on the frozen porch steps first thing in the morning removes any doubt of that fact. Winter time brings on many thoughts, holidays, dark afternoons, football on TV and for me some of the best trout fly fishing there is. That's right trout fishing, winter steelhead fly fishing has been around a long time, and gets more popular every season. But the truth of the matter is trout fly fishing can be excellent, the crowds are down to non-existent, the scenery and wildlife are plentiful, and it makes those long days of early spring with non-stop rain and overflowing rivers more tolerable.

Choosing The Proper Fly Fishing Leader and Tippet Leader and tippet is the final connection between the fly fisher and their fly. It is the section of line after the fly line and before the fly. It's purpose is to transfer energy from the fly line down to the fly, allow for natural presentation of the fly, and then be strong enough for the fly fisher to retrieve any fish that might strike at the naturally presented fly. Sounds simple enough, but this is fly fishing, and fly fishers have been around a long time. And as a group we seem to think about everything related to our sport a lot, and therefore probably have over complicated things a tad. The leader in fly fishing is tapered. It is thicker at the butt section, then at the tippet section. It is usually divided into three sections, the butt is tied directly to the fly line, and is the longest portion of the leader, about 60%. The mid-section is next and its purpose is to taper down to the tippet without losing a lot of strength. The final section is the tippet, it is the actual section that is tied to the fly. It is the thinnest section, it needs to be strong, yet allow for a natural drift, without alarming the fish that your offering is connected to a person that will pull back.

The Importance of Fly Lines Why are fly lines so important? Just like with fly rods and fly reels, fly lines need to match up with the types of fly fishing that you do. This match should be made precisely, too. Thus, if you have a 5 weight fly rod and a 5 weight fly reel, and it extremely important to make sure you have a 5 weight fly line. By not having a properly "balanced" fly rod outfit (which is where the fly rod, fly reel and fly line match in weight), the angler is very likely to have extreme difficulty in casting.

Alexander Carlton with His 25 Inch Albino Catfish
Alexander Carlton entered a fishing derby and won it with most fish and biggest fish, too. This 25 inch albino catfish won it for him. Alexander Carlton with His....

D.A.R.E to host fishing fun (The Natchez Democrat)
VIDALIA — Kids and parents: get your tackle boxes and rods and reels ready for fishing and fun at the D.A.R.E fishing tournament on Sept. 30..