10 Foot fly rods may become the next big thing. Photo By: Louis Cahill

My good friend Dave Grossman decided to trade in his 9 foot boat rods for 10 footers this year. So far, this fishing season he claims the extra foot of graphite has been working wonders for his clients on the water. Dave says, “I find that the ten foot fly rods make it much easier for my clients to mend their fly line, especially when they need to mend a lot of line. That translates into them consistently getting longer drag-free drifts. The longer rods shine when we need to high-stick across multiple currents, and they also allow my novice clients to squeak out a little more distance in their casts.”

After hearing those positive comments from Dave, I decided to give them a shot with my own clients, but I’d take it a step further. Instead of just incorporating them on float trips on the big rivers, I’d experiment using them on small to mid-size streams. The first trip out was a real eye opener and success with the ten foot fly rod on one of my 30′-40′ wide trout streams. To my amazement, the longer rod outperformed my standard 8 1/2-9 foot fly rods in almost all fishing scenarios in my clients hands. The only area the ten foot rod underperformed, were spots where the stream narrowed drastically or when it was really tight and cramped. The surprising thing about that, is it actually happened a lot less than I thought it would, and when it did, I’d just handed over the shorter rod I was carrying to my client. The key was positioning my angler in the correct spot, reminding him he had a longer rod in his hand, and then choosing the appropriate fly cast to present our flies.

I continued the experiment for several more guide trips, and it quickly became apparent, that all the fly fishing literature I’d previously read about matching the length of your rod to the size stream you were fishing, was actually just one way of looking at it. If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years with fly fishing, it’s that there’s almost always multiple options (types of casts, types of rigs, types of gear, ect.) that are feasible for anglers to use when fishing any given situation. Most of the time we end up going with the status quo, which is the obvious and most popular method for the fly fishing situation at hand. Sometimes, however, if we’re not afraid to think outside of the box, and open to use an unorthodox approach, it has the potential to end up performing even better for us on the water.

benefits That I noticed with my clients when I put a longer fly rod in their hands.

– Ten foot fast action rods usually have a slightly softer tip, perfect for setting the hooks and fighting big fish on light tippet and small flies. My clients broke off less and landed more fish.

– In many cases, ten foot rods can make it easier for anglers to land big fish solo, because they have more rod to help them bring the fish in closer to net.

– You can often be stealthier with a longer rod because you can position yourself farther away from the fish without jeopardizing your presentation and drag-free drift.

– If a fish takes off down river or upstream of you, the longer rod can help maintain a sufficient angle on the fish, minimizing the chances of the hook dislodging.

Are there some small streams where fly fishing with a ten foot rod won’t be feasible? Yes, there are lots, but the point of this post was to demonstrate you shouldn’t automatically think just because you’re fishing a small stream that you need to grab your short 6′-8′ fly rod. If you fish with friends like I do most of the time on small streams, it can really be an asset for the team if you pack different length rods. Since it’s typically best to fish one angler at a time so you don’t spook fish, you’ll usually only have one rod fishing at a time, and that will allow you to choose the best rod for the location your targeting.

Keep it Reel,

Come fish with us in the Bahamas!