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The straight line connection (SLC)
is vital to success when fishing streamer style flies which are
manipulated by retrieving line with your hand to impart lifelike
action. This holds true in both fresh and saltwater whether you
are fishing a mouse fly for trophy brown trout in Patagonia or a
gurgler for baby tarpon in the Everglades. There are few places
where the SLC is more important than the Chesapeake Bay Bridge
Tunnel where strong current, wind and waves play havoc.
So what exactly is a straight line
connection? Well simply put, it is having the fly line in a
straight line between the hand that is holding the line and the
fly. This is opposed to fishing dry flies or nymphs on
mountain streams where a slack line presentation is necessary
for a drag free drift.
During slack line presentation,
the rod tip must be raised to set the hook when a fish strikes
in order to remove the slack between the line hand and the fly.
The reason that the rod tip hook set works in this situation is
due to the relatively small amount of fly line outside the rod
tip and the tiny hooks of dry flies and nymphs that easily
penetrate the mouth of a fish.
The generally longer casts
required for streamer fishing coupled with the larger hooks of
these flies make raising the rod tip to set the hook
ineffective. The light tip of a fly rod will not provide enough
force to drive the hook home is this situation leading to
countless missed hookups. The proper technique when fishing a
streamer fly is to set the hook with a long, sharp pull on the
fly line by your hand. We call this the “strip strike.” After
the strip strike is made and the weight of the fish is felt, you
will then want to raise the rod tip – but not before you feel
the fish is hooked. Not only does the strip strike provide a
stronger hook set, but it provides numerous second and third
opportunities to hook up if you miss the initial strike.
Raising the rod to set the hook moves the fly a great distance
from the fish – eliminating any opportunity to have another
chance at hooking that fish or others chasing the fly. The
strip strike, however, only moves the fly a foot or two from the
fish so it is very common to miss a strike and still be position
to hookup on a subsequent strike.
This brings me back to the
importance of the straight line connection. In order for the
strip strike to be effective there can be no slack; i.e. a SLC
between the line hand and the fly. The rod must be pointed in
the direction of the fly at all times to maintain a SLC. For
example if the rod is pointed 45 degrees away from the fly, the
force of the strip strike will be absorbed by the rod tip
rendering the hook set useless. When fishing strong current
like is present at the CBBT, the rod tip must follow the
direction of the fly as it is swept down current in order to
keep a straight line connection. A great way to check if you
have a SLC is to watch your rod tip as you retrieve line. If
the rod tip bends as you strip line, you do not a straight line
connection. With a SLC, there is no movement of the rod tip as
you strip line.
Be aware of the straight line
connection and soon you’ll be landing more fish!
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