Taking the road less traveled to explore new water can yield huge rewards. Many of today's famous trout rivers are overcrowded with anglers. This is especially true after the pandemic, as we have seen a huge explosion in people desiring to be outside, away from the confines of urban living. Hiking to fly fish in untouched water is an excellent way to reach areas that are less pressured.
Backpacking to fly fish lakes and backcountry streams gives fly fisherman access to wild trout. It also offers both solitude and beautiful scenery. Fly fishing in the back country requires some slight alteration in backpacking fishing gear and fly fishing technique. In this article, we are going to cover how to take advantage of backpacking into backcountry streams to catch fish.
Table of contents
Backpacking Gear and Preparation
Preparation for a backcountry fly fishing trip is critical to being successful on a multi-day fly fishing trip. In addition, to choosing the correct flies and backpacking fishing rods, you need additional safety and sleeping equipment as well.
Choose a large backpack that can accommodate your food, tent, and sleeping gear as well as your fly fishing rods and flies. A backpack with an internal frame is essential. Packs that ride on your hips and not your shoulders with the weight distributed properly should be considered. A poorly fitted backpack can make for a long day of hiking. Backpacks with a detachable hip pack will save you valuable ounces in weight. This can be used for day hikes and as a lightweight fishing pack.
Having a good night's sleep can make or break a trip. Spend money on an excellent sleeping pad. The Big Agnes divide sleeping pad is a personal favorite. As it is comfortable and lightweight. It packs small and saves space too.
Keeping your weight to a minimum should be an important factor when packing for backcountry fly fishing trips. Minimize clothes and dress in layers. Stay away from cotton garments, as they require long drying times.
Quick dry pants and wool socks dry quickly and can be worn for days on end. Bring a change of clothes, a fleece, and of course rain gear. Polarized sunglasses are a must in any fishing situation, bringing a spare pair of glasses as well as small amounts of fly tying material is a good idea if you have the room.
Weight can be minimized by using a shelter instead of a full tent. This may or may not be an option depending on the destination you are planning on hiking into. High altitude lakes can have large populations of mosquitoes, so if that is your destination then a full tent may be required for comfort and relief.
Wear your backpack prior to your departure. Loading your backpack with weights and walking around the neighborhood is a smart move before heading into the backcountry. Backpacking with well worn boots is critical. Nothing will ruin an excursion faster than being laid up in a tent with blisters on your feet.
Traveling With Fishing Rods and Flies
Let's talk about how to fly and get through TSA with fly fishing gear. Flying on airplanes may be part of your travel plans when planning a backpacking fishing trip. Avoiding broken fly fishing rods and missing flies while flying to your hiking destination is important. Scrambling to find replacement fly fishing equipment is not how you want to spend your time before your head into the backcountry.
Yes, you can fly with a fly rod and reel.
Carrying your rods in a travel rod tube is recommended by all major carriers. Rods and reels are permitted as checked luggage and are also allowed as carry-on luggage by T.S.A. Rod tubes can be carried on airplanes as a carry-on. If they object to you bringing it on as a carry-on, explain how important it is to your trip and fragile your fly fishing equipment is. You may find that airline employees will change their minds. Due to the added expense, I would only check the fly rod or net in as a checked bag if the airline restricts you from boarding with it.
Fishing rods are permitted in carry-on and checked bags; however, passengers should check with the airline to confirm that the fishing rod fits within size limitations for carry-on items.
Fishing Pole TSA.gov
Check with your airline carrier to make sure that there aren't specific size requirements, as some airlines have a maximum size for rod tubes. For example, many airlines limit carry-on bags to 22 inches in length, which may be much shorter than your fly rod. In that case, try to board with it and only check it in as a last resort if they refuse. Usually, they won't have a problem with the extended length considering your travel tube can easily slip behind bags in the overhead compartments.
Budget airlines like Spirit or Frontier are sticklers! They will charge you an arm and a leg if you have to check your rods at the counter. Airlines like these profit off of the baggage so your chance of boarding with a fly rod over the carry-on restrictions is not likely.
I probably wouldn't try bringing a two-piece fly rod on board. It's best that your fly rod breaks down into at least four pieces so that each section is as short as possible. Most airlines will not accept luggage that measures (length + width + height) more than 115 inches.
Yes, you can fly with small fly fishing flies.
According to the TSA website, Fly fishing flies are not deemed to be a security risk by T.S.A. regulations, but if T.S.A. agents decide that your flies are too big and are a potential flight risk they may confiscate them. Size #0 to size #22 and smaller should be okay.
Sharp fishing tackle that may be considered dangerous, such as large fish hooks, should be sheathed, securely wrapped, and packed in your checked luggage. Like other high-value objects, you may wish to pack expensive reels or fragile tackle that does not pose a security threat (small flies) in your carry-on baggage.
Small Fishing Lures TSA.gov
If they do ask questions about your flies, a rational and calm discussion will likely convince them to let you keep your flies. Flies can be packed in a carry-on as well, but proceed with caution when bringing very large hooks and lots of flies. Large streamers and poppers might get pulled aside for checking, however, we have never had any issues so far. We would recommend that you bring a small assortment of flies, just enough for the time you're there.
Do not take any short and sharp object longer than 4 inches. Nippers and other essential fly fishing gear or accessories are best checked in your luggage. While we have gotten through TSA plenty of times with our full fly fishing pack in a backpack carry-on, but we have heard of TSA confiscating items.
When traveling by plane, it is best to carry on your reels, fly boxes, and rods. It is not out of the ordinary to have these items disappear from checked baggage. Also, if your bags are lost it is very difficult and costly to replace these items on short notice. If you do have to check your fishing gear, split items up and carry the most essential gear with you: essential flies, a reel, and a rod. This way, if something happens to your bag, you have the essential fishing items needed for the trip.
Choosing Your Fly Fishing Destination
Choose a destination that fits your ability and has multiple species. There are thousands of places that you could go. The bottom line is, do research and have a solid plan. Choosing a destination with multiple fishing options nearby is a good idea.
Have a backup plan. Wildfires have become a routine issue in the West, so make sure that contingencies are in place in case the stream or lake you are hiking to is closed or inaccessible.
Post Covid 19, many areas now require permits or have specific regulations to limit use. Some of these regulations are still in place and could affect your trek. Research early and apply for permits in plenty of time. Popular parks like Yosemite and Yellowstone can be at capacity the entire summer, with campsites nearly nonexistent. In addition, being familiar with State and Federal regulations is important. In dry years, long hot summers can oftentimes bring additional river closures and hoot owl fishing hours on the state and local levels.
Ensure that you tell people where you are going and how long you will be there. Carrying a satellite phone or GPS is an excellent safety precaution. Carry a first kit with you. Ideally, this kit will have all the normal essentials, but then add some emergency hook removal items in as well. Tweezers, rubbing alcohol, and a hook removal tool which can be found here are wise items to add.
Recommended Reading: Best Fly Fishing Destinations in the United States
Practice Casting
Practice different methods of casting prior to your trip. Most back country fly fishing destinations will not allow standard overhead cast due to shoreline debris or tight quarter fishing streamside conditions. The bow and arrow cast, the roll cast, and the steeple, cast are all cast that you should be comfortable with. You don't want to try to learn new casting techniques on the water. Before you try these casts anglers should have a strong understanding of basic casting mechanics. We will assume that you have a basic understanding of how to make a standard fly cast. If not, you can read more about the fundamentals of fly-casting mechanics here.
The Roll Cast
The Roll Cast is a common cast utilized in fly fishing when there are trees and bushes directly behind you. These obstacles do not allow a full back cast. Therefore, we can use the tension of the fly line with the surface of the water to create a bend or load in the fly rod. The resulting forward cast propels the fly line and flies to the target on the forward cast.
This cast is achieved by starting your cast with the tip of your fly rod low to the surface of the water and out in front of you. Have at a minimum a rod length of fly line out of the tip of your fly rod. If you are right handed, in slow motion, sweep the rod to your right side at a 90 degree angle and bring the rod to up to your right ear. When viewed from the side you will have created a giant letter D with the fly line. This letter D in the line is creating drag on the water's surface that will bend or load the tip of the rod. Making a normal forward cast with a speed up and stop motion will present the fly to the target. This eliminates the need to make a back cast, thus your fly doesn't end up tangled in the trees.
The Bow and Arrow Cast
The bow and arrow cast is excellent for really tight spots and overgrown river side banks. This is a short line cast that requires mostly your leader and just a bit of your fly line.
With a tiny bit of fly line out of the tip of your fly rod, trap the fly line in between your fingers and the handle of the fly rod. With your other hand, grasp the fly between your pointer finger and thumb. This can be done by grasping the bend of the hook, or on larger foam flies the top of the foam body.
Pointing your fly rod tip towards the target, the angler pulls back on the fly and creates a bend in the fly rod tip. Releasing the fly releases the energy in the rod tip and projects the fly to the target. While great distances are not achieved with this cast. It is often the only cast that is available in thick foliage.
The Steeple Cast
The steeple cast is much like the roll cast. This cast eliminates the need for a full back cast which will keep your flies out of the bushes. The steeple cast is performed with a front and back cast. The same mechanics apply to a standard overhead cast. However, on the back cast, instead of throwing the fly line behind us, we project the fly line vertically above our heads. This allows you to load the rod and make a forward cast.
Recommended Reading: Beginner Fly Fishing Casts You Need To Know
Choosing Your Fly Rods
Choosing the correct fly rods is an important decision too. Lots of backcountry fly fishing locations are small streams with smaller fish in tight casting quarters. Therefore, choose shorter and lighter fly rods that make casting easier in tighter confines.
Fly rods in the 6-6" to 8-6" range are ideal. Lightweight rods that break down into multiple pieces in the 2-4 weight range are useful for catching small fish that occupy high country streams. A fly rod with a moderate action tip is helpful in gently presenting small dry flies. Flies gently landing on the water's surface are often required on slower flatter pieces of water. This is necessary to not spook weary fish. Having multiple fly rods is critical in case accidents happen.
Carry several fly rods in case you break a rod on the trip. Glass fly rods make great backpacking fishing rods, as they are more difficult to break than a graphite rod. A solid carrying case is a must-have accessory. Of course, all backpacking rods have a rod and reel combo. If you want to go super light, an excellent backpacking fishing rod is a Tenkara rod. Tenkara rods are lightweight and lack a reel combo.
Tenkara Rods
Tenkara fishing rods have become a backpacking fly fishing rod favorite. Tenkara fly fishing rods utilize a different method of fly fishing and are used in a traditional Japanese style of angling. A Tenkara rod is a small, compact, collapsible rod, that is lightweight, lacks a reel seat and reel combo. Telescoping Tenkara rods extends out to a full-length backpacking fishing rod. The fly line is tied directly to the end of the rod. This eliminates extra weight in your backpack. Because it lacks a reel, there are fewer moving parts and less fishing gear that requires maintenance in the backcountry.
Tenkara rods are a good option too if you need a backup fly fishing rod to your conventional spinning reel and rod. It is a simpler form of fly fishing, so if you are new to fly fishing and want to try fly fishing, Tenkara is an easy entry point for conventional anglers. Many backcountry anglers will take a spinning rod in conjunction with a fly rod or Tenkara rods to take advantage of both methods.
Fly Fishing Strategy for Backpacking Fishing
Due to the nature of the water at high altitudes, choosing the right fly fishing gear for your trek is important, you will not have access to additional fly fishing necessities on the trail. Having a well rounded selection of flies and fishing gear to cover a multitude of insects and fishing situations will put you in the best position for catching fish in the backcountry. The character of the water in the backcountry will dictate the best fly fishing strategy to choose.
Fly Fishing Rivers And Streams
Most of the rivers, streams, and lakes that will be fished are wild water that is relatively untouched most of the year. Many of them are under snow for longs period of time. This creates a fishery with many willing participants, eager to eat in the short growing season. The fish are smaller, and they are less educated rarely seeing flies.
Streams in the high country typically flow down a fast gradient. Much of it is defined as bouldery pocket water. Hatches are limited at high altitudes, as water temperatures are too cold to support large populations of insects other than midges and small caddis flies. In the fast current. fish have limited opportunity to see a fly, inspect it and eat it. They have to make very quick decisions when eating a meal. This makes them prone to reactionary strikes and flies that grab their attention.
The best bet in streams with high gradients and fast water is to fish a dry dropper rig setup. You can mostly forget about nymphing deep runs in this type of water, so take a minimal amount of strike indicators. A dry dropper rig is tied with a dry fly as your first fly. Using a 5x or 6X lightweight tippet tie 18"-24" of line to the bend of the hook of the dry fly. Then add a small weighted fly to the end of the additional tippet. By utilizing a dry dropper rig in fast water you can better control the depth of your nymphs and use the dry fly as our strike indicator. This results in fewer snagged flies on the bottom and covers two layers of the water column.
Fly Fishing Lakes
A high altitude alpine lake or stream is the perfect place to fish dry flies to willing fish. Not accustomed to seeing many flies, fish are all too often eager to attack flies with reckless abandon. Fish a two-fly or even single-fly setup for ease. Most of your cast are going to be short and in tight quarters. Presenting dry flies in a dead drift manner and occasionally imparting small amounts of twitch is an excellent tactic.
The majority of the fish in a small stream are going to be found in areas with a little more depth. Log jams, beaver ponds, and fast water that plunges into deeper pools is where anglers should focus most of their efforts. Shallower water with overhanging bushes are also areas that should be targeted as well.
Fishing an alpine lake is pretty straightforward. Using a weight forward floating line and slowly stripping small streamers or nymphs back will usually do the trick. Unless you pack in a float tube, you will be making roll cast or steeple cast from the bank. Allowing the flies to sink and then using a slow figure-eight retrieve is an effective method. If you need the flies to gain greater depth, then use a small weighted streamer with a nymph trailing off the bend of the hook of the streamer.
Areas in a lake that anglers should consider are transition zones. Areas where water depth changes, ledges, rock gardens, and places where water flows into and out of the lake. All of these areas will hold fish. In many cases, you'll be able to sight fish to trout swimming as many lakes are crystal clear.
Recommended Reading: How To Fly Fish Stillwater Lakes
No Hatch to Match - Choosing Flies
Since hatches are limited at high altitudes and much of the water moves at high speed, it is wise to choose flies that are impressionistic or attractor patterns. Carry a waterproof fly box with an assortment of impressionistic flies that cover a wide range of insect species. Attractor patterns are fly patterns tied with flash and bright colors. These flies grab a fish's attention.
Both types of flies are important, but attractor flies work well when fished to trout in un-pressured water and live in faster bouldery pocket water. A fish's opportunity to see food and make a decision as to whether or not to eat it is small. Therefore, flies that are bright or flashy grab their attention and cause a reactionary strike.
Choose a wide range of nymphs in colors and sizes #18 to size #12. There are old standby patterns that work everywhere. These patterns are impressionistic flies: Soft Hackle Jig Head Pheasant Tail, Jig Head Hares Ear, Bead Head Zebra Midge, UV Pheasant Tail Frenchie, Guides Choice Hares Ear, Soft Hackle Emerger, and many others that could be chosen from. These patterns are tied out of mostly natural materials and utilize neutral colors like brown, beige, grey, and olive.
Attractor flies in various sizes should also be present in your fly box. There are many good attractor patterns to choose from: Prince Nymph, Holo Midge, Rainbow Warriors, Perdigon, Red Dart Jig, Rainbow Perdigon Jig, and Two Toned Copper John. Choose flies that are bright and flashy.
Take a few small streamers as well. Larger fish are not going to be found in a high altitude lake or stream, so we can leave the sex dungeons and double bunnies at home. Choose smaller more traditional streamers, some weighted and some unweighted. Good patterns to choose from would be the Tungsten Jig Bugger, Woolly Bugger, Thin Mint, and Simi Seal Leech.
Dry flies are an important part of your fly box and choosing both attractor patterns and traditional fly patterns is important. One thing to consider here is to have plenty of dry flies that are capable of suspending dropper flies in a dry dropper rig. Choosing foam bodied hoppers with plenty of buoyancy is key. These are smaller fish, so choosing smaller sized foam flies should be factored into your fly choice.
Bright attractor foam patterns with a buoyant wing that make good backpacking fishing flies are: Micro Chubby Chernobyl, Never Sink Caddis, Snyders Mad Hopper, Bionic Foam Ant, Raineys Hopper, Hippy Stomper, Charlie Boy Hopper.
Make sure to have some good all around dry flies in your fly box as well. These are traditional impressionistic dry fly patterns. Midges play a major role in the food sources of hi-altitude lakes, so don't forget those as well. A midge hatch is a hatch that you will most certainly encounter in waters across the United States East and West. Dry flies that are impressionistic are Griffith's Gnat, Parachute Adams, Parachute Hares Ear, Madam X, Elk Hair Caddis, Stimulators, and the BWO Thorax Dun.