10/15/2009

I've been fly fishing since I was a young kid growing up on the Rogue River in Southern Oregon. I've never been great at it, and I've never had premium equipment, but I've always enjoyed the sport.

This year I was laid off (like so many others in this country) and I took advantage of the time off to do some September fly fishing for Steelhead. I've never caught a steelhead on a fly rod so I was really ready to focus on this.

In 3 outings to the Clackamas River, I hooked 3 nice sized Steelhead. I didnt land any of them, but I was able to fight each of them for a few minutes before they went merrily on their way.

The rush of hooking a Steelhead on a fly rod has now gotten me addicted (again). I have since purchased new rods and reels and I'm ready to start perfecting my craft in the pursuit of these elusive fish.

My new rods

I was trying to catch steelhead on 2 9ft 5# Fenwick fly rods. This line weight was just too light so I upgraded to a 9ft #8 and a 9ft #9 rod.

I've never owned a premium fly rod so this time around, I decided to splurge and go with SAGE as they make beautiful rods. These rods are handcrafted right up in Washington and are considered some of the best rods out there.

I found the Sage Vantage rods on sale on Cabelas.com and so that's what I went with. Can't wait to give them a whirl.