4 insidious fly-fishing myths that need to go away… now!

I love talking about fishing almost as much as actually fishing. This is tedious for my family, but fun when I meet other anglers. At 2019’s Toronto Sportsmen’s Show, for example, I spent a lot of time hanging out at the Outdoor Canada booth tying flies and chatting with visitors. Many were curious about what I was doing, but obviously had only a passing familiarity with fly fishing. Those conversations reminded me that, although the fly-fishing world continues to evolve and expand, many mistaken beliefs about the sport linger. And unfortunately, such myths keep people from discovering the incredible variety of adventures you can have with a fly rod. So, let’s dispel some of the most common misconceptions…

MYTH # 1: FLY FISHING IS ONLY FOR TROUT

I learned how to chuck flies by fishing for bass and sunfish in southern Ontario’s murky suburban ponds. As a result, I sometimes forget that “fly fishing” equals “trout fishing” for many people. How entrenched is that idea? At the Sportsmen’s Show, I was tying garish, tinsel-laden five-inch flies for an upcoming pike-fishing trip. Yet more than a few people looked at my vise and, evidently fearing for my grip on reality, said, “What the heck kind of trout would eat those?”

So, to be clear, you can cast flies for fish species other than trout—lots of them. In fact, any Canadian gamefish that will eat an artificial lure within 30 feet of the water’s surface will also eat a fly. That said, flies aren’t always the best way to catch those fish, but it’s usually at least possible. Fly-fishing innovator and ambassador Lefty Kreh, for example, credibly claims to have caught 130 different species of fish on the fly. In the right water, at the right time, flies are a deadly and super-fun way to catch pike, bass, walleye and panfish, plus salmon and all species of trout, including lake trout (which actually love pike flies, but that’s a whole other story).

MYTH # 2: YOU CAN’T CATCH BIG FISH WITH FLIES

The idea that fly fishing is just for small fish likely took hold because many small streams offer delightful fly fishing for pretty, but mostly tiny, trout. Certainly, if you fly fish where the fish are small, you’ll catch small fish. But if you instead head to Canada’s many trophy-class waters, you can catch almost all of our biggest gamefish, from chinook salmon to lake trout (above) to Arctic char to muskies.

And outside of Canada, the list is nearly endless, with routine fly-rod catches including the likes of 100-pound-plus tarpon and billfish (above).