3 common fly-casting problems—and how to fix them

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#1 WIND KNOTS

All fly anglers have experienced the mysterious appearance of an overhand knot in their leader. In our collective delusion, we call these “wind knots,” but they’re actually sloppy-casting knots. And since they seriously weaken the leader, you have to cut them off and retie your tippet. These knots occur when the end of your line twists and tangles into itself in what’s known as a tailing loop. It’s infuriating, but also easy to remedy.

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The heart of a fly cast is the point where you stop the rod on the backstroke, then power it forward. There are many ways to describe this forward motion—a flick, pop or snap, or, more colourfully, throwing a hatchet. Then there’s my favourite, flinging a meatball off a fork. The point is, your forward stroke must start slow, then smoothly accelerate up to full power. Wind knots form when you instead apply a burst of power at some point in the forward stroke, interrupting the fluid acceleration. Avoid overpowering your forward cast and your loop will behave.