Gear for Home Waters

Most anglers, who don't live and fish in New Mexico, prefer longer rods than me. It's just that my fishing environments call for short rods, and I find fly rods in lengths of 7’6” and shorter work well on my mountain streams. I most often pack a 7’ and/or 7’6” rod when I’m heading up to Rainy Mountain.

From years of trial and error, there are fly rods I find more effective than others with dry flies, on tiny freestone streams. I mostly use 2wt and 3wt fly rods, but I’ll switch to a 4wt rod on open valley streams, when the breezes can become a bit stiff. A rod with a moderate action is the most effective up on Rainy Mountain, and I find R.L Winston rods are "spot on" perfect for my needs.

I’ll say right away, fly lines with long front tapers don’t work well on my home waters. Why? Those long front tapers require too much line out of the tip for the rod to flex properly...not good when casting in tight little Rios. A true-to-weight fly line with a front taper of 8’ or less is ideal for me because I need the rod to easily load a line for short casts. Yeah, and sometimes I'll even overline a rod by one weight. The fly lines I use most often are two premium products: Rio LightLine; and Winston Energy...both weight-forward models.

So, what about fly reels? In my view, fly reels are not as important as fly rods and the fly lines I use for trout fishing. For small stream anglers, they’re mostly line holders. But I do catch strong trout that are surprising for their size and I want a light drag in those fiesty moments. Mostly, I lock in a click-check type of reel since they’re light weight and offer enough drag resistance for what I need to safely bring a trout to the net.

Six dry flies have a permanent spot in my Rainy Mountain fly box. Why? Because I have found them particularly effective through the years. They are: Black Flying Ant; Elk Hair Caddis; Parachute Adams; Parachute Hopper; Orange Stimulator; and Royal Wulff. These work very nicely.

My sling pack holds the usual accessories: tippet; leaders; nippers; forceps; floatant; drying patch; SPOT Messenger; and, there is always a bottle of water in the bag while I roam the mountain streams. Also, attached to the pack is a landing net in either 18 or 20 inch length, depending on the stream. Oh, there is one stream where wading is not allowed, and I'll use a 32 inch long net for it, because invariably, I'll hook a trout in a spot with the water running three feet below a bank.

For wading, I keep in the truck the following: a pair of 15" high rubber boots; lightweight wading boots; and breathable hip waders with neoprene stocking feet. Sometimes I'll wet wade, but that's not often as I prefer keeping my feet dry if possible. Which wading method I use on a given day depends on how far I'm hiking, the depth of the stream, and how spooky the trout tend to be in a few specific streams. You don't need chest waders here.

That's it! All I need to fly fish on home waters. Yup, I keep a duffle bag with my gear loaded for an easy 'grab and go' departure to the mountain. When one fishes forty to fifty days in an average year, it's handy to have a bag ready for a day trip on the Rios.

So, here's to everyone having some fabulous fishing adventures this summer! Get in the outdoors wherever you live...life is good.

Photos Top to Bottom: Winston WT 7' 3wt fly rod with Hardy Featherweight reel; Winston WT 7' 2wt fly rod with Ross Colorado reel; Rainy Mountain brown trout.