Greetings from Berlin, the capital of Germany! I must comment on the video as it truly blew my mind away! I've attended fly fishing casting courses in Germany several times, then in Denmark, Ireland, and Scotland, all in combination with casting courses and a fly fishing guide + fishing. I nearly gave up on fly fishing because I couldn't grasp it-I thought I was just too stupid! However, after watching your video, I've improved my casting skills from 30% to now 80%! This is absolutely incredible! You explained it so well! Thank you for the video and the other videos! It's amazing what you do-thank you in the name of all the fly fishing enthusiasts in the world. If your travels ever bring you to Berlin, I would be delighted to treat you to dinner. Best regards, Robert
Thanks a lot for your comment, and for letting us know the video helped you out so much. We'll tell Simon that your casting skills improved as a result of this video, and he will be really pleased to hear that. We'll also tell him about your invitation - assuming it was for him, not for the entire Far Bank staff 😂😂
Love how it breaks everything down to the small details, there is no presumption that you know anything. I have been casting a year and if I had found this when I started out I would be so much better off. I Watch this over and over and it irons out my glitches. Great video. I am not paid to leave to feedback.
Thanks very much for your kind comment. It's great that you enjoyed the video so much, and that it helped you out with a few tips. Good luck with the casting going forward.
I've been fishing a long time but fly fishing is brand new to me so I've been watching a load of video's. This is, without doubt, the best one I've seen on fly casting.
This is the best tutorial I’ve watched, had my first fly fishing session yesterday and couldn’t get the cast to go where I wanted and the fly would always fall right on top of the line. The whole loop concept is great and has immediately improved my casting, seeing the full cast and what its supposed to look like is also so helpful, thanks!
Thanks a lot for your feedback and for commenting. We're delighted you enjoyed this episode and hope you enjoy more from the 3 seasons. Good luck with it all :)
Glad you liked them, and thanks for your feedback. FYI, Season 2 has been shot and is in the final editing phase, so should be out in early Spring. We hope you enjoy that new series too :)
Enjoyed your video. It’s probably the best one on the basic cast. Having the rod bend on the forward cast as well as the back cast is key. The weighted portion of your fly line, the thicker part of the first 30 ft. or so, will bend the rod if you can get it all out as you cast. Amazing how that works.
This is a master class. Thank you so much. I gave up on learning to fly fish but I think I'll try again. In fact, your video makes me excited to try again.
Wait a minute. I just realized something. I’ve been watching these videos and I ended buying my first fly rod from Redington and I got an email from Far Bank regarding my order. Coincidence?!?! 😂
Very good video quality and excellent presentation skills by Mr. Gawesworth. Relaxed, personable, clear and to the point, plus a dash of humor - very enjoyable to follow! Although I have some experience in fly fishing, even the basic videos are very watchable and entertaining. You can learn a lot if you want to teach someone yourself. In the "Casting Timing" chapter, I came up with the analogy of a metronome. The longer the line, the slower the rhythm, and vice versa - like a metronome. Maybe this will help some beginners to visualize it better. Keep up the good work! Greetings from Austria
just starting out with fly fishing and this video is bye far the most helpful and detailed one ive been able to find ive learned a lot of eye opening and critical details that have been overlooked in other videos that really helped me understand how i can improve my cast performance and what to look for in my technique that may be causing problems for me being able to see the line in the loop lab so clearly also helped a lot for the visual aspect of learning the cast best part is im only half way through the video amd i already feel much more confident in catching my first fish on my fly rod
Excellent video, probably best I’ve watched to date. Very much enjoy watching Simons videos as they are very informative and always learning something new. Simon is a great instructor.
Wow! I am sure that people pay £100s for this kind of instruction and are happy to have done so, brilliant stuff! I am a 100% noob, and have recently blundered ahead and today ordered a "complete set-up" from a well-known Scottish shop. It was such a ridiculous price, that even if it is not very good, I will not be too depressed (£70.00, for £260 or something "worth" of kit inc. #5 8'6 rod with reel, lines, spools, 50 flies etc ). I have subscribed and will be watching a lot more of Simon! I will be fishing small slow, English rivers, mainly for coarse fish, trout will be a bonus, grayling even more so! I tried watching some other channels, but US teachers seem to need a rock guitar accompaniment and one-syllable instructions.. I am sure that they are perfectly lovely folk, but.... not for me.. It was only when he got to "identifying fish" that I realised that Simon was not in the UK! His accent? Welsh surely? Or Caribbean ??? I googled him and it said Speyside! I am happily subscribed!
Thanks for your comments. We are delighted you enjoyed the video and hope it helps you out on your new fly fishing path. We'll pass your comments on to Simon (who is from Devon, actually), as he loves to know when people enjoy his videos.
Great video for the novice angler. Picked up some valuable tips from it. Loved the loop lab, so much easier to see the line. Thanks Simon! Subscribed, :)
So many great insights. I didn't relate translation and rotation into the standard geometric terms until your explanation. Trying to improve my novice casting skills here so can't wait to try some of this stuff in my next practice session.
Wow what an informative video buy fsr the best video on fly casting for beginners i have watched brilliant well done Ps i have been fly fishing for over 30 years and still go wrong at times ha ha ha
It depends on the head length of the line you are using, some are 30 feet, 33ft some are 40 feet, some are more. You will feel the line being thicker and that is the head. As soon as you feel it get thicker as you retrieve start casting. In other words not the running line (thin part).
Thanks for commenting. We are delighted you enjoyed the video and hope you found some of the others we have produced to be as interesting and enjoyable.
Great video, are you guys aware that the "The New Fly Fisher" channel has stolen this video titled as "Probably the Best Casting Video Ever Made | Simon Gawesworth"?
Glad you enjoyed it, and thanks for commenting. Yes, we are aware of that - we thought we would share it with them to increase the number of views. Appreciate you checking in, though. :)
Je trouve que le lancer arrière est stoppé trop tard, je préfère faire arrêter les débutants que j'initie à la hauteur des yeux sans casser le poignet. I find that the back throw is stopped too late, I prefer to have beginners stop that I initiate at eye level without breaking the wrist
That was a fantastic summary for this beginner. An excellent presentation without a wasted word. PS - I'm off to Tasmania on Saturday and am grateful for such well-timed revision. Thank you Simon.
This is by far the best intro to fly fishing video I’ve watched everything is explained well and you don’t need to go back to the video to see exactly what he said to do I didn’t learn how to cast excess line till I watched this video
This is such a great video. U are so detail oriented and its always do this because of this. It feels like you know the questions beginner has in his head. Thanks for this!!
I grabbed my first fly rod 5 months ago. I wish I could have found this video back then. So much valuable information in one spot. Clear, concise and easy to understand. Thanks for posting.
When you are extending the line out as you are fault casting, is there a certain length that we should not go over or it really doesnt matter? Or is it based on the WT of the line?
There is no set amount, as it all depends on how much you start with and how much you can control. With a short length of line there isn't much weight, so you might only be able to slip 2 to 3 feet, but with 40 feet of line outside the rod, you could slip up to 10 feet. It does also depend on the line profile too - you 'll never slip as much with a Double Taper, or a light weight fly line.
11:09 ok…. What you are showing in the slo Mo is wayyy different than what he was doing behind you. He was not letting his hand travel at all behind you. Now he’s throwing punches.
I wish I had found these Far Bank videos sooner. I've been fly fishing for 55 years. I've been asked at least a thousand times for casting tips from beginners. Since the inception of the video 'how to' internet I've been looking for a video reference I could refer those inquiries to. A link that I know would impart the intricacies of casting without boring them to death or scaring them away with complexities. I finally found one! Simon, you are an asset to the sport ... and .... my new reference point for anyone who wishes to learn or improve. Great job!
Excellent video content. Getting hooked happens more frequently than you might think, especially on windy days. If the wind is blowing from left to right or right to left, you are very susceptible to hooking yourself. Be sure the wind will take the fly away from you .... keep the rod on the downwind side of your body. A wide brim hat will reduce the chance of being hooked in the neck and is preferable to a baseball style hat. Sunglasses are essential but you may want amber or clear safety glasses for fishing in low light conditions. Ski goggles might seem silly but could partially protect your face until you feel comfortable that you have some control over the line. George Griffith, co-founder of Trout Unlimited, was blinded in one eye due to a hook he impaled while casting. It can happen. Kudos to Simon for emphasizing the importance of safety gear.
amazing tips. a lot of ppl would pay for your tricks and tips an we can get it for free. thats awesome. thank you. like nd abo is out. keep doin the great work
10:19 ... nice... hey i really like the tip about practicing without the fly on. I discovered this by accident because of the whip snapping a fly off once while I was still novice (well I still am novice). I had no flies left and realised I wasn't getting caught on branches and casting felt great without the snag frustrations so I just kept casting for fun. man I learnt so much in 5 minutes from going nuts not having to worry about getting stuck in the trees or hooking myself in the back and finally managed to get line shooting out. Ever since then I have been able to shoot line easily with flies on the end. It all came down to casting without a fly. The one thing I've been searching for since January when I started fly fishing is that no video seems to cover is getting the fly in the water initially. I struggled even today with a 3 weight. I pull the line out from the tip (sometimes it slides back down annoying) then try to throw the fly into the water. It usually blows back to me or goes into a bush and gets tangled while scaring every fish away in the process. Getting the line in the water initially seems to be the hardest thing for me funnily enough. Once I get the line in then it is water loaded and surface tension holds it down so I can easily recast but it is such a process just to get that weightless fly in the water at the start.
Thanks for the comment and for letting us know about the problems you have getting the line int he water to start with - that's a pretty common problem for beginner's - no doubt. Pulling a rod length of line out before starting the first cast helps, as does making sure the rod tip is low down by the water surface. Both those tips should help stop the frustration of the line running back through the rod rings. Glad you enjoyed the video, anyway :)
It really depends on what you want to catch and fish for, and what your budget is. Are you looking for a trout fly rod in particular? Do you want a top brand, or more of a starter rod?
I’m going to echo many have said already - best fly casting instructional video for beginners. I especially appreciate the safety call outs. The difference maker for me is the explanation of ‘translation’ and ‘rotation’ in the casting stroke - an a-ha moment for sure. You’ve earned (easily) a subscriber. Thank you!!!
Watched this numerous times…and the techniques shown have worked better than any guiding I’ve had or the endless other videos I’ve watched on casting..thanks very much and keep up the excellent series!
