Mending; A Fly Fishing Essential

By Charles Sams

I finally made it out to the river about a week ago in search of some steelhead.  I rigged a Thill indicator and an egg fly and within the first few cast realized that I was very rusty.  I was having trouble getting the fly to swing under the indicator and once I was able to get the fly under the indicator I was having trouble keeping the drift drag free.  It was a problem related to mending and having been away from the water and the fly rod so long it wasn’t easy.  I finally got my touch back, but not before I was quickly running out of light and the day was over. 

I figured out my issues with mending on my own but I did some research after the fact and found that if I had just done some reading up on the subject things would have been much easier.  I started to solve my problem by simply reaching out after the cast, lifting the line with the rod, and setting it back down upstream.  The problem I ran into was that I was often lifting the indicator and dragging it back upstream with the line.  I also re-learned quickly that mending just isn’t a one shot deal; rather it takes quite a few mends to get one good drift. 

So, I was dragging the indicator and thus the fly back upstream with each of my single and very simple lift and place mends.  It was giving me a very short drifts and making for some frustrating fishing.  I quickly began to adjust though and started by stripping out more slack than I needed at my feet.  I also adjusted by throwing my mends with my wrist instead of just lifting and placing the line back on the water.  A single shot of throwing the mend with my wrist was great and extended the drift.  I quickly gauged the power of the throw so that I wasn’t dragging the indicator with my mend and I found that the drift was extended.  It wasn’t enough though; there was still a lot of great water that I was missing.  The single mend wasn’t going to cut it and keep the fly in the hole long enough to completed the drift.  I knew I would have to throw multiple mends to make a good drift through the hole. 

The suckers were plentiful on this trip and even though the high blue sky and sun made them spooky, after a few casts the holes would fill up again with the critters and they were making for great practice.  The fish were plentiful and it was a perfect opportunity to test any theories that I might have.  I stripped a little more slack from the reel and set about making multiple mends during the drift instead of just one.  I really had the mend gauged at this point and was throwing the mend with my wrist without moving the indicator at all.  I could tell that the fly was under the indicator because the indicator would bob upright after the first mend and stay that way throughout the whole drift.  As long as I threw enough mends at the right time and kept the fly line from catching the indicator I was in good shape.  I was now floating the indicator, straight up and down, through the complete hole with no drag. 

Throwing a mend on The Clinton.  Photo by Joel Tomaszewski

The proof that I was getting the fly in the strike zone for a longer period of time came with the increased number of takes that I was experiencing.  As soon as I started drifting the fly under the indicator with no drag through the duration of the hole I was getting more takes.  The indicator was stopping, going down, or swimming off in the other direction on every other cast.  Unfortunately for me, I then found that my hook sets were rusty.  Oh well … I guess that is why the fly rod keeps us coming back.

I read up on the subject of mending and found some other really great information on the art.

·         You can mend upstream or downstream and sometimes both in the same cast

·         The first mend (the single mend I made by simply lifting the line and setting it back down upstream) I was making is actually called the reach mend or cast 

·         Mend when the fly or rig first touches down.  This prevents the fly line from bonding with the water

·         You should always mend with authority … don’t limp wrist it

·         Start the mend with the rod tip close to the water and end it with the rod tip up high

·         You should try and mend so that the hinge point of the fly line is on the current seam.  The seam between the faster and slower currents

·         Mending is an asset in indicator fishing, dry fly fishing, and nymphing

·         Nymph fishermen often utilize a stack mend when trying to get their fly down into deeper holes.  The stack mend is simply throwing the slack (with the wrist) toward the fly.  This allows the nymph to get down into the hole

·         Mending is often the difference between people who can just cast and people who can actually fish

The ability to mend the line and maintain a drag free drift is the mark of person who knows how to fish and not just cast a fly line.  Good mends will keep the fly in the strike zone longer and result in more takes, if not more fish to hand.  Mending isn’t without its draw back though and one of the disadvantages of having to mend to maintain the drift is the fact that you now have more line/slack on the water.  The extra slack makes it harder to set the hook and will complicate the fighting of fish as you work to keep a good tight line between you and the fish.  Hook sets and fighting fish are a whole other story though and something I will take a good look at in the next web exclusive piece. 

________________________________________________________________________

______________________________________________________________________________________

Answering Some Common Questions About         

The Cedar Sweeper

I have been craving feedback on The Cedar Sweeper for months and finally got what I asked for.I received quite a lengthy letter on the magazine and took some time to digest the feedback.I also coupled the direct feedback with some indirect observations during our recent visit to the Midwest Fly Fishing Expo.Here is what I found out, some explanations and a roadmap for the future of The Cedar Sweeper.

I didn’t know you were out there?

We got this question from lots of great folks that stopped by to see us at the expo.We have a very small marketing budget and unless you happen on a link, the website, or a copy of the magazine you wouldn’t really know that we are out there.Our marketing budget is a little bigger this year and we tried the expo out for size.It was a good experience and put us in front of a lot of Michigan Fly Fishermen.Will we do it again?I can’t really say … there are some other things that I want to try before I make that decision.We are trying to increase awareness of the magazine through some strategic partnerships like the one that we have with White River Fly Shop (Bass Pro Shop) in Auburn Hills, Michigan.They have invited us in for a few events and are nice enough to display some promo copies of the magazine.

I can’t see us making a big marketing or advertising splash anytime soon and that may never happen.We want to build a community and that will take mostly people who like the magazine spreading the word.We are out here though; putting together a magazine about the Michigan Fly Fishing Lifestyle.

What is a Cedar Sweeper?

A cedar sweeper is a cedar tree that has either fallen into the river or grown out into the river, essentially leaning out over the bank.  Cedar sweepers are pretty unique to northern rivers and huge sources of cover for trout and shade that helps to keep trout waters cool.  The trees are sometimes fresh and green, sometimes they are an orange brown, and sometimes they are nothing but bleached bony wood.  The cedar tree is pretty special; bugs and insects don’t like the sweet fragrant wood so much (that is why we build closets out of it) and moisture really doesn’t have an effect on it.  Therefore, the trees can stand along the river or lie in the river for centuries helping trout thrive. 

I named the magazine after the trout helping sweepers because it makes the river beautiful, helps provide for the trout, and can stand for a long … long time.  The tree really has everything to do with fly fishing in Michigan and that is what we are all about. 

Exactly what kind of magazine is The Cedar Sweeper?

The Cedar Sweeper is a magazine about the Michigan Fly Fishing Lifestyle.Fly fishing really is a lifestyle; the people who fly fish are taken with all aspects of the life and just as interested in literature and history as they are in the latest fly patterns and technologically advanced equipment.You will find a little bit of everything about the Michigan Fly Fishing Lifestyle in The Cedar Sweeper.

We have made an effort lately to provide more technical information in the magazine about rigging, presentation, equipment, and places to fish.However, the magazine is not conceived to be a step by step instruction manual on how or where to fly fish.The exploration of new waters and places is one of the greatest things about fly fishing.That being said, we also want to be as useful as we can to our readers when we do run a piece about fishing a particular river or creek.The tricky part about these stories is to provide just enough information that the motivated fisherman won’t have any trouble locating the stream and fishing it with a little research.We will work harder in the future to provide fishermen with a good starting point and clues on how to get to the water and fish it.

In short we won’t be giving away all the details when we go on an adventure; you are going to have to do a little work on your end to fish the stream or lake.

In the March/April issue of the magazine we ran a feature on the indy rig, a useful technique for incorporating a more traditional fly fishing feel and providing a more natural presentation to the fish.  The article included photos and instruction on how to complete the rig.  Chris Therssen showed us how to tie the Adams dry and I provided a little history.  The recipe was included in the piece but you have to take the recipe and tie it yourself.  We ran a piece on some pieces of water that might not be so crowded on opening day.  We listed some of the lesser know water in Michigan but forgot to list the county and provide a good jumping off point.  The last feature in the issue was a little bit of Michigan fly fishing history and we listed our top 5 Michigan fly fishing facts and made the story interactive at our web site.  You can vote for your favorite top 5 and we will do another story on the results later in the season.  We rounded out the issue with the editor’s note, TCS news, and the back page essay. 

It is important to understand that as a Michigan Fly Fishing Lifestyle magazine these types of pieces won’t be going away.  The lifestyle is all encompassing and consuming we care about everything Michigan fly fishing and will continue to run pieces on literature, history, flies, techniques, rivers, people, and places. 

The best way to learn to fly fish is to gather all the good information that you can from all the good sources available and get out there and give it hell!  Go fishing and experience the lifestyle, then The Cedar Sweeper will make perfect sense and well worth the $19.00 you shelled out for the subscription!

________________________________________________________