I fish for pikevon my local canal and like most canals there is limited back cast and apart from casting parallel to the canal the only option is to roll cast. Is it possible to put a haul into a roll cast to increase distance?
Haul a Roll.
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noel
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Steve buy a Single handed spey line and have a look at Andrew Toft's video on YouTube.
PaulD
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Yes, it's a dynamic roll cast - a Switch Cast
Tangled
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If the water in the canal is moving you should be able to Spey cast. Canals are rarely very wide, what distance are you trying to cast?
bobmiddlepoint
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Canals are often known for their good flow aren’t they...
The wider bends are 20yds at least. Not much flow on the canal as boats are static at the moment and my canal has no local locks.
Not really suitable Noel as I will be retrieving right back to my feet. Which means I will have very little line out to start the next cast.
aenoon
Well-known member
Wiggle out more line onto water prior to starting roll cast, will need two goes to get distance, with a short haul as line approaches water, wont add distance, but will straighten it all out!
Bert
noel
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Steve , Andrew Toft deals with that in his video.
Paul_B
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All in our area a virtually static, however they getting used more over the last year or so.
Try working up the cut in one direction,lay one or two false cast on the margins you have worked up to
and then whack it out,at this time of year on the towpath side most of the reeds are gone.Dont worry to much about distubance it can wake the pike up.Or make your cast and take a couple steps up the way this will leave the fly down from you.
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Yes, you can haul on the roll cast. You can roll cast mutiple times and you can jump roll and single spey cast. Try them all. You do not need any current for any of them. Canals are closed for boats at the moment and locks are closed.
Just try them.
To aid casting use a floater and have lead in your fly to sink it and the leader. It has worked for me so it can work for you.
Rusty
bennysbuddy
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Have a look at some of the new OPST micro Spey lines, they are becoming very popular in the U.S. for trout fishing.
Rhithrogena
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I have only pike flyfished on Lincs drains and rivers but did find casting parallel to the bank very effective as a lot of fish seemed to be near the edges.
If the fish are in the middle/far side you can do a hybrid cast. A side cast with Single Spey finish. This is one of the Heineken Casts developed by Simon Gawesworth.
Start working out line with a parallel cast up and down the canal, let's assume a right handed caster casting to his left (and facing more or less across the canal). Do this in more or less a sidecast manner, or with the rod at say, 45 degrees. When your forward cast has extended enough for the distance you want, you make the final back cast with a rising arc round towards the bank on your right side; letting the leader/tip of the line touch down on the surface and forming the D-loop to your right with the tip of the line pointing across to where you want the cast to go. Now make your shot. If you have a sufficiently heavy line for the fly you are using you will be able to make sensible 40' casts at 45 degrees or so without the D-loop encroaching on the bank, but completely on the water,. A long rod is a boon for longer casts, but a 9' rod will work with practice.
This also works for dry flies when trouting if say you have a line of trees behind you when wading and a fish rises some distance out from the bank. Very useful on rivers. You can make the D-loop and final presentation without drowning the fly most of the time.
If you look on YouTube a new zealander has a series of short videos on fly casting. One of them deals with the roll cast specifically and he adds a haul at the end.
Search for bumcast. I think the guys name is Carl McNeill....now that man can cast a fly rod.
Search for bumcast. I think the guys name is Carl McNeill....now that man can cast a fly rod.
pedros
Well-known member
I've just started pike fly fishing my local canal, the Shropshire Union which is a pretty narrow canal. Observations thus far regarding casting with no back space:
- If the canal is relatively shallow then use a floater - with a 20lb flouro leader and wire your fly should get down. If there is more depth then sink tip or slow inter
- Fish the water out in front and to the sides first
- Learn to cast parallel to the bank off both shoulders so you can cast in both directions, helps in the wind
- Set up for a roll cast at the end of every retrieve - you can retrieve almost to your feet when setting this up, if you get a take at this point then roll cast to set the hook! On sections of the 'Shroppie' a standard roll cast is often enough to reach the far bank
- When you need to cast to the far bank after fishing the water out in front of you either
- Roll cast as normal to reach 1/2 to 3/4 of the way across then apply a jump roll or similar - with a haul if necessary. The jump roll is dynamic so when sweeping the rod back you apply a greater load.
- Alternatively I double spey by at first casting parallel to the bank then double spey across - again helps in the wind
