The Muskoka River was my target today. I was trying to track down some rainbows as they are the only fish species open this time of year. The -6 degrees celsius temperature made things very difficult. Chunks of ice were floating down the river and I had to time my fly placements with their passing. After about 20 minutes of casting (and no fish), I noticed my fly was getting a little heavier. Upon closer examination, it was turning into a small ice ball. Shortly after that, ice began to form on the eyelet at the tip of my fly rod and this was hindering smooth launching of my fly line. The final straw in this cold weather battle was that my fly line got very stiff and refused to straighten out to make casting possible.
I gave up.
Is there such a thing as cold weather fly tackle/equipment that makes it possible to fish in the winter? I imagine there is little an angler can do when your are dealing with tackle that gets wet in below freezing weather. Fly rods with bigger eyelets may help prevent ice-up. They could also make fly line material that resists cold temperatures. Does such gear exist or will I really have to wait until spring to fly fish in a Canadian winter? Any Orvis reps have any prototypes they need tested? I could find a volunteer…
Bill Anderson
-via Trout Waders.com
