Fly Fishing Vs Spin Fishing

Yesterday evening, me and my partner had a big debate about fishing. We soon touched on the fly versus spin fishing. Obviously, fly fishing is harder to master and learn properly but there are several other differences; the rods, the bait, line types, ...

What's your opinion on fly fishing in a survavalist situation? I specifically mean versus the spin fishing. Would you be able to catch significantly more fish using the spin technique? let's discuss.

 

So any kind of rod fishing is a no-no?

We once did one of those fish traps that you can make out of bottles, don't know if you're familiar with it, and we did have a good success. It was mainly small fishes though. Very interesting.

 

I definitely choose spin fishing over fly fishing any day for survival! The reason being is you can increase your chances of a catch by being able to fish the top, middle, or bottom of the water you're in as opposed to just the top with a fly rod! Also you have a much bigger hook selection which allows you to fish the smaller blue gill which bite easily and can save you in a pinch when the big boys aren't biting!

 

Basically in most survival situations time is something that you have a lot of. Also unless you are fishing for a large number of people you don't need a large quantity of fish since you don't have a fridge. If all you need is two or three fish I prefer rods over nets, traps or set lines. I plan on having all sorts of fishing techniques available. Each style has its goods and bads. I plan on having flys and such but don't need a fly rod. I will present them on long poles. Flys will catch small fish when a spinning size bait just won't do it and small fish eat just as well as big fish. They also make little clear bubble that allow you to cast flys with a spinning rod. You might also look into the cuban yo yo for larger fish and yo yo reels for limb lines along with smaller cast nets and gill nets. Where I live there is a lot of water so I plan on utilizing it for protean. To tell you the truth a long strong cane pole with heavy braided line on it might be a better provider than either a fly rod or a spinning rod. Remember this isn't about sport fishing. There are more fish near the shore in cover than you will be able to access off shore in the deeper waters. They will tend to be smaller, stupider and easier to catch than older bigger fish.

 

I don't know how I would catch a catfish on a fly rod. Over here we use whatever technique is most effective. I have spinning set ups from 2 lb line through about 30 lb line. Also I do a lot of European style carp fishing and they use top flight spinning gear. In salt water I usually use casting gear.

 

I have never been in a real survival situation myself. Always had my survival secured. Netfishing is the way to go though. I fish alot with handlines when Im out hiking though. From simple soda-bottle lines to more advanced reels. And that would be equivalent to spin fishing. I have a couple of yo-yo fishtraps in my backpack, you should google them, pretty smart stuff I gotta say.

 

A lot of people spin for salmon here in Wales, it depends on who owns the fishing rights and what rules they apply in addition to seasons and the environment agency restrictions.

To put it simply, both spinning and fly fishing are pastimes not an effective way of feeding the family. If you have so much time to waste after the shit hits the fan that you can take time out for fly fishing you must be much better organised then I am. I intend to use nets that only need to be checked every 12 hours.

 

Evidently fishing in Briton is a just totally different thing that what I do here in East Texas. I think it has to do with scale. We have rivers in the US that are a mile wide 25 meters deep and almost a thousand miles long. Where I live we have lots of lakes all around me that run from 25,000 to 180,000 acres then there are too many to count from 200 to 5000 acres. Then you have big rivers every 50 miles or so with hundreds of creeks feeding them.

Recreational fishing and commercial fishing are both big business here. Each and every one of these lakes an rivers is just chock full of fish and they are carefully manage by our parks and wildlife agencies to keep them that way. At the hatcheries they actually breed for size and stock the latest breeds into the lakes. Every one of these lakes and rivers also offers you a variety of fish that range in size from the smaller perch and such to bass up to 10 pounds and catfish and Alligator gar that are as big as a man.

I live on the north end of one of those big lakes. It is 90,000 acres of prime fishing and then 30 miles south or so there is another smaller lake of 20,000 acres. I fish a couple of days a week now that I am retired and keep all of my friends freezers stocked with fish. I am allowed to legally catch and keep 50 catfish a day that are a foot long. I don't ever do that but I nonetheless catch and keep enough to make about 30 or 40 pounds of boneless catfish filets every month. I share with all my friends and often they fish with me. IF I needed to though I could probably up that number to several hundred pounds a month without working very hard. Right now all I do is rod and reel recreational fishing. If I was serious it would be long lines and jug lines. I know several people that make their living doing this commercially and make a very good living.

This is just a resource that we have. None of those lakes are natural. We build them for water supplies to the big cities, to generate electricity and for recreational uses. Every town has numerous small lakes around or in it that run up to 250 acres that are stocked for fishing. We have no trout in East Texas because the summers are way to hot for them BUT in the winter those smaller lakes are stocked with thousands of Rainbow Trout just for fun and fishing. They are caught or die before the beginning of the summer but stocked again every year.

We eat a lot of fish here. When I was a kid that was a serious part of my Mama's grocery menu and we fished several times a month to keep them and frogs in the freezer. So I think that what I think of as fishing and what you think of as fishing is a totally different thing. For me going fishing means 4 hours of fishing brings home 5 to 10 pounds of meat.

 

Our population density means that our water quality suffered for generations. It is only in the last 20 or so years that there have been improvements. Even now the pressures of agricultural run off and industrial pollution cause a major set back for fish stock once in a while.
I look at Alaskan rivers and I'm green with envy.
All my early fishing experience was in sea fishing or beach casting.

 

I used to live near the coast and fished in the salt water a lot. I have to say that the fishing there is great also. We tend to look at coastal fishing as a sport and recreational thing and so the fish are managed just like they are in the lakes. They have limits that encourage a strong fishery and also stock from hatcheries to help nature produce more fish. Pretty much the fishing industry in Texas is mostly off shore, shrimp, crabs and oysters. Game fish are not allowed for commercial sale. I do miss the flounder and redfish a lot.

 

Fly fishing makes sense if you are trying to survive at high altitude where the fish survive primarily on insects. But for most areas, I prefer the versatility of a medium wt spin rod.

Once you locate good areas to fish, trot lines and bank/limb lines start to make sense. Plus there is a reason gill nets are not legal in most areas.

 

I prefer spin casting but if you can chase the fly hatches of the year you can catch fish easily fly fishing. I’ve fished a pool for hours with only a few bites spincasting and my friend is pulling them up steady while fly fishing.
One bonus of fly fishing is you can make your own flys using different hair or feathers from hunting.