3 weights...

[Pocono]

I fish a lot of small streams up here in the Poconos and I'm always tossing my flies with a 3 wt.; nothing lighter than that. Conifers, maples, rhododendrons, mountain laurel, greenbriar; they're all here in great abundance, so the concept of tight quarters and maneuvering yourself into position to get in a good presentation or two is one that I'm definitely familiar with.

However, in these environs I don't find the need for a rod that's shorter than 7'6". I also don't find the need for a glass blank; although my favorite small stream rod remains my trusty Diamondback D-glass 7'6" 3 wt. On the carbon side of the equation, I really like the all-around flexibility of my Sage ZXL 7'6" and my Sage TXL 7'10" 3 wt. isn't very far behind it. Rounding out the group of what I consider my small stream go-to rods is my new TL Johnson 8'0" 4 wt., which is one very nice rod to cast in close.

I agree with the usefulness and desirability of a fuller flexing rod for small stream fishing, but the above rods seem to fill the bill for me. I think that casting stroke and a feel for the movement of the line in the air have a lot to do with the way that you can present a fly to a fish on a small stream; perhaps as much or more than the length and weight of the rod.

On the older glass side, I do have a little Fenwick FF535 5'3" 5 wt. that I fish occasionally, but I consider it more of a novelty than necessity for in-close fishing on small streams. I also have a Philippson registered Midge rod; a 6'6" 4 wt. that's a really sweet stick, but again, I don't feel the need for it's length in tight fishing quarters, I just like the way that it feels with a native Brookie on the hook.