How important is looking the part?

[xcspirit]

How important is it to other fishermen out there to look like a good fly fisherman? I guess I was curious to see who else is interested in the "style" of fly fishing.

 

[thewalker1013]

I'll say this, I love good gear but there are times when one can overdo it and look like a gaper. Having said that, who cares, I like the way I look when I'm fishing... Happy.

Ok, so I also own a great hat that covers me up, but it's not cool. Not one bit. I may not wear it much for that reason

 

[MoscaPescador]

I'll say this, I love good gear but there are times when one can overdo it and look like a gaper. Having said that, who cares, I like the way I look when I'm fishing... Happy.

Ok, so I also own a great hat that covers me up, but it's not cool. Not one bit. I may not wear it much for that reason

You must be a skier or a snowboarder since you know the word, "gaper."

A couple of years ago, a friend introduced me to the fishing word equivalent to the "gaper" called the "googan."

In regards to the OP, dress however you want. A majority of fly fishermen don't care.

Dennis

 

[woodrivertroutbum]

I could care less what another guy is wearing...

 

[troutnut4]

IMO, the only thing important to me is the presentation of the fly to a hungry trout. There is nothing more beautiful (almost nothing) than to see a well executed cast and a successful hook up to make my day but there is nothing wrong with looking good if that is your bag! I personally don't want to appear as if I have just walked out of a fly shop. To each his own.

 

[dhaynes]

I'll almost always take a few minutes to watch a good fly fisher (from a distance of course) because I think I can learn something from them. As a general observation, the guys who look the best at the parking area most often have the least to offer... More often, the guys who offer the most look least like an Orvis catalog........

 

[Rip Tide]

One place that I fish, the "urban youths" tend to give you a hard time if you're dressed too Orvis-y.

I try not to dress like a total dweeb, but as you can see I'm not very good at that

 

[troutnut4]

So that is what a CT. trout looks like! Are you sure that you didn't get that at Orvis?

 

[mbchilton]

When I'm fishing I don't dress to impress anyone. I wear some of the higher end gear because it works, and I like it. I could care less what another person wears on the stream. What irritates me is the guys who make fun of me for the way that I dress. They'll ask why I'm dressing up to go fishing. It's ironic because they care more about what I'm wearing than I do.

 

[thewalker1013]

You must be a skier or a snowboarder since you know the word, "gaper."

A couple of years ago, a friend introduced me to the fishing word equivalent to the "gaper" called the "googan."

In regards to the OP, dress however you want. A majority of fly fishermen don't care.

Dennis

Totally using "googan"... Hard to find em in our sport though, I feel. Some guy who just blew $1300 bucks at Orvis and looks like it probably cares enough about the sport to learn how to use all of that gear, and who hasn't been at that point in their fly-fishing life? Hard to fault enthusiasm... This is also a sport that you can't fake, and most folks like that are an opportunity to help mold the future anglers.

Talk to them, take a minute and put em on a fish, show them that casting a couple of feet to the right might help, show them the proper way to handle a small native trout. And if they ask about keeping fish, tell them without judgement why you choose not to, and your attitude can go a long way in teaching them to respect the sport and the fish.

What's almost more annoying is people who make comments on a noob to the sport. Those guys that think being a guide for a summer makes them an authority on everything fly-fishing related... I know a couple of old guys around here in TX and OK who still fly-fish in jeans and white t-shirts that could whip the pants off of a lot of good fisherman I know. I thought there was no way that these guys were serious fisherman, but I was wrong. Appearances 'round here can be very deceiving.

 

[moxnichts]

So its safe to say a googan with the right attitude is only a beginner, and that's all good in my view.

 

[Rip Tide]

Here ya are. Everything that you need to know.

How to look good

Appearance and behavior are two very important aspects of fly fishing. Act or look the wrong way, and fellow anglers will immediately judge you as an amateur. This first chapter of two will teach you what to wear and carry.

 

[mikel]

I guess I was curious to see who else is interested in the "style" of fly fishing.

..and next on the runway is Tim Rajeff, in Simms Guidewear, both waders and boots and all Patagonia from the waist up...polartec 100 fleece and a packaway goretex jacket in mauve with blue and orange highlights....and under it all...undergarments of wicking and warmth...this outfit, at any of our stores can be had for less than $2,500.

yeah, I wear jeans under my Orvis waders and whatever I have that keeps me dry if it rains. Still wearing a a vest from the '70s and I officially don't give a hoot what anyone else wears. I also wear a pfd in my float tube and wade with a staff because I'm just recently old enough to wanna get older...and don't care what anybody else thinks...

 

[dean_mt]

How important is it to other fishermen out there to look like a good fly fisherman? I guess I was curious to see who else is interested in the "style" of fly fishing.

The look is important to me ... I admit to not wanting to look a certain way.

I like to have good quality stuff, but I really don't like all the new "style" in fishing gear. Sometimes it's hard to find stuff that fits well, functions, and doesn't look like a space suit or an Eddie Bauer catalog.

I really disliked all the molded foam on Fishpond and Simms vests that was really popular a few years ago but has seemed to go away now. I want functional but not flashy, bells and whistles aren't my thing. I don't like dangling stuff. I did just buy a new vest this season and am feeling self-conscious about how clean it is!!

I want to look like a fisherman, and to me that means looking like I know what I'm doing, and that means not carrying every gadget and zinger that will fit on my body but I'll rarely use and never need. So for me this is an old, favorite baseball cap, an old comfortable shirt maybe with the sleeves cut-off above the elbow because the elbows already blew-out. And if I'm going to be fishing all day and walking, I now prefer to just wear my non-fishing specific day pack and the smallest chest pack to carry essentials at hand.

 

[dhayden]

One of the funniest things I ever saw.. was 3 guys driving up to a nice creek, very well known for challenging/technical fishing, in brand new everything,, top to bottom, then flail at the water. I doubt they'd ever cast before, but I assume they saw an add somewhere in a fly fishing magazine

Like dean_mt.. I too have a newer vest.. maybe 2 seasons now.. still looks too darn new.. probably the only change I'd have, need full sleeves always.. need to watch the amount of sun exposure - I should wear sun gloves, they just feel so dorky

 

[stimulator2]

The look is not important to me like most of the guys said if you like you stepped out of a orvis or cabela's,most are just starting.i however have all that stuff and if it's new waders i feel like i just stepped out of the pages of a magazine but thats what i need at the time other days may find me in a pair of cahartt of liberty overalls, or perhaps a pairs of shorts.The look who cares.

 

[brookfieldangler]

I don't care if I look the part. If anyone is watching with any sort of critical/doubtful eye, I happily squash those judgments when they see me landing fish.

 

[jaybo41]

I could care less what anyone wears to fish with or their choice of tackle. The whole notion is totally absurd to me. If you're caught up in trying to look or not look a certain way on the river, you might want to re-think your priorities.

 

[fredaevans]

There's an old term for this: "Orvis Boy." Never sport more than one new bit at a time. Ever see the advertisement where this 'whom-ever' has a fly rod in his hand and bent over at the 'waste.' Pun intended. Obvious total concentration as he hunts down a six inch fish?

'You finally had to break down and buy a new waders? How long did the old set work?' Real answer is I can't remember. Hell, I don't even know where I was last Monday morning.

'That a new Meiser/Anderson/Burkie rod?' (You really want to look ratty.) 'Can I give it a toss?' Answer is always yes 'But rod/line is new to me so this is going to get some using too.'

 

[plecain]

This spring I had new waders, new wading shoes, a new TU hat, a new rod and reel, a new net, and a new rain jacket.

I felt like those old pictures you see of Elmer Fudd going fishing.

I didn't notice that the fish cared very much.