A Guide to Fly Fishing Kits
All fly fishermen should use fly fishing kits. For the beginner there are kits sold in stores consisting of everything a fly fisherman needs. As you become more experienced, you will no doubt want to create your own fly fishing kit.
Besides the clothing and various accessories that you wear for fly fishing there are other accessories that might seem strange to think about however should always be with you when fly fishing.
A fly fishing vest has numerous pockets of all sizes that gives you plenty of spaces to store fly fishing equipment. If the vest does not have a patch of lambskin for lures think about adding a patch to your vest to hook lures. Include a spring loaded retractable spool that can attach to your vest that can hold a pair of nail clippers, which can trim knots. Attach a patch of rubber to your vest straightening leaders. The perfect fly fishing vest should have a large pocket on the back of the vest where you can store lightweight rain gear. Most vests have a ring the back of the collar to attach a net, if your vest does not have one think about attaching a ring or getting a vest that has a ring somewhere on the back.
When choosing a box for fly fishing think carefully. This may be one of the most important steps when creating a fly fishing kit. The box should have at least one large compartment to store dry flies without the flies. The box should have at least two smaller compartments that have foam linings with metal clips. These compartments hold wet flies, nymphs and streamers. Get a small vial for dry flies after you have used them to catch fish.
Have a spare spool for the reel that is loaded with backing and line in addition to a few other spools for monofilament leader line, a leader wallet, a sharpening stone, and a Swiss army knife or multi purpose knife.
In addition to creating fly fishing kits, it is important to have insect repellent with you at all times. If the repellent contains DEET, be very careful at what you touch after using the repellent. DEET is an industrial strength solvent that can damage the varnish on fly rods, and eat away at the finish on lines. If DEET is exposed to leaders, it can weaken them and melt rain gear. Consider using an insect repellent that does not contain DEET.
