A
Action: A characteristic of a fishing rod pertaining to it's flexibility. Rods are rated on a scale of slow, medium or fast action. Fast action rods are generally stiffer overall but bend more at the tip, slow action rods appear to flex their entire length.
Adipose Fin: The small fin between the dorsal fin and the tail fin. Often clipped by hatcheries for marking purposes.
Alevin: A recently hatched fish. See Fry
Amnesia: A special type of monofilament with very little line memory. Typically used for Chuck-n-Duck.
Amphidromous: Fish that regularly migrate between freshwater and saltwater for reasons other than spawning, for example to feed or winter over.
Anadromous: Fish who migrate up rivers from the sea (or Great Lakes) to spawn in fresh water.
Anti-Reverse: A type of fly reel where the spool handle does not turn as line is pulled out from the reel.
Arbor: The center part of a fly reel where line and backing (first) is wound.
B
Back Cast: The portion of any fly cast that extends behind the caster.
Backing: Nylon or Dacron line tied between the fly line and the reel to act as additional line if it is required as a reserve to play a big fish. It also absorbs tension when monofilament is used on a fly reel spool.
Bead-Head: Typically a fly with a bead immediately behind the hook eye.
Belly: The thick middle portion of a fly line.
Belly Boat: Originally using a tractor or truck inner tube, this is a one-person craft with a seat across the bottom on which the fly fisher sits. Feet are in the water and scuba fins are used to move the tube around. This type of fishing boat is very popular with warm water fly fishers and with individuals who fish high mountain lakes.
Blank: Rods are produced by wrapping sheets of graphite or fiberglass around a carefully tapered steel rod (called a mandrel). The hollow rod that results from this process is called a blank. It has no guides, ferrules or reel seat.
Bobbin: A fly tying tool that holds tying thread.
Bodkin: A needle-like fly tying tool that is used to pick out dubbing, apply adhesives, and many other purposes.
Butt section / Butt: 1) Leader: Thickest part of the leader; attaches to the fly line. 2) Fly line: The part that attaches to the backing. 3) Fly fisherman: Where your head must have been to take up this crazy hobby.
C
Caudal fin: The tail fin or tail of a fish.
Center Pin: Often called a "Float Reel"; A specialty reel that is typically 4-5 inches tall, with no drag used to hold monofilament. The spool spins freely with almost no resistance allowing the line to feed out exactly matching the ever changing current speed.
Chuck-n-Duck: "C&D", A technique using a fly rod and Amnesia or a level line to drift fish deeper holes using quite a bit of weight.
Collar: A ring of feathers or hair placed immediately behind the head of the fly.
D
Dead Drift: A fly fishing technique; the way that flies drift with the current to appear natural. This requires that the fly line, leader and tippet move with the fly and not cause any unnatural disturbance in the water.
Disk Drag: A mechanical system on some fly reels where resistance is created by applying pressure between two disks.
Drag: (1) term used to describe an unnatural motion of the fly caused by the effect of the current on line and leader. Drag is usually detrimental, though at times useful (such as imitating the actions of the adult caddis). (2) Resistance applied to the reel spool to prevent it from turning faster than the line leaving the spool.
Drift Boat: A specially designed river boat capable of maneuvering in very shallow water, shooting rapids, and providing a very stable platform from which to fish.
Double Taper: "DT" a standard fly line design in which both ends of the line are tapered and the mid-section, or "belly" is "level" or does not thin out.
Double Haul: A cast in which a haul is performed on both the forward and back casting strokes. Considered to be the best way to generate maximum line speed and distance.
Dropper: A method of fishing two flies at the same time. The second fly is the dropper, and is generally suspended below the first.
Dubbing: Fly tying materials like fur that are wrapped onto a thread and then wrapped around the hook to imitate the abdomen and/or thorax of a fly.
E
F
False Cast: Casting the fly line forward and back in the air as a means to lengthen the amount of line that extends out from the rod, to dry the fly or to modify the path of the line. In a false cast, the fly is not allowed to drop onto the water.
Ferrule: A collar that is found at the point where sections of a rod are joined.
Fly Rod Weight: A method of rating a fly rods power in order to match up fly lines. The smaller the number the lighter the rod.
FPS: Feet Per Second. A standard unit of measurement used to describe the rate of sink of fly lines.
Fry: Small fish, especially young, recently hatched fish.
Full Sinking Line: A fly line where the entire line is weighted internally and sinks at a given rate. See Type
G
Gel-Spun Polyethylene: A synthetic fiber that is extremely thin, supple, slippery, very abrasion resistant, and strong. It is stronger than steel for its size. It is often used as a braided fly line backing and fly tying thread.
GPF: Grains Per Foot. A Standard unit of measurement used to describe the weight of one foot of a sinking fly line or sinking tip fly line.
Guide: (1) Rings on a rod used to direct the line down the length. Many different types including single and double foot, snake, and roller. (2) A person you hire to take you fishing that is supposed to be an expert fishermen, cook, story teller, and paramedic.
H
Hackle: Feathers from the neck or back of a specially bred chicken used for fly tying.
Hackle Gauge: A ruler-like device to make sure the length of hackle used is appropriate for the size of hook.
Hackle Pliers: Pliers used to hold a feather while it is being wound around a hook.
Hair Stacker: A cylinder with one end blocked that is used to get tips of animal hair lined up for wings, tails and other parts of a fly.
Haul: A pull on the fly line with the non-casting hand to increase the line speed and get greater distance. See double haul
I
Indicator: A floating object placed on the leader or end of the fly line to "indicate" the take of the fly by a fish.
IPS: Inches Per Second. A term used to measure the sinking rate of a fly line.
J
K
L
Leader: A single piece of monofilament or multiple segments of monofilament stepped down from large where it is attached to the fly line to small where it is attached to the tippet.
Level Line: An un-tapered fly line, it can be either floating or sinking.
Line Weight: The weight of the first 30 meters of a fly line, used as a way to standardize fly lines in matching them to fly rods.
Loading: A term used to describe the effect of the weight of the line and the momentum of the cast upon the rod.
M
Memory: "Line Memory", Loops that form in the line when pulled off the spool. An undesired effect created by the line being left on the spool for a period of time. Some lines are more or less prone to having memory.
Mend: Throwing a curve or excess line into your fly line as it floats down river to avoid having water currents pull on it and cause unnatural movement of your fly.
N
O
P
Palmer: A term used to describe feathers wound perpendicular to the shank of a hook.
Pectoral Fin: Either of a pair of fins situated just behind the head and towards the bottom that help control the direction of movement. Often clipped by hatcheries for marking purposes.
Q
R
Reel Seat: The section of a rod below the fore grip where the reel is attached.
Redd: The hollowed out nest in a streambed or lake where a fish deposits its eggs.
Running Line: A thin line made of monofilament, Dacron braid or thin fly line that connects on one end to a shooting head and on the other end to the backing, and indirectly the reel.
S
Sculpin: Any of several marine and freshwater fishes of the family Cottidae, having a large flattened head and prominent spines. A key forage species for all fish, found not only in rivers, but in lakes, ponds and oceans as well.
Shooting Head: A specialized type of fly line used for long distance casting. It provides a greater weight over the head, or first part, of the fly line. The shooting head has almost the same total weight of the entire line contained within the first 30 feet.
Sink Tip: A fly line that is mostly floating except for the first 5-25 feet, which sinks.
Slinky: A weight generally made of hollow parachute cord or a shoe lace filled with lead shot and heat sealed at each end. Attached to the line with a snap-swivel.
Spawn: (1) The act where a female fish deposits her eggs in a redd. (2) A common term for a sac of eggs used as bait.
Spey: A casting technique developed on the Spey River in Scotland typically using a "Spey" or long two handed rod. These casts can be used with a conventional one handed rod as well.
Streamer: A fly classically made of long soft feathers or animal hair to imitate a bait fish, leech or other non-insect.
Strip(ing): (1) To pull line from the reel during a cast. (2) To pull line in, imparting action to the fly.
Stripping Guide: The first or first two guides nearest the reel, typically more substantial and larger in diameter than the other guides.
T
Tail Out: The lower end of a pool where it becomes shallow again.
Tapered Leader: A leader made of monofilament, used for fly fishing; the back or butt section of the leader is of a diameter nearly as large as the fly line, then becomes progressively smaller in diameter as you approach the tip end.
Tippet: The last segment of monofilament tied on the end of a leader and connected to the fly.
Type: Referring to the measurement of a sinking fly line or sink tip fly line, a Type is the rating system of how deep a line will sink. Type I through Type VII. Not all manufacturers ratings coincide with each other.
U
V
W
Wallis Cast: A method of casting with a center pin reel by giving the line a sharp tug as you cast to set the spool of the reel spinning, so the rig flies out at the same speed as line is peeling off the spool.
Weight: (1) Any item added to aid sinking. (2) A rating system for fly rods. See Fly Rod Weight
X
X Diameter: A system to indicate the diameter of leader and tippet material, with 0X (zero-X) representing the largest diameter (.011 inches) and 8X (.003 inches) representing a small, light diameter. Commonly used values are 1X (.010), 2X (.009), 3X (.008), 4X (.007), 5X (.006), 6X (.005). The strength of these monofilament diameters varies with the kind of material.
Y
Z