Single Handed Rods??

[Nightfisher]

Hi Mickfish

It's obviously up to the individual and our own competence with single and double handed rods is a factor in our choice. I actually had an 11ft 8/9 D/H rod built for me but the single hander is the better tool for the job. I feel very comfortable with a single-handed 6/7 rod for most of my fishing on small rivers and I fish one almost every day in the summer and autumn. I also find single handers much more flexible for roll and spey casting as they allow left hand manipulation of line which can be very useful for pinging the flies under overhanging trees. I do in fact successfuly use heavily weighted flies in conjunction with single handed roll/spey casts.

A double hander on some of the pools I fish would be impossible - it's just too long to fit under the trees.

As for playing and landing I stick by my belief that a single handed rod will bring a fish to hand as quickly as a double hander. Holding the rod above the handle braced against the forearm is the way I do it. One of the other posters has mentioned fish in the 30-40lb class on single handers so it's not an issue for most of our small river salmon. I accept that the Americans have taken to the double hander and for larger rivers it's the best choice in my view.

Malcolm

[Mickfish]

Of course there will always be a subjective element to the tackle we use and the reasons why we use it Malcolm. Looking at your post above it also begs the question 'how small is a small river?' One of my main gripes with smaller sh rods is that when you are trying to cover a lie even on small river, when casting 45 degrees down and across the river, and either because of water depth, pace of current, or, simply not wanting to approach too close to the fish, you still have to execute a longish cast. If you do not have a clear path behind you, which is often the case on many smaller rivers, then what cast do you use? Even 'jumped' spey casts with a single hander can fall short of the mark. With a double hander there is usually no problem. But you know your rivers well and I've no doubt your predominant use of the single hander on your main river(s) is borne out of hard experience. Its the same for me but my choice is different but that's what makes this sport so fascinating.

Mickfish