I’m thinking of buying two young friends of ours, trout fly fishing rod kits for a wedding present. They will be living near Eugene OR. My first thought was Scientific Angler kits from Walmart, they seem to be pretty reasonable. But what else should I look at? I’d like to stay under $250 for a pair of rods, reels and line.
I think Eugene is Salmon steelhead country. You should inquire at a flyshop in the area of what type of opportunities are available for trout fishing. I have had friend fish for steel head out there and it was quite a challenge. They used 9 wts to use heavy indicator nymph rigs.
Buy them an Orvis or Cabelas gift certificate would be my advice.
As mwal says, there is going to be vast difference in the “what to buy” depending on what the want to target out there. In most of the USA, a 5 weight 9 footer is the go to stick for stream/river trout. However…
I’ve fished OR for trout and to a far greater extent than any other place in the US, the PNW has huge variations in what’s needed because of the different water types and species. Anything from a 4 weight light trout rig to a monster 9 weight for chuck and duck style steelhead rigs to a Spey stick for the big water swinging. The differences are vast out there.
Grouse
I’ll second what Grouse said. If they’re planning on fishing for resident trout in small rivers and streams, then a 8 1/2 foot 5 weight will do a great job. I brought my wife a Redington Crosswater kit in 5 weight and it is a very decent rod and reel. The fly line that comes with the kit isn’t very good, but she caught a lot of fish with that setup.
Side note…I was in Cabela’s yesterday listening to the guy in the fly fishing department tell a potential customer he needed a 3 weight. Yea, if you’re never going to throw anything bigger than a #14 dry fly more than 30 feet and only fish on totally calm days. The 5 weight will do anything a 3 weight will do, and a whole lot more too.
SR
I would agree with what has been said so far as well. I live in the heart of trout country up here in Wyoming and do a fair amount of fly fishing and have found that a 4 piece 9ft 5wt is the most versatile rod you can have. The 4 piece is great if you want to pack it up into the mountains too. I have caught everything from a 6 inch golden trout at 12000ft to a 15 lb steelhead in Idaho off of this rod so I think that it is a great all around rod.
I would recommend the Orvis Encounter kits. They are $169 each so a little more than you want to spend but well worth the money. The thing you want to look for in fly rods are warranty, which most name brands have now. TFO rods have a legendary reputation for their warranty so others are playing catch up to be competitive. I would recommend Orvis, Sage, and TFO in no particular order for a good starting set up.
Type:
865-4 8’6″ 5 4 A 2 100 yds./20 lb./WF6
This is a good beginner rod.
reels are basically line holders so an expensive one is a waste of money.
Many over spend on the first fly rod and there is a very realistic possibility it will end up hanging on the rafters in the garage.
Spend the money on some good lessons as a beginner instead of the rod/reel.
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