With the COVID-19 crisis causing many of us to be stuck at home, we figured we would go over some prep work you can do to allow you to spend as much time as possible on the water once the various stay at home orders are no longer in effect. Spring cleaning is not just for your garage, there is plenty of organizing you can with your own personal fly fishing inventory.
- Check the lines on your reels. Are they cracked or falling apart near the loop? When was the last time you replaced your fly line? I know high end fly lines have become almost shockingly expensive, but they are worth it. You will be rewarded with smooth casting, and easy mending as the line will be floating high. Most fly shops are still shipping gear or have curbside pick up, treat yourself with a new line and start swamping those old lines out.
- Inventory. First, get all your gear organized, then see what you need. Are your tippet spools running low? Are you almost out of #16 soft hackle pheasant tails? Figure out what you need now versus realizing you are out of something when you are on the river.
- Research. Now is as good as time as ever to plan some new areas to explore. Look at maps or play around with google earth. Not only will this build some serious stoke for the upcoming season, you never know what unnamed tributary or new public access spot you may discover.
- Patch waders. Were you experiencing some cold feet at the end of last season as a result of leaky waders? Take the time now to find all those little pin hole leaks and fix them correctly. I don’t think there is a more thorough way to do this than to turn them inside out, fill them up with water and see where it leaks out. Have a permanent marker ready to mark the spots so you don’t have to search for them a second time. After you find the holes, let the waders DRY COMPLETELY before patching.
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