Let’s keep this one simple for a moment. Cast with one hand and reel with the other, because it makes good sense. Because it’s more efficient by a mile — it requires less movement and there’s less chance for error — and because using your off hand for all line maintenance creates better habits for both stripping and reeling. All of that pays off in the end.
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Now, is it wrong to cast and reel with the same hand? Nope. I won’t go that far, because there’s not much room in fly fishing for absolutes. But after all the conversation and opinion I’ve heard on this topic, I’m still searching for any good reason why doing it the other way and reeling with the casting hand is better. Some anglers make it work. But it’s not the best choice.
.. . . There’s lots more to this one, so let’s dig in.
The simple inefficiency of moving the fly rod from one hand to the other, just to reel in some line, is obvious. That’s a problem, but it’s not what hurts most. Fighting fish is where the biggest failures happen.
Throw a dry fly upstream and across, into the slow stall behind the largest rock in some great pocket water. Strip in slack, strip, strip . . . and a trout eats! The momentum of the trout carries it into a faster seam, and it swims downstream toward you. Strip more. And now . . . switch hands so you can reel??
Remember, the line under your trigger finger is keeping tension to the trout. But along with the rod swapping hands, that line and the tension must be transferred to your other hand and a new trigger finger as well. It’s too easy for bad things to happen in that transfer, especially, with everything moving in fast water, with a big trout upstream.
READ: Troutbitten | You Need a Good Trigger Finger
Most times, that switch from hand to hand works flawlessly. But what happens when it doesn’t?
There’s a chance for failure, every time. So why take the risk? Isn’t making that switch more dangerous than simply reeling with the other hand?
So, in the short term, reeling with the casting hand might lose fish. But in the long term, it encourages poor line maintenance principles. (More on that below.)
One more point here about the downsides of reeling with the casting hand. We all choose to cast with our dominant arm. So why would we choose to fight a trout with our weaker and less-skilled arm? Aren’t the most important moves in fighting a fish performed with the fly rod and not the reel? More on that below as well . . .
Last week, we published a Troutbitten podcast with the title, Bad Habits That Hurt, where we highlighted some of the worst habits we see as guides and as friends to fellow anglers. We separated habits that are just personal style and aren’t really deal breakers, vs actual bad habits that hold angers back.
Give that podcast a listen, and you’ll be hard pressed to disagree with the worst habits.
PODCAST: Troutbitten | Bad Habits That Hurt — S9, Ep9
In that conversation I brought up the reel-hand debate. Because I believe strongly, using the non-dominant hand does hold anglers back. I’ve seen these consequences a hundred times. I’ve watched anglers struggle, and I’ve watched them lose fish. It’s a mistake that has repercussions, often unexpected and unacknowledged. Switching hands to reel in line complicates line maintenance, and there’s no good argument for reeling and casting with the same hand — not for trout fishing on a fly rod.
I knew this habit would be the most controversial of our podcast. There are enough anglers who do this, and I knew people would be defensive. Sure, all of this is good fun, but I think it’s also important to honestly consider the advantages and the consequences of our choices.
So, why do anglers cast and reel with the same hand? The simplest answer is tradition. Decades ago it was more common, so that’s how some anglers learned. But why should that matter? Aren’t we a group that prides ourselves on the advancement of fishing techniques and gear? Haven’t we moved on from barbed hooks, catch and kill, and cat gut leaders?
I heard from a bunch of fly fishers in the last couple of days since the podcast was published. I’ll cover some of their most frequent arguments as I walk through the rest of this discussion, and I’ll make my own argument for why it’s best to reel with the hand that isn’t casting the fly rod.
“It’s just more comfortable for me.”
Fair enough. This is the only argument that makes much sense. And if you can’t feel happy cranking with the other hand, then stay with what works for you!
Admittedly, it won’t hurt that much. It won’t cost you fish or cost you fishing time — until it does.
What is most comfortable isn’t always best — especially at first. I coached Little League for nine years. And at the youngest levels, many kids showed up wanting to put the glove on their dominant hand. But did I allow that? Does anyone? No. Kids must learn to throw from their strongest side and catch with the other. It’s a two-handed process. Likewise, many young ball players wish to hold the bat with the wrong hand on top. It might seem natural, but it doesn’t work as well. No child is permitted to hold the bat with their dominant hand on the bottom. And no one argues this.
So what’s the difference for the reeling hand?
I think because there’s no one standing over you while you’re learning and saying, “Don’t do it that way. Trust me, this way’s better in the long run,” you can easily fall into the habit of casting and reeling with the same hand. And because the measure of success in fishing is too often a fish in the net, a couple of trout reinforces a bad choice, and everyone moves on.
“It’s just more comfortable for me.”
A little discomfort at first pays big dividends down the line. There are examples of this all through the learning process of fly fishing (and throughout life). We correct for good casting form and accuracy. Why not this?
READ: Troutbitten | What to Trust
Tom, we love you. Yes, here at Troutbitten, we love Tom Rosenbauer. Who doesn’t? Tom’s book, Prospecting for Trout remains one of the most influential resources of my fly fishing life. I’ve had good conversations with Tom, and I can’t say enough great stuff about what he has done for so many anglers in this sport.
I’ve been told that Flip Pallot has this habit too, along with Lefty Kreh and a few YouTube personalities that I’ll leave unmentioned.
Clearly, casting and reeling with the same hand works for many excellent anglers.
But, honestly, the habits of other anglers mean nothing to me. What is most efficient? What works best for the way I fish? How can I set myself up to be the most versatile angler? How can I be in the best control of my line, my leader and my fly? And how can I consistently bring the fish I fool to the net? That’s what matters. Those are my standards.
Again, I’ve never heard an argument for why reeling with the same hand that casts the rod is actually better. All I hear are reasons why it’s not that bad.
Here are a few . . .
This one comes over from the salt fishing world. This common argument asserts that reeling fast matters most.
It doesn’t. Because if I need line retrieval that fast, I’m stripping the line in anyway. On a fly setup, that’s always the fastest way to retrieve line.
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I can’t imagine that anyone who puts in a few weeks with the reel handle on their off-hand side wouldn’t get used to reeling with that lousy, good-for-nothing hand anyway. Put it to work, and make it learn a new skill.
Incidentally, I’m positive that many anglers, like me, reel with our non-dominant hand much faster than the dominant hand — simply because we’ve done it for so long.
READ: Troutbitten | Maybe You’re Holding the Fly Rod Wrong
Here’s another one brought over from the saltwater world.
I’ve been told that you can crank harder with your strongest hand.
I don’t care about that! Who fights fish and brings them in by torqueing on the reel anyway? We use the rod for that. On the biggest fish, on the heaviest loads, we pull the rod back to move the fish in closer, then reel down as we drop the rod, getting ready for the next pull back. That’s good fish fighting. Use the rod! I don’t know anyone who uses the strength of their reel hand to winch in a fish. That’s bad technique.
Also to this point about strength . . .
No one suggests casting with the non-dominant hand, right? So why change hands after setting the hook? Why take the fish fighting skills out of the dominant hand? Is reeling more important than the moves you make with the rod to fight a fish? Surely not. Far more important is what the rod does.
Well, you probably should. Good habits and best practices dictate keeping any line that is not in use wound on the reel.
Is this a hard and fast rule? Of course not. But it’s a good habit, because line on the water is just waiting for something bad to happen to it. Eventually, that dangling line will tangle on a branch, your wading staff, your hemostats, or it’ll wrap around your leg.
READ: Troutbitten | Habits: Keep It On the Reel
Since this is real life, the worst tangle will happen on the best fish of your life.
Good anglers reel in extra line, when it’s not in use. This happens frequently, sometimes a few times per minute, sometimes in between casts. Peel off an extra few feet if you need it. And reel in the extra couple feet when you don’t need it.
Keeping things clean out there just makes sense, and good habits produce good things over time.
Yes, if you watch Bassmaster, you’ll see it enough — cast the line, then switch hands and reel with the casting hand.
But this is a bad comparison that doesn’t hold up.
With gear fishing, there is no line management issue similar to fly fishing.
After making the cast with a spinning rod the line is on the reel, ready to crank. But make a cast with a fly rod, and some line is often off the reel and in the line hand. We also crank the spinning reel to recover slack, but we strip the fly line.
That alone is the fundamental difference and why this comparison doesn’t hold up. Gear angler issues and fly angler issues are not the same.
No one dictates the rules of fly fishing. Assuming you’re following the fishing regulations of state and country, you’re free to fish any way you desire. Do what makes you happy. That’s one of the things we love about all this.
But we go to great lengths to learn strong knots, to form tight casting loops and put our flies on target. So how can the same angler who deliberates over the wire diameter and strength of a particular hook accept the inefficiency and the risk of reeling with the casting hand?
That decision seems odd to me.
Yes, in our podcast I called this a deal breaker. I think reeling with the casting hand is a bad habit that holds anglers back, because I’ve seen the short term mistakes and long term consequences too many times to believe otherwise.
Absolutely, we find examples of excellent anglers who’ve adapted and made this work. But the inefficiencies remain. And when it comes to fly fishing for trout, I’m still waiting to hear just one true advantage of reeling and casting with the same hand.
No matter what, have fun out there. It’s just fishing.
Fish hard, friends.
** For a list of our favorite fly rods and reels, visit the Recommended Gear page here on Troutbitten. **
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Enjoy the day.
Domenick Swentosky
T R O U T B I T T E N
domenick@troutbitten.com
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