[Noheaperture]

I primarily only fly fish mountain lakes but recently this summer been packing in a cheap spinning rod combo with good success on rooster tail/spoons when fish aren’t hitting dry/streamer presentations. Of course bushwhacking off trail lakes with a single piece spinning rod has resulted in a couple broken ones and would prefer to slap my spinning reel on a fly rod to avoid that. Curious what others experiences are with flyrods paired with a lightweight spinning reel are? Do others prefer longer rods in the 9-10 ft range or is casting easier on a shorter ~7.5 foot rod (3wt as an example).

[Randy]

Years ago I was determined to only catch mountain fish on a fly rod/reel as the experience always appealed to me more. I eventually switched to a fly rod with a spinning reel and sometimes I drag both reel types with me depending on the lake. I probably use the spinning reel 75% of the time - 4-piece rod, 5wt, 8'. It's hard to beat the efficiency of a spinning reel set-up when trying to find fish in a lake where they're not constantly showing and when hitting deeper water. The only negative I've found is that some spinning reels don't seat perfectly in some fly rods, but I've found that pretty easy to get around with some DIY improvements to the reel base.

[Chief Joseph]

On a recent trip I brought just the fly rod and reel and my partner brought just a spin rod and reel...so there was very little surface activity. So he caught nice fish and I did not, luckily he was the sharing type and we each enjoyed fresh trout for dinner. Strength in numbers. Not going again without a spinning real also.

[Bowregard]

I always found a spinning reel on a fly rod to be awkward to manage. Open faced reels work great with a fly rod for casting but the balance always seems a bit off to reel in the line or a fish. That being said backpacking is all about compromises and if I wanted to flyfish and spin I would take a flyrod. I might even take a flyrod anyway if I figured I needed the length or if it was lighter weight.

[BigBrunyon]

POWERBAIT is the way to go. Gotta get into usin POWERBAIT. Put a big wad of BAIT on there. Big wad of POWERBAIT. Old saying back in the day "if you're lookin to eat, go with POWERBAIT."

[Gregory]

Fast action flyrods work better with spin casting but it can be more difficult to keep a pissed off rainbow pinned to a barbless hook. I found that the little ultra light 500 series reels do not cast as well as a 1000 series. The spools are too small and combine that with the fly guides it makes for a bunch of drag on the line headed out. I have gone the opposite direction and adapted my spinning rod to nymphing but I am mostly a stream river guy. I use small strike indicators from the Fly shop as bobbers and bead head jigs I mean flys imitating a Caddis fly larvae or periwinkle. essentially jig fishing bead head caddis ultra light. works great. hope this helps.

[Brian Curtis]

I’ve been fishing with a spinning reel on a fly rod since the 1970s (I was pretty young). I use a 9’ 5wt. I would not go with anything less than 5 or 6 pieces. The entire rod should be able to fit inside your pack so it won’t catch on brush and you can save the weight of a rigid case.

[altasnob]

If you want a real challenge, and want something light and minimalist, try tenkara. Most tenkara poles are telescopic and there is no reel.

[Chief Joseph]

[Sky Hiker]

There are some rods that all for the lower handle to be removed for fry casting. I am a spinner guy so not of much help.