Save a Fly Rod

A good fly rod does a great job in fighting a fish like this, but they are not built to jerk solidly hooked flies out of trees.
A good fly rod does a great job in fighting a fish like this, but they are not built to jerk solidly hooked flies out of trees.

When a fly gets caught in a tree over the stream which is out of reach the proper way to attempt to free it is to point the rod straight at the fly and pull the line gently with the line hand. If the fly has now wrapped the leader around the limb it will probably pull free and you have saved the fly. If it has wrapped you will break it off but the rod will not be damaged. Never jerk back with the rod like you are setting the hook on a fish. A friend just did this with one of my favorite Scott fly rods and broke the rod. It is foolish to break a $795.00 fly rod in attempting to save a $2.00 fly.