We all seem to get them, but how does that happen?

The Casting Connection

July 2024

By Capt. Scott Swartz

Scott Swartz founded the Atlanta Fly Fishing School, which began in 1999. It is the largest such operation in the Southeast and the only Trout Unlimited “Gold Endorsed” school in the United States. His Florida Fly Fishing Schools started in 2008, helping anglers
learn to successfully fly fish in saltwater.

Q. I get knots in my leader. I know these are wind knots, but how can I
avoid getting them? J.R.

Wind knots are no fun! They are an overhand knot that can weaken lines and tangle leaders. To eliminate knots we need to dive into casting mechanics. If you don’t geek out on the nuts and bolts of casting, here isyour exit – otherwise read on to get rid of pesky wind knots.

To keep from forming knots you must determine why you are casting a tailing loop. A tailing loop is when your loop closes with the fly “leg” of your loop dropping and crossing below the rod “leg” of the loop. Some definitions say it must cross twice or it is called a trailing loop verses a tailing loop, but either can cause knots.

Closed loop (tailing loop) with concave path.

The fact that wind knots are commonly found on windy days is key. On windy days we tend to cast harder. This greater force bends the rod deeper and causes the rod tip to travel in a concave “dipping” path where the tip of the rod is lowest in the middle of the casting stroke.

To better understand take a look at the opposite, a convex tip path. Big sweeping casts that start low, go thru a high arc, and end low result in wide open loops and no wind knots.

Open loop with convex path.

Although somewhat misleading, the cause of a dipping tip path is most often diagnosed as too much speed and power early in the cast. In truth you cannot start a cast too fast, as long as you can finish the cast even faster.

Most of our casting students fix their tailing loops just by following the mantra “start slow – end fast”. If you consistently increase the rod speed throughout the entire cast most tailing loops disappear.

Power (speed) must be ever-increasing.

On windy days you can still cast harder, as long as you increase rod speed throughout the cast.

Another cause of tails is too small of an arc for the length of line being cast. There is a balancing act between how deep you bend the rod and how wide of an arc you are using (how far apart your stopping points are).

The longer the line cast, the greater its weight and the deeper the rod will bend. We must compensate for a deeper bend with a wider arc or we still get a dipping rod tip path and a tailing loop.

There are a few other causes for tailing loops, but almost all are solved simply by starting slow and ending faster and being mindful to widen your arc with longer casts.

So how wide of an arc and what speed do you need? Everything about your cast will vary with the type of fly, the length of your leader, the action of your rod, the design of your line, the length of the cast, the wind direction, and more.

It is in these variables that we find the challenge and, yes, the enjoyment of fly casting. A sport where “mastery” seems slightly out of reach and the more we learn the more we find there is to learn.

Send comments or casting questions to: Scott@AtlantaFlyFishingSchool.com.