Hi guys
I have a 12ft 6inch TFO Deer Creek 5/6 Spey rod. I use it on the Columbia in B.C. for trout. Fabulous rod. Great for trout 12 inches and up. But even better is a 12 ft 6inch TFO Deer Creek 4/5 Spey rod. It's a fabulous thing. With a 12 inch fish it gets a huge bend in it. Super easy to cast. I have only cast it a few times and can get 80 feet out of it easily. These rods are a little long for small creeks but are great for rivers like the Old Man. and the Bow and rivers of that size.
Once you get to the 12 ft long rods they become easier to cast because of their length. The shorter the rod the more precise you you have to be on your casting and the longer it takes to become proficient. Also on the shorter rods your line has to match the rod very well or it is hell to learn to cast. A stiff Switch rod is nasty to cast as your casting has to be very precise. A soft rod is better as you can slow down on your casting.
Anything bigger than a 5/6 rod is too big for Alberta waters. That's 300 to 550 Grains for a line. A 4/5 rod would easily handle a 30 inch fish.
I fish about 250 days a year with the 5/6 Deer Creek rods. I have two of them. I have been spey fishing since 2007 and have caught hundreds of trout.
You can easily fly fish off shore with a spey rod as you only need about 5 ft or less distance behind you to make a long cast. With the 5/6 rod I can do 85 to 90 ft casts. With the 4/5 you would cast a shorter distance, around 75 to 80 ft.,up to 85 ft once you become proficient, due to a lighter rod and lighter line. Plus leader of course. So an 80 ft. cast plus 15 ft of leader makes 95 ft. cast. Not bad for a guy standing on shore. (Don't spread this info around as it spey fishing is hell on the fish.) It's addictive also. As you might have guessed these rods are not for the dry fly fisherman.
Cheers and tight lines
Bjay
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