Having been a fresh water fly fisherman for some years I'm keen to give some saltwater fly fishing a go (ideally as practice before heading off to the likes of Cuba and Oman in the not too distant future).

The practice will for the time being have to be restricted to the south coast of England from Portsmouth to Eastbourne as this stretch of coast line is within easy reach of home.

From what I have been able to read up online and through various sources, this stretch of coast should be good for getting into the whole salt water side of things. It would seem that bass are a good one to target along with a variety of other local fish.

At the moment I plan on just using one of my older fresh water setups for the task and will then look to purchase some more dedicated gear with the trips to Cuba and or Oman come about.

The rod I will be using a 9'6" 7wt with a floating line would this be ok for the UK? I don't think my 7' 3wt is going to be up to the challenge.

Now the next bit is the world of salt water flies, this is not something I am very well versed in and was hoping to get some advice on what are the recommended patterns to be using, I see there are patterns called Decievers, Clousers etc... and have no idea what I should be considering for UK waters.

Also any advice on leaders and tippets would be very much appreciated.

Then I have one last question which is probably the most important one of the lot.

What are the recommended places along the stretch of coast line mentioned to go fly fishing? It seems some places require you have a ticket for the day which I found surprising as I was under the impression that salt water fishing was free, but I guess this is not always the case.

A lot of questions I know, but I'm hoping the fine folk on here will be able to assist.

Thanks in advance

Pete

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The area you mention has plenty of potential, though you may find most people a bit reluctant to give precise details of their favourite hot-spots. You might be well advise to do a bit of low-water beach research, looking for features such as reefs, gullies and the like; take a note book with you, and use it, as you will certainly forget most of what you have seen if you don't. So far as your rods are concerned, the 7wt is the only one that's going to be of any use. Personally, I prefer something shorter and fatter (no, not my choice in women!), such as a 9ft 9wt, but you can get by with what you have. The snag with the sea has to do with its size - even the most fantastic cast is pathetic! However, one can only do what one can do, and there are often fish within casting range; Bass, in particular, are famous for browsing close to the strand line, and mullet can often be crept up on. Clousers are good general purpose "predator" flies, and there will be a lot of different opinions as to exactly which you need. I'd be inclined to kick off with a small selection in sizes 4 to 2/0, colours such as tan and white, chartreuse and white, blue and white, all with just a little bit of something sparkly in the mix. For mullet, the dreaded maggot fly, breadfly (if you feel like ground-baiting) and may be a miniature milky dreams or similar "fluffy" fly which will waft about in the current. By the way, the clousers may seem a bit big if trout fishing has been your experience until now, but if the salt-water bug bites hard, you will soon be using something more substantial. And if you head to tropical waters - well, I imagine you will be after catching some large fish - with large mouths! Best of luck

Many thanks for getting back so quickly. I'll continue researching what I can online and I shall you know how it pans out!

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