Going deep with a fly.

It seems every year fly fisherman and women try to push the limits of fly gear.
  Back when i first started fly fishing i had an intermediate line and that was it.  I went to a fly fishing show and there was a captain from NJ, i forgot his name, who was fishing 10 feet of water with his flies.   Soon after i purchased the line he was using, a Tenny T-350.  I can remember bringing it out on a 10 wt and trying to fish with it.  At first i was frustrated, but i soon learned how to fish this line.  With proper rod, line, and fly selection, you to can get into deep holding fish.
    The rod you select for this type of fishing is very important.  Fishing these heavy lines requires a fast action rod.  Not only will the stiffness of the fast rod allow you to unload one of these lines, it will also give you a lot more mussel when you need it.  Think of it this way, if you are fishing in 15 feet of water with a 12 inch fly, chances are your not going to get a 12 inch fish.  You are also going to have to apply a lot of pressure to these nasty creatures of the deep.  limp rods simply can not put the hammer down.    Generally 8wt. handle lines from 175-250grs, 9wts are perfect for the 250-350 lines, 10wts work the 350-450 range great and your 12wts handle the big lines up to 600grs.

   Line selections is just as important for success.  Simply put you need to get the fly into the fish.  When buying a line find one that will fit the rod you have.  Then read the I.P.S. rating for that line.  If it says your line goes down 5 Inches Per-Second and you are marking fish in 10 feet of water you will have to count it down to the required depth.  I have found that 300gr lines on 9wts fish great in 6-10 feet of water.  I use a Rio Striped Bass 400 gr. line to go deep.  This line has a I.P.S rating of 8.5-9.5 Inches Per-Second.  With a sink rate like that i can fish 20 Ft with confidence.  Sink tips have less of a role from the beach; however, you may want one in these conditions:  Fishing from a jetty, fishing a channel with current, or casting with lots of wind.
   You must understand that the fish you get will be bigger and you will be applying a lot more pressure than you think.  I use a 3-5 foot shot of 15-20lb. mono for the the leader and that's it.  Turn over is not important in this game.  My flies are constructed of only Grade A short shank hooks.  The long shanks like the Tiemco 811s can open up on you.  I like to construct these flies with big clouser eyes and Tiemco 800s which has a needle point, or the amazing Tiemco 600sp.  The 600SP has a cutting point and will have no problem cutting through thick lips of bone.  Both of these hooks will not open up on you.  Another Honorable mention is the Owner Aki which also has a nasty cutting point.  Bottom line, Don't skimp on the hooks.

    Once you have the right stuff it is simple to get into some action.  Find some bottom that is productive via your fish finder.  You will see arches on the machine indicating fish.  Pull back up tide of them and start the drift.  Make a half cast, when the line hits the water simply pay out line to let it sink freely until you feel your fly is in the right Zone.  As i stated earlier just count the line down according to the sink rate.  Once in the Zone simply start the retrieve.  It make take some time to get it down but once you do you will enjoy catching larger fish.  Good luck.