Fly Fishing Instruction with Colin Pape

An experienced instructor in a number of spheres I endeavour to provide a friendly, relaxed and highly personalised fly fishing instructing and guiding service on some of Devon’s most beautiful rivers and stillwaters.

I concentrate on designing an individual package tailored specifically to my client’s needs.   My forte is a ‘one to one’ personal service designed to help you develop at your own pace. This ensures my clients develop their skills quickly in a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. The emphasis is on enjoyment and learning. I will take two people provided they come together on a pre-booked package for two.

Instruction will be based on a minimum of 4 hours (2 hours in the close season Nov - Mar), in a morning or afternoon session, to one, two or three day packages. A typical day's instruction is for 6 hours. I will design a package specifically for you so I will need to know what you wish to achieve and how much time you have available.

Instruction is available for both the single handed fly rod and the double handed salmon rod, for beginners, novices and intermediate levels. Spey casting with the double handed salmon rod is a speciality.

Beginners Day at Kennick Reservoir

Basic fly fishing instruction with both the single handed rod and the double handed salmon rod, will initially be undertaken in a stillwater environment where you will learn the basics quickly and safely. Progress will be at your pace, the aim being to ensure that you move onto rivers and more challenging angling situations as soon as you are ready.  

I mainly use Kennick Reservoir for straight forward casting lessons and an introduction to stillwater fishing but I also have access to a private stillwater near Clifford Bridge in the River Teign valley, called Bridesmere, which is both beautiful and quiet and, what you will not get elsewhere, we will have the lake entirely to ourselves.

This means that you can progress in a discrete atmosphere without the pressures of other anglers around you. Once you have mastered the basic casting techniques with either the single handed rod or the double handed salmon rod, we can progress onto the nearby River Teign or to the Rivers Taw, Yeo, Creedy or Culm, all within a few miles of Exeter.

The Single handed rod

Initially you will learn about fly fishing equipment. Then we will go onto setting up a fly fishing rod, then onto learning the basic overhead cast and roll cast. Once they are bedded in we will progress onto 'false casting', shooting line and line management.

You will learn to tie the essential knots and to set up your rod for fishing. You will learn how to spot fish, where they may be feeding and selecting and tying on a suitable fly.

You will learn how to approach your fish, how to cast to it and once caught, how to play the fish and land it safely and humanely in a net.

Once the basics are learned and practiced you will move onto progressive and more advanced techniques on both stillwaters and on rivers.

The double handed salmon rod

The principles are much the same as for the single handed rod, but you will learn the Roll cast first, the basis of all spey casting, followed by the Jump Roll, the Single Spey and the Double Spey. Once you have mastered these on the stillwater you will progress onto the river.

The Devon Fly Fishing Experience