Spey casting lessons: how to learn the Spey cast
Spey casting lets you cast a long line with no room for a back cast. Here are straight answers to the questions I hear most, from how hard it is to which rod to start with.
What is Spey casting?
Spey casting is a family of casts made with a two-handed rod, where the line stays in front of you and a D-shaped loop of line forms beside you before the forward cast. Because there's no full back cast, you can fish big rivers with trees or high banks right behind you. It began on Scotland's River Spey and is now the standard way to swing flies for steelhead and salmon.
Is Spey casting difficult?
It's different rather than harder. The timing and the anchor, the moment the line touches the water before the forward cast, take some practice, but the long two-handed rod does much of the work. If you can already make a basic overhead cast, a simple Spey cast usually comes together within a lesson or two.
How do you learn Spey casting?
The fastest way is a lesson on the water, with an instructor watching your anchor and your D-loop. Start with one cast, usually the single Spey or the snap T, and learn it off both shoulders. Then add a second cast such as the double Spey so you can handle changing wind and current.
Videos are good for understanding the moves, but they can't tell you why your anchor is blowing out or why the line piles up on the forward cast. A few minutes of feedback fixes what hours of trial and error won't.
Can you practice Spey casting on grass?
Only the arm movements. Spey casts rely on the water gripping the line to load the rod, so real practice needs water. That's why my Spey lessons use Marlin Park in Foster City, which has grass for walking through the motions and water for making real casts.
What is the best Spey rod for beginners?
For steelhead, a two-handed rod of about 12 to 13 feet for a 6- to 8-weight line is a common starting point. Pair it with a Skagit or Scandi shooting head that matches the rod's grain window. Getting the line matched to the rod matters more than the brand, so have it set up by someone who casts Spey.
Is trout Spey worth it?
If you swing flies for trout on rivers, yes. Light two-handed rods of around 11 feet for 2- to 4-weight lines make swinging soft hackles and small streamers easy and fun, and the skills carry straight over to steelhead and salmon.
What a Spey lesson covers
The introduction to Spey casting is 2.5 hours, including a 20-minute break, and costs $195 with all equipment provided. We set up the rod and line, work on the anchor and the D-loop, and build one or two casts you can take to the river. Follow-up Spey sessions are 1.25 hours for $125.