Stripping
Also called line retrieve, strip retrieve
Stripping is retrieving fly line by pulling it in with your line hand. It’s used to move the fly, manage slack, and stay ready to set the hook.
- Group
- Retrieves & hook sets
- Category
- Technique & presentation
- Level
- Beginner
- Water
- Fresh & salt
Last updated
What Stripping means
After the cast, the rod hand points the rod at the line and the line hand pulls line back in. Each pull is a strip. The line usually gets trapped against the rod grip with a finger between strips so you do not give line back.
Strip length and speed control the fly. Short, quick strips make a streamer dart. Longer, slower strips swim it steadily. In moving water, stripping also keeps contact by removing slack as the current pushes line toward you.
In saltwater, stripping is also basic line management. You strip line off the reel before the cast, then strip it back in as the fly moves and the fish tracks it. A stripping basket can help keep loose line from tangling around your feet or blowing away.
Why it matters on the water
Good stripping keeps tension between your hand and the fly. That tension is what lets you feel a take, see the line jump, and respond without delay.
A consistent retrieve also gives repeatable results. If a fish follows but does not eat, changing one variable, strip speed, strip length, or adding a pause, is easier when the original retrieve was steady and intentional.
Read next
- Fly lineThe fly line is the thick, weighted line that loads the fly rod and carries the cast. It connects the reel and backing to the leader.
- StreamerA streamer is a fly meant to be moved to imitate a baitfish, leech, sculpin, or crayfish. It is often fished with strips, swings, or a steady retrieve, but it can also be dead-drifted.
- Strip setA strip set is a hook set made by pulling the fly line hard with the line hand while keeping the rod low, instead of lifting the rod tip.
- Stripping basketA stripping basket is a waist-worn tub that holds loose fly line while you strip. It keeps line from tangling in surf, wind, or around rocks and grass.
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