[ArkieFlyGuy]

How much does the color of your fly line affect your catches? I have a 5wt with orange line and another with yellow. I seem to do better with the yellow, but still have more problems than I do with a 6wt with dull green fly line. I use a 7.5' leader with at least 18" of 4X tippet. I know I'm going to change colors when I change fly lines if at all possible.

[Sean Juan]

I've noticed no difference between a clear intermediate and a black shooting head.

[getholdofjoru]

The only difference I've found is that I can detect the lines better when they are brighter, like chartreuse green. The brighter lines help you detect strikes better and I guess conversely help you catch more fish.

[Smokeytrout]

I primarily fish spring creeks and other high pressure rivers out west I absolutely believe fly line color can affect your fishing. Using a brightly colored line doesn't mean you won't catch fish but you do catch less at least out here. I have in the past owned an Orange SA Distance Taper and White Wulff Triangle taper and tried using them with much less sucess fishing the same bugs during the same hatches. Pretty much only use olive, gray, mist green and clear fly lines now.

Either way casting any colored line over fish will spook them quite often especially if you false cast over fish and sprays of water come off your line; I always try to false cast off to the side. On the Williamson River out here in Southern Oregon just about everyone I see has gone to using clear intermediates for fishing streamers and nymphs.

[Joe Hard]

I dont think so, I think once a fish decides to take, not much is going to stop it

[flyfishtn]

I don't think it is about line color, I think it is about presentation, drift, drag and whether or not the pattern you are throwing interests the fish. I have caught fish on all colors.

[skeet3t]

7.5 ft. leader is short if you are using a rod over 8 ft. I fish 9 ft. rods for larger river and use at least 9 to 10 ft. leader including 2-3 ft. of tippet material. I don't think line color matters. There are more important factors as flyfishtn mentioned. It is hard to quantify something with as many variables in this issue. I have caught over 20 fish on a certian rig. A week later I catch 5 or 6, using the same rig in the same areas of the river.

[troutboy365]

I'm with everyone else, I don't think the color matters.

I have one white line and one fl green and personally I like the colored lines better. Sometimes I will fish really clear streams without a strike indicator and so I'll watch my fly line (at the leader connection), so colored line is easier to see. I have noticed that the presentation of the fly is what spooks the fish. When I'm sight fishing, if I make a bad cast the fish is gone.

[ArkieFlyGuy]

Thanks guys. Sounds like I might need ot increase my leader length instead of worrying about fly line color.

[jekeller]

i don't do much trout fishing but i don't think that color makes much difference in saltwater. it's the shadow the line casts that seems to make the difference. I can cast a colored line all day on a cloudy day and have no problems but if it's really sunny watch out because the fish do. here we get lots of big mullet schools in the summer and they spook from shadows not colors. one can drag a colored line through schools all day with no sweat, they pay absolutely no attention. but if your line casts a shadow especially when casting and they go ballistic. i've taken to using the clear lines. they aren't as easy to see but they cast almost no shadow.

[Kodiak Commando]

Line color is a huge factor for me when it comes to stillwater silver salmon and dollies. One day i went fishing with my father i had yellow line he had red and i caught 20 silvers in 3 hours he caught one with the same fly and presentation and we were near the same spot. I would of liked to think i was just better than my dad but we switched rods and our roles were reversed. I will never buy red line ever!

[Smuggler]

Hi Guys,
You hear alot from New Zealand that line must be a dark colour and 12'+leaders.
I sometimes fish a Hardy #6wt with an orange line in OZ and have caught my fair share of trout. My favourite line is lime green, because I can see it in small dark streams. I have stumbbled over one major problem fix, I had while fishing a dry beetle on a lake at twighlight. I was loosing sight of the fly and line. During the rise fish would be breaking the surface all over the place and my hook up was only 50%. I changed to a bright yellow line and tied flies that sat extra high on the surface water. This enabled me now to track the direction of the line and then could locate the profile of the fly and strike when the rise interupted my view of the fly profile[shadow]. My hook up is now 97%.
I agree presentation of your tippett/leader is paramount and if you have lined the fish. No colour will make much difference.
Cheers
"Smuggler"

[sandflyx]

On small streams for trout I use any where from a 9ft. leader to a 24ft. leader, so I don't worry to much about fly line color..I think presentation is more important.If you are really concerned about what color to use lay on the ground and have a friend cast over you. See which line shows up less !!!!!!!!! you will be suprised...

[lanvaettir]

On all of my current stomping grounds I see two extremes for floating lines. Most of the time you are sight fishing and ANY line near the fish scares it away, period. The other extreme is with stained water during runoff where you're bobber prospecting with nymphs and it doesn't seem to matter a bit. Personally, I prefer the higher visibility lines I can see subtle changes in the line and might be able to fish without an indicator which really increases my catch rate. I guess my point is that it doesn't matter what color you use in New Mexico and Colorado. Probably the brighter the better.

[jbenenson]

I don't think that this debate will ever end. My own opinion is that line color basically doesn't matter; there are too many variables for a clear-cut choice. The main ones are not frightening the fish and making the line easy to see. I believe that the first is taken care of more by presentation, drag, and length of leader than by line color; the second is not important to me, since I watch the fly and indicator 90% of the time. I can see the line on the water along as it is not totally invisible, so I prefer muted colors such as tan or "willow". If bright lines actually frightened fish, the manufacturers wouldn't sell them and guides wouldn't use them. Neither is the case.