As is the case with just about anyone who’s been fly fishing for more than a few years, I’ve gotten fairly adept at a handful of knots that I need to get through the average day on the water. Knots are always the weakest point in a fly-fishing rig, from the loop-to-loop knot that connects the leader to the fly line, to the clinch knot most use to tie flies to tippets (although I’ve been using the Orvis knot a bit lately).
But there are still knots that seem to take me forever to tie, such as the nail knot or the Albright knot that many use to attach backing to the fly line.
I stumbled on this great site today, and was excited to share the easy-to-follow diagram for the nail knot. Then I noticed the sheer variet of knots featured—it’s a one-stop shop for fishing knots.
But it’s “knot” the only resource out there. Orvis has a great series of knot-tying videos that, with a little practice, will have you tying all the knots you need in no time at all. Even those pesky nail knots and the tricky Albright knots (the latter can be used for backing-to-line connections, but I use it to tie monofilament to heavy wire bite tippet for pike and other toothy critters).
As always, practice makes perfect.
— Chris Hunt