This review is very late as it was mid August when I had the pleasure of visiting the Reno Fly Shop. I figured late is better than never and I must share my experience with this awesome fly shop.
The Reno Fly Shop is located right in Reno, Nevada. It is walking distance from the Truckee River. The guys that run this shop are great. I was headed to Reno to visit some of my wive’s family so I of course googled fly shops in Reno, Nevada. It turns out there is only one and it is the Reno Fly Shop. Looking at the map I could see it was walking distance from Circus Circus where we were staying so I put it on my must do list.
Our first day in Reno my wife, son, and I went for a walk around. After checking out a few shops we made our way to the Reno Fly Shop. As I walked in I could tell I was going to like the place. We were immediately greeted by one of the owners. (I am horrible with names.) We told them we were in town visiting family and I was interested in fishing for at least one morning while I was in town. We talked about fishing in New York and Nevada for a bit.
I asked about hiring a guide as I knew I wouldn’t have a lot of time to fish and wanted to make the best of my time. They told me that if guided back home I probably didn’t really need a guide there. They would rent me the equipment and point me in the right direction. This was a shock to me as most places want to get as much money out of you as possible.
I came back a few days later to rent a fly rod for the next day. The basic set up was $20 a day. That included fly rod and reel, a hip pack, leader, tippet material, fly floatant, and basic tools. All I needed to buy was some flies. They picked out a half dozen flies that would work, gave me directions to a good section of the river, and told me how to fish it. I couldn’t wait for the next morning.
The next morning my wife, son and I arrived at the river around 7 am. I was going to fish and she was going to go for a run through the park with our son. I rigged up the fly rod and headed to the river. On my first cast the dropper became snagged on a rock and when it came loose the line tangled on the end of the rod. I placed the reel on the rock next to me as I made my way up to the tangle on the end of the rod. As I untangled the line the reel fell off the rock leaving me holding just the last 8 inches of the rod. You can probably guess what happened at that point. The rod snapped in my hand. I couldn’t believe it. I sent a text to my wife and headed to the car.
After breakfast we headed back to the shop to tell them what had happened. I had full intentions on paying for the rod I had broke. When I told them what happened they told me not to worry about it it was covered under warranty and they would just send it back. Not only did they not charge me for the next days rental because I didn’t get to fish that day but they wouldn’t let me even pay the shipping to send the rod back. These guys are fisherman and understand that things happen. Of course this caused me to spend extra money in the shop on clothing and a fly box that I have been using this salmon season and am very glad I bought.
The next day I did get to fish the Truckee River which is a beautiful river. I didn’t land any fish that morning but I didn’t hook into a very large trout that go off after making a down stream run around a very large boulder.
If you are ever in Reno I highly recommend that you stop in the Reno Fly Shop. Even if you don’t have time to fish while you are there I am guessing you will at least want a tee shirt as they have a great logo. If you are planning to fish while you are in town this is a must stop before you fish as they guys really know there stuff. There is no doubt in my mind that your day on the water will be better if you stop in the shop the day before.
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