# Intermediate sinking line for Tarpon



## Rick hambric (Jun 24, 2017)

Airflo or Cortland


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

All of my heavier rods (10wt on up with only one exception....) are set up with full intermediate lines. For years I used Scientific Anglers but switched to Rio about three years ago and never looked back... You can spend more money -but those Rio lines are hard to beat (and they also hold up just as well when things get ugly and a big fish has your line up under mangrove roots -or around a corner in a small Everglades river). We tear up lines regularly fishing big tarpon up in backcountry rivers so cost is a definite factor...

In recent years I've been lucky enough to have two reels for every rod in my arsenal (one for righties, one for lefties) so fly lines turn into an expense. When we're serious about the big fish I'll bring at least two 12wts (in case of breakage) so that means five or six reels needing intermediate lines...


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## texasag07 (Nov 11, 2014)

SA tarpon clear intermediate for me. I really prefer sinktip better than full intermediate for my tarpon needs.


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## Geuax Deep (Nov 16, 2017)

Thanks for the info guys. Much appreciated.


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## Backwater (Dec 14, 2014)

https://www.cortlandline.com/collections/saltwater-fly-line/products/big-game-intermediate

This is a decent line, really nice long rear taper that's good for line control and is at a decent price.


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## coconutgroves (Sep 23, 2013)

Unless you are fishing deep water (more than several feet), an intermediate tip line is the best way to go like others have said. Much easier to recast if needed since the running line is floating.

I like the Wulff Bermuda Triangle Ghost Tip Intermediate line. I also use a Jim Teeny TST-400 on my 12 wt rod that is an int tip line. It has a clear tip as well.

For tarpon I do not like a line that is too slick. Had a Cortland intermediate tip and wanted to take sand paper to it. Way too slick - it was difficult to get purchase on the line to make a good set. That was a few years back though, they could have changed it.


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## sjrobin (Jul 13, 2015)

Rio intermediate clear tip.


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## lemaymiami (Feb 9, 2007)

I've had more than a few anglers show up with "intermediate tipped" lines planning on using them where we fish big tarpon in small rivers.... In conditions where your fly needs to be just above the bottom in 7 to 13 feet of water - they're useless, period.

Once you start stripping, the fly simply rises far too high in the water column and the fish in dark waters of the backcountry never see the fly....

That Rio full intermediate with the clear tip is exactly what we use.... Yeah a full intermediate has to be stripped almost all the way in before you make a second cast but the fly stays at whatever your starting depth is -and we can fish it pretty shallow if you start your retrieve without allowing the line to sink first - or fish it all the way down on the bottom where big tarpon hang out like monster salmon in the same spots year after year...


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## Backwater (Dec 14, 2014)

I had one SA clear tip for poons many years ago (maybe 15yrs ago). Maybe caught 2 fish on it.

That being said, depending on what tarpon you are targeting and where they are, would depend on what lines you use, in my experience. Most of what I do requires a full intermediate, or a floating line. I have some flies that are near surface patterns, that we throw on shallow bars and require you to have a good floater to keep that fly high and happy. While other spots on deeper beaches, deeper flats and rivers that require the fly to get down to the level of the fish. Your fly better be happy riding at those depths too, otherwise, the fish will turn off on them.

With the intermediates, like Bob mention (Capt LeMay), you have to pull the majority of line in before you can re-cast it. But if you learn how to roll cast or do a " to Snap T" or another method I call the snake dance, where you wave the rod back and forth in a side to side action, to get the fly up to the top, then you can roll cast it out there to straighten out the line. At that point, the fly is now up on top of the surface and then you can just pick it up off the water, make a false case or two to line it up, then shoot it back out there.

I hate textured lines with a passion, but with some people, it's necessary to grip the line for those who don't far well with smooth lines. But hey, that's just my preferences. If my hands are full of sun screen grease, the fly line is so dressed, it's slippery and my stripping hand grip is loose on a strip set, then sure, the line will slip out of your hands. So I try to have some dish soap or bio soap to completely get all sunscreens and any bug stuff and greases off my hands, BEFORE I ever touch a fly or start to fish. If I dress the lines, I try to do that before I wash my hands and try not to over dress them.

I've probably caught more tarpon on a clear full intermediate line and try to keep 2-12wts rigged with a 1 clear int and 1 floater. Any 10wt I've ever had had always had a intermediate lines on it. Last year, I bought a 10wt floater for the 1st time in 20yrs just to have for shallow water mangrove tarpon with floating or near surface flies.

One of the other reasons I keep an intermediate line on it is because I use that rod for a multitude of other species, including cobia, big snook and a plethora of pelagics.

Ted


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