WRITING ON THE FLY
By GEOREGE LISET

    There is a certain mystery surrounding bamboo fly rods. That mystery resides in the fact that there is a trove of misinformation out and about. The main thought that all bamboo rods are expensive is one of the most pervasive. As an occasional dealer of antiques and a fly fisher, I am often approached for my expertise. I’ll have someone approach me with, “I have my grandfather’s old bamboo fly rod and I heard they go for a lot of money, will you look at it?”

    I am usually amenable to taking a look and offering some direction, more than advice. As the adage goes, “A little information can be dangerous.” What I do know is that each piece of the fly rod must be the same height, the wraps need to match and the color of each section needs to match. I know that the smaller rods, three to five weights, are sometimes more desirable and that the maker’s name on the fly rod makes a big difference, especially in price.

    If I get stumped, I go to the genius rod maker in Kittery Point, Maine, Fred Kretchman. I could go on forever about Fred’s resume, suffice it to say, that anybody that’s anybody has a Fred Kretchman fly rod or would love to own one. On this day my friend Coach B drove over to Fred’s to have a few fly rods checked out. Coach B was bringing over a Leonard bamboo tournament rod to be appraised for a friend. The fly rod was her grandfather’s who was a doctor and had donated the land for Dartmouth Hitchcock Hospital. The owner who worked at UNH with Coach approached him one day in his office and asked him to take a look at the rod. She mentioned that she found the aluminum tube in her closet and was going to put it in a yard sale.

    I happened to be in the office at the time and Coach and I looked at each other in excitement. We opened the rod case to find a wonderful Leonard rod. We mentioned that we had a friend that could give us more information and asked to take the rod to Fred before she sold it, which she agreed to.

    I brought two rods, another Leonard that needed work which was given to my son by his wife’s grandfather and an Orvis fly rod built by Wes Jordan. It was a beautiful ride to Kittery Point on a gorgeous fall day. When we arrived at Fred’s workshop we were greeted by a flock of fat turkeys that were eating acorns under the oak and were too busy to give us the time of day.

    Fred is mild mannered which exudes his artistic demeanor. It is always a learning experience to spend time with Fred. The stories about the people he has met and the fly rods he’s worked on is fascinating. Fred looked over the Leonard rod Coach B had brought. Fred explained it was a tournament rod used for streamer fishing because it was a nine foot, six inch rod with a slow action. Fred was glad the rod didn’t make it to the yard sale. We all shared stories about friends or acquaintances who threw rods away or put them out on the curb. Fred said the rod was in great shape and hoped someone would use it.

    I then pulled out the Leonard I had brought. Fred looked it over and in a nice way informed me that I had what is referred to as a “Married” rod. All three sections were from different rods. The bottom section was a Leonard and the middle and upper sections were from different rods. Not valuable or worth fixing but a nice “Wall hanger” for a cabin.

     I then brought out my Orvis Wes Jordan fly rod. Fred said Wes got Orvis back on the bamboo market by individualizing fly rods with left and right handed grips and the impregnation process which eliminates the continual need to revarnish the rods. Fred hoped that I was using the rod which I assured him I was, showing him a picture of the nice Brook Trout I had caught in June. Fred valued the fly rods at about the price of a low to mid range graphite fly rod which was around two hundred to three hundred dollars. What makes them valuable is the history behind them.

    As Coach and I drove away along the Picataqua River, we wondered if future generations would be as excited as we were to learn about bamboo fly rods. Bamboo can be a bit unyielding until you spend time casting them, but when you are on the water using them, it is similar to driving an antique automobile, and who doesn’t like getting the appreciable nod and the thumbs up?