Scott “Tidal” series fly rods live up to the bill of “making the hard way a little easier.” Chasing fish in salt water on a fly rod can be a great way to get humbled. Wether its the elusiveness of the species we are chasing our the conditions we choose to pursue them in, we tend to be at a disadvantage.  Having a fly rod you trust to make the cast when the time comes is crucial. What I want out of my salt water stick is the ability too load quickly, have a enough back bone to get distance but maintain accuracy. The Scott “Tidal” fly rod does just this.

Salt water fly rods at a fault can error on being too stiff, making the first couple days on your destination trip a breaking in process. The “Tidal” however, has enough back bone to bomb out your distance cast but also turn flies over for shorter casts. I experienced the need to make a short accurate cast just a week ago in Belize while at Turneffe Flats Lodge chasing Permit on the flats.

Most scenarios on salt water you expect to be casting fifty feet, but on this occasion I had time for one false cast to drop a #10 olive EP Crab 20 feet away from me. Having walked and scanned for the last hour across what seemed ill fated flats for the that holy grail of fish and then all of a sudden… Tails. A good size Permit put up its big forked rudder and was getting its grub on.  I dropped that crab in and waited for what seemedlike forever and then it happened. I felt that tug, set, and watched water push as I came tight on my second strip set only to have slack line confirm the lost opportunity.  The Rod had lived up to its billing putting an accurate cast at short distance, but as the guide said, “that’s a Permit for you.

” The “Hale Scale” scores this rod an 8 out of 10. With a price point at $475 this rod can be a go to stick our a back up for your fishing travels that doesn’t break the budget. I would highly recommend adding the “Tidal” to your fly rod arsenal.