THE GALWAY CAST 223 



cast would have to be made against the wind ; the body 

 does not have to move, however. When the wind is 

 blowing across the direction in which the fly has to be 

 cast exactly the reverse motion has to be made. The 

 line is brought back overhead, and in a continuous 

 movement the rod is dropped down to the right or 

 left and brought forward again into the eye of the 

 wind. These casts are merely variations of the cast 

 used by Wye fishermen, and, I dare say, common to 

 most rivers in which salmon fly casting is done. 



THE GALWAY CAST 



This effective cast can perhaps be best made as 

 follows : The rod is first raised to an angle of about 

 40 degrees (see Plate XXVIII.); the body is turned 

 completely round to the left (see Plate XXVII.). The 

 hands, arms, and rod which have been held, as shown 

 in Plate XXVIII., with the thumbs up, knuckles down, 

 right arm straight out, left arm bent, and the reel below 

 the rod twist half round as the body turns, and as 

 shown in Plate XXVII. During this movement the 

 position and direction of the rod remain almost the 

 same, the point merely rising about 10 degrees in the 

 air, so as to keep in touch with the line ; but the 

 thumbs and reel now reverse their position, the reel 

 being on top and the thumbs below, the left arm being 

 more or less extended forward, and the right arm 

 being raised well over the right shoulder, the elbows 

 of both arms altering their position as the body turns 



