>>1237321alrighty then. to target all the species you listed you're going to need at least 2, and better yet 3 or 4 rods, so i think it would be best if you decided to either start fly fishing for trout, fly fishing for bass, or fly fishing for pike, pickerel, and stripers so you only have to get one rod. if you want to just do trout and panfish, you decide if you want to have an emphasis on still water or moving water. if moving water is your priority, i would tell you to get a 9 foot 4 weight with a moderate action and overline it by 1, that will cover you for most situations with trout in pretty decent sized rivers down to fairly small ones, and in still water a 60 foot cast is still achievable, though wind will make you struggle. if you would rather do still water trout, i'd suggest a 6 weight with a moderate fast action, that will give you good casting ability out to 80-90 feet no problem, it will be able to buck the wind a little, it would give you a little more casting power to throw streamers and such, but still be delicate enough to present a dry fly with a good cast. it would also let you target bass, though you'll have trouble throwing bigger bass flies, and you could also get in on schoolie sized stripers, small carp, and american shad if you have them around. you will still be able to go in to those streams and fish for trout, though, but you might feel like you have a little too much rod. if you want to get in to largemouth bass, carp, some pike and pickerel, and decent size stripers, go for a 9 foot fast action 8 weight, it will give you enough casting power to get bigger flies out, and have enough ass to get bigger fish in. if you want to focus on esox and -BIG- stripers you're going to want a 10 weight fast action to throw 10+ inch articulated streamers over 100 feet in to the wind. personally i'd go for the 6 weight because while it wont be ideal, it will be servicable in the highest number of scenarios.
