Having spent the last year dabbling more and more in saltwater fly fishing, it was with a great deal of pleasure that I unwrapped the Cortland CX490 Saltwater Fly rod. Coming complete with a carefully designed travel tube, where each section of the rod has its own reinforced compartment, the rod has been simply, but beautifully, finished. It casts well and is a pleasure to fish with, reacting excellently when called upon to handle a running fish.

Light and a pleasure to use, I tested the CX490 at Hopes Nose in Torbay.

There are ten rings - two double legs on the butt, seven single leg intermediates and the tip - which distribute the load evenly in both casting and playing a fish. Whippings are attractive but simple, a nice rural green with a single gold edging that complements the rest of the rod nicely. To test the rod I took it to Hopes Nose in Torbay, a rocky mark that drops off into deep water at the top of the tide. Here you can reasonably expect to catch mackerel, garfish, pollack and scad in the summer with the chance of a bass if you move well away from the more populated spots. Tackle was simple: a fourteen foot tippet with a sliver of mackerel on the point and a fly on a dropper two feet behind the point. A high visibility indicator was then attached just before the braid to a nine weight floating fly line. The fly itself, as you can see from the photographs above, was a very simple affair; a few strands of gliss and glow above which were placed deep blue tinsel wings and moulded hokkai style head. As I said, very simple but effective, with minimal dressing seeming to work far better for these miniature predators than overdressing the fly. Getting the fly out was no problem - the rod loads well and recovers quickly, helping to make the most of your casting style - but the evening I had chosen proved out to be a little difficult in terms of fish. Perseverance was necessary so I persevered, hoping that eventually something would hit the fly.

Oh dear! My first fish was little cause for celebration with an enthusiastic young pollack hurling itself on the fly. However, returning that quickly to the water, I carried on take several mackerel, scad and yet more immature pollack. In every case the rod was a pleasure to use, being sensitive enough to enjoy the fight from even the pollack and reacting well when mackerel hit the lures. At one point I had a double take and the resulting fight from two mackerel at once was very enjoyable, giving some indication as to how the rod would perform against a larger fish which, sadly, made no appearance on that particular night. Despite that, however, I would have no hesitation in recommending the CX490. It was a pleasure to use with bags of power in reserve.