Jordan Ross is a custom fly rod maker based in upstate New York, close to where I grew up prior to moving to Wyoming. JP makes some excellent small stream fly rods that I have grown to love and fish religiously throughout the summer when fish are looking up for bushy dry flies. Unfortunately, a 7'6" 3 weight or a 6'6" 2 weight is not so practical at other times of the year, and as my decade-old five weight continued to wear out, I decided it was time to check out JP's faster action options.
Enter the Coherence. This is JP Ross' medium-fast and fast action offering available in larger rod sizes. I went with the medium-fast 9'0" 5 weight, a classic workhorse-type selection to cover most types of water, conditions and fly selections that the trout streams of the Rocky Mountain west can throw at you.
I like a 5 weight with plenty of backbone, as my fly selection here in southern Wyoming primarily consists of big nymphs, large dries, and beefy articulated streamers - however, I do not necessarily want to completely sacrifice feel in order to turn over flies. I found the Coherence to land somewhere between the Orvis Helios 3D and 3F in terms of feel. Certainly powerful enough to punch hefty dry flies into the Wyoming wind, but not so stiff that I felt like I was sacrificing accuracy. The first thing that jumped out at me with this rod was the ability to deliver long and fairly accurate casts (accuracy is not my strong suit in casting) without feeling like I was waving a broomstick around. Powerful and responsive, this rod immediately found a home in my quiver as my do-all, year-round workhorse.
We have only been acquainted since early August, and I've only been able to get a few trips under my belt with my new Coherence, but on the water I fished and with the types of flies I was using, I found there was nothing I could throw at this set up that it couldn't handle. So far, I've only used this rod for fishing big, bushy dry flies into the wind, as well as hopper-dropper rigs with heavier nymphs on the bottom. This rod had no issues turning over heavier dropper rigs and I look forward to fishing streamer patterns with it this fall.
In addition to the performance of this rod, which punches well above its price point, in my opinion, the little details are part of what make every JP Ross Fly Rod model so great. Custom engravings on the reel seat and the butt, with further customization options available make these rods feel more personal than the latest-and-greatest offerings from some of the major manufacturers. That, combined with the overall performance of this rod at the price point has me very interested in adding a 7 weight to my quiver very soon.
Come check out our selection of JP Ross Fly Rods at Freeflow Outdoors in Laramie, Wyoming. To learn more about JP Ross Fly Rods, check out their website at https://www.jprossflyrods.com/