Two friends of mine have the Cabela's rods and like them. LL Bean also has a good mid price series of rods.

I use Sage rods, but can't convincingly say that you need to spend that kind of money. I do think you need to be looking at one of the rods in the $150 range or higher, or you're liable to get a poor stick. The cheapest rods I have cast are not worth it, IMHO. My preferred weapons are the old Sage RPLs, and the newer XPs.

For summer fish, I like a six weight in smaller rivers, seven or eight weight in bigger, windy rivers, like the Deschutes. A 10 foot rod is better for fishing, but you will need forearms of steel to fish one all day. A nine footer is probably the best rod for the occasionally fly fisher. I use 9 footers and 9 foot 6 inchers. Even that one makes my forearm hurt after a long day, and I work out with weights specifically to help that. I have tendonitis from too much golf and fly casting. I know, cry me a river. I now use a spey rod, because it doesn't make my arms hurt. But there your talking real money to get started - not recommended until you know you've really got the bug.

If you are going to try to save money, probably the best place to go cheap in the beginning is the reel. I can hear a lot of guys arguing already, but I have caught and landed too many steelhead while cutthroat fishing to think you need a fancy reel. Get one that you can palm, and you can be fine. Make sure that it's big enough to hold at least 100 yards of backing and the line you want. You can trade up to a better reel in the future.

The other way to save money is to build your rod. You can save at least 1/3 of the cost by doing this.