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Nymph flies are without a doubt the most productive flies for catching numbers of trout. Because of this, there are thousands of nymph fly patterns available to you.

On top of this, fly anglers have shown success using only one nymph pattern, like Jim Teeny with his Teeny Nymph, while others have packed dozens of fly boxes full of the latest and greatest fly patterns. This fact shows that presentation is king, and limiting our patterns as much as possible is probably a better approach anyways.

So, with this in mind, here are some guidelines that I’ve used for over 30 years when selecting and tying nymph flies for trout, primarily in rivers. This approach has allowed me to catch fish on nymph flies from under one pound to trout over 15 pounds in virtually every type of river.

NYMPH FLIES: THE BASICSThere is no textbook definition of “nymph flies.” While we traditionally refer to mayfly, stonefly, damselfly, and dragonfly juveniles as “nymphs,” we still use the word “nymph” or “nymph fly” to refer to essentially anything under the water that is not a large minnow/crustacean pattern that we normally retrieve or swing. Even this does not hold true since we retrieve small nymphs and chironomids in stillwaters.

For the purposes of this article, we will consider “nymph flies” as any subsurface pattern that is meant to be dead drifted across or near the bottom or suspended from a floating fly.

THREE TYPES OF NYMPH FLIESYou can classify nymph flies into three main pattern types: imitation, impressionistic, and attractor patterns.

IMITATION NYMPHSImitation nymphs imitate a particular insect, crustacean, minnow, egg, etc. Many of these patterns match a specific emergence stage of the insect, for example, larva, nymph, and pupa. The goal with these flies is to match the hatch. Simply put, the fish are keying on an insect, and you are matching that insect and stage, for example, midge pupa.

Other aquatic prey items like worms, sowbugs, and eggs are not hatches, but nymph flies for these items are often very close imitations, for example, a drifted bead egg and a San Juan Worm.

IMITATION NYMPH EXAMPLES

• midge, mayflies, caddisflies, stoneflies, craneflies, sowbugs, scuds, and mysis shrimp
• eggs, worms, pancora crabs, small crayfish, damselflies, dragonflies, small minnows (dead drifted), and even drowned terrestrials IMITATION NYMPHS MATCH NATURAL TROUT FOOD ITEMS QUITE CLOSELY.

IMPRESSIONISTIC NYMPHSImpressionistic nymphs resemble aquatic prey items, but exact imitation is not the purpose of these flies. These nymphs represent a few prey items at once, but they are still fairly natural in their appearance.

For example, a bushy Hare’s Ear is basically a mayfly nymph imitation. If you also have smallish sowbugs around and the fish are taking both before the mayfly hatch gets going, then the Hare’s Ear will probably be more effective than an imitation pattern because you get the best of both worlds.

Impressionistic nymph patterns are more versatile than imitation patterns and give you more options in between hatches. You still might want to keep the size close to the natural prey items, but you have more wiggle room on size, profile, and other triggers.

Impressionistic nymph patterns are super effective because a full-blown hatch is often the exception and not the rule. There also may be many hatches at once, and you may need something to cover multiple types of insects at once.

IMPRESSIONISTIC NYMPH EXAMPLES

• WD-40, Zebra Midge, some Perdigon nymphs, Hares Ear, HDA Fav Variant, soft hackles, Red Fox Squirrel Nymph, Pat’s Rubber Legs IMPRESSIONISTIC NYMPH FLIES RESEMBLE MULTIPLE FOOD ITEMS AT ONCE AND ARE MULTIPURPOSE TOOLS.

ATTRACTOR NYMPHSAttractor nymphs are an exaggerated version of impressionistic nymph fly patterns, and they often have brighter colors and more exaggerated features. It is hard to quantify the difference between impressionistic nymphs and attractor nymphs. It’s actually better to think of impressionistic and attractor nymph flies on a spectrum: WD-40 (impressionistic) on one end and a pink Steelhead Hammer nymph fly pattern (attractor) on the other. They both resemble an insect in profile, but the WD-40 is much more subdued and closer to exact imitation.

Attractor nymphs can also be large imitation nymphs, like eggs, worms, craneflies, brightly colored scuds and sowbugs, etc. These patterns can be a little oversized and serve to attract fish to them even when they’re not hungry. The trout might refuse the attractor and eat a smaller impressionistic or imitation nymph pattern that you fish together with this attractor nymph pattern.

We differentiate these as “attractor nymphs” in this case since you’re not necessarily matching any sort of food item that is in the water in high numbers. For example, if you fish an egg pattern in July, there aren’t a lot of fish spawning at this time in the Northern Hemisphere, outside of Alaska. The fish still remember eggs and still eat them, even when there are none in the water. These nymphs are, therefore, attractor nymphs at this time.

IMITATION NYMPH EXAMPLES

• Copper John, Rainbow Warrior, Lightning Bug, Princess Nymph, Prince Nymph, Psycho Prince Nymph, Chicken Little (chartreuse body)
• Globug, San Juan Worm, pink sowbug, orange scud ATTRACTOR NYMPH FLIES PUSH THE BOUNDRY OF NATURAL FOOD AND APPEAL TO A TROUT’S OTHER TRIGGERS.

RIGHT TIME TO FISH NYMPH FLIESNow that we understand the different types of nymph flies, we need to consider where we should use them and under which conditions.

SEARCHING OR TARGETING WITH NYMPHSWith all fly fishing, you normally have two options when fishing: are you searching for or targeting trout? Your answer will depend on a few factors: the size of the river, the amount of fish, whether or not you can see the fish (sight fishing), and water type, covered below.

In most instances, targeting trout equals imitation nymph flies and searching equals impressionistic and attractor nymph flies.

The larger the body of water the more likely you will have searching opportunities, particularly if there are few fish around.

The higher the fish density, the more likely you will know where the fish are and will, therefore, not have to search for the fish as much. If you can see fish regularly, you can concentrate on catching them much easier. This is a prime condition for sight fishing and targeting trout.

Before you tie on a nymph, consider whether you’re searching or targeting.

ADJUST YOUR NYMPH SELECTION WHEN YOU ARE TARGETING VERSUS SEARCHING FOR TROUT.

HATCHES AND NYMPH FLIESWe should approach hatches with some general commonsense. During a hatch, the characteristics of the insects obviously affect the size, profile, color, etc., of your imitations, but the lack of a hatch usually opens up the opportunity to fish bigger, unless the stream is chock full of small stuff like micro scuds. You can fish dead-drift minnows and larger impressionistic nymphs like this, such as craneflies, worms, crustaceans, eggs, etc. Attractor patterns are great when there is no hatch.

Other nymph flies that we can fish, when a hatch is not going on and depending on the time of year, are midge larvae (winter and early spring) and more natural toned mayflies (they are darker at emergence). More impressionistic nymph patterns in general are excellent. For example, caddis larvae and even pupae (summer months) are everywhere and a good choice, and stonefly nymphs (late spring and early summer) are also great choices.

During hatches or an emergence, you can fish midge/mayflies as the darker pupa/nymph version of your flies, caddis pupae, and stones.

Along with this, during “drift phases” and at certain times of year, we can fish natural sowbug and scud patterns. Impressionistic nymph patterns, like soft hackles, can be great when there are a lot of insects in the water and the fish are feeding on multiple types of prey items, such as caddis pupae, sow bugs, scuds, drowned mayfly adults.

NYMPH FLIES FOR HATCHES1) ONE HATCH* Imitation nymph

2) BEFORE A HATCH* Imitation nymph (nymph and larva) and/or impressionistic nymph

3) MULTIPLE HATCHES* Impressionistic nymph and imitation nymph together and refine

4) NO ACTIVE HATCHES* Impressionistic nymph and/or attractor nymph

5) NO ACTIVE HATCHES, ACTIVE SPAWNING, AND/OR ANADROMOUS FISH PRESENT Attractor nymph and/or impressionistic nymph FISHING IMITATION NYMPHS*Imitation nymphs are connected very closely to hatches, but they are also preferable under certain fishing conditions. Examine the table below.

If the trout are keying on a hatch, then we use imitation nymphs particularly in rivers with high fish populations. You can also change this up and fish an imitation nymph with an impressionistic or attractor nymph. Euro nymphers call the larger attractor fly, “the point fly.” When fish are in between hatches or the fish population is small, then this is a great time to fish this combo.

Clear water, low water, sight fishing, and pressured trout are all great candidates for smaller imitation patterns. You can drift the pattern over the fish repeatedly, putting the smaller pattern right in their feeding lane. Obviously if you couldn’t see the trout, then you should switch your approach.

IMITATION NYMPHS: USES AND EXAMPLES

1. One hatch or when trout are selective on a particular insect during multiple hatches
2. Clear water and/or low/moderate water depth
3. Pressured trout
4. Fished together with an impressionistic or attractor nymph
5. Sight-fishing FISHING IMPRESSIONISTIC NYMPHSAs the conditions begin to change and the hatch becomes sparse or nonexistent, you can now switch to searching patterns. Impressionistic patterns are a good choice in this situation in addition to many others. See the table below.

Impressionistic nymph patterns are excellent for hatches. You can use them differently than imitation nymphs. For one, you can choose a pattern that represents multiple species of emerging insects and/or drifting prey items. A couple great examples are a WD-40 and a Hare’s Ear for midge/mayfly and a larger mayfly and sowbugs/scuds respectively. You can fish the impressionistic nymph as the point fly with an imitation nymph to try and home in on what the fish are taking.

In a similar way, you can fish impressionistic nymphs before and after hatches to try and pick out the more aggressively feeding trout. This works very well if there are also larger prey items like sowbugs and scuds.

Impressionistic nymph flies are perfect for searching in virtually any water condition. They are effective on both pressured and unpressured trout as well depending on the size of the nymph. Pressured fish tend towards smaller nymphs, but the time of year and local hatches/prey items greatly affect this.

Finally, impressionistic nymphs work great when anadromous trout are present and in super clear and often shallow water.

IMPRESSIONISTIC NYMPHS: USES AND EXAMPLES

1. Multiple hatches present
2. Before or after hatches
3. Fished with an imitation or attractor nymph
4. Searching fly
5. Any water condition
6. Unpressured or pressured trout
7. Anadromous trout present FISHING ATTRACTOR NYMPHSAttractor nymphs are perfect for situations where impressionistic nymph flies are just a tad too boring and natural. When you need to really excite the trout, attractor patterns are the most affective pattern. See table below.

Trout must continuously experiment with food items based on curiosity, experimentation, etc. Attractor nymphs play on these instincts. Even adding elements of attraction to imitation and impressionistic nymphs can make them effective when you have thousands of naturals in the water. Your fly sticks out with attraction elements.

Attractor nymphs excel when trout are spawning and or when they are anadromous trout. The Great Lakes are a good example of this.

When trout enter the spawning stages of their life, they are particularly susceptible to brighter colors and pattern exaggerations.

At the same time, unpressured trout often prefer attractor patterns, again because they stick out. Any prey item that sticks out in nature dies.

You can fish an attractor nymph or multiple attractor nymphs alone or with an imitation or impressionistic nymph. This allows the nymph to act as a super effective searching pattern with a more natural pattern to balance it out.

Finally, in high off-colored water, attractor nymph patterns are the preferred option. They get your nymph in the game and allow you to not only catch a few fish but at times catch all the fish in the river.

So, imitation, impressionistic, and attractor nymphs have their ideal conditions, but you can even refine this more by optimizing nymph design for your fishing presentation.

ATTRACTOR NYMPHS: USES AND EXAMPLES

1. High and/or off-colored water
2. Unpressured trout
3. Spawning trout present
4. Anadromous trout present
5. Fished with an imitation or impressionistic nymph
6. Searching fly NYMPH FLIES AND FLY FISHING PRESENTATIONHow you select nymph flies will largely depend on the technique that you are using because certain nymphs match with particular techniques better. There are two main ways to fish nymphs: dead drifted and moved. We are focusing on dead-drift nymphing of course.

Within dead-drift nymphing, you have mainly three techniques: dropper fishing, indicator/sighter fishing, and tight-line nymphing (euro-nymphing, etc.). Sinking your flies in all of these techniques is critical, but with two of these techniques (dropper and tight-line nymphing), weighted nymphs are very important. With indicator fishing, weighted flies are totally optional and, in some instances, not ideal. Note you have a few nymphing techniques, like bead fishing, that have an almost sweeping movement and use very specific “flies.” We’ll omit these techniques from consideration.

NYMPHING TECHNIQUES LEFT TO RIGHT: INDICATOR, TIGHT-LINE, AND DROPPER.

SINKING YOUR NYMPH FLIESWith nymph flies, you need to consider two main features for sinking: weight and profile. Other aspects of your presentation will affect this as well, such as tippet diameter, knot choice, and added leader weight.

When it comes to weight on your nymphs, the more weight you have on your fly the faster it sinks—pretty obvious stuff here. Aspects of your fly that affect weight are hook weight/diameter, quantity of added weight to the nymph (bead head, lead wire), and material of the added weight (lead, tungsten, brass, etc.).

Profile is another major way you can sink your flies faster. A super clean and slender body will sink much faster than a bushy wide body. An example of these extremes would be a Perdigon nymph and a sucker spawn nymph fly. A Perdigon nymph is basically a hook covered in acrylic/epoxy. Sucker spawn is almost a frisbee and takes quite a bit of time to sink to the bottom of the stream.

NYMPH FLY DESIGN AND SINKING CHARACTERISTICS AFFECT PRESENTATION GREATLY.

JIG HOOKS OR STANDARD HOOKS WITH NYMPHSIn the last five to ten years, jig-style hooks have become very popular, particularly with tight-line/euro-nymphing fishing approaches. Each of us has our own preferences when it comes to nymphs, but you will find that most nymph anglers have at minimum a mix of jig style hooks and standard nymph hooks.

A jig hook will definitely ride hook point up, and because of this, you have a fly that is somewhat more weedless. However, most nymph hooks ride hook up to a certain degree, so this might not be that big of a deal.

The biggest advantage to using nymphs with jig hooks is that they come with many different weights and have some very high-quality hooks. These hooks are often well designed as well, coming with a wide gap and sharp hook.

So, if you are using tight-line nymphing, you will probably use many nymph flies with jig hooks. If you fish with indicators, you can still fish with these patterns, but they are not required at all.

PARTS OF RIVERS, WATER FLOW, AND FISH LOCATIONHow you match your nymph flies to water conditions and river configuration can have a strong effect on your fishing success. It is the most fine-tuned aspect of selecting nymph flies, but it can make the difference when fish are holding in a specific water type or feeding in a selective way.

There are six main types of water on any given river that is not so big it begins to resemble a lake: runs, pocket water, riffles, flats, slicks, edges, and pools. These are more or less listed descending from fastest water speed.

I will assume that you know what each of these water types is, but to be clear, “flats” are simply that, areas of a river that have more or less a uniform surface with a moderate water speed. “Slicks” are areas behind boulders, islands, or really any obstruction, and “edges” are basically that, the banks of each side of the river in addition to water moving right up onto an island, etc. All seven of these parts of the river provide unique aspects with respect to water speed, depth, and turbidity, which you can see from the table.

It should also be noted that bottom content and cover will affect where a fish is holding tremendously within these particular types of water, i.e., if there is a boulder or a trench within a run, this fact will obviously affect how fish use that piece of water.

Fish use these areas at different and predictable times, so it’s important to learn these features and the times fish use these parts of the river.

| WATER TYPE | WATER SPEED | DEPTH | MOTION | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | RUNS | FAST-MODERATE | DEEP-MODERATE | HIGH | | POCKET WATER | FAST-MODERATE | SHALLOW | HIGH | | RIFFLES | MODERATE | MODERATE-SHALLOW | MODERATE | | FLATS/TAILOUTS | MODERATE-SLOW | MODERATE-SHALLOW | LOW | | SLICKS/EDGES | MODERATE-SLOW | DEEP-SHALLOW | LOW | | POOLS | SLOW | DEEP | LOW |

TROUT ACTIVITY AND NYMPH FLIESThese types of water are also associated with the main activities of a trout. Take a look at the table below to see the general activities and locations of trout during these times of feeding, spawning, resting/sulking (RS), and testing (receptive but not actively looking for food). Make sure you take into consideration the general water conditions: water level, water clarity, and the presence of hatches.

ACTIVE HATCH Midge/Mayflies as the darker pupa/nymph * Caddis pupae, stoneflies * Natural sowbug and scud patterns * Soft hackles (many prey items in the water) NO ACTIVE HATCH Midge larvae, more natural-toned mayflies * Caddis larvae and pupae, stoneflies * Craneflies, worms, crustaceans, eggs * Attractor patterns * Minnows * More impressionistic patterns NYMPH FLY TRIGGERSTo this point, you know what type of nymph flies you’ll be using (imitation, impressionistic, or attractor), how nymph design will affect your presentation, and the types of water your nymphs will be in. The final piece of the puzzle is to look at nymph triggers.

There are five main triggers: size/proportion, profile/shape, color, flash, and movement, and these triggers are normally better suited for specific types of water and conditions. Note that I have rarely if ever encountered a situation in which “exact imitation” is a reliable trigger. Thousands of naturals that look exactly like your fly are in competition. Normally, you need a slightly different characteristic to trigger the trout.

SIZE/PROPORTION OF NYMPH FLIESSize and proportion are probably the most important factors of selecting nymph flies. You can get away with a lot of things with a nymph fly pattern, but if you are way too big or small, you’re going to have a long day on the water.

The biggest factor for deciding size is the predominance of prey species in the watershed. You should go bigger when lots of big stuff is in the water or river in general but also in faster water, murky water, warm water, and when you’re searching rather than sight-fishing.

The surer you are where the fish are, the smaller your nymphs can be. As pointed out above, pressured water often requires smaller flies.

Finally, sulking and resting fish can be coaxed with either large or small flies depending on a lot of factors. Sometimes a big meal is just too much to pass up, particularly when the fish’s metabolism is up. At other times, a small “harmless” nymph presented right on the fish’s nose will do the job. As much as we all want nymph fly selection to be like a cooking recipe with totally predictable results, that is unfortunately not reality.

Fishing pressure usually necessitates smaller flies or larger flies like streamers for the real predators of the stream. So, consider these generalizations for nymph fly size.

FLY ANGLERS KNOW SIZE IS CRITICAL, BUT PROPORTION CAN BE EQUALLY AS IMPORTANT.

PROFILE OF NYMPH FLIESProfile is hugely underrated and may be the most important trigger within reasonable parameters (general color). The reason for this claim is that profile is important with both smaller and larger flies. That’s why ten different guys, fishing ten different fly patterns, but with the same shape, catch fish. Profile is a very powerful trigger on trout.

As an example of profile’s effectiveness on animals in general, my grandpa used to make duck decoys that were nothing more than silhouettes consisting of black spray-painted pieces of wood. The shape or details, like our shadow, are the first thing we notice when someone approaches, and then we fill in the details as they get closer. From quite far away, both we and the trout gain tons of information based on profile. Trout are even more dependent on this general information. [source]

In fast water, trout don’t have the luxury of inspecting the fly, so the shape has to trigger the fish to look. This is most often all you need since the trout must make a decision or lose the food to the current. In slow water, the fish gains interest and only sometimes commits fully, simply on the shape. Many times you must use other triggers in slow water. The trout has all day to follow the pattern. You can watch the trout do this on rivers like Utah’s Green River.

The profile of our nymph flies is so important and can be affected by other features like flash and color.

TROUT OFTEN HAVE WORSE VISION THAN WE THINK, PROFILE, SIZE, AND PROPORTION ARE CRITICAL ON ALL FLIES.

COLOR OF NYMPH FLIESI find color to be less important within reason with nymphs unless you are talking about eggs, anadromous species like steelhead, or spawning fish. I do, however, feel that color is hugely important with respect to shades of light and dark. Dark patterns accentuate profile and are easier to see in deep water and against most backdrops.

This is super easy to see. Imagine a fish with a dark back or a fish with a lighter back moving through the water. It’s much easier for us to spot the dark-colored fish. For this reason, darker patterns (blacks, browns, dark olives, dark reds, etc.) are best when profile is most important. Also, during emergence, insects usually get darker in color anyway.

I have found that lighter colors are more productive on sunny days, because fish can see more of the detail when the sun is out, but dark colored patterns can be equally effective on these days, probably because of the accentuated profile in current. Situations where light penetration is high make lighter colors more effective than they would be in a situation with less light penetration.

When you are fishing on a highly pressure body of water, you may want to try lighter patterns particularly in sight-fishing situations. Also, bright chartreuses, etc., can be seen in murky or deep water, so experiment. The color of the naturals should always influence your fly choice since this may be a major trigger, particularly with bigger insects.

All that being said, when in doubt, I go darker.

FLASH ON NYMPH FLIESWhen we see a flashing light or a little glimmer, our eyes are drawn to it. It’s the same thing with fish. This can be either good or bad, depending on the situation, but flash is as difficult a trigger to predict as anything, so experiment on a given day.

There are some guidelines for flash when I hit the water that have been pretty consistent for me. Flash is most effective in slow to moderate flows. This is for two main reasons: 1) in fast water, a nymph can get lost in the commotion if it has a lot of flash, and 2) a fish can see the source of this flash in these slower flows much easier.

Shallow and clear water actually makes more sense with flash as well, since light penetration diminishes at depths and when there is poor visibility. You can put flash on the fly, but it doesn’t matter if light penetration isn’t high enough.

Finally, when insects emerge, they move more and can generate air bubbles during the emergence. This makes flash a little more natural at these times and may be a trigger during the emergence to get the fish’s attention. A caddis emergence is a prime time of this.

MOVEMENT WITH NYMPH FLIESMovement with nymphs is somewhat underrated. I am not talking about the various presentations that can be used with nymphs but rather the inherent movement found in a given fly, say a fly that is articulated. If you examine nearly any insect larva, pupa, or nymph you will see movement. Fish see this too, and movement in a nymph will give you an advantage if no one else is doing it.

For nymphs with movement, slow to moderate flows are the best. Like with flash, you don’t get the benefits in fast water, since there is so much movement already. In fact, more or less the exact situations are best for both flash and movement (shallower and clear water, when insects emerge, as a specific trigger), since these triggers need light to really shine, pun intended.

SMALLER, PROFILE, FLASH, MOVEMENT, NATURAL Shallow Runs, Riffles, Flats/Tailouts * Slicks/Edges (unless deep), Pools (unless deep) * Shallow, Clear, Slow * Pressured, Sight-Fishing * Waters with predominantly smaller prey LARGER, PROFILE, DARK/BRIGHT COLORS Runs * Pocket Water * Deep, Murky, Fast * Little Pressure, Searching * Waters with predominantly large prey TAKEAWAYS ON NYMPH FLIESThis is a lot of information about nymph flies, but some days it makes all the difference. More than anything, this should help you to fish with more of a purpose and have some sort of rhyme and reason to why you might change your nymph flies from one nymph to another.

If the information here is overwhelming, then just use one or two concepts and adjust over the months and years. We all want to catch more fish, but fly fishing shouldn’t be stressful if we don’t want it to be.

Nymphing is the most effective method to catch fish year-round. Master nymphing and you’ll catch fish in almost any condition you encounter.

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Bonefish flies don’t have to be as complicated as we make them out to be, particularly for fish that are fairly unbothered. We can make fly selection much easier by thinking about bonefish flies from a functional perspective first, and then changing other features that might affect the bonefish second.

The specific bonefish destination also plays into your bonefish fly choice, since each venue has particular structural and food characteristics that will determine a good portion of your bonefish fly selection.

Below, we’ll examine the most important characteristics of your bonefish flies from most important to least important. So, let’s look at the best way to fill your bonefish fly box with the best and most potent bonefish flies around.

CLICK HERE TO JUMP TO BONEFISH FLY PATTERNS IF YOU LIKEBONEFISH FLIES: SINKING CHARACTERISTICSThe most important feature of bonefish flies is how they sink. There are three things to consider weight, sink rate, and how well the hook rides up.

Weight obviously affects sink rate, but it also determines how loud your fly is when it hits the water. Depending on the venue, you may spook bonefish with loud plops. In others, the plop or entry may get their attention and trigger a strike.

Sink rate is not simply determined by weight. If you fish an ultra-sparse fly, your fly will sink faster. If you fish a bulky fly made out of spun deer hair, your bonefish fly might hover in the water column. Your knot also makes a difference—a loop knot sinks faster. Your leader and tippet will affect this as well.

Sink rate is hugely important because you need to get your fly to the level of the fish QUICKLY! Bonefish move very fast at times, so you need to make a cast normally not on the bonefish’s head, sink the fly to the bottom, and begin moving the fly in front of the bonefish. If you don’t do that first, all while not spooking the bonefish with the plop, everything else you do to your fly is meaningless. That’s why sinking characteristics are the most important.

Finally, make sure that the fly rides hook up, so you don’t snag coral, vegetation, or mangroves as you retrieve the fly.

TIP 1: Use bonefish flies that have the proper weight to sink the fly fast without spooking the fish and that always ride with the hook point up.

BONEFISH FLIES: SHAPEThe overall appearance of your bonefish flies, as one might expect, is going to determine your success to a large part. These are the features a bonefish might see from a good distance off. Think of these as the “thumbnail” of your presentation. If the bonefish likes what it sees, it normally commits.

SizeBonefish will eat much larger fly patterns than you find in most fly shops, particularly the big fish, but there are some venues and times of year when bonefish need a smaller-sized fly. Either way, the size of your pattern will dictate whether the bonefish will even approach it.

As a rule, bonefish flies are normally size #2 to #8, with #4 and #6 being more common. However, you can fish size #1/0 and even #2/0 flies in some destinations with bigger, more aggressive bonefish.

Bonefish flies follow a basic rule of thumb that applies to most species and fly patterns.

TIP 2: If the bonefish are heavily pressured, in larger numbers, small, spooky, or in a venue with mostly small food, then go with a smaller fly pattern.

If the bonefish are lightly pressured, moving in smaller groups, large, aggressive, or in a venue with mainly larger prey, then use a larger pattern.

MATCHING THE HATCH IS RARELY REQUIRED WITH BONEFISH.

ProfileThe general profile of your bonefish fly acts as a calling card to bonefish. If they are eating primarily shrimp, gobies, and mojarra, then a thin, longer pattern will probably be more effective. Bonefish eat a lot of crabs, but they are opportunistic and will almost always be interested in a longer, more shrimpy-looking pattern. In most cases, you’re better off going with a shrimp-style pattern for bonefish, because this profile resembles more bait options the bonefish regularly encounters, and a longer fly moves more naturally than most crab flies.

Predominance of preyThe major prey offering to a bonefish is obviously important. In most cases, they have a varied diet and are highly opportunistic. In some cases, like in Los Roques, the bonefish eat a substantial amount of one prey item, in this case sardines. Because of this, Gummy Minnows are really popular in Los Roques but are used virtually nowhere else. Before you head out to the flats, do a bit or research to see if you’ll be encountering a similar situation to Los Roques.

BE CAREFUL WITH RUBBER LEGS AND YOUR HOOK FOULING.

BONEFISH FLIES: FUNCTIONBonefish fly function, outside of fly action, is often an afterthought for many bonefish fly anglers. The most likely reality is that if you are able to present a fly naturally and quietly that is even remotely close to a bonefish’s diet, it will probably eat your fly. This is why function is super important.

ActionThe word “action” with bonefish flies is somewhat a misnomer. Bonefish flies do not jig or dart back and forth, not necessarily because they aren’t able to do this, but because they don’t need to. The fly gets the attention of the bonefish and then sits there as the bonefish eats it. It’s more movement, not “action.”

In this light, using flies with enough movement to get the attention of the fish is normally all that is needed. Rubber legs, fox hair, craft fur, bunny, and pseudo-hair are excellent options to make your fly look alive and catch the attention of the bonefish.

As the bonefish approaches your fly, it rarely stops and admires your fly. It either eats your fly or ignores it. Sometimes you can move your fly again to let the bonefish know where it is or to give it another chance. This all happens in the blink of an eye. It’s not like you’re fishing for a largemouth bass on a spawning bed, where you have five minutes to try and catch the fish. The most basic action and natural movement is often all you need for bonefish.

Foul rateNatural movement is the key here, so when your fly fouls, either because of a craft-fur wing or some rubber legs, the features that make your fly move naturally can also cause it to fail. Make sure that your rubber legs do not wrap around your fly. Cut the length of your rubber legs and constantly inspect if your wing is fouling. We’ve learned this the hard way with both bonefish and permit.

CastabilityIf you can’t get your fly to the bonefish, it’s useless. Large puffy flies with rubber legs, heavy weight, and flapping, wind-resistant appendages keep you from accomplishing your goal of putting your fly in front of the fish. Use bonefish flies that will help you to cast in a stiff wind.

SparsenessThe sparseness of your bonefish flies can be purely aesthetic, but it pretty much always affects the fly function mainly in the drop rate and castability of your fly. The more material, the harder it is to cast and the slower it sinks. If you can use less material on your flies, it normally boosts the performance of your fly on at least these two levels.

Weed guardsWeed guards are necessary in a few destinations that have substantial amounts of coral and/or weed flats. If you’re collecting weeds on every cast, you’re going to have a tough time catching fish. Make sure you have at least a few patterns with weed guards in your box.

BONEFISH FLIES: HOOK CHARACTERISTICSOne of the most important reasons to tie your own flies is to guarantee that you are using the perfect hook for bonefish. You have many options and manufacturers of hooks to choose from, and you’re stuck with the hook that a commercial tyer provides otherwise.

The perfect bonefish hook is super sharp and sticky. You want the bonefish to almost hook themselves with the hook, and that only happens from a sticky hook. A sticky and super-effective bonefish hook comes from 2 main characteristics: thin wire and a well-designed point.

Thin-wire hooks, however, bring the concern of bending hooks. Because of the powerful nature of bonefish, you need to have strong wire on your hook. If you’re catching smaller fish, you can normally get away with a thinner hook, but if you have a chance of catching a fish over 5 pounds, don’t mess around. If double-digit bones are a real chance, you’re asking for a disappointing day on the water with a weak hook. The other advantage of a stronger hook is to turn a fish that is swimming towards mangroves.

Finally, but a distant 3rd, the shape of your hook helps you to make flies with the ideal profile for the specific bonefish flat you’re fishing. If you can’t find a perfectly shaped hook, but the hook is strong and sharp, then forget about shape. Make it work.

EXCELLENT BONEFISH HOOKS

Daiichi X452, Mustad C70SD, Gamakatsu SL12, Gamakatsu L11S-3H, Owner Aki 1/0 (big flies), and Tiemco 811S (smaller bonefish).

BONEFISH FLIES: SUPERFICIAL FEATURESThe features that, for all intents and purposes, are the least important to the bonefish are normally high on the fly angler’s list. These features can be important in some conditions, but if you have covered all of the other aspects of bonefish flies (sinking, shape, function, and hook quality), superficial features of bonefish flies add the finishing touches.

ColorIf you have a bonefish fly in tan or light white, you’re more or less set. You could use these colors virtually anywhere in the world. The general idea behind bonefish fly color is to match the bottom content. This is a simplistic, although effective, view.

You can use color to attract the fish to your fly. Orange and pink are excellent colors to use to attract bonefish to you. Normally, this is as an accent in stripes, an egg sag, or rubber legs. Chartreuse is also used in a few fly patterns.

Basically, if your fly is tan/off white with an accent of orange or pink, you’re ready to rock. You might need to go a little darker on weed flats, using olive-colored and brown-colored flies. However, for 90% of bonefishing situations, these colors cover most destinations. Also, don’t be afraid to experiment with color on your bonefish flats.

FlashIt is irrefutable that flash works on bonefish flies. Many famous patterns like the Christmas Island Special and the Gotcha have a full body of flash on it. Flash is a nice way to get the attention of a bonefish, and if they are feeding on minnows, like the mojarra, then this may contribute to the fly’s effectiveness.

On the other hand, some anglers will lessen the amount of flash on their flies because they swear that the bigger fish prefer less. Either way, have some flies that have flash and some that don’t. You can also trim flash on the water, but you really can’t add it on the water. Then, just see which bonefish flies are more effective for you on your waters.

TransparencyTransparency can be good or bad. If the fish doesn’t see your fly because it’s blending in, then your fly has failed. If you’re fishing for highly-pressured bonefish, then a transparent fly might work, but don’t try to imitate the natural shrimp, because you’re not trying to imitate a natural; you’re trying to attract a bonefish. This is sometimes hard for fly anglers because they’re conditioned to match the hatch. Transparency is something to experiment with, but don’t be too zealous with this feature.

TextureTexture is a bonefish fly characteristic that many ignore. This may be for good reason, since bonefish eat all sorts of hard-shelled critters. Because of this, it seems like it may have a minimal effect on bonefish flies, but feel free to experiment.

TIP 3: After your bonefish flies perform well with sinking, shape, function, and hook quality, superficial features of bonefish flies (color, flash, transparency, and texture) add the finishing touches.

BONEFISH FLY PATTERNSMany bonefish flies will catch fish, but 12 patterns cover your basis in virtually every bonefish destination on earth. These are the first 12 we would suggest from top to bottom and left to right: Bonefish Junk, Gotcha (all its versions), Bonefish Clouser, Veverka’s Mantis Shrimp, Enrico Puglisi Spawning Shrimp, Peterson’s Spawning Shrimp, Squimp, Miheve’s Flats Fly (Greg’s Flats Fly), Bonefish Scampi, Bonefish Bitters, Beck’s Sili Legs, and the Christmas Island Special.

If you have a box full of the flies above in a few color schemes with a good variety of features related to sinking, shape, function, and hook quality, you should be just fine anywhere in the world. You might throw in a Fleeing Crab or a Strong-Arm Crab in size #4 or #6, and this would cover 95% of the bonefish situations you might find yourself in.

Remember, there are a few specialized areas like Los Roques and Hawaii, so check with your guide or outfitter on specific destination bonefish-fly standards.

At the end of the day, bonefish flies are fun to tie, fun to look at, and fun to fish. Don’t get stressed about it, just follow the advice above and work on your cast. If you need to get better at fly fishing for bonefish, read our forthcoming article next, and remember that if you find yourself on the bonefish flats, it’s a good day any way you look at it.

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There are hundreds, if not thousands, of options to choose from with our fly fishing leaders and tippets. No matter which tippet or leader you choose, it will affect your fly fishing dramatically. Each leader or tippet offers you ways to really improve your fly fishing through the specific qualities they offer.

At the end of this article, you shouldn’t feel confused when looking at the hundreds of different types of tippets and leaders you see online or in fly shops, and you’ll be able to catch a lot more fish because you’ll be able to fool and land these fish much more effectively.

FOR A SUMMARY OF FLY FISHING LEADERS AND TIPPETS, CLICK HEREBASICS OF FLY FISHING LEADERS AND TIPPETSBASIC SETUPBefore we discuss all aspects of fly fishing leaders and tippets, we need to make sure that you understand the basics of leaders and tippets. With every fly fishing setup, you will have possibly 5 different sections, connected with the right fly fishing knots, until you get to the fly: backing, fly line, butt section, leader, and tippet.

WHAT IS A FLY FISHING LEADER?A complete fly fishing leader is usually the last 3 parts of the 5-part fly fishing setup, connecting to the fly line: the butt section, leader (or midsection), and tippet. Much of the time leaders taper down from large to small diameter line. These are referred to as a “tapered leader.” This allows the fly to land softly while also giving the angler some power in the cast, since the larger the diameter, the more power you have, and the smaller the diameter, the softer the line lands on the water. This is always a balance in fly fishing: what is best for casting, and what is best for presenting the fly to the fish.

WHAT IS FLY FISHING TIPPET?Fly fishing tippet is the last part of your leader that connects to the fly. Sometimes the tippet is treated as a separate piece of the leader, but really, it’s just one part of the leader. We can think of the butt section as the end that connects to the fly line, and we can think of the tippet as the end that connects to the fly.

Fly anglers will buy extra tippet to connect to their leaders so they do not eat into the taper. Every time you cut a bit from your tapered leader, to replace a fly for example, you lose taper. As you add tippet initially or as your leader gets shorter and shorter, you preserve the taper of your fly fishing leader.

Fly anglers also use tippet to connect multiple flies to their fly fishing rigs, and they will also extend the taper of their leader in certain finesse fly fishing scenarios.

TWO BASIC OPTIONS FOR FLY FISHING LEADERSBUILD A FLY FISHING LEADERThere are two options for your leader, build your own or buy the leader premade. If you create your own, there are literally endless combinations and designs of these leaders. You can go as basic as using one piece of monofilament with one diameter tied to the fly line and the fly. In this case, the butt section and tippet are the exact same diameter, and there are no knots.

You could also create a leader that has 10 different sections tapering down from large to small, attached with fly fishing knots. You can use any material you want in your leader design as well, so you could incorporate fishing line made by any fishing manufacturer in the world, as long as it gives you the qualities you want for your leader.

This gives you choices for different sections of your leader. For example, you could go stiff and heavy on the butt section and supple and light on the tippet section. Leader design is much too large of a topic for this article, but understand you have man different options.

BUY A FLY FISHING LEADERAnother option, and easier in general, is to buy a premade fly fishing leader. This is as easy as making any purchase you’ve ever made. Many manufacturers have hundreds of premade leaders for saltwater and freshwater. Most of these leaders will not have knots except on the butt section to connect it to the fly line. This allows your leader to slide through the water easily and not gather any debris or vegetation on your leader’s knots. Some premade leaders have been tied by hand, however. These will almost always be a bit more expensive.

You can choose to buy a premade leader and use it as is, or you can add a butt section and a bit of tippet to either end to preserve the taper, since the more you use it, the more you will eat into the taper.

Both options give you choices, but the key to making these choices is to understand the qualities of the materials used and the decisions you’ll make when building or buying your leaders and tippets.

See examples of tippet and premade leaders here.

DIFFERENT MATERIALS OF FLY FISHING LEADERS AND TIPPETSThere are 2 main different materials that tippets and leaders come in: nylon and fluorocarbon. Both are monofilaments, although nylon is referred to as “monofilament” most of the time. Monofilament means that they are one filament extruded out, not a bunch of filaments twisted together like braided fishing lines, which are mainly used in conventional tackle fishing. Both nylon and fluoro have specific qualities that aid in casting, presentation, and landing fish, which we will explore below.

There is also another type of material that anglers use as well, but they use this with toothy fish like sharks, barracuda, pike, musky, and bluefish. These are the different types of wire leader/tippet materials that are available to both conventional and fly anglers alike.

FLY FISHING LEADER AND TIPPET QUALITIES AND HOW THEY AFFECT YOUR FISHINGEach type of fluorocarbon, nylon, or metal wire we choose has unique qualities that will make or break our fishing success in many instances.

There are well over a dozen factors to consider when buying fly fishing tippet or leaders. We can divide our fly fishing leader and tippet uses into two main parts: “the grab” (presenting the fly and fooling the fish into striking) and “the nab” (bringing the fish to hand after it strikes the fly). Let’s explore these two purposes below.

A NOTE ON FLY FISHING LEADERS AND TIPPETSThere are certain features of your leaders and tippets that are important, but are more general or connected to your leader design. Two aspects of leaders and tippets are leader length and leader/tippet durability.

Leader length is connected to your design, which is a whole different topic. Just know that having a long/short leader will affect casting (short = more power; long = less) and presentation. Length affects presentation in many different ways from sink rate to drag put on your line.

Durability is another aspect to consider. Fluorocarbon, for example, is more longer-lasting than most nylon monofilaments. For the most part, durability (not abrasion resistance) is a cherry on top when it comes to other aspects of leaders and tippets.

THE “GRAB” WITH FLY FISHING LEADERS AND TIPPETSThe first consideration when trying to catch a fish is triggering the fish to “grab” the fly. There are at least 5 main leader and tippet characteristics that play a major role in your presentation to a fish: suppleness/stiffness, diameter, sink rate, color, and visibility. We need to consider 2 aspects of presentation along with these 5 factors: 1) presenting the fly in or on the water 2) fly casting.

THE “GRAB”: HOW LEADERS AND TIPPETS AFFECT CASTINGDIAMETERTwo of the factors (suppleness/stiffness and diameter) affect presentation through your casting. First, the diameter is hugely important. Diameter has been so important for fly fishing historically that the use of the “X” system has been the symbol used to buy tippet and designated the final tippet size on tapered leaders for hundreds of years.

UNDERSTANDING THE X SYSTEM OF FLY FISHING TIPPETSFly fishing tippet was made from a translucent membrane within the gut of the silkworm, which is about 12 – 18 inches long and is still sold today. The diameter of this membrane was measured in inches in England after the worm’s importation into England from China.

Thus was born the “rule of 11” which means that the tippet size “X” value (3x, 5x, etc.) plus the diameter (in thousands of an inch) must equal 11. In this way, you can determine what the diameter is by subtracting the X-factor from 11. This is why higher X numbers are actually smaller in diameter.

Example: 2x tippet has a diameter of .009, 11 – 2 = 9 (.009). This holds true up to 0x.

| X VALUE | DIAMETER | ESTIMATED BREAKING STRENGTH | | --- | --- | --- | | 8x | .003 (.076 mm) | 1.5lb (0.7 kg) | | 7x | .004 (.102 mm) | 2 lb (0.9 kg) | | 6x | .005 (.127 mm) | 3 lb (1.4 kg) | | 5x | .006 (.152 mm) | 4 lb (1.8 kg) | | 4x | .007 (.178 mm) | 6 lb (2.7 kg) | | 3x | .008 (.203 mm) | 8 lb (3.6 kg) | | 2x | .009 (.229 mm) | 10 lb (4.5 kg) | | 1x | .010 (.254 mm) | 12 lb (5.4 kg) | | 0x | .011 (.279 mm) | 14 lb (6.4 kg) |

THE IMPORTANCE OF FLY FISHING LEADER AND TIPPET DIAMETERBecause the diameter of your line determines partly the power you can generate during a cast. The diameter of your tapered leader and/or your tippet size determine energy dissipation, that is, how much energy is lost on the cast. Practically speaking, the larger the diameter, the more power you will have when casting. The power in your fly casting is lost when small diameters are attached to the fly line. Also, a larger diameter tippet/leader will have more weight and thus inertia once it gets moving.

The length of your fly fishing leader affects power as well, but this factor is tied up (no pun intended) with leader formulas, which are another article/book entirely. Just know that a shorter leader will have more power, all other factors being equal. For example, in windy conditions, you want a shorter leader for casting purposes.

When we have consistently similar diameters in our leaders, the tapered leader has even energy transfer, and our leaders will lay out with maximum force while still landing softly enough to avoid spooking fish. So, 5 feet of .009 tippet will be infinitely more powerful than 5 feet of .004 diameter tippet. One is better for casting streamers on trout lakes, and the other is better for tiny flies on spring creeks. You can use 1,000 lb. test to try and get more power in your cast, but if your 20 lb. test has a larger diameter (all other factors being equal), the 20-pound test will still cast farther with the same amount of effort. Note it is the diameter, NOT THE BREAKING STRENGTH, that aids the cast.

SUPPLENESS/STIFFNESSThe other factor that affects casting is the suppleness/stiffness of your nylon, fluoro, or braid. A simple rule is, all other factors being equal, the stiffer the line, the easier it will shoot and turn over a fly, unless cold temperatures are so bad that your line will not straighten out.

Think about a limp spaghetti noodle vs. a piece of monofilament of the same thickness and length. If you tie a nymph on the noodle, bend it back, and let it go, nothing will happen. However, the stiff piece of mono will use its potential energy and spring forward under the same bend. Incidentally, fly line cores are often made from monofilaments, so that fly lines with stiff mono cores shoot much better than lines with limp cores (heat or cold affects this as well).

So, as we design our leaders or choose tippets and other monofilaments, we need to think about the conditions we are fishing in. Do we need maximum power with little concern over our flies smashing the water, for example, while fishing to trout in lakes in an impossible wind, or do we need high dissipation of energy so that our leader lands lightly on the water in front of a big spring creek brown? The stiffness/suppleness and diameter of our leaders will help us cast appropriately to the conditions.

THE “GRAB”: HOW LEADERS AND TIPPETS AFFECT PRESENTATION IN/ON THE WATERIf you can’t get the fly to the fish, then everything else is meaningless. Once the fly is on the water, none of the qualities of the line that aided you with casting will necessarily help you fool the fish. In reality, you choose a line that gives you the best of both worlds, but at this stage in your decision making, you’ve entered the fish’s world where our fly should be most of the time anyway since, as Gary Borger puts it, “We’re not fishing for owls.” The factors important for presentation in or on the water are suppleness/stiffness, diameter, sink rate, color, and visibility.

COLORLet’s start with color. There are mainly two reasons for choosing different colors of line: 1) because it blends in better with the fish’s environment and 2) so that you can see the line better during the presentation.

Why would you want to see your fly fishing leader or tippet? The main reason is to detect a strike, whether that means seeing the line jump/move or tracking your fly by watching the tippet/leader. Many Euro nymphing anglers use different colored lines in their fly fishing leader construction as indicators/sighters.

It seems somewhat obvious that a tippet/leader that blends in with the fish’s environment is a more desirable than one that does not. The idea goes that you will catch more fish if your line is more inconspicuous, and thus, you should try to match your line to the conditions. Pretty obvious here.

Anglers prefer to have lines that blend in with the color of the water, depth, and general environment. For example, you can use a slightly olive colored line in greenish water or with water that has lots of vegetation. It’s not clear how much subtle changes in line color affect fishing success, but you can experiment with line color depending on your needs for strike detection and blending into the fish’s environment.

VISIBILITY

Number two, and related to a line being inconspicuous, is line visibility. This explains why most tippets and leaders are clear; they are intended to be as inconspicuous as possible.

A good rule of thumb is to have leaders that meet an acceptable level of invisibility. It is probably impossible to get truly invisible leaders and tippets since fish have excellent eyes underwater, although fish have very different and often less clear eyesight than humans.

Some fly anglers prefer fluorocarbon because it refracts light closer to water than nylon does. I personally have never noticed any difference in fishing success between nylon and fluorocarbon from a visibility standpoint.

The biggest factor that makes leaders and tippets “invisible” to fish is inattentional blindness. Both humans and fish fall prey to this, and it is when our focus is diverted from obvious sights around us onto something else. When fish focus on their prey, the have inattentional blindness to other things around them. Think of a cat that plays with the feather on the string. The string is obviously visible, but the cat engages with the feather anyway.

Line colors and visibility as a deterrent need much more research. The few that have been performed have revealed that bass can see monofilament that is very small in diameter, around .006 (5X), and that they can distinguish between colors quite easily. Bass can also negotiate their environment and catch prey effectively without their eyes. A summary of these studies can be found in O.D. Colin J. Kageyama’s book (159-160).

I tend to agree with Dr. Kageyama’s opinion about anglers going to a smaller diameter to decrease visibility. He states, “It is likely that success is more related to reduced line drag, resulting in greater lure action, sensitivity, and control [not invisibility].”

In the end, it’s probably better to have less visible fly fishing leaders and tippets, but other factors with your presentation and fly are much more important.

MOST ANGLERS CARRY BOTH NYLON AND FLUOROCARBON TIPPETS.

STIFFNESS/SUPPLENESS AND DIAMETERStiffness/suppleness and diameter often do not receive enough emphasis. This is where the balancing act takes place, since these two factors are the most important for casting. For fly action, a supple tippet or leader is almost always better than a stiff one, and the smaller the diameter, the more flexible and supple a line can be.

Supple, small-diameter lines allow a dry fly to remain drag-free on the surface and less susceptible to microcurrents. Nymphs move freely and naturally within stillwater environments and the currents of rivers. Streamer patterns achieve their best movement as well, able to dart back and forth or side to side with greater ease. This is only as far as coaxing the fish to “grab” the fly goes. On the flip side, you may want your fly to move less erratically in cold water situations, so you might intentionally go with stiffer line. These are the options you have when you understand leader/tippet material characteristics.

So, with all things being equal, I want the most supple and smallest diameter tippet and leader I can get for presentation purposes with as much action as possible, but a balance must be met for optimal casting and in-water presentation. If you want more of a gliding movement out of your flies, then a stiffer high diameter line will impede the movement of your fly.

This is where paying more for your fly fishing leaders and tippets is legitimately worth it, particularly for line that is over 0x. Super supple line is very valuable for catching fish.

An easy rule of thumb for matching fly to diameter that has been used for years is as follows; divide your fly by three and round up with a 2 remainder to determine the X value. This is, however, just a quick and easy, but also imperfect, method.

MATCHING DIAMETER TO FLY QUICK RULE EXAMPLES:

Size 14 fly: 14/3 = 4 remainder 2, which is 5x.

Size 12 fly: 12/3 = 4 with no remainder, which is 4x.

SINK RATEDiameter goes hand in hand with the final factor, sink rate. Essentially the smaller the diameter, the faster a line will sink because of less water resistance, but note that breaking through the surface film can be difficult with micro diameter tippets (5x – 8x) without weight.

Keep diameter in mind when you want flies to sink fast and easily or when you want flies to hover in the mid-depths, resist sinking, or float. Situations such as these are when you are casting over vegetation, when you want your fly to hover in between strips, or you are fishing a popper, etc.

You must be aware of this when choosing tippet or designing a fly fishing leader, since you may have a leader that sinks weirdly if you have all sorts of different diameters and sink rates involved.

The material of your tippet/leader will also effect sink rate slightly, as fluorocarbon sinks at a slightly faster rate than mono, and because of this, fluoro is often use for sinking flies, while nylon mono is used for hovering flies and floating your flies. Exceptions exist, but this is a good rule of thumb.

Your knot will also affect how fast your fly sinks, and a loop knot will allow your fly to have more action and sink faster. You need to put these all together depending on what you want your fly to do.

Your presentation drives your fly fishing leader and tippet selection. You need to think about the casting demands of your fishing environment and then envision exactly what you want your fly to do once it hits the water. After this, you just need to find the tippet and leader that do all of this best.

At this point you haven’t thought about the breaking point of your line yet because you haven’t even set the hook yet. Neglect the “grab” and the “nab” never happens.

THE “NAB” WITH YOUR FLY FISHING LEADERS AND TIPPETSOnce an angler actually fools the fish into taking the fly, the hookset and landing of the fish becomes the focus. I refer to this process as the “nab.” Any aspect of the line (leader or tippet) that was used to present the fly or fool the fish can be treated separately from the aspects you need to drive the hook in and then land the fish. The supple, small-diameter fly fishing tippet you used to make the fly look alive may now be your biggest obstacle to landing the fish. As fly anglers, we always try to get the best of both worlds, but just from the standpoint of setting the hook, what would the ideal line look like?

THE “NAB”: SETTING THE HOOKHOOKSET AND LINE SENSITIVITYSensitivity and control is important before we set the hook, and certain leaders and tippets help the fly angler. However, fly fishing, unlike general tackle, does not put as much emphasis in the sensitivity and control of the leader, since the fly line is usually the first and direct connection between the angler and what the fish is doing. The fly line, along with the rod, acts as the primary means to control the fly and feel the strike during presentation.

With this in mind, it seems as though our fly fishing tippet and leader selection is neutralized somewhat by our fly lines. Although higher memory lines must be stretched for them to have a more direct connection to the fly. Line management to provide a direct connection to our flies is the most important aspect of sensitivity and control.

HOOKSET TECHNIQUEThe most important part of setting the hook is technique, not your fly fishing leaders and tippets. Once you’ve got the hookset down, more or less, you can fine tune the aspects of your gear to make your technique more effective.

For example, when you want to lessen the force or delay its effect of a hookset, a soft rod tip, extra fine wire hook for penetration, a loop of line for shock absorption, or even a spring in the reel (see Einarsson’s Invictus) can aid in properly sinking the hook into the fish without breaking the tippet.

When you want to set the hook with more force, a strip strike ranging from just an even pull of the line to a Mike-Tyson-like, thunderous and explosive yank will do the job. Technique aside, your fly fishing tippet and leader need to have certain qualities to maximize, or minimize, the hookset.

HOOKSET: FLY FISHING LEADERS AND TIPPETSWhen we’ve maximized line sensitivity and mastered hookset technique, we can then consider the leader and tippet qualities that will help us accomplish our goal of driving the hook home without breaking our line.

Setting the hook then falls between 1) wanting to lessen the force of the hookset because of a delicate fly fishing tippet and small flies and 2) needing to get as much power behind the hookset as possible to penetrate bony mouths and overcome powerful jaw pressure. Three properties of your line will aid in setting the hook properly: stretch, tensile strength (breaking strength), and knot strength.

LINE STRETCHStretch in your fly fishing leaders or tippets determine how much power you can generate on the hookset. A low stretch line (in fly lines, leaders, and tippets) is what you want for maximum hookset power, while a high stretch line is what you might want for softer hooksets.

Once again, diameter affects how stretchable your line is; more or less, the higher the diameter your line is the less stretch your line has in comparison to a given force on the line.

The unique properties of the material and formulation affect stretch greatly as well. Out of the three main line types (braid, fluoro, and nylon), the least stretchable is braid, followed by fluoro, and lastly nylon. There is some debate on the last two, however, since elasticity and plasticity play a role in choosing lines. In addition to this fact, there also exists variance within these respective lines, for example, not all nylon and fluoro monofilaments stretch the same.

Stretch is very much related to suppleness, i.e., the more supple the line is, the more likely it is to have stretch. Therefore, think about what you are trying to do on the hookset and choose your line accordingly.

SOFT HOOKSET: high-stretch, thin-diameter nylon

STRONG HOOKSET: low-stretch, large-diameter flourocarbon or braid

BREAKING STRENGTHBoth breaking strength and knot strength are extremely easy to generalize: you want the strongest line with the best knot strength around. However, with this type of line (low stretch and high breaking threshold) you may bend hooks or pull the fly out of the fish’s mouth because of so much pressure. Despite this, we almost always want the highest breaking strength possible unless “sport” is an issue, or there is a concern for breaking the fly line.

Notice this is the first time we have considered line breaking strength. Once again, we must balance out all of our needs to arrive at the most appropriate line choice. The “grab” takes priority, so we must make do with what features our line provides us for the hookset in order to fool the fish. Hookset technique can overcome some of the limitations of our line, optimized for the “grab.” In a lot of cases, we can get the best of both worlds though.

THE “NAB”: LANDING FISHA good hookset is the best way guarantee that you’ll land a fish, particularly in open water. After you’ve hooked the fish, you should land the fish as quickly as possible. To lessen strain on the fish, we must exert as much pressure on the fish as our bodies and equipment will allow. Except in those situations where we risk pulling the fly out (in this case stretch lines come into play), we need the ability to put real pressure on the fish. Three main factors really determine our success in playing a fish when considering our fly fishing leaders and tippet: abrasion resistance, breaking strength, and knot strength, although stretch can play a role at times as well.

ABRASION RESISTANCEAbrasion resistance can actually come into play on the hookset since toothy critters can bite right through our lines. For example, small to medium sized barracuda can become a real nuisance on the flats, since they can cut through 20 lb. fluorocarbon as if it were not even there. For this reason, straight wire and knottable nylon coated wires are critical with certain species such as bluefish, barracuda, and northern pike. This introduces the first way of increasing the abrasion resistance of your leaders/tippets, choose a material that is nearly impervious to toothy critters.

The other way is to increase the diameter of your “standard” fly fishing tippet and leader. Many musky anglers use straight 100 lb. fluorocarbon for their entire leader, while others use heavy nylon monofilament. Thick leaders are also mandatory for tarpon, snook, trevally, etc.

In some instances, the long powerful fight plays a part in choosing this heavier leader, but the abrasive mouths and gill plates of these fish are more of the reason for these thicker diameter lines, particularly when pursuing the smaller versions of these fish, since you don’t need a high pound test to land them normally, but you do need the abrasion resistance.

Abrasion resistance is not only important for the fish’s mouth but for coral, trees, sharp rocks, etc.

You can also boost your abrasion resistance by choosing fluorocarbon or a particularly abrasion resistant nylon, which is a part of the process of making and extruding the nylon.

FISH LIKE MUSKY HAVE ABRASIVE MOUTHS THAT WILL CUT YOUR TIPPET AND KNUCKLES.

BREAKING STRENGTH AND KNOT STRENGTHHopefully by now, it has become apparent that choosing fly fishing tippet and leaders should require some thought and experimenting to fine tune. For most species, there are a host of flies that will work, but match these flies with the right fly fishing tippet and leader (and knot), and it can make all the difference in the world.

There remains the last factor(s) for landing fish: breaking strength and knot strength. Once again, this is simple: the higher the breaking strength and knot strength, the better. I personally do not believe in using small pound test to be more “sporting” and have little desire to go after line class records. To those who do, this will not apply.

Everyone would acknowledge that landing a fish as fast as possible is better for all involved. The shorter the fight, the fewer the variables for losing a fish during the fight. Barracuda, sharks, brush piles, acrobatic jumps, etc., all pose real threats while fighting a fish. In addition, a shorter fight is way better for the fish’s survival. For these reasons, I will buy expensive leaders and tippets that have the best features of presentation but allow me to go as high as possible on breaking strength.

Thus, no good angler or guide should make a decision on what fly fishing tippet or leader to use based off of some predetermined number like 12 lb. test for bonefish. If the leader has the proper characteristics for great presentation but happens to be 18 lb. test, then we should take advantage of these technological advances.

THESE TIPPETS HAVE THE SAME DIAMETER BUT DIFFER BY TEN POUNDS IN BREAKING STRENGTH.

CONCLUSION: FLY FISHING LEADERS AND TIPPETSThe best anglers in the world understand fly fishing leaders and tippets, and how they affect your fishing. They are a critical part of your fishing and arguably make a larger impact on your success than your fly rod, fly reel, and possibly even your fly line. Below is a summary of what we’ve gone over. If you master these aspects of your tippet and leaders, you are guaranteed to catch way more fish.

FLY FISHING LEADERS AND TIPPETS QUICK GUIDE1) Buy or build a leader Design your own leader or purchase one from a manufacturer. GRAB2) Casting** Leader length, diameter, suppleness/stiffness (temperature affects this)

3) Presentation (in/on water) Leader length, diameter, suppleness/stiffness, sink rate, color, and visibility NAB4) Hookset** Line sensitivity, stretch, breaking strength, and knot strength

5) Landing fish* Abrasion resistance (material, diameter), breaking strength, and knot strength The post FLY FISHING LEADERS AND TIPPETS appeared first on ToFlyFish.

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Fly fishing knots don’t really vary from other fishing knots. What we call “fly fishing” knots are knots applied to fly fishing gear and fishing scenarios. If you’re just getting into fly fishing or you are looking for a few tips on some different knots, here are the 12 most useful fly fishing knots that I’ve used in both fresh water and salt water.

We will examine knots starting from the reel, going all the way to the fly. This will cover backing to reel, backing to fly line, fly line to butt section, butt section to leader, leader to tippet (also multiple leader sections), and finally tippet to fly. This will also cover knots for wire and shock tippets for toothy fish and species with abrasive mouths.

FLY FISHING KNOTS: BACKING TO REELARBOR KNOTThe arbor knot is a simple and effective knot to connect your backing to your reel. If a fish strips off backing to the point that you’re at your arbor knot, you’re probably going to lose your line, the fish, and your pride. The arbor knot is meant to allow you to start winding your backing onto your reel. Don’t rely on the knot to hold a fish; just add plenty of backing and tighten down the drag so you don’t ever see your arbor knot again.

FLY FISHING KNOTS: BACKING TO FLY LINEAfter you’ve wound on your backing, you need to connect it to your fly line. You can connect your backing to your fly line with a loop system or a nail knot, which we will discuss later. I always use a loop system so that I can change lines without cutting my backing or my fly line. For this reason, I recommend using one of the three loop knots described below to create the loop, and then we will discuss the actual method of attaching the loop to the fly line.

TRIPLE/DOUBLE SURGEON’S LOOP KNOTIf you plan on never seeing your backing in a fishing situation, then you can simply use a Triple surgeon’s Loop knot. This knot is also useful for other uses, but for now, you can simply tie a large loop with this knot and attach it to your fly line. If you ever hook a large fish that gets you to your backing, this knot should work just fine.

BIMINI TWIST KNOTThe Bimini Twist is the standard loop knot for saltwater and larger, more powerful fish. It is extremely strong and effective. It is also one of the more involved knots to tie, although it really isn’t that complicated. You can have confidence in this knot for any situation around the world.

FLY FISHING KNOTS: SPLICING BACKINGSplicing your backing is a relatively rare method of creating a loop in your backing by threading it into itself. It is, however, the best way to create a loop in your backing. It is essentially 100% strong and super sleek, sliding through the guides with no bumps at all.

Backing splicing is the most difficult “knot” on this list, and few fly shops offer it as an option, and practically no novice fly angler ties it. It requires a tool to create it, but if you learn to tie it or have a fly shop that will do it for you, you’ll have the best knot for this application, without question. You can’t say that about all of these knots, since there is often debate on which knot is best.

FLY FISHING KNOTS: ATTACHING LOOPSThere are two main ways to attach your loop knot to your fly line. The first one is to simply put the loop knot into the fly line loop and around the fly line container. The loops mesh perfectly together.

The other way is to double this process and have two loops snug down onto the fly line loop. This prevents the backing from eating into the fly line too much and gives you slightly more support. For situations that you will encounter powerful fish ripping you into your backing, use the double loop approach.

FLY FISHING KNOTS: BUTT SECTION TO FLY LINEYou need to attach your leader to the fly line now. Most of the time, you’ll have a separate piece of heavy monofilament attached to the fly line and then your leader is attached to the butt section. If you don’t have a separate butt section, you can still refer to the last piece of your leader as the “butt section.”

There are two main ways to attach your butt section to the fly line: tying directly to the fly line or a loop knot.

NAIL KNOTA nail knot eats into your fly line and supplies a very tidy connection from your butt section to your fly line. It is a little more involved knot to tie, and you can use a nail knot tool to help you. Another common knot for this purpose is the Albright knot, but you do not need to use this knot unless you want to.

PERFECTION KNOTA perfection knot is a loop knot that is very easy to tie. It is extremely tidy and effective for any size of fish you might pursue. You can also use this knot to attach the tippet to your fly, as you will learn later in this article.

TRIPLE/DOUBLE SURGEON’S LOOP KNOT (AGAIN)The same knot you might use on your backing is also a knot you can use for your butt section. You might modify the Triple Surgeon’s Loop knot to make it a Double Surgeon’s Loop knot—simply decrease the turns by one. I prefer the Perfection knot over the Surgeon’s Loop knot personally.

FLY FISHING KNOTS: LEADER TO TIPPET/LEADER KNOTSIf you want to create your own leader, you need to tie sections together. You will need to add tippet material to your leader as well. You can use the same knots for both of these applications.

DOUBLE NAIL KNOT (double uni knot)The Double Nail knot is not very well known to most fly anglers. It is the equivalent of a uni-to-uni knot. However, you tie it with a Nail knot tool. This knot is good for larger-diameter leader material, and it works a little bit better with diameters that are not as close to each other. The sleekness of the knot is similar to the Blood knot.

This knot is also excellent for tying a flexible-wire bite tippet onto your leader. A good option on bite wire is RIO’s Powerflex Wire Bite tippet.

BLOOD KNOTThe Blood knot is a very popular and useful knot. It is sleek and moderately easy to tie. It is perfect for connecting two pieces of similar-diameter leader/tippet together. There are many fast ways to tie this knot that people have created over the years, using toothpicks and/or your mouth to aid in the tying of this knot.

TRIPLE/DOUBLE SURGEON’S KNOTA Triple or Double Surgeon’s knot is tied the exact same way as a loop knot but with two separate pieces of leader/tippet. It is great for tying small diameter pieces of tippet to your leader and is extremely easy and fast to tie. In a snowstorm when your hands are frozen, this is a great knot to use. Ideally, the diameters should be close.

FLY FISHING KNOTS: TIPPET TO FLYThe final step is to add your fly. There are two main ways again: loop knot or a standard knot.

IMPROVED CLINCH KNOTThe Improved Clinch is a simple, yet super effective, knot. You can tie the standard Clinch or Improved Clinch. Both are very similar. I use the Improved Clinch when I’m not using a loop knot.

NON-SLIP MONO KNOTA loop knot gives your fly more movement and sinks the fly faster. It is great for streamers or with heavy leader with nymphs. The standard of all fly fishing knots is the Non-Slip Mono Loop knot, and every fly angler must know this knot. This knot is great up to about 50 or 60 lb. tippet, and I have absolute confidence in this knot.

HOMER RHODE LOOP KNOT (IMPROVED)I personally use the Non-Slip Mono Loop knot whenever I can, but there are times when an angler needs to use extra heavy tippet, like with tarpon or giant trevally. One option is to use a Perfection Loop knot to attach your fly. It is easy and quick. If you’re in a situation where you need to tie the knot super fast, this is a great option.

If you have a little extra time, then a Homer Rhode Loop Knot is an incredibly strong knot to tie. It can be used with ultra large diameter tippets, is fairly sleek, and is very strong.

A FEW EXTRA FLY FISHING KNOTSThese knots should cover 99.9% of your fly fishing needs. Occasionally, you might have a very specific fish species and/or destination, or you just might want to experiment. Examples are crimping wire, an Albright knot, a double blood knot (blood knot with one side doubled), and many more. However, with these 12 you can feel very comfortable fishing for almost any species out there.

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Fly fishing for bass has become extremely common. This stands to reason because virtually all of the states in the United States and most provinces of Canada have bass species that fly anglers can catch quite easily.

The main species are the sunfish: largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, and spotted bass. There are also the “true bass” species: striped bass, hybrid striped bass, and white bass. Then, you have some rare species like the Guadalupe and yellow bass.

This article will cover the bass species in the two major classes: the sunfish and the true bass, and it is an introduction to fly fishing for bass. You can find individual articles on some of the species within this article.

FLY FISHING FOR BLACK BASS/SUNFISH BASSThe first group of bass comprises the largemouth bass, smallmouth bass, spotted bass, and rock bass. It also includes crappie, bluegill, and the smaller sunfish, like redear, pumpkinseed, etc.

The sunfish family has an incredibly diverse diet. This is largely due to the evolution of this species and the niches within a given body of water that they have inhabited. For example, these bass will encounter frogs, crayfish, snakes, minnows, salamanders, ducklings, insects, leeches, small mammals, and other sunfish regularly.

Their bodies are also fairly wide, and they often use ambush as their preferred method to catch prey. Smallmouth, and to a lesser extent spotted bass, will also move into open-water feeding environments, but they still maintain their tendency to eat everything.

Because of this tendency, they use cover and structure to ambush their prey and will often be found waiting in ambush spots. They will also have no problem feeding during the hottest times of the day, staying true to their namesake.

FLY FISHING FOR LARGEMOUTH BASSThere is no question that the largemouth bass is the most popular game fish in North America, and possibly the world. Almost every state has largemouth bass. Largemouth bass are usually the easiest of all bass species to find because you can find them in any pond, ditch, canal, lake, reservoir, and many slower-moving rivers.

The United States probably has the best largemouth bass fishing in the world. California holds 20 of the top 25 largemouth bass ever caught, while Florida adds one or two here as well. Almost every state has one or two special spots where tons of largemouth bass can be found. Some of these places are for huge numbers of small to medium fish, but some also have the potential to produce humongous bucketmouths.

Largemouth bass fly fishing is also extremely popular, and most people, I would wager, think of largemouth bass when you say “bass fly fishing.” They are my least favorite of all bass species to pursue and catch, perhaps tying with spotted bass, which are similar in a lot of respects.

Largemouth bass are primarily ambush feeders, so they are almost always synonymous with cover. Bass anglers with conventional gear require ultra weedless lures to catch largemouth in many cases, and fly anglers often struggle to match these weedless presentations.

Both fly anglers and conventional anglers can use an unbelievably diverse set of flies and lures because the largemouth bass’s diet is so diverse. That is one thing about largemouth that is quite enjoyable; they eat big flies and huge prey items. That doesn’t mean you have to fish big at all, and in fact, flies in some pressured waters or at certain times of year will catch some big fish on small damsels and even carp flies, like the Backstabber.

Largemouth feed on both topwater and subsurface flies. Larger poppers and divers are good options for summer, while almost any large subsurface flies work at other times. As far as which subsurface patterns you should use and in what situations, it comes down to mainly how aggressive the fish are and how much water you’re covering.

If you’re covering a lot of water, you’ll use a more active fly like a Clouser, Hollow Fleye, Game Changer, Double Deceiver, Swingin’ D, etc. This may also include topwater flies like Umpqua’s Diving Frog, Ron Dong Crease Fly, Pole Dancer, or a Double-Barrel popper.

If the largemouth are negative or you know right where they are, you’ll fish slow and deep normally. Flies like the Bendback, Equalizer, Bottoms Up, thinly-tied, longer Clousers, Chocklett’s Changer Craw, and Ehler’s Grim Reaper are excellent for doing finesse or subsurface fly fishing for largemouth bass.

The best approach to fishing is to watch and read as much on general tackle bass fishing as possible. This is the most advanced and competitive fishing on planet earth. Apply their approaches to your bass fly fishing, and you’ll consistently catch fish.

FLY FISHING FOR SMALLMOUTH BASSSmallmouth bass are one of my favorite bass species to fly fish for, period. They’re awesome fighters and are about as perfect a species for fly fishing as could be imagined. They even eat bugs if you can’t relinquish the entomology aspect of fly fishing.

All of the top 25 largest smallmouth have come from the United States, and 13 of these have come from Tennessee. If you live in the East or Midwest, or even parts of the South, you’re blessed with a huge abundance of rivers that are filled with smallmouth. The Great Lakes also provide wading opportunities at certain times of the season for some enormous smallmouth. In addition to this, smallmouth will pour into the rivers from the Great Lakes in spring, so you can catch 3 to 6-pound smallmouths while fishing for steelhead.

Fly anglers often ignore reservoirs and lakes in the East and Midwest because of the number of rivers around them. Some do get out and pursue smallmouth bass on the fly in lakes and reservoirs, particularly in Canada, which has incredible fly fishing for smallmouth, particularly in Ontario.

If you live in the West, there are a few rivers that provide a similar experience to the East, particularly in Oregon. However, most of the time, reservoirs and some lakes provide your best shot at catching smallmouth on the fly.

Prespawn, spawn, and fall bring the fish into the shallows, which allows a fly angler with a kayak or pontoon boat to sight-fish to these guys. You can still access these fish during the summer as well in many of these reservoirs, particularly if they have steep drop-offs right along the shore.

Mornings and evenings are your best bet as the fish can adjust vertically quite easily and will feed on the steep rocky banks and/or rocky flats. Note that this is often different from Eastern rivers, particularly small to medium ones, which actually are better as the sun comes up. In the West, any watercraft will help you get in the game for smallmouth.

Smallmouth feeding tactics and smallmouth fly selection are very much like largemouth above. Downsize just a tad for smallmouth, however, and don’t be afraid to go super small in some finesse situations.

If you’re covering a lot of water for smallmouth with flies, again you’ll use a more active fly like a Clouser (particularly in larger bodies of water), Hollow Fleye (craft fur and bucktail), Game Changer (craft fur, feathered), Double Deceiver, Swingin’ D, etc. This may also include topwater flies like Umpqua’s Diving Frog, Ron Dong Crease Fly, or a Double-Barrel popper.

If the smallmouth are negative or you know right where they are, you’ll fish slow and deep normally, often sight-fishing. Flies like the Equalizer, Chocklett’s Changer Craw, small Clousers, and PC Goby are excellent for doing finesse or subsurface fly fishing for smallmouth bass.

Take the same approach as you would with largemouth bass by learning about what conventional tackle anglers are doing, particularly pro bass anglers.

Photo: Lou Uecker

FLY FISHING FOR SPOTTED BASSSpotted bass are really two species: northern spotted bass (rarely over 5 pounds) and Alabama bass (double digits, mainly in California). They are similar to each other, and most people don’t distinguish them, as scientists for a long time considered them to be the same species. For the purposes of this article, we will consider them the same fish, spotted bass.

These bass are some of the most aggressive and tough bass that you’ll encounter. They are somewhat small in most cases, but in California, you get some absolute monsters—these are actually Alabama bass. Outside of California, you can plan on your average-sized spotted bass being smaller than an average smallmouth in most cases.

Spotted bass behave more like smallmouth than they do largemouth. In fact, spotted bass/Alabama bass will often cause local bass populations to go down because of their voracious nature. Largemouth can often survive this because they move to more highly vegetated areas of the lake or reservoir that spotted bass don’t populate in high numbers. In other words, largemouth bass will sometimes inhabit certain areas that spotted bass will not.

Flies and tactics for spotted bass are primarily the same as you would use for smallmouth and largemouth, but because they are on average a little smaller, you can often use flies you would use for a population of slightly smaller smallmouth bass. This would obviously change if you were pursuing the larger populations of spotted bass (Alabama bass) in California.

FLY FISHING FOR ROCK BASSA bonus bass is the rock bass. Rock bass are the true transition from the panfish version of sunfish to the bass species. They look exactly like you would expect a bluegill crossed with a smallmouth bass would look. Rock bass inhabit many bodies of water in the East, Midwest, and Southern United states and many of the Eastern Provinces of Canada.

Fly fishing for rock bass isn’t really something I have ever heard anyone doing. Rock bass are almost always bycatch when you’re fly fishing for smallmouth, bluegill, crappie, or largemouth.

If you ever wanted to fly fishing specifically for rock bass, you would use sized-down smallmouth flies or sized-up bluegill flies.

FLY FISHING FOR TEMPERATE BASS/TRUE BASSTemperate bass, from the family moronidae, portray many differences from the sunfish bass species. There are 4 main tendencies that these bass have that make them unique to the fly angler.

First, they are highly migratory. In fact, striped bass are anadromous moving from fresh water to salt water like salmon do. All of the temperate bass species are anadromous in that they move into rivers to spawn. Besides this, they move extensively in the water systems they inhabit, both throughout the day and throughout the season.

Second, temperate bass have very different feeding tendencies from the sunfish bass species. Because it is the nature of temperate bass to migrate, they follow large schools of minnows regularly. Find the bait, and you’ll find the fish. That means that the temperate bass can be much more inclined to feed in open water. They will use structure and cover to corral bait, but they look for large schools of baitfish and make it a point to follow them, feeding when they have an ideal chance.

Because of this, they also become somewhat selective on the size and appearance of the flies you throw. You often need to match the hatch for these bass since they get in the pattern of munching on large schools of bait.

Third, temperate bass are highly social, living almost exclusively in schools. Fly fishing for these bass does not entail making pinpoint casts to pieces of cover normally. You’re more likely to fan cast trying to cover water attempting to locate a school bass.

Fourth, they are often sensitive to sunlight, and normally prefer lowlight scenarios for feeding, particularly at dusk and dawn. They will feed during the day, specifically white bass, but you can bet that you’ll have great success at these lowlight time periods.

Photo: Captain Chris Newsome

FLY FISHING FOR STRIPED BASSFly fishing for striped bass is extremely popular, particularly on both coasts. Stripers are natively an anadromous saltwater species from the Atlantic Ocean, but they have been successfully introduced to the West Coast, where they are extremely popular, specifically in California and the Delta fishery and surrounding area.

Striped bass are also found in tons of freshwater impoundments and lakes, and many high-quality fisheries exist throughout the United States, particularly in the South and Midwest, with a few Western and Eastern fisheries thrown in for good measure.

Because stripers are anadromous, they also show up in many different river systems. This makes them accessible to fly anglers that are actually wading, and this is also the case for many Eastern coastal fisheries, where fly anglers fish from shore. A watercraft of some sort will help a ton in most scenarios, however.

Stripers primarily feed on minnow species, but they also feed on crabs, worms, squid, and shrimp in ocean and estuary environments. Like the other species of temperate bass, they often get somewhat selective on shape and size of fly when they are feeding on a particular minnow species, so having a selection of sizes of minnow patterns is critical to consistently landing stripers on fly.

As far as flies go, there are interesting traditions on both the East and West Coasts, but they all work on both coasts. On the East Coast, Bob Popovics’ flies are extremely popular. These are the Hollow Fleye, Bulkhead, Semper Fleye, Surf Candy, Jiggy Fleye, and Bob’s Banger. Other prominent tyers are Johnny King, Steve Farrar, and Dave Skok.

On the West Coast, Dan Blanton and Charlie Bisharat have contributed greatly to the flies of that region. These include Flashtail Clousers and Flashtail Whistlers. Bisharat’s patterns are the Airhead, Spot-on Baitfish, and the Pole Dancer. Lee Haskin is also another prominent tyer.

Use these patterns, in addition to Clousers tied in different ways, and you’ll be set on fly patterns for striped bass.

FLY FISHING FOR HYBRID STRIPED BASSHybrid striped bass (hybrids, wipers) are my favorite species to catch on a fly in fresh water—when you can catch them. They are a mix of a striped bass female and a white bass male and are therefore sterile in the vast majority of cases.

They are the most sensitive to light of any species of bass that I’ve pursued, and you normally catch them at dawn and dusk. Like the other true bass, they are also a highly social species that is almost always in a school. Because of this, it’s often a feast or famine experience.

Hybrid striped bass are insanely powerful fish, the strongest of the bass species. They, like the other true bass, are much more migratory than the sunfish species. Because of this, they have much more stamina and speed. If you have never seen your backing in fresh water, latch into a nice hybrid striped bass in a river, and that will change everything.

When fly fishing for hybrids, you will find them in lakes/reservoirs and in rivers, which makes them a great species for fly anglers. They will use structure and cover to push bait into a corner, and this is an important place to look when pursuing hybrids. Current is also a great way for them to confuse and corral baitfish. For this reason, dams and locks are a great place to look for hybrids.

Hybrid striped bass can become selective as they follow around or corner schools of bait. If the bait is small, they will key on these, which gives fly anglers an advantage if the bait is super small. They will also annihilate larger flies in many cases, and when you get on a school of large fish, over 8 pounds, it is unlike anything you will experience in fresh water.

Good flies are Clousers from 2 to 6 inches and EP Shad flies. They will also take top-water flies, like the Ron Dong Crease Fly, the Pole Dancer, and Double Barrel Poppers.

FLY FISHING FOR WHITE BASSIf you think bluegill are fun, you’ll love white bass. White bass are the smallest of the major bass species we pursue (not including rock bass), but they make up for it with a voracity that is frightening for any minnow species that might encounter a school of ravenous white bass.

You can catch white bass in both stillwaters and rivers, and when they come into rivers in the spring, the action is just plain stupid when you catch it right.

White bass fly fishing is also a great way to introduce a kid to fly fishing with an active retrieve. You can take turns casting and catching, or you can simply fish together, hole hopping up the river.

White bass are very similar to hybrid striped bass, except they are much more active during the sunny times of the day or on sunny days in general. In fact, you’ll often catch white bass in the bright sun, and you’ll also catch white bass and hybrid striped bass in the same areas of the river, catching a hybrid on one cast and a white bass on the next.

Flies are simple, a white Craft Fur Hollow Fleye #4 or a smallish Clouser are often all it takes. Throw in a Wiggle Minnow, and you should be set. White and chartreuse are great color combos for your white bass flies.

Photo: Jeff Liskay

BASICS OF EQUIPMENTIt is very hard to make generalizations about bass equipment because it varies so much. You have stripers on one end, which can weigh over 50 pounds, and rock bass, which normally weigh under a pound. With that in mind, we can put bass equipment into three main classes: 1) stripers, hybrids, and largemouth; 2) smallmouth; and 3) white bass and spotted bass.

ROD WEIGHTSFor stripers, hybrids, and largemouth, you normally use a rod from a 7 to 10 weight, depending on the fly, conditions, and casting distance. You can even use a 6 weight in many cases. For smallmouth, normally we use 6 to 8 weights, but 5 weights are sometimes used. For white bass and spots, we use 5 to 6 weights normally.

LINESLines vary tremendously, from floating lines to full sinking lines, depending on the body of water that you’re pursuing the bass on. A full sinking intermediate is a very good all-round fly line, and you need a floating line for poppers. On larger bodies of water, you’ll probably use a shooting head style fly line, like RIO’s Outbound lines. Sink tips are also very good for rivers in particular.

LEADERS AND TIPPETSLeaders and tippets normally range from 10 lb. to 20 lb., and sometimes heavier for stripers. The size of your fly is the most important thing to consider here. The bigger the fly, the larger the diameter of your leader and tippet.

BASS FLY FISHING: SO MANY OPTIONSFly fishing for bass is something that all fly anglers should do. If you live in The United States, you’re living in the world hub of bass fishing. You more than likely have a bass species swimming in a pond, river, or reservoir within ten miles of where you live, and you might just find an incredible fly fishing experience you never knew existed. You might not be ready to give up your ClackaCraft for a Ranger, but you might be missing a new facet of fly fishing that will inform your trout fishing.

Don’t underestimate the rugged beauty and fertility of a bass’s environment as well. I’ve seen smallmouth bass rivers that looked like an ocean reef just teaming with huge schools of minnows.

You also have variety. You can visit pristine wilderness or find a largemouth in the pond across from your house. We all want to fly fish more, make sure your getting in your quota of yearly fly fishing for bass.

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It’s hard to say what exactly you would call “bluegill flies.” Basically, if it is small enough to fit in a bluegill’s mouth, they will eat it. Done! That’s all you need to know. Well, not quite.

When fly fishing for bluegill, presentation is the most important part, once you’ve found the bluegill that is. So, this is the best way to think about bluegill flies, that is, how the flies contribute to your presentation.

CLICK HERE TO JUMP TO BLUEGILL FLY PATTERNS IF YOU LIKEBLUEGILL FLIES IN GENERALOutside of some chironomid patterns that you might use in very limited dropper situations, bluegill flies should have as much inherent motion in them as possible, most of the time. This means lots of rubber legs, marabou, flash, hackle, etc.

Bluegill, like all sunfish including smallmouth and largemouth, will take your fly on the pause a fairly high percentage of the time. If your fly continues to ungulate and tempt the fish on the pause, you’ll catch a lot more fish. You’ll still catch bluegill on patterns with nice buggy profiles, but building inherent motion into your flies, or buying flies with inherent motion built into them, will up your odds.

CHANGING CONDITIONS AFFECT BLUEGILL FLIESLike with all fish, certain changing conditions will affect your fly selection. For example, in murky water, you should start with dark and/or chartreuse patterns. A killer fly is a Chicken Little with a chartreuse body and bright orange head. Bluegill will actually still eat this flly in clear water, but it’s even more important to have these colors in somewhat stained water.

Likewise, if a hatch is going on, and the bluegill are feeding heavily on a certain species of insect, like chironomids are damselflies, then by all means throw a fly that matches the behavior of the insect species.

2 BASIC TYPES OF FLIES FOR BLUEGILLReally, we can divide bluegill flies into two main types: topwater and subsurface. Topwater flies really become more important when the water temperatures move into the 50s and above. Subsurface flies are always effective for bluegill, and they should make up the bulk of your flies, unless you only fish for bluegills in prime conditions.

TOPWATER BLUEGILL FLIESTo be the most effective with topwater flies, build in inherent motion. This includes flash, which gives the illusion of movement as it flashes on the surface. You can be more aggressive with the movement of your flies than you might be with trout normally. Bluegill need to be coaxed into eating topwater flies at times, so this movement helps get more strikes. Poppers will call bluegills as well, but you can be just as effective, if not more effective, with standard topwater “trout” patterns, like the Elk Hair Caddis or a foam beetle. Carry some flies that have sound as a trigger, and some that are lighter and more buggy like.

SUBSURFACE BLUEGILL FLIESBluegill feed on virtually anything that lives below the water column that is small enough to fit in their mouth, and they will try to eat stuff that won’t fit in their mouth too. Virtually any nymph or small streamer you throw is effective on aggressive bluegill, and when the fishing gets tough and the bluegill are sluggish, you will without question be using subsurface flies for them.

In most cases, don’t retrieve the fly super fast for bluegill. If the fish are sluggish, you may literally have to not move the fly. When in doubt, fish slower for bluegill.

BLUEGILL FLIES AND FEEDING SCENARIOSYou should imagine bluegill fly size, proportion, action, and any other characteristic on a continuum based on three main factors: temperature, fishing pressure, and sight fishing versus blind casting. For all intents and purposes, you can think of this as fish that are sluggish and fish that are aggressive. Technically, that’s over simplifying, since you can sight fish to aggressive fish, but from a success perspective, you can approach these scenarios based on negative and aggressive fish.

BLUEGILL FLIES: NEGATIVE SCENARIOFlies for me, have three characteristics when bluegill are in a negative scenario.

1) Smaller in size. Bluegill have amazing eyesight, and even in warm water, an entire school will follow your fly maybe taking a little shot at it from time to time. This is particularly true when the fish get fished to a bit as in smaller ponds. Make it easy for the fish to get the fly in its mouth with a smaller pattern. Also, use an imitation that fits primarily on the hook if possible, since the fish might short strike the fly. In other words, don’t use flies with really long tails.

2) Suspending or with a slow fall. Hardcore general tackle anglers have the ability to use heavier weight to get their pattern down to the fish and then get a tight line on the jig and move it slowly even with this heavier weight. Fly anglers, however, by and large, need to have patterns that resist the water and thus drop very slowly or even suspend. Using nylon monofilament with your leaders and/or patterns that have little weight will help your flies to just hover, giving the bluegill enough time to suck in your imitation.

An important exception would be when using flies that sink to the bottom. Use these types of flies when the fish are really sluggish and you know where schools of bluegill are.

3) The fly needs to have materials with inherent movement. Little hackle, tiny rubber legs, marabou, ostrich herl, craft fur etc. all allow your fly to move subtly to entice a bluegill, even when the fly suspends. Finally, in certain situations, you may fish a nymph off of a dry fly or with a greased leader technique etc. In this case, a solid profile is important for your fly, particularly when imitating midges. You can also fish a small pattern on a Czech nymph hook or a tiny jig hook with a non-slip mono loop knot to give your fly the horizontal orientation even when fished off of a dry fly.

SUNFISH EAT BLUEGILL FLIES TOO

BLUEGILL FLIES: AGGRESSIVE SCENARIOOn the other hand, if the water is warm, the fish are not heavily pressured, or you’re blind casting, then you can alter your bluegill flies appropriately.

1) Bigger flies. You don’t have to use big flies to catch big bluegill, but when you’re prospecting for bluegills, the bigger fly will alert the bluegill school easier. You can switch if you get on a school, and they are missing the bigger flies you’re throwing.

Bluegill will be more likely to smack a fly more than once in warm water. They often miss larger flies, particularly on the surface, so you can still be efficient fishing these flies in aggressive scenarios.

As far as sizes, we’re talking more around the size 10 and 8 flies of bulkier flies like a Bugger. With other nymphs, you might fish size 4s, depending on hook size.

2) Topwater flies. In aggressive scenarios, topwater can be tons of fun, and there are times when fish will prefer a topwater presentation. Having buoyant flies that you can skat and flicker across the surface, help you keep that fly riding up. Very small poppers are a killer fly on aggressive bluegills in warmer water temps.

3) Action. Flies that have not only inherent movement, but actual action, are more important when fish are aggressive. A Ruffed Damsel with a bulky head prospects the water and sends a little pulse to notify the bluegill that food is nearby. Also, lightly weighted flies on the front will give the fly a nice kick. When you tie flies with inherent motion, you can fish the fly a big more aggressively and really make the fly look alive.

BLUEGILL FLY PATTERNSDON’T OVERTHINK ITBluegill flies don’t have to be anything special because you’ve normally got a million shots at fish. Always try to alter your presentation and location, and use your flies to improve presentation and the ability to fish certain water depths. Start with what you know and with the flies that you already have. Then experiment from here.

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Fly fishing for bluegill might seem boring for some. We often assume that a big fish is better than a small fish. It’s surprising, then, how popular bluegill are with both conventional tackle and fly anglers. We recognize the unique perks that these fish provide and rarely get tired of them.

Sunfish, including bluegill/bream in particular, are almost always available from north to south, are beautifully colored, abundant, and great fighters for their small size. In warm conditions, these fish can be almost impossible to keep off of your fly. However, a few guidelines can help you have consistent success, fly fishing for bluegill and the various other species of sunfish.

BLUEGILL NATUREBluegill are first and foremost a social species. You will pretty much always find them in groups. This is because they are always a prey species, no matter how big they get. Find one bluegill, and you’ll find a bunch more. In fact, you will probably find other sunfish species as well with them. They will regularly interbreed with these sunfish as well, showing just how social they are.

A bluegill’s social nature also makes it competitive. You snooze, and you lose with bluegill. If one of the school doesn’t eat something, another ten will go after it. Bluegill competition is good for the fly antler.

Bluegill are voracious. They will eat anything that swims if they can get it in their mouth. I have been absolutely blown away by the flies they’ve fit into their mouth, which is not very big I might add. Because of their nature, your flies and presentation can reflect lots of different prey species.

Bluegill are a versatile feeder as well. They will eat at any level of the water column, and eat extremely well throughout the year, even during the winter, as they are a favorite of ice anglers.

BLUEGILL BIOLOGYBLUEGILL LIFECYCLELike all sunfish/bass species, bluegill spawn in the spring. The males create a nest and spawn with the females of the species. Then the males will protect the nest until the little bluegill are able to move into the shallows where they will live until they are around three to five inches, when they can begin to spawn. They will then become more adventurous in their movements throughout the body of water.

BLUEGILL FEEDING HABITSBluegill use ram-suction to feed. That means that they can slurp stuff off the bottom or suspended, and they can ram into a larger prey item to gulp it down. Because of this, bluegill feed at all levels of the water column and for really anything they can get in their mouth.

Bluegill are not as adept at catching minnow species like a smallmouth bass for example. They can normally find a large variety of smaller crustaceans, eggs, zooplankton, and insects. Fish fry are also fair game.

Bluegill are very opportunistic and will eat basically anything that they can get in their mouth. Water temperature will determine what and how aggressively the bluegill are eating. They are also incredibly curious and prone to feed with excellent eyesight. In other words, the perfect fish for flies.

BLUEGILL ENVIRONMENTSMy experience fly fishing for bluegill has normally been in water ten feet and shallower, from the Western to Eastern U.S. I just don’t fish for bluegill and sunfish in water that is twenty feet deep unless I’m fishing vegetation or steep inclines right next to this depth of water, so for me, bluegill are synonymous with cover.

They can be found in open-water environments at times in the seasonal cycle, but spring to fall, you almost always find tons of bluegill in vegetation and cover. Besides this generalization, invertebrate and zooplankton activity will determine where you find the fish as long as there is enough oxygen present for them to stay relatively shallow.

The best bluegill water that I have ever seen is normally shallow lakes and larger ponds. These normally have lots of reeds/cattails and have enormous amounts of food. Bluegill are very adaptive, though, and can be found in most types of water. Normally, they do not like current, like smallmouth bass do. In fact, you’ll normally find a few bluegill in slow sections of smallmouth bass rivers.

BLUEGILL FLIESBecause bluegill are smaller fish, they feed on lots of invertebrates. That means that virtually every fly that imitates a bug will work on bluegill. Imitative fly patterns with rubber legs, hackle, marabou, etc., are deadly on bluegill. For more in-depth information on bluegill flies see this article.

BLUEGILL FLY FISHING EQUIPMENTBLUEGILL FLY REELSAbsolutely any fly reel will work on bluegill. In fact, I’m not even sure I’ve ever used my reel to land a bluegill. Use anything to hold your line, and hit the water.

BLUEGILL FLY RODSBecause bluegill are almost always in ponds and lakes, I prefer a standard 9 foot rod, or around there. If you’re casting close, you can get away with a shorter rod, but even here, a longer rod allows you to dap flies easier. As to fly rod weight, a 3wt to a 5wt is perfect. If you’re on a larger body of water with cover and big bluegill, go with a 5wt.

BLUEGILL FLY LINESYou can get away with 2 fly lines total for bluegill: a floating line and a clear intermediate. Use the floating line for most applications near the surface or with dries/poppers, and use the clear floating line for times when you want to fish a little deeper/slower with submerged retrieves.

BLUEGILL TIPPETS/LEADERSSimplicity is the theme, and we don’t stop with bluegill tippets and leaders. For materials, use nylon or fluorocarbon. For the most part, it makes no difference at all. For dries and poppers, you may want to go with nylon monofilament since it floats easier than fluorocarbon.

Leaders should be 6 to 10 feet in length. For floating lines, go shorter if you are casting very close, and if you’re casting out into the open water you can increase the length of your leader. For a clear intermediate, go with a 6- or 7-foot leader. You can use a knotless commercial leader for the most part, or tie your own if you like to do this.

Tippets should match the leader, and in most cases, you’ll only use them to maintain leader length or to fish two flies. 4x to 3x is perfect for the majority of flies and situations you’ll find yourself in when going after bluegill. If you fish some bigger topwater flies, you can bump up to 2x, so your line doesn’t twist. You can even go to 5x if you are fishing super small flies for some reason.

BLUEGILL FLY FISHING PRESENTATIONSPresentations for bluegill are normally not super complex. However, the more skilled you are at stillwater fly fishing, the more consistently you’ll catch lots of big bluegill.

MOST VERSATILE BLUEGILL FLY FISHING PRESENTATIONThe most versatile technique for bluegill is subsurface presentations. Retrieving your fly along weed beds and the outsides of reeds, etc., is the prime place to begin. You can also find fish in vast labyrinths of weeds, tucked back in the open pockets. At times you can’t even see these pockets because they will become grown over with weeds, particularly later in the year.

If you are not finding fish in the shallows within 100 feet of the shore, then try the first large bunch of weeds or brush adjacent from prime locations on the shore. A good way to find these locations is to locate the old spawning beds, particularly if you’re fishing in early summer.

As far as presentation goes, use your intermediate line unless you’re fishing specific hatches like damsels, certain midge hatches, or small ponds. In this case, you can use floating lines. Floating lines can also be used with flies that will sink without a sinking line, like beadheads.

The horizontal orientation of the fly retrieve is quite natural for bluegill, since they have excellent eyesight and often prefer that horizontal orientation.

If you have electronics, you can locate fish, otherwise just cover water near vegetation/cover and stop when you find activity. In ponds, this is almost anywhere.

The other main method is to fish a dropper, but I do this only if I need to plop my fly into small open areas in weed beds or if the fish are sluggish or I’m sight fishing to a lot of fish.

SLUGGISH BLUEGILL ON THE FLYThere are times, particularly after a drop in water temperature or when the water temperature is low to begin with, when bluegill are lethargic and will absolutely not eat anything unless you adjust.

I remember a trip to an amazing bluegill fishery with tons of nine-to-ten-inch bluegill and the occasional fish approaching eleven. I brought along my buddy and his dad, who didn’t fly fish, since in late May hundred-fish days of trophy bluegill per person were expected.

A recent storm had dropped the water temp, and we had to adjust in both location and technique. I ended up catching around thirty on flies, my friend’s dad caught around six on bait, and my buddy, a very competent fly angler, caught zero! The difference between us was presentation speed.

When bluegill get sluggish, the first step, as with all fish, is to locate them. As said above, if you are not finding fish in the shallows, try to find adjacent deeper water with structure, particularly more vegetation or brush piles. Humps and flats can also produce fish depending on the invertebrates that are active. In many ponds, you can reach most parts of it, so try deeper water with weed beds, but in many cases, you don’t have to worry about locating fish, since it’s small enough to have fish in most spots. This all depends on the size of the pond, though.

When you’ve located fish, it is critical that you slow down your presentation. As pointed out, the inherent horizontal presentation of the fly rod allows your fly to sit in a more natural position, and this is great for sluggish bluegill and other sunfish.

Your presentation must be super slow in many cases, so slow, that your fly will hover in one place, with the movement of your materials enticing the fish. Very tiny strips are a way to get the fish’s attention, but pauses often produce a large amount of the takes.

This requires a practiced ability to recognize the very elastic-feeling take of bluegill. You must have constant contact with your fly to feel these subtle takes. I will anchor and cast with the wind, so that I am retrieving into the wind in order to feel these takes. The advice found in this article applies quite well to sluggish bluegill.

FLY FISHING FOR BLUEGILL: TOPWATERWhen bluegill are relatively shallow and the water temperature is up, above 60 degrees, bluegill will destroy topwater imitations. When there’s a specific hatch, you can fish specific imitations, for example, damsel adults, mayflies, and terrestrials like ants.

Attractor dries like Chernobyl Ants, smaller Mr. Peanut Hoppers, and Humpies will take fish all day long. However, poppers are what most anglers really enjoy when going after these fish, and it’s a ton of fun when bluegill are really on poppers.

You can use a variety of poppers, but the BoogleBug is about as sure a bet as there is for bluegill and sunfish. Yellow, blue, black, and white are all super effective. Fish these along the weed patches, in open pockets, and through cover when the water temp’s up, and you won’t be disappointed.

Bluegill and sunfish are sometimes neglected because we take them for granted. They do not, however, always destroy poppers at a clip of 100 fish per day. They definitely have their own nuance and adaptive strengths.

BLUEGILL FLY FISHING STILL SO MUCH FUN!They are a very special fish for many of us and provide a great opportunity for testing flies and techniques, introducing kids to fishing, and just having a blast catching a lot of fish. I have been guilty of taking them for granted, but I never get tired of their beauty and tenacious attitude. Many bass anglers who have caught nine-inch bluegill on a monster bass lure can attest to that. Maybe they are small enough to fit in a pan, but hey, they’re not going there willingly!

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Louisiana redfish flies reflect the unique and amazing venue of the Mississippi Delta. The Louisiana marsh is a place where you’ll find redfish and alligators swimming in the same waters. The water ranges from ultra-shallow bays to the wide-open water of the Gulf of Mexico. Thousands upon thousands of redfish and black drum call these waters home, and they are often very big. Surprisingly, fly selection can be fairly simple, but let’s make sure you’re set for the conditions you might encounter.

CLICK HERE TO JUMP TO LOUISIANA REDFISH PATTERNS IF YOU LIKELOUISIANA REDFISH AND BLACKDRUM FLIES FOR THE DELTAWith very few exceptions, all fishing is done from the boat. On an average day, casts can be ultra-short and even at your feet. This is particularly true for the smaller bays and ponds. In open water, you will definitely have opportunities to put some distance in your cast.

These are primarily the two places you will find fish, that is, in 1) smaller bays, ponds, and tighter channels and 2) larger flats and offshore. For the most part, you’ll have either singles and doubles or schools. You’ll also encounter loose groups of 5 to a dozen, but you pretty much treat these like singles and doubles. Schools on the other hand are normally very easy to see and cruise around gulping shrimp or float around sunning themselves as a group.

Redfish, as a generalization, are almost always willing to look and/or move up to your fly, unless they are sluggish. Black drum will often stick to the bottom. Redfish also tail at times, and in this case, it is often hard to get them to see the fly if it is too far above them. Each fish is different, but these are the main situations your Louisiana redfish flies need to perform in.

LOUISIANA REDFISH WATERFor the most part, the two most important water characteristics to keep in mind for Louisiana redfish flies are water depth and water clarity.

WATER CLARITY

Each day, finding clear water is the goal, and it’s a tossup as to what is most important, sun or clear water—probably sun. The water will almost always have some sort of color to it. That means that anything you can do to your redfish flies to alert the fish of their presence in the water is a huge advantage.

Darker and brighter colors that can be seen in cloudy water are winners. We’re talking black, purple, brown, and chartreuse. In clearer water, you can use more neutral colors like olives and tans.

Having a larger head that pushes water and an articulation that flaps also helps the reds feel the fly. This is why spoons and swimbaits are popular with general tackle guys. The reds and black drum can feel the thump, even if they can’t see it.

WATER DEPTH AND REDFISH FLY WEIGHT

Water depth maters a lot more when you are considering water clarity. If the fish are in a water depth of five feet and the water is cloudy, you will not see the redfish if they are sitting on the bottom. However, if the water is super clear on a bright day, you’ll see them moving near the bottom.

Redfish often sun themselves as well, so they will be up in the water column even if the water is cloudy. You won’t see all of them, but the sunning redfish will flash from the sun. If the fly sinks past the fish that is up in the water column, the bull red probably won’t see your fly. So, you need to have a fly that sits up in the water column in this scenario. You can control this a bit by raising your rod or stripping faster, but make sure to have flies that will stay up in the water column and flies that will sink a little faster if you’re targeting black drum or if the fish are mainly tailing or sitting down in deeper clear water.

Also, you might target fish that are inside of grass. Having a fly that sinks will plop down quicker if you need to make a quick shot to a fish between the grass. It also might sink into the grass. So…have flies that have different sink rates.

How sparse your flies are will also affect the drop speed. If you have a lot of natural fibers, it might take your fly a bit to sink, and if you have a sparsely-tied fly with synthetics, your fly will sink faster. A large crab-style head or bulky head, like that of the Redfish Toupee Crab, in general will also have more water resistance.

LOUISIANA REDFISH FLIES: 2 BASIC TYPESTo make life easy, let’s say you need two types of flies, subsurface and topwater. You will virtually never “need” topwater flies. However, you very likely will want to fish them—because it’s fun! You can get away with carrying no topwater flies though.

TOPWATER LOUISIANA REDFISH FLIES

Basically, any topwater fly will work. Topwater flies are fun when the fish are in schools going after shrimp or offshore. Tube fly bangers, gurglers, and double-barrel poppers are excellent choices. These can look like shrimp or baitfish, but it probably doesn’t matter. Have a selection of different poppers though, particularly offshore in case you encounter jack crevalle.

SUBSURFACE LOUISIANA REDFISH FLIES

Outside of the features already discussed above, there are three great Louisiana redfish fly options: shrimp, crabs, and large profile/articulated flies. The reds feed on many different types of foods from shrimp, crabs, and mullet, but they are opportunistic feeders and will crush a crab fly when they’re gorging on shrimp. So, impressionistic larger profile flies are often ideal. I personally prefer flies that swim rather than smaller match-the-hatch style flies that have little movement.

This advice should set you up for a great trip, and you can find specific patterns and specs below for your Louisiana redfish trip.

Louisiana Redfish Fly Pattern SpecsRBEST COLORS Purple/Chart * Black/Purple * Brown/Tan * Olive * White RWEIGHT Extra-large bead chain to large lead/brass eyes * Depends on conditions and fly RFLY LENGTH3” to 6”

RHOOK MODELS (#1 - # 4/0)* Gamakatsu B10S (1/0 & 2/0) * Ahrex SA280 (2/0) * Gamakatsu SL12-S 1x s. (4/0) Louisiana Redfish Fly PatternsThe post LOUISIANA REDFISH FLIES appeared first on ToFlyFish.

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The Redfish Toupee Crab is a great fly for fly fishing the Mississipi Delta. This fishery is unique and the best in the world for big bull redfish. Casts are almost always from your feet to about 35 feet. Longer casts are rare unless you find a somewhat shallow flat.

The water is often off-colored and you will cast to fish in one foot to six feet normally. The fish need to see the fly, and if they can feel the fly, that’s even better. For this purpose, we designed the Redfish Toupee Crab.

PREY ITEMS AND DELTA REDFISH EATING HABITSRedfish are an interesting saltwater fish to pursue on fly. They are very opportunistic in their feeding habits. They will eat massive mullets, crabs, and shrimp, and probably anything else they can get their huge bucket mouths on. They will feed at all levels of the water column and will move up and down to get a fly. I would say that it is more critical to get your fly at the eye level of the fish, the faster the redfish is moving. This is for the simple reason that it will be more likely to see the fly. A larger fly pattern will help with this as well.

REDFISH TOUPEE CRAB FLY DESIGNBecause of the opportunistic nature of the redfish and the varied diet they consume, flies that have many features of these food sources are very effective.

At times, you might want to downsize and fish a little shrimpier style fly. This is in clear, calm, shallow water where fish are in tighter spaces for example. An Equalizer can work in these types of situations, but when you want a fly that has some size or pushes water, or when your fishing in deep, colored water, the Redfish Toupee Crab is a great fly.

The toupee (crustacean brush) is a much faster way to tie a crab. It is not quite as durable, but you can catch dozens of 20 lb. class reds on these flies if you don’t smash them with your pliers.

Besides using less materials and tying crab bodies faster, your crab will sink faster because you have less material on the body. The fly keels better, and you can add features below the crab toupee like flash or more rubber legs. This fly should be a main part of your flies for Louisiana redfish.

FISHING THE REDFISH TOUPEE FLY PATTERNThe fly has materials that move great in the water, and the fly pushes water as it falls with its massive crab body. With the weight that you add, you get a nice little kick to the fly. When we add articulation, this fly swims even better in the water and pushes water on the strip.

The real beauty of this fly is versatility. You have a fly that moves great when you strip the fly at a good pace through the water. Then if you have a fish that is moving really slowly on the bottom, you can let the fly sink and then pop the fly on the bottom like a crustacean. You’ll receive some aggressive takes on this fly, but you’ll also be able to tantalize big reds into munching your fly as well.

• Hook: Ahrex SA 280 2/0 (used in video), Owner Aki 3/0, Partridge Attitude Extra 2/0
• Thread: Veevus 140 black
• Eyes: 1/30 oz. plated lead
• Tail: Hareline extra select craft fur (chartreuse)
• Tail Stripes: Permanent marker (purple)
• Collar: Finn raccoon (purple)
• Rubber Legs: Chartreuse (orange tipped)
• Body: Diamond braid/Sparkle braid (purple)
• Body weight: Flat lead
• Toupee (crab back): EP Crustacean Brush (purple and black)
• UV Resin: Solarez (thin)
• Flexible UV Resin: Solarez (flexible)
• Glue: Zap-a-gap
• Gel Glue: Loctite gel

ALTERNATIVES/ADDITIONS

• Tail Wrap: Purple 3″ EP brush or purple 3″ polar fiber streamer brush
• Articulation: Old hook with cut-off point or articulated shanks
• Tail Flash: Lateral scale flash The post REDFISH TOUPEE CRAB FLY appeared first on ToFlyFish.

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Smallmouth bass flies have come a long way over the years. This arose from two main influences: the popularity and innovation in fly fishing streamers and the hundreds of designs and advances in general tackle smallmouth lures. The influence of general tackle would probably be the most important of these influences. In fact, it’s safe to say that virtually all of the top smallmouth bass flies have been inspired by some smallmouth bass lure, and this goes for bass flies and bass fly fishing in general. Innovations in streamers helped fly anglers make new designs, but the designs themselves have almost invariably come from innovative smallmouth bass lures. This makes sense because so many more anglers pursue smallmouth bass with lures than they do with flies, and there are countless bass fishing tournaments with money on the line. Big money means big innovation.

Smallmouth flies still have some limitations, but they’re getting better and better. We have a ton of options. But before you head out and purchase a million smallmouth bass flies to pursue smallmouth bass on the fly, you need to make sure you have you’re bases covered. The best way to do this is to think about how you can buy flies that offer you different options and versatility.

A NOTE ON SMALLMOUTH BASS FLY LINES AND LEADERSFirst, different fly lines and leader configurations will dramatically change your smallmouth fly’s action and capabilities. The main fly lines you’ll use are floating, sink tip, and full sinking. You’ll then add leaders to these in various lengths from 10 to 3 feet normally.

Having many different fly lines is important because some flies may have difficulty sinking without sinking lines. You’ll also be able to get to the fish’s zone much quicker.

Different fly lines will affect the action of your fly as well. If you use an intermediate fly line with a jerkbait style fly, for example, you’ll be able to suspend your fly more easily in shallower water on the pause. Another variation on fly action can come from using a weighted fly, like a Clouser, with a long leader and a floating line. This will allow the fly to kick up better in many cases.

The point of this is to experiment with different lines, sink rates, and leader lengths to get your fly where you want it and with the right action you want. So, when you buy or design a fly, the first question should be, “How do you fish it and what line and leader do you use?”

HOW TO SELECT SMALLMOUTH BASS FLIESThe goal of this article is to allow you to choose as few flies as possible to cover all of the needs you have. So, by the end of the article, you should be able to buy or tie flies that cover many different uses. In this light, a great way to organize your smallmouth bass flies is according to features and function.

TYPES OF SMALLMOUTH BASS FLIESThere’s no official list of the types of smallmouth bass flies that exist, but the following classifications will help you to think about the different options you have with smallmouth flies. These are not gospel, so feel free to classify your flies in a different way if it works for you.

TOPWATERThere are many different types of topwater smallmouth bass flies. These are flies that at some point during the retrieve are enticing smallmouth on the surface of the water.

POPPERS

Poppers are floating flies that have a divot in the front of the fly. To make these, you’ll normally buy a “popper head” that has this characteristic divot. They have a famous gulp or plop sound when you retrieve them because water enters into the cavity of the popper. These flies are almost always retrieved with a pause and strip cadence.

FLAT-FACED POPPERS

I classify flies that have no divot in the front but push water to make an auditory disturbance as flat-faced poppers. This class comprises flies like classic deer hair poppers, Blockhead poppers, and Bob’s Bangers.

You can retrieve these just like regular poppers, but at times you can burn them much faster over the water surface because they aren’t necessarily pulled under as much as flies with divots or lips. The big surface area moves tons of water and really makes some noise with the biggest examples like the Bob’s Banger.

OTHER TOP-WATER FLIES

Divot and flat-faced poppers make up a large part of smallmouth bass top-water flies, but there are still many different types of top-water fly options.

Sliders are a topwater fly that slides across the surface of the water with very little water disturbance. Some sliders move basically in a straight line while others can dart around and even slightly under the water. This pattern is useful when smallmouth are in really clear and shallow water or when you want to create tons of movement on the surface without a lot of disturbance. Good examples of slider style flies are the Sneaky Pete, Titanic Slider, and the KDM Rat.

Top-water frog style patterns that don’t really pop as much can be consider sliders, divers, or flat-faced poppers. Either way, they are very similar to sliders/divers but are often very weedless. The Gutless Frog is a great example of these patterns.

Crease flies are poppers of sorts, but they act very differently in the water, depending on the head construction. Crease flies have very tall sides from folded foam. They can have a flat face, a divot, and/or a lip. The action ranges from light splashes to a pronounced walk-the-dog action.

Walk-the-dog flies move in a side-to-side action. These flies are excellent in warmer water or when the fish are a little more aggressive for top-water flies. These flies require a strip and slight pause cadence to generate this action. Ron Dong Crease Flies and Pole Dancers are great versions of these flies.

Gurglers are like a half flat-faced popper. They generate a more subdued sound than a full flat-faced popper. They also generate a splashier sprinkle of water than flat faced poppers. These are a great top-water fly when you want to be a bit more subtle on your sound and splash.

DIVERS

Divers do just as the name implies; they dive under the water but then float to the surface. This is accomplished with a tapered head and normally a large collar. Smallmouth bass love these flies, particularly if they’re on a frog bite. The sound that divers make is awesome for attracting fish and sounds like an exaggerated popper. The Umpqua Frog is a great example of a diver pattern.

TERRESTRIALS

At times, mostly in the fall in clear shallow water, smallmouth will focus on smaller terrestrial patterns. This is because there are a lot of terrestrials around but also because they may have been pounded by larger patterns all season.

A good way to figure out if you should try terrestrials is to see how the fish are responding to your regular sized topwater flies. If you’re getting nothing, they’re not committing, or you can tell you’re spooKing fish, then you can try a terrestrial pattern like the Mr. Peanut Hopper.

MID-DEPTHSBefore looking at mid-depth and bottom flies, think about triggers. The main three triggers for smallmouth bass flies are horizontal, vertical, and both planes (erratic). This means that the primary action of the fly is either along the horizontal (side-to-side), vertical (up and down), or both planes (erratic falls, rises, falls, and turns). Some flies will do two or three of these actions with different retrieves. Mid-depth flies employ these triggers more than any other type of smallmouth bass flies.

HORIZONTAL

The most characteristic action of horizontal is the side-to-side action. This is similar to the action a snake will use. Another incredibly important action is one jerkbait style action. In this case, the movement is more like a “glide bait” in that the fly moves mainly in the horizontal plane, and the pauses are longer. Many flies can have both horizontal and erratic actions, depending on how you fish the fly. Good examples of a horizontal action are the Double Deceiver, Swingin’ D, Bulkhead, and Todd’s Swimming Minnow.

VERTICAL

Vertical actions with smallmouth bass flies are almost always connected to weight. Weight comes in many different forms: lead tied in, bead chain, lead or brass dumbbell eyes, for example. This weight gives your fly that characteristic kick and dive action that fish love. The Clouser fly pattern is the quintessential vertical action fly pattern. Other great smallmouth flies with vertical actions are the Bottoms Up, Half and Half, and Schultz Red Eye Leach.

BOTH PLANES (ERRATIC)

Flies that can cover both planes are some of the absolute best smallmouth bass flies. These flies are normally fished at a moderate to slow speed because you need to pause the fly for at least a moment so the fly can switch directions. Smallmouth almost always hit on the pause. These flies might be termed “jerkbait flies.” Great examples are the CK Baitfish, Craft Fur Hollow Fleye, and Game Changer.

TAIL FLICKER

There are some flies that have very little action except for the tail. These flies travel more or less in a straight line when retrieved, but their tail has quite a bit of action. These flies are more subtle in their movement. They can be fished extremely slowly or extremely fast. Many single-hook trout flies have this action. Examples are the Zonker, Seal Bugger, and Meat Whistle.

BOTTOM/WEIGHTEDBottom/weighted flies fall into two classes: low motion and flies with triggers. Many of the low motion flies are trying to imitate a particular prey species in appearance. They might also have materials that have inherent motion, that is, motion that the water will bring to life. Examples of these materials are marabou, fox hair, rubber legs, craft fur, and rabbit.

These flies will elicit a strike when the fly is just sitting still on the bottom or when you give the fly subtle shakes. You might also pull the fly along the bottom. These flies are great for sight fishing or fussy fish. A good example is a Potato Chip Goby or a small craft fur Clouser.

Many weighted flies are meant to be fished on or near the bottom. They can also have triggers built into them similarly to mid-depth flies. Flies can have all of the actions that mid-depth flies have, but some flies must be fished slightly off of the bottom to create the action. This is the case with Clousers for example. They can get a nice vertical action just off the bottom.

An Equalizer, on the other hand, will land right on the bottom and move very erratically with a sharp strip of the fly line. A Changer Craw can generate a vertical or erratic movement, depending on how you fish it.

Many weighted flies give you options. Some are excellent low motion flies that have excellent action when stripped.

SMALLMOUTH BASS FLY FEATURESBesides triggers and different types of smallmouth bass flies, these are some other fly features you should consider: water depth capabilities, optimal speed, size, profile/appearance, color, materials, unique fly action, and sound.

SMALLMOUTH BASS FLY DEPTH CAPABILITIESWe covered depth capabilities somewhat under fly types above, but you need to have all bases covered to get your fly into the strike zone of smallmouth bass when they are in different moods. Sometimes they’ll move ten feet to smash your fly when at others, you’ll have to basically smack them on the nose. Have smallmouth flies that cover all of these situations.

OPTIMAL SPEED OF SMALLMOUTH BASS FLIESEach fly has an optimal speed and cadence. This is important for a few reasons.

First, you need to consider the mood of the fish. If you fish too fast, when the fish are in a non-aggressive mood, the smallmouth may not even move towards your fly. In this case, you might select a smallmouth fly like the Game Changer that you can strip and then let sit. This will keep the fly in the zone longer.

Second, the fly’s design will have limited speed capabilities. For example, you may need a fly that can move much faster while still maintaining some sort of action. An example might be a Double Deceiver, which has a horizontal serpentine movement even when you strip fast.

This is really apparent with top-water flies. For example, a popper normally requires a pause, but a Ron Dong Crease Fly can walk the dog at a fairly fast pace. The fly’s design allows you to cover water faster when you have aggressive fish and warmer water temps. Have different flies for different speeds.

SMALLMOUTH BASS FLY SIZEThe size of your smallmouth bass flies is hugely important, and many factors determine why you might choose one size over another.

First, the activity level and feeding drive of a smallmouth at a given time will warrant using one size over another. For example, if the smallmouth are in prespawn with a warming water temp, they will crush very large flies like a six-inch Bulkhead. Smaller flies can still work, but the biggest females are often looking for that big prey item.

Second, available prey species and fishing pressure can condition the smallmouth to look for a certain prey item or smaller sized fly. This is really apparent on Lake Michigan in the spring for example when the lake is swarming with gobies. In addition, Lake Michigan receives heavy fishing pressure in spots, and these fish are at times not willing to crush the huge patterns you might fish in rivers.

Third, density of fish population will determine how small you can go and effectively cover water. If you find a bunch of fish stacked up in an area, 2-to-3-inch flies can be deadly. I’ve experienced this many times on almost every type of water from Western reservoirs to Mid-Western rivers. Throw a large Hollow Fleye into them and you may not catch a thing, but hop a small crayfish fly off the bottom, and you may catch everything.

PROFILE AND APPEARANCE OF YOUR SMALLMOUTH BASS FLIESThe overall profile and appearance of smallmouth bass flies can be important at times. I can’t point to a single time that I’ve been fishing for smallmouth bass when the appearance of the fly mattered that much. For example, times that I found fish that were feeding on crayfish, I did not have to use a fly that looked like a crayfish, with claws, etc. However, the fly needed to move similarly to a crayfish or a bit slower in general. Maybe you’ll find a situation where you need to more match the hatch, but impressionistic flies that you can make move right are the rule not the exception.

Profile is more important. Again, I use impressionistic flies that have similar profiles to a bunch of different prey items. My Equalizer fly pattern is the epitome of this. Flies that have the overall profile that you want but that are versatile in their action are highly effective.

Profile can also be important for the fish’s mood. In general, the more neutral to negative a smallmouth bass’s mood is, the smaller in profile I go, unless other factors affect this decision, like the prevalence of prey species.

Profile can also affect the overall aquatic footprint of your fly. A fly that has more bulk pushes more water. Smallmouth can feel this with their lateral line. So, if you’re in a lowlight situation, you need to cover water, the fish are super aggressive, or you’re going after monsters only, a large profile fly pattern like a Hollow Fleye may be what you need.

COLOR AND FLASH OF SMALLMOUTH BASS FLIESSmallmouth bass flies come in virtually any color imaginable. Smallmouth love almost all of these colors at different times. In general, I find the more inactive smallmouth are, the more I need to use natural colors, and related to this, my smaller flies are almost always natural colors like brown, olive, tan, black, and rusty orange. This is usually the case with most of my flies that I fish near the bottom in clear water.

Jerkbait style flies like Game Changers, Hollow Fleyes, Bulkheads can vary from white and tans to bright pink, orange, and chartreuse. It depends on water clarity and fish activity, and sometimes smallmouth just like brighter colors because of their natural curiosity and aggression.

Poppers and smallmouth flies that I retrieve quickly are often similar to jerkbait flies, but I will get pretty wild with the colors from yellow, chartreuse, and orange to black, silver, and white.

Flash is similar to color in that I normally put flash in most of my mid-depth flies and some of my topwater flies, but less frequently in my finesse and bottom flies. I’ve found smallmouth love flash in most cases where they’re somewhat active.

UNIQUE FLY ACTION AND MATERIALSEach smallmouth bass fly pattern you choose will share many features with other patterns, but each one will have its own unique fly action capabilities. These unique fly action capabilities can make a huge difference in how many smallmouth bass you’ll catch on a fly on a given day.

You can often modify your fly patterns when you tie them to have different unique fly actions. For example, you can vary the overall size of the fly or the length of the tail. This will cause the rhythm of the fly’s action to be faster, slower, or more/less exaggerated.

For example, a short, stubby Game Changer, say 3 inches, will often move much quicker than a 6-inch gamechanger, which will require a longer pause. This goes for most jerkbait style flies, like Hollow Fleyes and Bulkheads. Really active fish might prefer this quicker movement of the shorter flies.

The materials you use will also affect the action of the fly as well, so you could tie these patterns in different materials to achieve much different actions. For example, craft fur and bucktail have unique buoyancy properties that are different from one another. Your flies will act differently when you use these materials tied with varying degrees of density. Having options for the day’s fishing will make you much more versatile.

See below how Blane Chocklett creates his Game Changers with different materials and designs to have different actions and triggers.

Another example might be adding different amounts of weight in different locations. You really have so many options when it comes to your fly patterns and their unique actions, even when you’re tying many of the same general style.

One final example would be tying a Clouser with large lead eyes, heavy amounts of craft fur, and a flashtail out the back. This fly would push more water, dip more exaggeratedly, and send a ton of movement from the tail for more attracting properties. On the other hand, a thinly-tied bucktail Clouser with light eyes and no flashtail will have much less action but may be exactly what a negative fish prefers on a cold-water spring morning.

Don’t underestimate how you can change smallmouth fly action and how important these unique actions are.

SOUND AND VIBRATIONS WITH SMALLMOUTH BASS FLIESFinally, sound and vibrations are unbelievably important for smallmouth bass fishing with general tackle. They are also important for smallmouth bass flies, but we cannot achieve the same degree of water disturbance with flies yet, particularly when we’re talking about vibration. Buzzbaits, Whopper Ploppers, rattling crankbaits, and spinnerbaits are just a few options available to general tackle anglers. These baits are extremely effective for smallmouth, who love vibration and sound.

Virtually no fly can emulate these lures in vibration. We have to rely on flies that have big profiles to push a lot of water to the smallmouth bass’s lateral line to even get close to generating as much sound/vibration .

Some smallmouth bass flies have rattles in them, but I personally have noticed zero difference using a relatively tiny rattle buried deep within the fly. The sound/vibration difference is minimal. We’ve got work to do with our fly patterns to achieve similar outputs of vibration to the metal and plastic components of smallmouth bass lures.

We can do fairly well with sound on our topwater flies. Achieving super fast speeds is difficult, but as far as sound goes, we’re pretty close.

So, we can get good sound outputs from our topwater flies, and each of these topwater fly patterns has a unique sound. You should have a variety of different topwater flies with different sounds. For example, a small Bugle Bug or popper with a hard head will have a short blurp and higher pitched tink respectively. This differs from a Blockhead Popper that pushes more water and makes a large deep sound when retrieved. A large Bob’s Banger will push even more water and have a deeper gulp. A Crease Fly will have multiple higher-pitch splashes. Each one of these different topwater flies gives you options for the fish’s mood and preference on a given day and body of water. Have an assortment of these topwater flies to give you options and to fine-tune what the smallmouth are on.

HARD PLASTIC HEAD PRODUCES A HIGH-PITCHED TINK SOUND

FINAL TAKEAWAYSWith this info, you’re much better able to make deliberate decisions on the water about your smallmouth bass flies. Have smallmouth flies that give you different features, so that you can experiment and dial in on what the smallmouth bass want each day and even time of day, etc.

When on the water, watch what your buddies are fishing and how the fish are responding to your and their flies. Ask questions and vary your retrieve. Figure out if they want a fast-moving fly, one that pauses for long periods of time, one that is burning through the water, one that matches the abundant prey species available, one that gives them a huge profile and aquatic footprint, or a smallmouth fly that uses any of the features discussed above. You’ll catch a lot more smallmouth bass on the fly with this mindset.

The post SMALLMOUTH BASS FLIES: COMPLETE GUIDE appeared first on ToFlyFish.

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Fly fishing for carp has become a popular, dare I say trendy, area of the sport. As a kid, I remember watching guys walk along in the late spring, “pitch forking” carp, i.e., stabbing carp in the shallows and leaving them there dead or in the throngs of death. This was not exceptional as I can remember people “pursuing” carp in every heinous way imaginable. I considered carp trash fish and at the least was indifferent to them and at the worst hated carp for dashing hopes of catching “real fish” when I would catch one by accident. The huge numbers of these fish were no doubt a contributing factor to my feelings toward them. I’m thankful that I’ve not only learned to appreciate the challenge and fun of these fish, but also to appreciate them as a fish. I now cringe when I see trophy carp dead or slaughtered, since they are such an amazing fish, particularly trophy fish.

I’ve now fished for carp for about twenty years on the fly and am still learning about them and always trying to refine my techniques to be able to catch these fish in any environment, not just in the easiest or closest waters to me. Fishing for carp has the potential to introduce you to other roughfish like buffalo, freshwater drum, and suckers and encourages the development of new fishing approaches. This article is meant to outline the main types of approaches toward carp and all roughfish with a fly, which have helped me to catch three and a half species of carp: common, mirror, grass, and quillback carpsucker in addition to tons of other roughfish species. This article will also cover the general moods and behaviors of the carp as how they relate to presentation. Hopefully, other carp fly anglerS can add to and improve these techniques for carp fly fishing. Also, below you’ll find some links to other aspects of carp fly fishing, if you’re interested in these.

CARP FLIES

TROPHY CARP

GREAT LAKES CARP

FLY FISHING FOR CARP: TACTICS

“THE CLAW”: MODIFIED DAPPING

“The claw” is simply a modified dap of the fly by lowering the fly right in front of the fish, just like “the Claw” in Toy Story or any metal claw you’ve seen whose goal it is to grab cheap stuffed animals for your kids. Little to no cast is required, just the fly dropping right in front of the fish. This is used on tailing fish, in murky water, and on fish that have not been pressured at all. The obvious limitation is the close proximity you have to be to make this presentation. If the carp in your area don’t care that you are standing up 8-12 feet away, then you are probably using this technique a lot. Tailing fish are obviously the primary candidates. You can also use smaller flies with this technique, particularly in shallow clear water, since you can see them at this close distance.

SUSPENDED DAP

I have very little experience with this presentation, which is to suspend the fly a few inches off of the bottom in the fish’s feeding window. The fish then sucks in the fly. According to Trevor Tanner or “McTage” at flycarpin.com, who employs the technique on a regular basis, the carp will smash the fly straight down into the water, more or less hooking itself.

DRAG, DROP, AND LAY

The drag-drop-lay is probably the most common presentation to tailing carp, but it’s very common with cruising or “shopping” carp as well. This is certain if the fish is out of dap range. The goal of the presentation is to “cast” beyond the carp, not over it, and strip/drag your line until your fly is over the spot where you want to present the fly relative to the carp. The dropped fly then is left alone when it is certain the fish has seen the fly. Two flies can be used in a variety of ways to increase your presentation control with this tactic.

Carp fly anglers are often very specific in how they are delivering the fly. They will begin with a simple dap or lowering of the fly and then vary their casting stroke as they get farther away. You can see how to perform this cast here. Some of the names they use are pitching, plopping, and lobbing. The main goal is to get the fly to land with as little of the line as possible on the water. In this respect, the surface is disturbed as little as possible. The casting stroke is open with the lob style or you are just flicking the rod with your wrist with pitching and plopping techniques. Once you start to get some fly line out, you are not as accurate with the lobbing techniques, so you have to use “regular” casting. Like in saltwater flats fishing you have to cast beyond the fish and strip the line in rather than dragging it strictly. It’s not as accurate, but your options are limited when fish are beyond thirty feet as they most often are in the Great Lakes.

THE DROP: AS A TRIGGER

“The drop” is simply a triggering technique that can be used as far out as you can see your fly. To perform the technique, drop the fly in front of the fish in order to trigger a strike, rather than dragging and dropping the fly on the bottom, which eventually happens if the fish doesn’t take the fly on the fall. There is a subtle difference, however, since you want fish to see this drop, while at other times you may still use a drag and drop but use it far enough ahead of the fish that it doesn’t see the drop, since a dropping fly may spook fish. Fish that are tailing may see the fly drop for a split second and pounce on the fly. However, fish that are up in the water column, moving slowly, or fish that are “circulating” can be coaxed quite well with this tactic. I have been successful with the drop when fish are moving with a purpose or moving at a slow pace.

Use a weighted fly or some split shot to get the fly down. It is important to not let the fly splash anywhere near the fish in most cases and particularly in areas where fishing pressure is common. I have not observed a perfect speed for the drop, so experiment with this. Once you have dropped the fly in front of the fish, the carp will turn down, follow, and take your imitation on the drop itself, not when the fly has landed, although this happens too since a fly on the bottom is probably the most common technique in clear to semi-clear water.

At really close distances, I always lift the rod on the hookset. Most of my experience with the drop has been at close distances (within 30 feet), and I have never missed a fish because of the hookset with this technique, when the fish has committed.

Tracking the fly, particularly in murky water, is a challenge, but this technique allows you at least to stay in the game when the water is murky and you can’t see takes on the bottom. For tracking my fly in murky water, I will attach a small indicator within a foot to a foot and a half of the fly. The indicator sinks and causes no problems with casting.

My indicator of choice is a used fly line, nail-knotted to the line. You can go one to three turns with the nail-knot depending on how much you need on the line. I use bright orange from a heavy weighted line like an 8-10 weight, and I use a washed-out chartreuse from a 3-4 weight for clearer water. Experiment with what works for you, but get something to help you track your fly in murky water that doesn’t interfere with your casting or presentation.

At the end of the day, the drop can make or break your day on the water at times. Fish that were suddenly not interested suddenly turn and gobble your fly. Make sure to use this technique for carp each day you’re on the water.

DEAD DRIFT

Carp can be pursued in rivers with the same tactics you would use to fish for trout, i.e., dead drift nymphing. You will take all manner of roughfish when you fish in waters that have suckers, baitfish, whitefish, and carp of various species. I’ve caught at least 15 different roughfish species in rivers with the bulk of these being sucker species of every sort but also grass carp, common carp, and quillback carpsuckers. These have all come from dead drift nymphing with the occasional dry fly fish, and dry flies can really take carp in these rivers, particularly with terrestrials like cicadas. This of course changes when the water becomes more or less a still water. In these cases, all of the “standard” fly fishing carp tactics work.

YOU CATCH ALL SORTS OF ROUGH FISH DEAD DRIFTING FLIES.

HEAVE AND LEAVE

This brings us to the “heave-and-leave” or HAL. This tactic is just like fishing for trout on the surface of a stillwater in which you cast and leave the fly almost always a dry fly. This is done usually with sight-fishing where you can target fish. The distance you cast near the fish is always dependent on the prey item and the fishery, so experiment to see where your carp like the fly. Sometimes the plop can be a trigger as with cicadas. I’ve had many frustrating experiences with grass carp with the heave-and-leave as they will often rise up and examine your imitation like a Silver Creek brown.

SUSPENDED WITHIN TWO FEET

Carp will take carp flies that are suspended, or sometimes moving as in the Great Lakes, at their head level particularly when slowly cruising. This comes in the form of flies that are slowly sinking, flies that have neutral buoyancy, or dropper flies off of dries. When you’re in an area where carp are circulating in and out of the area at varying depths and speeds, this can be a great technique. Grass carp in particular are prone to eating flies offered with this type of presentation, but sometimes a small nymph suspended such as a midge/buzzer pattern will take fish when nothing else will.

MULBERRY PLOP

The mulberry plop is just that, plopping a fly, usually a mulberry fly, into the water as a triggering device. When certain plants begin losing their fruit, carp begin to key on the sound of the fruit hitting the water just like they do with terrestrials. Use your rod to drive the fly down with a plop near a prospective fish, most often not tailing.

CHUMMING

One of the most effective, if not the most effective, ways to catch a lot of carp is with chumming. Chumming is not legal in every state in the U.S., so check your local fishing regulations if you feel the desire to chum up carp. Chumming is common in Europe where little bits of dog food are thrown into the water to get fish feeding like a hoard of hungry sharks in a slick. The fishing isn’t challenging in the least, and the fish take your fly with gusto. I think this takes a lot of the fun out of carp fly fishing, but it’s up to each person to make their own decision. Chumming is common with sharks and other bluewater species, so where you draw the line is up to each angler.

RETRIEVED OR MOVED

In theory, you could use any retrieve or moving presentation to carp, such as with damselflies, scuds, dragonflies, crayfish etc. I do know some who will target big carp with skinny clousers retrieved, but I have only had limited success with any rapidly moved presentation in order to imitate a food species. I have had some success jumping my fly on the Great Lakes as if the fly is a frightened crayfish or goby, and I am sure that others on different bodies of water do this regularly. I have also caught plenty of fish, just creeping the fly along so that I could feel the take better and have done this primarily in the Great Lakes. Another variation is to use the drag and drop well ahead of the fish, and if the fish has changed its path or not seemed to have seen the fly, then I have twitched or moved the fly slightly. This will sometimes get the fish’s attention, in which case I usually leave the fly still. Another way I have moved the fly is to drag the fly after it has hit the bottom, but this is more or less the drag and drop on the bottom and has no triggering characteristics.

In one body of water I fish with gin clear water, in a public place, and with heavy fishing pressure, you can never drop the fly in front of the fish, they will bolt like someone has dumped poison into the water. In this case, you must slide the fly into the fish’s field of vision. This body of water is the most difficult body of water that I have ever fished for carp (both because of casting and educated fish), and I feel lucky to hook one or two fish on a normal outing. I go there only for the challenge, since it is the Silver Creek/Harriman Ranch of my carp fishing world and keeps me on my game for both salt and freshwater fishing.

FLY FISHING FOR CARP: BEHAVIOR AND MOODS

When thinking about carp behaviors, it comes down to focused activity. Carp are probably the least multitasking fish I have ever encountered. They focus their energy on one activity. Bonefish and other flats species will cruise in between locations, but can normally be tempted into eating on the move. Bonefish will occasionally even eat after being startled a bit. Most fish are very opportunistic, but in my experience, carp are the most difficult fish to tempt to eat when they are not engaged in a positive feeding activity.

GREAT TARGETS

Carp that are in a positive feeding mood are great targets. The easiest way to gauge whether a carp is a great target or not is swimming speed. Ideally, a carp with a moderate to slow swimming speed is a great target. You also want fish that are not swimming linearly if possible. Finally, a fish that is swimming with its head closer to the bottom is normally more apt to eat then one that is cruising at mock ten near the surface, unless there are mulberries, cicadas, hex adults, etc., on the surface. The fish that are in this group are above all tailers and any fish that are moving slowly with some side-to-side movement. These are normally cruisers and what carp aficionados call “shoppers.” Shoppers are fish that are actively looking for food. Carp may switch from cruiser to shopper to tailer very quickly, depending on the abundance of the food source. These fish are normally slow to moderate swimmers, and will normally be near the bottom or near the surface, depending on the food sources.

There is one instance when a slow to moderate swimming carp is not ideal. That is a fleeing fish. Carp are a little strange in that they will not always bolt out of an area. They may simply loaf out of an area when something has put them in a negative feeding mood. The carp is not actively fleeing, but it will almost never eat a fly because its senses are heightened negatively. These fish are moving very slowly at times, but their movement is almost 100% linear. They’re getting out of the area. Don’t cast to these fish because carp are inherently social and may alert other fish if you try to cast to them again. They may eventually return if you don’t spook them too much.

QUESTIONABLE TARGETS

Fish that are moving moderately or slowly are normally the prime targets. They aren’t stationary, and they aren’t rockets. Questionable targets are those fish that are not moving at all. Carp will sun themselves, but they will also rest. Sometimes these are synonymous, but I’m convinced they’re not always the same thing. I’ve seen large carp sitting on the bottoms of weedy bays, while other fish in the same area sunning/resting in the extreme shallows. These fish might be receptive to some sort of a reaction bite, where they see the fly and turn slightly on it or suck it in gently. Flies on the drop or jumped up a bit are your best bet normally, since the carp aren’t moving by definition. You may tempt them enough to get a strike, but they might just lie there like a log with no interest at all in your fly, or anything else for that matter.

Another form of fish that is questionable is a carp that is holding in current. They are technically not moving, but this is a little misleading. For anyone who has fished for trout in rivers, not all fish are alike. There are many subtleties on how to read a trout in the current. Some might be sulking on the bottom. There is current all around, but these fish are more or less completely out of the current and not interested in anything you have to offer them. Use your knowledge of current and trout to read carp in the current as well. There is not enough space in this article to cover trout/carp in current, but apply your knowledge of trout to carp. The bottom line is that you want some movement within the space in which the carp or trout is holding. Are they feeding? Are they moving back and forth? Activity will more often than not tell you what the fish’s mood is. Obviously dead drift nymphing tactics are the prime techniques in this situation. Either way, both sunning/resting carp and carp in current can be very good or very poor targets.

NEGATIVE TARGETS

Funny enough, negative targets are commonly active. They are often moving the fastest or are expending the most energy. A bad carp target is an actively spawning fish. This is the same for almost every species of fish there is. When a carp or any other fish is in the act of spawning, there is almost zero chance of catching that fish legitimately. Look for fish that are in between spawning cycles. These fish will act like any other carp you might find, but are probably either resting or actively looking for food. You can recognize spawning carp by the loud thrashing you hear in vegetation and in the shallows. These fish have one thing on their mind.

Two other negative carp targets are fish that are moving completely linearly at a very fast speed. First, you have the actively fleeing carp. These fish are not the moping negative fish we spoke of previously. They are frightened and leaving you and your fly behind. These are just as negative and difficult to catch as spawning fish. I have never caught a spawning or rapidly fleeing carp, ever! Next, you have the fast cruisers. These fish have somewhere to be. They are normally not interested in stopping, but have a purpose—to get somewhere else. You can try to cast ahead of them and get the fly to their level, but in my experience these are very tough fish to catch unless again they are moving slowly or moderately. The Great Lakes have some very fast cruisers that will actually take a fly if you can get it to their level and maybe drop the fly and then jump it off the bottom. If the cruisers are in shallow water, then you have a reasonable chance of catching them in this body of water. In this respect, they act similarly to bonefish. The faster the cruiser and normally the higher it is in the water column, the more difficult it is to catch it.

MID-DEPTHS

It’s important to talk about the mid-depths as well. Everything mentioned so far is applicable to carp in the mid-depths. The prey items of your fishery will determine if fish are feeding at the mid-depths. Grass carp in particular will feed at the mid-depths very often, and so will common/mirror carp if the food sources are at the mid-depths. Vegetation, damselflies, dragonflies, midge, snails, etc., are all in the mid-depths. If the water is from one to two feet, some carp will actually feed at all levels of the water column in a five minute period. Some may be on the bottom. Some may be at the mid-depths, and some may be feeding very closely to the surface. When long vegetation is present and decent depth, this is when fish will feed at the mid-depths. They will use the vegetation like the bottom of the pond or lake. Fish will also suspend at the mid-depths to sun/rest. These fish behave like normal sunning/resting fish, but I’ve found them a little tougher to catch than fish in the shallows. They will eat though, and dropper rigs with chironomids or nearly neutrally buoyant flies work well here. The mid-depths commonly addressed in carp fly fishing literature, but they can be extremely important, particularly when grass carp are present.

FLY FISHING FOR CARP: GEAR

Carp gear is fairly basic in most cases, but you will need to modify it depending on a variety of factors. When we talk about carp gear, we’re talking about rod, reel, line, leader, and tippet. The main factors that determine the precise forms of these pieces of gear are size of carp and the body of water the carp inhabit, distance of casts, water depth, and size of fly.

RODS AND REELS FOR CARP ON THE FLY

One of these pieces of gear is pretty set, irrespective of the main factors. This piece of gear is the fly reel. Basically, use a large-arbor, well-made reel that fits your rod. There are dozens of incredible reels, but I use Hatch and Tibor reels.

The fly rod is straight-forward as well. For most situations, you want to use a 7 to 10-weight rod. When you encounter large fish in big bodies of water, go with a larger rod. In big bodies of water, carp will run farther because of the open space, and I believe they are better fighters because they are used to moving larger distances. If you need to make longer casts with lots of wind and you’re delivering larger flies, beef up your rod. Deeper water will also allow you to use a larger rod as well, whereas big carp in the shallows will normally require a softer landing with a smaller rod weight. A good all-round rod is an 8 weight, but a 9 weight is great when you encounter lots of fish over 18 pounds.

FLY LINES, LEADERS, AND TIPPETS FOR CARP

Finally, your line, leader, and tippet round out your gear. Your line weight will normally match your rod, but also make sure to get a line that lands softly. Don’t use really aggressive front tapers for carp in most cases. Carp are almost always a sight-fishing game, so you want your line to land softly.

Your leaders will vary from 6 to 11 feet in length. The windier the conditions, shallower the water, and closer the presentation, the shorter your leader will be. The calmer and deeper the water, the longer your leader will be. Distance of cast can make your leader either short or long, but keep in mind that a longer leader is more specialized and is harder to maneuver when you are also encountering fish at close distances.

Your tippet will be either nylon or fluorocarbon depending on if you want a faster sink rate (fluorocarbon) or not. The pound test will normally be around 10 to 20 lbs., and I personally never go less than 10 lb. test unless the carp are minute. Go with as small a diameter as you can. From a fly-fishing perspective, we’re looking at 2x to 02x. 1x is a good all-round tippet size, but keep the 4 main factors in mind when choosing your tippet. Also, the presence of cover and debris in the water will require you to go up in strength as well.

There’s also one last piece of equipment that you shouldn’t leave behind. That’s a net. When you start trying to take pictures, secure the fish safely, and get the hook out, a net makes your life so much easier. It also helps you to tire the fish less and get the fish into your hands quicker. I don’t leave home without my net…ever!

Hopefully these techniques and the carp moods related to these tactics will help you catch a lot more carp. Carp are flexible and adapt to many watery environments, so make sure to be adaptable yourself. Make sure to let us know about any other fly fishing carp tactics you regularly use, or let us know if we missed an important mood/behavior to go along with these tactics. Happy carping!

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Carp flies “are like a box of chocolates”…. well, maybe more like chocolates. Forrest Gump’s mama probably didn’t do a lot of carp fly fishing, but she sure said something that applies to carp flies. Carp flies are like bonefish or steelhead flies; there is virtually no limit to what you’ll see come out of the vise and into the aquatic pantry of the buglemouth bass. Size and a certain orientation in the water are basically the only requirements with carp flies. This is because carp are some of the most adaptable fish in the world, and they adapt to their environment. Now, anyone who has ever gazed at a carp’s mouth will note its downward orientation, which reflects the carp’s bottom-feeding nature. For this reason, flies designed specifically for carp are usually designed to sit on the bottom.

Carp flies, but also all fly patterns in general, should be designed with a specific presentation in mind. You can’t (or shouldn’t) select carp flies without knowing the basic conditions and presentation in which you’ll fish the fly. What’s the point of the fly? Is it meant to imitate a particular forage item? What do you want it to do, and what are the important aspects of designing and selecting these particular carp flies? These are some of the basic questions of designing and selecting carp flies.

CLICK HERE TO JUMP TO CARP PATTERNS IF YOU LIKE

CARP FLIES: SINK RATE

Like with all flies, presentation should determine which carp fly you use and the characteristics of this fly. Most tactics for carp require weight on the fly so that the fly sinks to the bottom. However, quite a few techniques, such as dead drift, suspended, heave and leave, and the mulberry plop use lighter and floating flies for most aspects of the presentation. The flies you use for these presentations are normally trout-style flies with heavier hooks. For this reason, we can focus more on the presentations that are normally used more heavily on carp and other rough fish, such as the drag, drop, and lay.

Probably the most important aspect of presentation is the weight of the fly, and because of this, the sink rate and plop of the fly. Ideally, we always want to eliminate plop on the water, so that means using the smallest amount of weight necessary to achieve our desired sink rate for presentation. In fact, this is the beauty of fishing for carp on the fly—we can deliver flies that are far too light to use with a spinning rod or a baitcaster.

There are many factors that determine the sink rate of carp flies: added weight, hook, materials, knot/tippet diameter, and current. Unfortunately, sink rate is more complicated than just adding heavier brass, lead, or tungsten eyes. Adding weight is where you start, but adding a bit heavier hook, instead of just more weight, will distribute the weight throughout the fly and will reduce the splash if you were to simply add heavier weighted eyes. The problem sometimes is that you need enough weight to make that heavier hook ride hook-up, so make sure you check your flies if you’re tying them yourself. I’ve made this mistake many times.

Materials affect your sink rate a ton as well. If you tie in rabbit skin and fur, this floats more than synthetics or even marabou. Natural hairs in general are usually some of the most buoyant materials you can use for carp flies. These natural fibers are, however, among the best materials for carp flies. The way you tie these materials also affects sink rate. If you have a tight, sparsely tied body on a carp fly, this fly will sink much faster. If you have a long flapping wing, then there will be more water resistance.

Current is an easy one for carp flies. The faster the current, the slower your fly will get to the bottom directly in front of the fish.

Finally, your tippet diameter and specific knot will affect the sink rate greatly. A large diameter tippet will add more water resistance and make the sink rate slower, particularly with mono, but a loop knot will allow your fly to sink much faster, even with a larger diameter tippet. Also, fluorocarbon sinks at a faster rate than mono, so this will allow you to get down and stay down a bit better.

Selecting carp flies requires taking all of this into consideration. You can remember this with two basic carp fly setups.

1) Carp flies that have heavy hooks, have a lot of added weight, are sparsely tied with synthetic materials, are in no current, and use small diameter tippet and a loop knot will have the fastest sink rate.

2) Carp flies that have light hooks, have very little added weight, are thickly tied with natural hairs, are in fast current, and use large diameter tippet and a “non-loop” knot like an improved clinch will have the slowest sink rate.

LEFT FLY HAS A LIGHTER HOOK, LIGHTER WEIGHT, AND LESS MATERIALS. RIGHT FLY HAS A HEAVIER AND WIDER GAP HOOK, MORE WIEGHT, AND MORE MATERIALS.

Now you need to let conditions dictate how you tie, select, and present your carp flies. For example, let’s say you are casting to large carp in the shallows that are actively moving. You might need a fly that has little splash that sinks fast enough to put it in their line of sight. The fly and setup would be something like this: it has a strong but light hook, has little weight added, and is sparsely tied with maybe a little bunny hair or hackle. An example would be a Hybrid carp fly. This fly gives you a soft landing but will sink sufficiently fast. Also, the materials will not pick up water as much and give you loud splashes in subsequent casts. There is probably no current in this situation, but if there is, then use a fly that has more weight. I would use stronger tippet with as small a diameter as possible, and I would use a loop knot. When you tie your flies, think about the situations rather than just tying flies that give you the exact same qualities.

Carp Fly Patterns

CARP FLY CHARACTERISTICS

Once we have the right drop with our flies, we need to consider the other factors that make a perfect carp fly. The main factors involved in the eatability of your carp flies are feeding activity, profile/appearance, size, color, materials, and action/movement. In my eyes, feeding activity is the most important of these. If you have carp that are feeding consistently on a food source when you present your fly, carp become much easier to catch. In fact, they can become at times “dumb” and easy to catch in certain scenarios. The extreme is when they are feeding on chummed offerings like dog food or bread. Anything that even resembles these food sources is gobbled with reckless abandon. As long as your fly is close, you’re in.

Profile and general appearance are huge for carp flies. We are trying to get these fish with amazing smell/taste capabilities to eat our feathers and fur. That means that sight plays the primary role in triggering these fish to feed when we use carp flies. Unless these fish are feeding on a specific food source and you know this food source for certain, then impressionistic and just plain buggy profiles are the most successful. This also applies if carp in a specific body of water and time of year are feeding on a particular food source. In this case, impressionistic flies with a profile that is similar to these food sources works best. An example is McTage’s Trouser Worm, which I would classify as impressionistic but with an overall appearance of a worm. Flies like the Hybrid, Strymph, and Backstabber are great impressionistic/buggy carp flies. However, in the case of the Hybrid, there is a conscious effort to imitate parts of clams which are all over the Columbia River.

Along with profile is size. This is as important, if not more important, than profile. A small #12 hares ear will do the job in certain conditions, while a large two to three-inch PC Goby pattern will do the job in others. There are quite a few different factors that will determine what size of fly you should use: unique water environment, available food sources, fish mood, water clarity, fishing pressure, etc. This in itself could be the subject of an article or five, but in general, the more the pressure and less aggressive the fish, the smaller the pattern.

Color is important especially in murky water, where darker colors allow the fish to see carp flies easier, but color is also important when you need to see the fly against the bottom of the body of water you’re fishing. It’s difficult to say how important color is as an attractor to carp. We should all experiment with colors as a way to set the fly off from the bottom of the body of water and to see what’s working on a given day. At times, some colors just aren’t effective from day to day for whatever reason. Natural colors (browns, tans, blacks, olives, gingers, and oranges) are safer, but how far can we push color on carp?

The last main two are movement and materials. For me, fly materials are at times quite important on carp flies. I prefer flies that have natural materials, particularly rabbit fur including the skin. Your fly is squishy and takes on the scent of the watery environment. I can’t prove it but believe that these flies may taste better or more natural.

As for fly materials movement, I, for one, have no idea if the movement of the materials of carp flies trigger carp. Movement in general can be critical in certain cases, like with the drop, on the Great Lakes, predatory carp, or with mulberries. The movement is generated by you rather than the materials of the fly. Even though I tie flies with materials that have lots of action, I am still uncertain how much this contributes to the carp taking your carp flies. For me, the primary movement of the fly to get the carp’s attention is normally the most important aspect of carp movement, and this has little to do with the material’s inherent movement. Drop rate and action may be even more important, but I can’t pattern fish using this.

CARP FLIES: “TROUT FLIES” CATCH CARP TOO

UNDER THE RIGHT CONDITIONS, TROUT STYLE FLIES ARE EVEN MORE SUCCESSFUL ON CARP THAN “CARP FLIES.”

Finally, most “trout” anglers have flies that will double as carp flies particularly when you find feeding carp. Feeding carp are almost always much easier to catch, and you’ve always got to let the conditions dictate your carp fly selection. Carp, in general, feed on most things that trout will feed on. When this happens, you use basically the same flies. The flies themselves are more or less the exact flies that you would use with trout fishing to match some sort of insect, either aquatic or otherwise. Carp will eat damselflies, dragonflies, mayflies, midge, etc. Also, terrestrials like cicadas, grasshoppers, and ants will take both common and grass carp in the right situation.

These flies are, then, not carp flies per se but are “standard” flies that double as carp flies. That being said, you may need to tie your “trout flies” with heavier hooks if there’s a chance you’ll come into contact with carp over twelve pounds and particularly if 20 – 40 pound carp are available. The same can be said for scuds, worms, and eggs that you use on trout or steelhead (muted colors) but also general patterns like soft hackles. I’ve personally caught carp on many of these standard patterns, particularly in rivers when you’re dead drifting flies. These fly patterns, whether “carp flies” or not, are connected with presentation, so let your presentation and the conditions on the water determine if you use these types of flies or if you need to go to more specific carp flies. So, what considerations are there for crafting and fishing these specific carp flies?

Carp flies are a bit like chocolates. Just don’t fill your box with the wrong kind. Even if you don’t tie, buy your patterns with presentation in mind. Don’t buy the fly because it looks good in the display case unless you’re filling your box to impress your friends. Think about this fly in the mouth of a golden beauty. How did it get there? This will help you fill your box with flies that don’t just look good. Hopefully at that point, you will know what you’re going to get…the chance to be like peas and carrots with a big, fat carp!

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Fly fishing for carp on the Great Lakes, particularly Lake Michigan, can be one of the most enjoyable experiences a freshwater fly angler can have. We’ve all seen the photos and read the articles, but what is not mentioned in these articles is that fly fishing for carp on the Great Lakes is not a sure thing and can be very challenging on many different levels. You’ve got to pay your dues and put everything together to really take advantage of this fishery. This is a guide to fly fishing lake Michigan that you can apply to all of the Great Lakes when fly fishing for carp.

A quick thought about carp fly fishing on Lake Michigan. Very few people have fished all parts of the Great Lakes for carp for long enough periods of time to draw conclusions that can be universally applied from area to area. Wisconsin is not Beaver Island. Grand Traverse Bay is not Wilderness Park. Not all parts of the Great Lakes are the same. Fishing pressure, boating pressure, people, water depth, vegetation, bottom content, and many other factors make every specific part of the Great Lakes unique. I have fished most parts of Lake Michigan on both the Wisconsin and Michigan sides.

I’d like to thank John Bartlett (carponthfly.com) and Luis da Wrench for their input and suggestions on the original article, now updated. An additional note is that there are many good guides for Great Lakes carp. Kevin Morlock and Steve Martinez of Indigo Guide Service/Third Coast Fly are the guides for Beaver Island. Ethan Winchester and his guides up at Boyne Outfitters can give you advice on Wilderness Park area, and Brian Pitzer from the Northern Angler does carp in Traverse City. Finally, if you get one book on the Great Lakes, including carp, get Jerry Darkes’s book, Fly Fishing the Inland Oceans.

LOCATING GREAT LAKES CARP ON LAKE MICHIGAN

Everyone hears about the carp flats of Lake Michigan that attract carp normally from May to August. They do indeed exist, and there are miles upon miles of them. However, the water depth of the Great Lakes fluctuates. If the water comes up a foot or two in one year, then you might not have a lot of flats that you can access by wading, or you might have to really hunt for flats that you can wade. This, then, becomes a boat game, or you have to really stay in close near the shore. High water also keeps you away from the distinct drop-off that provides both the smallmouth and the carp an area of security. The takeaway is that you need to find water that is shallow enough for you to wade but that is near water deep enough to provide fish the deep water they need to feel secure. This doesn’t have to be a flat. It can be a point or small bay. The word “flats” is often used loosely to refer to shallow water that can be waded for a substantial distance. Just know that you’re looking for wadable water. That means wadable flats/points/bays near deep water.

In 2020, Lake Michigan was essentially as high as it has ever been. Shallow water was difficult to come by, so anyone who is new to the Great Lakes will not have the benefit of knowing where the shallow water is. The shallow water is often where only land was a few years ago. Use Google Maps to try and figure out shallow water if you need to find new water.

Next, water temperature is hugely important for finding fish. Carp love warm water, as do Great Lakes smallmouth, relatively speaking. Shallow water warms faster, so fish may be in this shallow water if everything else is ten degrees colder, particularly if it is near deep water. As John Bartlett points out in our podcast together, the wind pushes the warmer water into different coves and bays. The water is noticeably warmer as you wade. You will hit small pockets of colder water that is being mixed with the warmer water. Follow the wind and warmer water because the carp will, too. Pay close attention to this because carp will be found in specific sections of bays and coves. Move until you find the warmest water, and that may be just around a point or just a few hundred yards away. Once you’ve found warm water, keep moving until you find the fish.

Water temperature is important, but so is the weather. I always try to fish Lake Michigan when there is going to be sunny and warm weather. Ideally, the wind isn’t blowing you over either. I still have very good success when it’s cloudy as long as the water temperature is warm and fish are there and moving slowly. You just can’t see the fish anywhere near as far out. For this reason, I try to find areas that are attracting fish. In this way, the fish are coming to me. In lower light situations, as in cloudy days and at dusk, I find that carp become much bolder, and allow me to get much closer to them on Lake Michigan. The bright sunlight increases our ability to see fish tremendously, but I am normally happy if I have warm temps and happy fish. Ideally, the sun is out and you can see them coming from way off. This is fishing though, and I take what I can get. Having said that, bright sun is crucial for locating fish initially.

Follow the fish. In the Great Lakes, the fish move like saltwater fish at times. They often have somewhere to be, and carp move across the large expanses of water and flats to get to more desirable spots. You’ll find fish that are rapidly cruising all the time. They are difficult to get to eat in my experience, but they are going somewhere, so pay attention to the direction, and if you can, simply follow the fish to where they’re going. They will often bring you to a location where the fish are moving much more slowly. These fish are better targets.

As an example, I was casting to a lot of medium-sized carp one day, but they wanted nothing to do with my flies. I followed them to where they were going and found that they were moving into an area that had become covered in water because of the high water levels. These fish were mudding on the bottom very slowly like feeding carp everywhere. These fish were much more receptive to flies. Find where the fish are going. It makes all of the difference in the world.

I also believe that areas that have some form of protection from the wind are desirable to carp. They don’t have to fight against any current and can more easily loaf about. In my experience, they will often be moving a bit more slowly, as well, when they have some sort of wind protection. If you can find transition points of slow water by deep water, this can be filled with carp. Add to this pieces of cover and/or structure, and you have something that differentiates itself from the other miles of flats. Vegetation or rocks are a prime example. This also leads to another point: pay attention to bottom content. If you come to a lot of sand and a really flat area without any personality, it is normally not as productive for larger fish. On Lake Michigan, rocky bottoms with lots of intermittent boulders and rocks of various sizes provide excellent hiding areas for crayfish and gobies. The carp that will be found around here are normally active and looking for food.

The dark spots of carp gather around points and structure.

So, remember your prime objective is to find fish, and particularly fish that are moving slowly or with a purpose, i.e., to eat. Keep this in mind and keep moving until you find the fish, and hopefully the right fish, but keep a driven attitude and keep experimenting. I was reminded of this one time when I found some fish and was doing pretty well. I broke my rod tip and ran back to get my replacement rod. When I returned, I found two carp anglers in the exact same spot I was in ten minutes before. Because I have only seen a few carp anglers on the flats, I was a bit livid at my luck but tried to find some more fish. So, I hiked to some water that seemed to have all of the factors listed above. Fish were everywhere and were moving methodically, so they were prime targets.

Finally, from a general area perspective, I would concentrate on islands, peninsulas, bays, and flooded areas. These types of locations really produce the best habitat for fly anglers.

For some great information on locating Great Lakes carp, the effects of water height, and the dedication and mindset you need to consistently catch Great Lakes carp on the fly, check out this seven-year trip report. The first part of the post has a lot of very valuable information, particularly when you really analyze it.

PRESENTATIONS FOR GREAT LAKES CARP

If there is one factor that I would describe as more or less universal, it is a carp’s dislike of plopping sounds onto the water. They absolutely hate it. They have a Weberian apparatus, which makes them particularly sensitive to vibration. Many species of fish are attracted to the disturbance and sound of a fly falling into the water, but normally not carp. I try to avoid plopping sounds at all costs, and the pitch of the plopping sound may be key. Any high-pitched plop drives carp away in my experience. For this reason, cast farther away when using larger barbell eyes, and try to use them for mainly deeper water and in windy conditions.

So why use heavier, loudly-plopping eyes to begin with. The answer is depth and an ability to get the fly down fast. We need our flies to get down to the carp’s level, whether at the mid-depths or on the bottom. Lightly-weighted flies just don’t do this well enough at times. There are two main factors to consider when adjusting weight: the drop and the fish’s eating level. When your fly drops, carp in most fisheries are often attracted to this. However, I have never had a single Great Lakes carp eat my fly on the drop—that’s been my own experience with hundreds of carp. I’ve had many more spook from the falling fly or when I’ve pulled the fly through the water too quickly to get it into their feeding lane. John Bartlett, on the other hand, has had good success at times with the drop when fish are moving more slowly, are nearly stationary, or are resting fish. Try lightly weighted flies, and try to get a triggered strike out of these fish.

The fish’s eating level is critical for Great Lakes carp. My experience is that I want the fly to be on the bottom before the fish gets near the fly. Then, I can move it into position on the bottom, or I can twitch or jump the fly from the bottom. This normally requires heavily weighted flies, but then, you have the splash or plopping factor. For this reason, I often like using four large bead chain eyes as with the PC Goby, since it still gets the fly down but distributes the splash. Play around with how you tie and organize your flies though, and you can get some ideas in this article on carp flies.

Three more tips help me catch a lot more fish. Remember the different types of carp and their moods. John Bartlett really covers this well in this podcast on trophy carp. Examine the carp’s speed, relative mouth to bottom distance, and general swimming motion. Once you have found the right fish, make sure that the carp does not hit the tippet when it goes to eat the fly. Let’s say that the fish is coming down onto the fly and you’re holding the line straight up and down at close distances. The fish will feel the line first. They don’t like this. You want your leader to be lying flat if possible. Carp will ignore the line at times, but I’ve seen fish turn away after touching the tippet with their lips on their way down to eat a fly.

Finally, use some form of stealth. The ideas found in this article for steelhead and trout are very applicable here. I regularly have carp bolt from me at 80 to 90 feet when I’m standing in the middle of the flat casting. That’s not always the case, and I think a lot of it depends on pressure and how relaxed you make the fish. I’ve had many fish pass five feet from me when I use more stealth or the carp are very lightly pressured. Sharp movements, like when you cast, send carp into the abyss or put them in a negative feeding mood. I use cover when I can. I keep a low profile, and I use boulders in the water to hide my feet. I’ll actually stand on big rocks when I’m spotting fish and then gently drop down to lower my profile as I put the rock between me and the fish. If you have some lazy spawners, this won’t apply as much, but it still applies in pretty much every situation.

Keep in mind that the standard presentation for these fish on the Great Lakes is the drag and drop. If you can, cast past the fish, but if you can’t, try to cast to an area near the fish while anticipating the fish’s path. Experiment with the drop, and if it’s spooking fish, then get the fly to the fish’s level immediately. Get the fly near the fish’s head, but make the carp move to the fly by putting the fly a little to one side or in front of it a bit. Then, if the fish follows the fly, just stop it, and watch the fish. If the the fish does not go for the fly, you might try bouncing the fly to get the fish’s attention. At times, I will continue to move the fly slowly when I can’t see the fish very well. Then, I will feel for resistance and strip strike.

On a slightly different note, you will notice two different colors of carp on the Great Lakes at times. It’s very pronounced as the fish are swimming. One is a gold, and the other is a dark, almost black color. Cast to the gold-colored carp if you can since they are often better eaters and fighters.

DETECTING STRIKES

Strike detection with carp is one of the most difficult aspects to master (I haven’t). Many times these fish will put a sipping rainbow trout to shame. They move like a sloth when they come down to gently suck up your fly. Often there is very little movement, I’m convinced we would catch many more fish if we had perfect strike detection. This is why John Bartlett says, “Make ‘em move a little to the fly.” If the carp is moving pretty aggressively, the take will normally be more pronounced. In most cases, I watch for the subtle dip and pay attention to the fish’s movements, and when in doubt, it’s good advice to set the hook. A strip strike is the safest way to avoid snagging the fish if it didn’t take. You might eventually snag a fish or two, but you will also catch a lot more fish. Incidentally, I strip set unless the fish is very close. Then, I trout set since I want the rod to absorb some of the force on the hookset at close distances. Also, sharp and sticky hooks are hugely important, and I know that in many cases, I have become aware that a carp has taken my fly only after the hook got caught on the fish’s lip because it was so sharp. Strong, sticky hooks are hugely important for carp in all venues.

GREAT LAKES CARP FLIES

I personally always like to think of flies for all species of fish in terms of features and function, and this is really important for carp. Because of the finicky and fickle nature of carp, effective fly features outside of different weights and an upright hook have been somewhat difficult to nail down. For example, how should we approach fly color, what’s the effect of flash on carp, and how about fly size? The available prey to a carp is obviously a great start when selecting a fly, but there are so many times when a carp has dozens of different sized prey items available or when we just don’t know what is available, such as when we fish a new body of water. We can normally assume the “standard” prey items. Adapt your techniques to the prey items you know are present in your particular fishery.

To be clear, gobies are the primary food source for carp on Lake Michigan. On different parts of Lake Michigan, you can see thousands of them of various sizes jumping off of the bottom as you walk. Crayfish and other insects can be an important food source as well. Most anglers I know use goby and crayfish imitations almost exclusively.

I often hear people talk about Great Lakes carp as if they are unreal predators, chasing down flies like a smallmouth bass. In my experience, this is the exception, although these carp do eat things that move normally. They also do not often eat “big” flies. I’m coming to great lakes carp as someone who regularly fishes 6-inch flies. My local creek carp regularly take my 2.5-inch PC Goby pattern. Great Lakes carp are not that different from the carp I normally fish to. In most years, you probably shouldn’t anticipate throwing three and four-inch flies to charging carp all day, while catching fish after fish. If you do that, then more power to you, but that has not been my experience on an average day.

I normally don’t fish flies over 3 inches for Lake Michigan carp, but in some years when the gobies are larger on average or you fish particularly deeper water (often from a boat), you might find success with larger flies. In fact, the fish might prefer these larger patterns. A good rule of thumb for me is to start out with the bulkier 1.5-inch to 2.5-inch goby style flies and then to watch the reactions of the fish. Are they ignoring the fly, are they interested but not committing, are the fish cruising, or are they moving slowly? Incidentally, I normally cast larger and more visible flies to the fast cruisers in deeper water. Finally, are you spooking fish?

If you’re getting good presentations but the fish are ignoring or not committing, experiment with fly placement relative to the carp’s head, but then, try different flies. The Great Lakes normally have larger prey items like crayfish and gobies, but there are also hex nymphs, etc., and if you start moving into marshy areas, the food base increases dramatically in diversity. Keep in mind the specific habitat and the prey items that are best suited to this habitat.

A case in point is when my biggest Great Lakes carp came from a weedy area where fish wanted nothing to do with my larger goby and leech style patterns. I switched to a Hybrid and caught a 24 pounder on the first cast. It commenced to spook every carp within a hundred yards as it flew into the reeds. This is not a “traditional” Great Lakes fly, but adjust your fly and presentation to the conditions.

The size of your fly can be extremely important. I’ll regularly fish 1 to 1.5-inch flies when the carp aren’t interested in the larger 1.5-inch to 2.5-inch flies. In all carp fly fishing situations, downsizing may be critical. In fact, I’ve had situations were seemingly disinterested fish suddenly wanted to eat after I downsized my fly pattern. If you’re getting good presentations, but the fish aren’t interested, downsize and use a color you can see.

Color can make a big difference, and I think it has to do with visibility more than anything at times. Black has been very good on cloudy days or when I need to see the fly better, like when you’re using smaller flies. This is similar to orange/redish colors as well, and I’ve used my standard Jackalope Carp Fly in orange and black. Natural tans, browns, and olives are really my go-to fly colors most of the time though.

Flash may also be an important trigger for carp. I tie my version of the incredibly effective Hybrid with sparkle chenille, like many do. I’m not sure if this has any effect at all, but the fish definitely do not mind some flash and love this fly. I’ve also seen fish that were extremely attracted to very flashy flies. I’m still in the research phase of flash on the Great Lakes, so see what happens with a few flashy flies on the flats. I do know fly anglers who find that flash has a negative effect on Great Lakes carp.

PLAYING AND HANDLING FISH

Advice on playing fish is often a neglected aspect of fly fishing for carp since we’re all supposed to know how to play a fish. This fact makes sense to a certain extent, but a few tips have helped me to land an extremely high percentage of the fish I’ve hooked on the Lake Michigan.

First and foremost, your sticky hooks get the hook into the fish. Then, your hook has to hold up to the steady but powerful run of the fish. I use the Owner Mosquito in 1/0 and 1 for the biggest patterns I use. Gamakatsu C14S hooks size 4 to 10 are a great all-round hook for carp. Traditional bonefish hooks, particularly the Daiichi X452 can be very good as well, and I have caught a lot of fish on Tiemco 811Ss, but they will bend in smaller sizes (4 and smaller). Finally, Gamakatsu and Owner Octopus hooks (1 to 6) are extremely good for Lake Michigan carp. They have a very open gap, are super strong and sharp, and have a small shank.

For leaders and tippet, I use 14lb to 18lb (.012) fluorocarbon tippet, often on my own tied leaders, but both Scientific Anglers and RIO have saltwater nylon and fluorocarbon leaders. Leaders can be 11 to 12 foot for deeper presentations all the way to 6 feet for close, shallow presentations. It’s good to start with around 9 feet for all-alround presentations. I start with 18lb. tippet and go down depending on the fish’s response, depth, and my fly size. Then, I’ll come down in diameter if the fly needs to sink faster, the fly needs to land softer, the fly is smaller, or the water is extremely calm. In general, pound test is meaningless for presentation; it’s all about diameter and line qualities. However, breaking strength is important when fighting these fish, and I go as big as I can normally.

As far as setups, I fish a nine or a ten weight (Sage Xi3 9 wt. and Sage Method 10 wt.) and never feel that it is too much rod for fighting the fish, delivering weighted flies, or casting into the wind. I use the nine on calm days when possible and match these with Hatch Finatics and their incredible, large arbor for when a fish runs back at you or when you just want to pick up line fast. When it comes to durability, I also set my rods and reels in the water a lot, so use a reel that can handle this if you’re like me. There are plenty of good fly lines on the market, and I use primarily RIO and SA lines. These lines are standard floating lines meant for saltwater or freshwater situations. This is the gear I use, but use quality gear on these guys for sure, and prepare for the wind.

Finally, holding these fish out of the water is way harder than you would think, at least in my experience. Think of holding a 20 pound bowling ball covered in olive oil. Dropping any fish on the ground can do damage because their bodies are used to being in water permanently.

One thing that I have only very recently tried is to use a small mesh bag to grip the fish ten times easier. I don’t like the way that larger mesh bags look in my photos, so I’ve just used a generic soft mesh bag that held one of my kids’ toys. It fits just barely over my outstretched hand, and works beautifully. It’s small enough that it is not too distracting in photos, but it will allow you to hold a carp much more securely. I’m going to use it on every fish I need to hold for a photo from here on out.

Above all, don’t forget your net. A net makes life easier on everyone involved, including the fish. You can net a fish much earlier in the fight and allow the fish to not have to fight until it’s absurdly tired. You can also manage the fish for photos and removal of the fly. Always bring your big net.

Many of these details and tips work on all carp fly fishing situations, but they have been particularly useful for me when fly fishing for Lake Michigan carp. This is not the Gospel, so experiment to find out what works best for you because water levels will totally change the water you fished only a few years previously.

The Great Lakes are some of the largest freshwater lakes in the world, and they have hundreds of miles of shoreline and sometimes surprising diversity. The more areas we discover, the more we can keep the experience one of solitude for ourselves and other anglers, which is a huge part of the overall Great Lakes carp experience. Hopefully, we can continue to expand this fishing even more on Lake Erie and Lake Huron, which have some amazing opportunities as well. Great Lakes carp are an amazing and challenging gamefish, and hopefully with this info, you can have more joy than frustration. To improve this article, feel free to reply below. We’d love to hear your experience.

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Fly fishing with chironomids is one of the most effective techniques for stillwater fly fishing. This type of fly fishing often doesn’t evoke images of high testosterone hundred-yard casts and ripping giant seven-inch streamers into the mouth of a toothy brown trout. Don’t be fooled though. The fish that are willing to eat these millions of aquatic insects are almost always no less mean and toothy. Sometimes big trout want a large steak, while at other times they prefer popcorn or M&Ms. It’s up to you to be skilled enough to adapt to their moods and food opportunities. The tactics used to fish these smallish stillwater patterns require skill and patience, but they will pay off with not only trout, but other species. In this first of a two-part series, we discuss the fundamentals and fine-tuning of chironomid fly fishing. In part 2, we discuss some of the more advanced techniques with chironomids. The information in these podcasts will help you in any stillwater situation, including warm-water environments, and are a hugely important arrow in your fly fishing quiver.

KEY TAKEAWAYS: FLY FISHING WITH CHIRONOMIDS * Midge/Chironomids are everywhere within most fisheries. * They make up a huge portion of the biomass. * Always look for active fish near the surface because active fish are very often feeding fish. * Spend around 15-30 minutes in one place before moving. * When fish feed on chironomids, they often congregate. * Phil believes that the response to chironomids is Pavlovian, meaning that the fish will take midge/chironomid imitations even when the naturals are not present.

CHIRONOMID LIFE CYCLE: LARVA

• Chironomids have a complete metamorphosis: larva, pupa, and adult.
• The larva is often called the bloodworm because many retain hemoglobin which turns them red.
• The larva can be 100 to 200 feet down and in oxygen-depleted areas where detritus is present.
• Many larvae are free-living, but many also construct tubes along the mud-water interface along the bottom.
• You find the larvae in muddy bottoms as well as over weedbeds.
• To begin with, start near the bottom when imitating the larval stage or concentrate near the weedbeds that they may be using.
• Think about currents and wind and how they may be pushing dislodged larva toward the surface.
• Time of season and day are important for the larval form: low-light periods, early in the season, early in the morning, summer when fish have moved into deeper water, and late fall when other food sources are less available.

CHIRONOMID LIFE CYCLE: PUPA

• The pupa is exposed during its entire stage, so it becomes particularly important for trout and other fish.
• Apolysis is the separation of the shuck, which traps gas between the shuck and adult inside causing the pupa to be very shiny.
• Pupa often stage for days, suspending just above the bottom in dense clouds. As the pupa elevate toward the surface trout will follow them through the different levels of the water column.

CHIRONOMID LIFE CYCLE: ADULT

• Mornings and evenings are normally the best times to experiment with adult patterns.

TARGETING SPECIFIC WATER LEVELS

• Identify major areas that are likely habitat.
• Identify areas that are active with chironomids through signs. This is “the Field of Dreams” idea; if the conditions are right, the fish will eventually be there.
  • Moving fish
  • Other anglers having success
  • Pupal shucks
  • Adults flying around
• Begin to experiment with various depths through different presentations.
  • Indicators have two advantages: depth control and variable speeds on retrieve.

FLY SELECTION

• Flies should be at least a little different from the naturals to attract attention to your patterns.
• Small differences can make a huge difference in success.
• Size, color, aggressiveness of retrieve all work together.
• The longer adult chironomids are alive, often the darker they will become.
• Throughout the hatch, there is a gradual down-sizing, so if you see #12 adults, the pupae may be #10, etc.
• Often larger flies may help you to stand out in the hoard of midge in the water.
• Start from dark to light (black to chrome).
  • Black with a red rib works everywhere.

SOME TOP FLY PATTERNS

• Patterns featuring white beads, such as Chan’s Chironomid Pupa, are great for turbid and slightly stained water, but fish will often shy away from the stark white beadhead patterns in really clear water.
• Phil’s Black Sally is great for clearer water situations when patterns featuring white beads seem too overt.
• Chromies in lots of different variations can be very effective.
• The collaborator is a good all-round pattern.
• Attractors like Chan’s Beadhead Chironomid Bomber can the ticket at times.

PRESENTATION

• Depth and retrieve are the most important steps to get right (it always trumps pattern).
• Use double fly rigs when possible.
• Speed of retrieve can vary from dead-drift to rise and fall of the chironomid pattern when using indicator rigs.
• With light winds, cast against the wind and let it drift your chironomids back toward you, almost as if you were in a river.
• Attention to detail is critical, particularly when it comes to depth and speed.

RIGGING

Lines

• Lines for close in and short casts of awkward indicator rigs
  • Rio’s Extreme Indicator
  • Rio’s Trout/Salmon

Leaders and Rigging

• Rio Indicator leader
• Barrel Swivel #12, #14, #16
• 2 feet from swivel to point fly
• If necessary, add fluorocarbon tippet from the 10 foot leader to the swivel to extend the depth.
• Another option is to add a full level leader (10 to 13 feet of level 1x to 3x) to the swivel.

Double Rigs

• Sliding dropper
• You can do a similar setup with a bloodknot or a triple surgeons knot.
• He prefers the sliding dropper to flies that are dropper style, i.e., tied from the point fly.

LINKS AND RESOURCES FOR THE PODCAST Phil’s Website: Fly Craft Angling

Phil’s Email Address: flycraft@shaw.ca

Phil and Brian’s Stillwater Store

Brian Chan’s website

YouTube Channel

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

Fly fishing with chironomids is a great fly fishing skill in itself, but you can also take these ideas and skills into other areas of your fly fishing, primarily when fishing for trout, Great Lakes steelhead and browns, and many different warm-water species. As far as stillwater fly fishing is concerned, chironomids are hugely important in most bodies of water, and because they are so prolific, trout will at times key on these and ignore nearly all other food sources. Fly fishing with chironomids is not for everyone, but if you prefer catching lots of big trout to going for a boat ride, then give them a try when it’s obvious that you need to be fishing them. If you have any questions about indicators or anything else having to do with chironomids and fly fishing, feel free to ask a question in the comments below. Good luck!

The post FLY FISHING WITH CHIRONOMIDS PART 1 WITH PHIL ROWLEY [PODCAST] appeared first on ToFlyFish.

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Musky fly fishing has become so popular that it is almost common to find someone in your fly fishing circle who fly fishes for muskies almost exclusively. The payoff with musky on the fly is a toothy fish with arguably the biggest appetite of any species taken on a fly, pound for pound. There are a lot of barriers that get in the way of success, when it comes to fly fishing for muskies. The scarcity of fish, the huge flies, accessing where muskies live, and even handling the fish once it has been caught are all challenges for most fly anglers. To aid in your musky fly fishing, there are a handful of anglers who really know as much as any angler in the world. Rick Kustich is one of these anglers, and he brings decades of experience in musky fly fishing. His new book is now the standard for musky fly fishing and is filled with lots of musky knowledge. In this podcast, he discusses all things musky and, particularly, how to tackle specific types of water.

KEY TAKEAWAYS: MUSKY FLY FISHING BASICS OF HUNTING MUSKIES WITH A FLY

• Have proper expectations when fishing for muskies.
• In general, practice weight training and exercise regularly, practice your casting, and possibly use a two-handed rod to be able to keep yourself on the water with as much comfort as possible.
• Use follows and other musky encounters as victories and as valuable knowledge for the next time you’re out. Learn from these experiences.
• Muskies are at the top of the food chain, have a swagger, and are quite curious.
• Triggering fish is incredibly important, particularly at the boat.

FINDING ACTIVE MUSKIES

• Timing is hugely important for finding active muskies since they eat larger meals most of the time, so they don’t have to eat as often.
• Moon rises and sets are prime times for musky.
• Rick’s go-to method is to fish prime spots, trying to find the most aggressive fish.
• Possibly fish those prime spots multiple times per day.
• At key times, like when muskies pod up in the winter, you can spend a lot of time on these particular places, even anchoring here.
• Bait is critical to finding muskies, and the bait are attracted to places like weedbeds, i.e., cover/structure where the food chain can thrive.
• Visual food-chain activity in general is really important too.
• Musky “prime lies” with depth and cover/structure are great places to spend your efforts.

FLIES FOR MUSKY FLY FISHING

• Small flies are often good early in the season (post spawn).
• Begin with natural colors in clear water and in general. Then experiment after this.
• Action is hugely important. Kick/walk-the-dog action is a must.
• Multiple shanks and a larger head help achieve great fly action.
• Rick often begins with 10 to 12 inch flies.
• Use smaller flies if the fish aren’t committing.
• Use smaller, less wind resistant flies when you are tired.

AT THE BOAT

• Water temperature dictates retrieve speed as much, if not more, than prey items.
• Getting fish to lock in is critical to converting fish at the boat.
• Retrieve right up to the shock tippet/wire knot at the rod.
• Rick retrieves his fly with his rod tip about two feet under the water before he goes into his figure eight.
• Rick uses 2 to 4 figure eights, and maybe even 6, if the fish are coming in lazy.
• He often just does a big oval with wide turns for his “figure eight.”
• Give the fish a side profile with the fly.
• He speeds up the fly going into his figure eight.
• The turn is very important, and he speeds up on the turn.

DEEP-WATER POOLS

• Use the proper sink tip.
• Possibly use a weighted fly if there is current.
• Count down the tip so that you’re in the bottom third of the pool.
• Possibly slow down the retrieve to keep the fly down.
• Concentrate on unique structural and cover features of the pool.

DROP-OFFS AND BOULDERS

• Rick fishes from shallow into deep water.
• Boulders are important for creating soft water, particularly in current, which is hugely important for muskies.

REEFS

• Reefs are drop offs/humps with their own ecosystem.
• Similar to drop offs in that he casts to the deep water.

SANDY BAYS AND BARS

• Early in the season, smaller flies are normally effective.
• Lead the fish a lot in sight fishing scenarios.

MAN-MADE STRUCTURES

• Dams and breakwalls are almost always very good places to try.

WEEDBEDS AND WEED EDGES

• Possibly the most productive cover/structure to find muskies.
• Whenever you find weeds, fish them.
• If you encounter heavy weed growth, concentrate on the edges by deep water.
• Thick weedbeds with water over them to around 6 to 10 feet can be extremely productive.
• Also, pockets in thick weedbeds can be great too.

TIMBER AND BRUSH

• Always give timber and brush good coverage.
• Make multiple casts at different positions, and don’t cast to the same spot multiple times.
• It is incredibly important for small to medium sized rivers, but should always be a focal point.
• Fallen logs are great places for muskies.

LINKS AND RESOURCES FOR THE PODCAST Rick’s Website

Rick’s Book

Blane Chocklett

Nick Pionessa

Different Fly Actions

Musky fly fishing is an extreme form of fly fishing. With advancements in gear and in musky fly fishing tactics, we are more capable of catching muskies on the fly than ever before. Many, many muskies on the fly over 50 inches have come to hand, with the current world record measuring in at 57 inches. You yourself may be an unsuspecting victim of the musky bug, when, after hours of launching wet socks, you experience that first musky on the fly. That one musky might be enough for you, but then again, “normal” fly fishing life may have just ceased, and you may now count yourself as one of the ever increasing obsessive musky bums. If you’ve already done this, you know where you stand full well. Either way, life is better than ever when fly fishing for muskies.

The post MUSKY FLY FISHING: THE HUNT with RICK KUSTICH [PODCAST] appeared first on ToFlyFish.

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Fly fishing for permit in Belize, or for permit in general, is unpredictable, as some of you might painfully acknowledge. Once we get at the top of our game, these fish disappear or won’t have anything to do with our fly. Time on the water is as valuable a teacher as anything. I’ve been lucky enough to spend long winters in Northern Belize and be a part of a family-run lodge called the Blue Bonefish. It’s allowed me to spend a lot of time both catching and witnessing lots of permit caught on the fly. These fish keep you guessing, and the weather and tides can be huge factors in success. No one has totally figured out permit, and even though I’ve personally taken over 60 on the fly in Belize and been a part of many more permit experiences, these fish keep teaching me a bit more each trip. That’s what keeps a permit angler coming back—that unpredictable fish. Versatility is what I’ve learned on the water, and the lessons I’ve learned can help you cut the learning curb in the Caribbean, particularly in Northern Belize, for that unpredictable permit.

FLY FISHING FOR PERMIT IN NORTHERN BELIZE: PERMIT FLIES

When fly fishing for permit in Belize, crab flies work for sure, particularly the SS Permit Crab. The thing with crabs is that it’s really hard to match the way a crab moves in the water, and most crab flies have an awkward wobble when stripped and look unnatural. This is probably why a lot of people cast the crab out and let it sit, since moving the fly tips the fish off that there’s something wrong with this thing. Because of this, you’re more limited to the “heave and leave” style presentation. If you can find a crab fly that looks like a crab and moves like a crab (that’s the key), then you’ll catch permit with that fly.

I personally fish a lot of shrimp patterns for permit. I love the versatility of shrimp patterns for permit because they look so much more natural in the water when you move them, and I move my fly a lot when I’m going after permit, depending on the fish’s mood. I tie a lot of spawning shrimp patterns in tan with orange rubber legs and sometimes orange yarn similar to the Avalon fly, Peterson’s Spawning Shrimp, and the Hot Legs Gotcha. Like with a Woolly Bugger for trout, I want my permit flies to be impressionistic and not necessarily look exactly like one prey item. The fly should land softly, have the appropriate weight for the depth, have nice movement with materials like Arctic fox etc., and have some color for a little attraction—I love orange. Finally, the fly cannot foul because if it does, then it’s game over. Make sure the rubber legs are placed appropriately to avoid fouling.

As far as the other qualities of the fly, make sure your hooks are high quality hooks like Gamakatsu and Daiichi, since you can easily dull hooks on coral etc. Hook size will normally vary from #1/0 – #6. This is pretty straight forward, but use bigger and heavier flies for deeper water and bigger permit and smaller flies for shallow water and smaller permit. The weight should vary from medium/large bead chain to heavy lead. You need to stay flexible and adjust to each condition, and I’ll actually take multiple rigged rods if conditions might change suddenly. You don’t really need weed guards on the flats we fish on Ambergris very often, but in some areas, it’s a must, as with lots of flats in the Florida Keys, so you should have some flies with weed guards when going after permit in Northern Belize. My go-to pattern is usually a #2 spawning shrimp style pattern.

PRESENTING THE FLY TO PERMIT: THINK LIKE THE PREY

TYPES OF PERMIT AND HOW TO SPOT THEM

When fly fishing for permit in Belize, there are two general types of permit you’ll be looking for: schoolies and bigger fish, which usually come in ones, twos, and threes. Schoolies are usually easier to catch and will be from about 12 pounds and below. “Schoolie” permit present particular challenges, however, in that they have a lot more eyes to sense danger, so make sure to lead these fish enough that you don’t spook one of the school. I cast farther away from these permit, particularly in shallow water. The bigger fish are quite a bit more unpredictable and are found in deeper water normally. These permit can be very aggressive at times as well. On a recent trip, my buddy and I had just found a really nice permit on a windy light-colored flat with large limestone-looking patches. He led the fish by about six feet, and as the fly sank, the permit rolled onto its side like a spawning salmon and grabbed the fly out of the water column. He strip-set on the fish but pulled the fly out of the fish’s mouth. Quickly, he stripped the fly again and let it fall. The fish then pounced on the #2 spawning shrimp again, and this time we got him, an awesome 25 pound plus permit.

The best way to spot permit is to have really good eyesight and an innate ability to spot fish. If you don’t have this, then here are a few tips. Like with all saltwater fishing, look for nervous water, but even more important for me is to look for the dark from their tails. Make sure to have great optics, and don’t underestimate the importance of experience. The more you are on the water, the better you’ll get at spotting permit.

APPROACHING PERMIT

Once you’ve found the permit, you need to get within casting distance. Wading for permit lets you get much closer and allows you to stay versatile. It allows you to keep tight on the strip and to set up where you have the best cast with respect to the wind. In the Western Caribbean, larger boats are the norm for guided trips, and these boats are much louder with hull-slap from the waves and other factors. For this reason, the guides usually approach with the wind. When the permit are coming at you, this can make it harder to keep a tight line on the permit when stripping, since you are coming into the fish at a faster pace. This isn’t as much an issue when the wind isn’t howling, and wading is great when you can do it, but it’s not for every situation. The key is knowing when to wade and knowing when to fish out of the boat. There are negatives to wading, since you can’t see the permit as well and you’re less mobile if you have to chase the fish, without roasting your hip flexors. If I’m casting from the boat, I cast from 65 feet to as far as I can cast, so that I don’t alert the permit to our presence. You can get substantially closer, wading.

LEADING PERMIT ON THE CAST

Everyone wants the magic formula for leading permit, but no one way works in every situation. Large schools of permit versus bigger singles require different leads. In windy deep conditions, cast close to the fish within 1 – 3 feet, particularly if the fish is a single or in a small group. In shallow water and big schools, lead the fish from about 6 – 10 feet. I’ll cast well ahead of these permit and just wait for them to come up on the fly.

MOVING THE FLY AND READING PERMIT

Once your fly is in the water, there is one fact that cannot be overlooked, “permit have to see your fly”. Get that fly in the fish’s face. However, when you cast, you want the cast to unfold just above the water but not slap down on it if you can help it. It’s easy to do casting downwind but very hard into it. At this point, the biggest advice I can give you is to think like the prey. This is how you should move or not move your fly. Shrimp and crabs, for that matter, don’t move a lot until they’ve been spooked, and so let the fly drop with a nice long strip. When the fish sees the fly, give the fly a little bit faster strip as if it’s realized it’s going to be lunch. The fish should be there on the next strip, if not, let it hit bottom. Then give the fly a bump and wait. I move my fly quite a bit during this whole process, since that’s what the prey does.

You need to be tight on your fly, so you can feel everything going on. Try to watch the fish’s mouth as much as possible and you’ll see him take the fly even high up in the water column. If you can’t see the fish’s mouth, then try to watch how the fish is tipping. Either way, you should still be able to feel the fish take. If you think, he’s on it, strip-set and live with the consequences. You may just get another shot.

ESSENTIAL GEAR AND RIGS FOR PERMIT ON THE FLY

As far as gear is concerned when fly fishing for permit in Belize, you need a quality reel and rod, but your skill is more important than the rod when it comes to casting, so yeah, you need to practice. I fish both 10 and 9 weights depending on the wind. With my line and leader set-up, I’m quite particular . I fish a clear floating fly line like the Cortland Liquid Crystal, which I like for one main reason but other minor reasons: I think the fish see the line less in the air. I really believe in the clear line, but you can’t track your fly as well, so use what you feel more comfortable with. I attach as long of a leader as possible to this. My leader is a full fluorocarbon leader (RIO’s Fluoroflex Saltwater/Bonefish) in either #20 or #16 depending on the wind and presence of coral (heavier for stronger wind and with coral around) and to this I’ll add 3 to 7 feet of tippet, once again based on the wind (shorter for stronger wind). My leaders end up being 12 – 16 feet long with my tippet being anywhere from a 16 – 12 pound rating (RIO’s Fluoroflex Plus 0x – 2x). If I had to go with a guide spool of tippet, I would use 12 pound, since I really think the smaller diameter increases your odds with these fish for whatever reason. Whether they can see it less or it gives the fly more action is not as important as the confidence I’ve gained from actually doing better with smaller diameter tippets with both permit and bonefish. You need to know your skills with fighting fish though, so don’t bite off more than you can chew.

BEST SHOT AT CATCHING A PERMIT

Finally, if you want to catch a permit—if you’re just lying awake at night thinking about catching a permit, and you want my recommendation on your best shot at catching one, I can offer you this advice. Concentrate on the large schools of permit that you can find around Belize. Your goal is to find a school of unmolested permit under ten pounds. Make the decision whether to wade or not, depending on the situation, and then cast a #4 – #6 spawning shrimp style fly way in front of them with enough room for error. Strip like I recommended, keeping everything tight and working with your guide. Then once you hook into the permit, the fun is over…these fish do not play nice, but there are worse problems to have!

JAMES JOHNSON is a young but already experienced guide and has been around fly fishing since he was four years old. He has the enviable position of spending his summers in Alaska, winters in Belize, and spring and falls in Michigan on the Pere Marquette. He officially started guiding in Alaska and Michigan at the age of 16 but was working around his family’s lodge from the age of 12. He has extensive saltwater experience, fishing the Florida Keys, throughout the Bahamas, and an inordinate amount of time in Belize where he helps run the family lodge, the Blue Bonefish. If you have any questions about permit in Belize or any of his other guiding adventures, contact him at flyguide.jj@gmail.com.

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The Clouser Minnow is one of those flies that is always there. It’s always there calling to you, saying, “You always know that you can catch some fish with me at any time. Stop messing around with the other stuff and just catch some fish. Tie me on.” Like the Woolly Bugger, the Clouser is super versatile. Many fly anglers are familiar with the fact that Lefty Kreh at one point many years ago had caught at least 86 species on this fly pattern. That number may be over 100 now. Either way, the Clouser Minnow should be a staple of yours on at least some of your fly fishing venues. My personal prize catch was an obese bullfrog that grabbed my Clouser as I dragged it over some rocks to pick it up. The fly catches fish…and frogs!

THE CLOUSER MINNOW: SIMPLICITY AND VERSATILITY IN ACTION The beauty of this fly is in its simplicity. This simplicity allows you to adapt the pattern to make it even better for your particular fishing situation. You can use synthetics, high-ties, low-ties, lots of flash (Flashtail Clouser style or otherwise), or many other techniques and materials. In fact, the Clouser has become almost a style rather than a pattern, much like the Hollow Fleye.

You can also mess with the weighted eyes. You can increase the weight. You can decrease the weight. You can add a keel. You can adjust the position of the weight on the hook for different actions. These and other reasons are why almost every angler who has pursued fish that eat minnows with regularity has used a Clouser Minnow at some point.

FLY DESIGN OF THIS PARTICULAR CLOUSER MINNOW With this particular version of the Clouser Minnow, we work with synthetic materials: lots of flash and craft fur. Some low ties with cream-colored craft fur provide a nice base over which we can place some white craft fur. This has two main effects: the cream craft fur subtly washes out the white, and the low ties make the base wider without having to add lots of craft fur at the head.

The fly for this Clouser is tied on a jig hook, mainly because of the features of the hooks itself—it’s the perfect hook when you might encounter some big fish, but it is still thin enough to sink in, without having to throw your back out on the hookset. The Gamakatsu 294 is actually no longer made, but if you look around a bit you can find some manufacturers that still have a bunch of them.

The flash is placed throughout this Clouser to maintain a nice profile. Flash is something that can be a huge trigger to fish, particularly in clear to semi-clear water, since the fish can be attracted to your fly from a long distance away. Two of my favorite types of flash are lateral line and holographic flashabou. Both of these types of flash have dozens and dozens of flashpoints versus regular flashabou, which will have one main flashpoint plus the overall flash that it provides with the strand itself. Play around with the flash though, since too much of a good thing is too much, even if it is good. Finally, because there is so much flash, it will actually provide more bulk and therefore a bigger aquatic profile in the water when you work the fly.

HOW THE MATERIAL CHOICES AFFECT THIS CLOUSER MINNOW The material choices of this Clouser pattern will affect how it performs in the water. Because the fly is tied with pretty much all synthetics, it will sink a bit more than if it were tied with bunny or bucktail. This causes the fly to have a more pronounced sink on the pause. The Craft fur will buoy the fly up a bit, particularly if you tie it fuller like in the video, but overall, it still sinks faster than a fly tied with naturally buoyant materials. The action with the craft fur and the flash together is very nice.

This particular version of the Clouser Minnow has a low tie on the bottom to increase the profile of the fly throughout the retrieve. This profile is important when you have fish like shad and menhaden, which have that wider profile. You could substitute these out for longer pieces of craft fur, and this would give the fly a smaller profile but provide a little more flip to the materials, particularly if the fly is tied more sparsely. Make your decisions based on your own preferences and fishery.

The lead eyes are placed at the traditional one-third mark. This again helps the fly to dive a bit more on the pause. If you want a fly that has more of a straight motion in the water, then lighten the eyes and position them more to the center of the hook. I personally think the dipping action gives you more trigger points and really makes this fly special. There are lots of profile flies that have a nice profile with little action. Either way play around with this guy to find what works for you.

• Hook: Jig hook (In video Gamakatsu 294: 3/0)
• Thread: UTC 140 (white); UTC 210 or strong thread (red)
• Eyes: Dumbbell eyes, plated (common 1/30 oz (in video) and 1/20 oz)
• Flash Belly and Mid: Lateral line and flashabou (pearl)
• Flash Top: Holographic flashabou (silver)
• Body: Hareline extra select craft fur (white and cream)
• Wings: Hareline extra select craft fur (white, chartreuse, and fl. blue)
• Lacquer: Zap-a-gap (brushable) etc.

The post CLOUSER MINNOW PATTERN: EXPLORING DIFFERENT TYING OPTIONS appeared first on ToFlyFish.

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The bull redfish, “bull reds,” of Louisiana have occupied some of the most exciting fly fishing videos to date. These leviathans are the stuff of dreams, and every fall and winter, we see countless pictures of these humongous beasts scattered throughout the social media feeds. The Louisiana marsh and beyond is an amazingly unique fishery, but nothing in fishing is a sure thing. Weather can destroy any saltwater trip. Many variables go into making any trip a successful one. In this episode, Meredith McCord shares her knowledge and gives us detailed suggestions on how to plan a trip to Louisiana for bull redfish. She will really help you avoid problems and make any fly fishing travel to Louisiana a much more pleasurable one.

KEY TAKEAWAYS: PLANNING A TRIP FOR LOUISIANA BULL REDFISH * Major areas of Louisiana: Chandeleur Islands, the Biloxi Marsh, Empire, Buras, Venice, the area surrounding Houma * When planning a trip for Louisiana bull reds, remember that the weather and water clarity are everything!

SEASONS AND A PRACTICAL APPROACH TO BOOKING TRIPS

• The fishing in Louisiana for redfish of all sizes is excellent year-round.
• The bull red season is September to early March, normally, but this can change a bit, depending on the weather.
• The best “popper season,” in Meredith’s opinion, is September to October .
• Early part of the season is “a little” more predictable as far as the weather and water clarity is concerned.
• The latter part of the season, which is often overlooked due to winter storms, will often produce some of the largest fish of the season.
• Book at least four days of fishing, and plan on the possibility that half of those days may be lost to the weather.

SOME PLACES SHE LIKES TO STAY

• Good central location: Woodland Plantation (see links below)
• Hopedale: The Dogwood Lodge (Southern Way Charters: see links below)
• Venice: Sportsman’s Lodge (Southern Way Charters: see links below)
• Venice: Eric and Moe Newman just opened a place (Journey South Outfitters: see links below)
• Chandeleur Islands: Live aboard charter boats, Southern Way or the Southern Cross (Southern Way Charters: see links below)

SUGGESTIONS ON GETTING AROUND AND STANDARD GEAR EXPECTATIONS

• Rental cars are normally the best solution for local transportation giving you flexibility, but when staying at a lodge, you might be able to just take a taxi from the airport. However, a rental car is suggested.
• Always talk to your guides to get rod and fly recommendations if you are bringing your own gear. Backup rods are highly suggested.
• Meredith likes a 9wt and a 10wt for these fish.
• Meredith follows IGFA recommendations and uses 20lb. test. Some guides will go as high as 40 or 60 lb. test.
• 6 to 9 foot leaders are typical.

TIPS TO KEEP IN MIND FOR BULL REDS

• Practice casting from 20 to 50 feet. Accuracy is most important.
• Be ready! When you’re talking to your guide, keep your eyes forward looking for fish.
• If your guide changes course suddenly, look at where he is looking, and you may spot the fish before he even says anything.
• Know your clock when on a given guide’s casting deck.
• Make sure that you and your guide agree on what a given casting distance is before you see the fish.
• Don’t let go of your slack line when you cast because you need to have control immediately.

CHOOSING GUIDES AND OUTFITTERS

• Meredith works with Tailwaters Travel, which puts about 400 people in the marsh and specifically with Woodland Plantation, so she recommends Tailwaters and Woodland Plantation, of course.
  • It’s great for a larger group.
  • Great for the ladies in your life, due to comfort and excellent food.
  • Guides are great.
• Shallow Water Expeditions
• Fly Water Expeditions
• Redfish Dynasty
• She recommends getting guides who have been down there for many years and recommends talking to someone who has fished with a particular guide down there.

LINKS AND RESOURCES FOR THE PODCAST Meredith on Instagram

Meredith on Facebook

Meredith’s Website

meredith@tailwatersflyfishing.com

Tailwaters Travel

Woodland Plantation

Southern Way Charters

Journey South Outfitters (Venice Lodging)

Redfish Dynasty

Shallow Water Expeditions

Fly Water Expeditions

The allure of those huge bull reds from the marsh is pretty hard to resist. Fuel is added to the fire with the many amazing videos floating around out there. The marsh is everything that has been written about it and more. However, it’s not a sure thing. A practical approach to these fish will save you time and money and help you to plan the best trip you can for these amazing fish. Any questions or comments? Feel free to leave them below.

The post BULL REDFISH ON THE FLY: PLANNING A TRIP TO LOUISIANA WITH MEREDITH MCCORD [PODCAST] appeared first on ToFlyFish.

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Musky on the fly has to do with mindset as much as anything. Dedication, skill, and knowledge all meet at the musky mindset. How we cover the water, what flies we use, how we tie our flies, and what we consider big all change with a musky mindset. In this podcast, Chris Willen helps us fine-tune this mindset and shares his approach to muskies. Chris’s own approach and mindset are grounded in flexibility and attention to detail, and he’ll help you get started or improve your musky game no matter who you are. So, read the details below and sit back and get ready to change your musky mindset with Chris Willen.

KEY TAKEAWAYS: MUSKY ON THE FLY AND A MUSKY MINDSET BASICS OF A MUSKY MINDSET AND APPROACH

• Knowing each individual fishery is hugely important. When you fish each body of water, hit key spots as outlined below, and let any musky you move or see guide you in how you focus your attention.
• Flexibility is critical to be consistently successful with musky.
• Patterning fish becomes difficult because of the inherently lower numbers of fish. Because of this, we can have a game plan, but we should always try extreme differences on any given day.
• At the same time, if we are seeing muskies in lakes or in rivers with electronics or otherwise in one particular piece of structure and/or cover like weedbeds or solid cover (rocks, wood, etc.), then start looking for this particular piece of cover.
• Let the conditions drive your initial game plan: if the water is high, check the banks; if the water is low, concentrate on the deeper stretches of the river, etc.
• Dams are very good spots to check for fish, and you can start here. Then, you can use the fish’s reactions and location to help you out further down the river.
• Muskies, particularly big ones, will be territorial, so you can often find the same fish holding his spot in the river many times throughout the year.
• Try to eliminate poor water (too shallow or with too high a gradient). However, look for that one spot within the poor water that might be just big enough to hold a musky.
• Once you have identified some of the best spots within a stretch of river, you may concentrate your efforts on these spots. The float should be an A-to-Z float, not an A-to-B float.
  • Work the spot with multiple different casts and flies. Don’t be afraid to fish through the spot multiple times with multiple different presentations.
• Chris likes to target prime pieces of water during a “bite window.” This normally occurs during particular phases of the moon (majors, minors, etc.).
• Try to approach musky fishing from the mindset of “I learned something about this piece of water,” not “I didn’t catch a musky.”
• Dedication and fishing hard are keys to putting muskies in the boat consistently.
• Also, focusing, particularly when you are at key points, is huge, since you don’t want to blow the one shot you have.

SEASONAL MOVEMENTS FOR MUSKY ON THE FLY

• Late winter/early spring, target staging areas where you will find muskies staging before the spawn (creek mouths, etc.).
• After the spawn, you can target fish in smaller creeks and near these areas.
• Summer, oxygen-producing areas hold more fish (below rapids/riffles).
• Fall, the fish are feeding heavily to build reserves for the winter, including to produce their eggs for the spring. Focus on prime eating zones: eddies, behind logs, behind rocks, in the deeper pools, and in the couch water.
  • Fishing deeper can be very effective in the fall. The angler in the back of the boat often has a better chance of getting the musky at this time of year.

MUSKY ON THE FLY AND FLY SELECTION

• Flies need to have “motion without movement.”
• For fly selection, start off with the basic forage fish within the river as a basis for proportion and size.
• Size and how much water the fly is pushing are hugely important for musky.
• Chris has a very flexible approach to fly selection and presentation. Don’t get stuck in one mindset on a given day. Since we’re fishing prime pieces of water, we should use multiple different flies and presentations.

SEVEN IMPORTANT FLIES

• B1G Foosa
• Optimus Swine
• Big bucktail style pattern (Game changer, T-Bone musky fly etc.)
• Double Nickel
• Brad Bowen’s Buford Musky Fly
• Brad Bowen’s Optic Minnow Style Fly with epoxy
• Brad Bowen’s River Pig (weighted)

FIGURE EIGHT AND READING FISH

• Adjust your figure eight approach to the musky’s moods.
• If the fish comes in fast and aggressive, move the fly faster to keep that fish excited.
• If the fish comes in slow and methodical, try to tease the fish with the fly, etc.
• Get the fly deep by putting the rod tip into the water. Chris will actually put his rod and hand into the water at times.
• Make sure to do big turns on your figure eight since musky can’t turn their body sufficiently on narrow turns.
• Also, play with the plane of the figure eight. This means coming up high and then shooting the fly down, or vice versa, during the figure eight motion.
• Depth and speed are huge triggers on the figure eight. Normally, you need to change these on all of your turns.
• If you don’t see a fish, do at least two turns, but do three if you can.

LINKS AND RESOURCES FOR THE PODCAST Chris’s Site

Chris on Facebook

Caney Fork River System in Tennessee

Blane Chocklett

Mike Schultz at Schultz Outfitters

Todd Gregory Hardly Strictly Musky Tournament

Fly vs. Jerk

Tim Fischer

Solunar Theory (Moon Phases)

Eli Berant

Eric Grajewski

Musky on the fly is often about extremes: huge flies, huge hooks, huge teeth, huge fish, huge stretches of fishless hours, and so on. Each musky on the fly or otherwise is a trophy in itself. In this way, we need to set ourselves up to catch that one fish. Remember that your next cast could be to a fish that might make you wet yourself a little, and this will help keep you in a musky mindset. If you have any questions about musky or Chris Willen, feel free to leave comments below or contact Chris directly.

The post MUSKY MINDSET: MUSKY ON THE FLY WITH CHRIS WILLEN [PODCAST] appeared first on ToFlyFish.

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I’ve long been a major advocate of fishing flies that are versatile and that can imitate many different prey items, particularly when choosing a given bass fly to fill a specific niche. In general tackle, lures with an effective trigger and an overall profile that resembles many different prey items are normally the most versatile and successful. That’s exactly what this fly, the Equalizer, is going for, and for this reason, it should not be seen as an exact imitation of anything in particular but representative of tons of different prey items. Here’s some of the particulars of this fly. I also have to thank Chris Newsome for really getting me excited about EWG worm hooks since I had used them in other patterns, but our podcast really lit the fire.

PREY ITEMS AND THE BASS FLY So, many a bass fly represent one or two prey items, and this is ok when we need more exact imitations such as when fish are feeding on a specific food item, like shad. In this instance, a shad fly pattern is probably going to be our best choice. However, most of the time, bass are feeding very opportunistically. They have many choices of food items, and they will normally eat whatever food item offers them the most bang for the buck. This is where triggers come in. Triggers will make fish eat even when they’re not hungry, so the best bass flies are going to have incredible triggers. In nature, there are natural triggers, for example, when a dying baitfish tries to maintain its upright position, or when a crayfish shoots backwards. The natural triggers should inform our fly action at every level. Besides action, the general profile and proportion of the prey item is critical. When you start to examine this, we see a pattern. Many prey items have a larger rounded section moving down to a bit thinner section. We notice this with fleeing crayfish, sculpin, gobies, darters, suckers, tadpoles, swimming frogs, and even shrimp. This shape was the primary inspiration for this fly and one of the main reasons for the semi-dramatic name, the Equalizer. The fly equalizes all of these prey item shapes into the profile of this fly pattern.

FLY DESIGN In this fly, which is primarily a bass fly, this predominant shape was tied closely to the function of the fly as well. Many flies have this shape, which is a great start. However, this fly had a specific niche to fill in my fly box. This fly needed to be fairly weedless. No matter what bass fly you fish near the bottom, it will get snags galore if it doesn’t have some sort of weedless feature. The hook rides upright, but the hook point is also covered fairly well by the bulky head. You can take this even further and modify the pattern with a little bucktail or other material that will go completely over the hook point. So you’ve got a fly that will move through cover fairly well and will not get snags as much, moving along the bottom, which is where this fly is meant to be fished. I wanted a fly that would scrape along the bottom like a lipless crankbait. It doesn’t have the same action as a lipless crankbait and will not sink at the same rate, but it will stay close to the bottom with the right line and with a little bit more weight if you fish it fast. I wanted a fly that I would be moving fairly deliberately across the bottom of the stream or lake. That’s where I use this fly the most. For this reason, I snip a little bit of the laser dub on the bottom. This allows water to move up a bit easier. The bottom of the fly is also a light color, which is another predominant feature of most prey items from crayfish and shrimp to sculpin and gobies.

FISHING THE EQUALIZER BASS FLY The action of this bass fly comes from the weight, hook, craft fur, and head. The head pushes water and also causes currents to flow over it. The craft fur flares when stopped but will also move nicely on the strip, particularly with a little flash. The primary action of the fly comes from sharp strips with pauses. The weight, head, and hook cause the fly to dart and turn on a sharp strip. Then the fly flutters back down to the bottom. A couple of sharp strips will give it a very nice dart. Fish will pick the fly up on the pause many times, so play around with the pause and strip, and keep a tight line. Overall, I try to keep the fly moving just fast enough to let the fly hit bottom on the pause. Use some split shot if the fly is not keeping a relatively decent connection to the bottom. This is primarily a bass fly, but I think that it could excel with redfish as well. If you catch some reds on it, let me know. Either way, I know this fly will work well for you. Give it a shot, and let me know the results, unless they’re not good…

• Hook: Worm hook, offset shank EWG (In video Gamakatsu: 2/0)
• Thread: GSP 100 (white); UTC 140 (sand or tan)
• Eyes: .035 diameter wire
• Flash Top: Holographic flashabou (bronze)
• Body: Sparkle braid (Peach/Pearl)
• Wings: Hareline extra select craft fur (sand or tan under medium brown or orangutan rust)
• Color: Permanent markers (bronze below, brown above)
• Head: Senyo’s laser dub (sculpin brown)
• Acrylic: Your favorite acrylic
• Lacquer: Zap-a-gap (brushable) etc.

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