Spooky-ass fish
DOES TALKING ON THE BOAT SPOOK FISH?
I enjoy conversation on the boat. I like spending time with my friends, shooting the shit and engaging in a little light-hearted ribbing. But does it affect the fishing? Banging down the cooler lid, shifting stuff around in the boat and walking in shoes are all things fish can hear. Their lateral lines are amazingly sensitive to any vibration in the water. Any sound that involves the hull of the boat is telegraphed directly into the water. Think of the hull as a loud speaker. But what about sounds in the air with no direct connection to the water? Do fish hear us talking?
I’ve heard a lot of opinions on this and many people believe that they do not. Personally I am sure they do. For one thing, when shooting underwater video my microphones pick up talking above the surface. I feel certain that a fish’s lateral line is more effective than a microphone inside an waterproof housing. This makes me sure fish can hear sounds in the air.
If that’s not enough to convince you,
Read More »Swinging Streamers on Big Water
Most streamer fisherman out there would agree that pounding the river banks with a streamer will catch trout just about anywhere. If you’re willing to put in the time and hard work eventually you’ll be rewarded with a big fish. During high water flows on rivers where habitat is insufficient out in the main river, many trout will relocate to the banks where they can use the irregular banks and it’s abundant cover to shelter themselves out of the excessive current. There next move, once they’ve gotten to the banks, is to find prime ambush spots where they can easily pick off prey moving by. This is why casting to the bank and ripping streamers back to the boat is so effective. You’re repeatedly putting your streamer right in the kitchen where good numbers of fish will be feeding.
The majority of the time this scenario works great, but what do you do when you find yourself in areas where the water is super deep and the fish are sitting on the bottom? These places make it extremely difficult for anglers using the pounding the bank technique to keep their streamers down deep in the strike zone during a steady retrieve. Even with a full sinking fly line the cards are stacked against you. Don’t get me wrong, it can still work, especially if you cast upstream of your target water, and give your streamer time to sink before you begin your retrieve. Unfortunately, you won’t always have the time nor the room to pull this off, and that should have you searching for an alternative method that’s better suited for fishing your streamers in these deep water locations.
Swing Streamers through deep water hot spots
The best method I’ve found to consistently get hookups from deep water fish is
The Mystic 3wt Switch Rod Changes Trout Fishing
THIS LITTLE BEAUTY FROM MICHIGAN IS QUICKLY BECOMING ONE OF MY FAVORITE FLY RODS FOR TROUT.
For the last couple of years I’ve been fishing switch rods for trout. Not exclusively, but with greater and greater frequency. It started as a way to keep my two-handed skills polished between steelhead trips but quickly found a life of its own. It didn’t take long for me to realize that these lightweight Spey rods were better tools for catching trout on a lot of the rivers I fish.
I started out swinging small streamers and wet flies when wading small to medium size rivers. It wasn’t long before I was reaching for my switch rod for nymph fishing and then even dry fly fishing. Eventually they started showing up in the boat. These days I’m seldom on a trout stream without one.
Fishing switch rods has put me on fish I was missing before. They have allowed me to reach water that was off limits, fish deep runs more effectively and manage drifts like never before. I even got Kent turned on to two handers, which he previously had little interest in. The results speak for themselves. Switch rods have definitely changed the way I fish for trout.
The problem for me has always been weight. Finding a switch rod that was light enough to fish comfortably with a wide range of techniques, light enough to
Read More »Sunday Classic / The Woolly Bugger Isn’t all that, Or is it?
This isn’t Montana, Your Not Norman Maclean, and the Woolly Bugger isn’t all that.
This was a bumper sticker a guide buddy of mine had printed up a few years back. It was prominently displayed for his clients to read when they pulled up to greet him. That’s one hell of an ice breaker for checking fishing egos at the boat ramp, let me tell you. I give my boy J.E.B. Hall props for his comedic humor and gutsy style. For those of you who don’t know J.E.B., he’s a veteran Western North Carolina guide, Author of Southern Appalachian Fly Guide, and has spent multiple seasons guiding at Alaska West. Meet him one time and you’ll say to yourself, “this guy is the Johnny Knoxville of fishing”.
Most anglers fall into one of two categories when it comes to their perception of woolly buggers. They either love them or despise them. I love the fly pattern for two reasons. First, for its impressionistic design that’s capable of mimicking many different trout foods, and second, for its versatility in how the pattern can be fished. It’s rare for me to not break out a woolly bugger at some point during the day. When trout aren’t biting, I almost always can find fish willing to snack on them. The only time I keep woolly buggers out of the game and sitting on the bench, is when I’m
Read More »Saturday Shoutout / AZ Wanderings Fly Box
WHAT’S IN YOUR FLY BOX?
I just recently became aware of Arizona Wanderings. It’s a great site for the avid fly tyer. The thing I really love is all of the cool patterns I haven’t seen before. You might think that I’ve fished everywhere but I’ve never fished in Arizona. There are so many great local patterns on this site that I know will work everywhere.
The site has great step by step photos and instructions for every pattern. If you love to tie, you will love Arizona Wanderings.
CHECK OUT THE FLY BOX
Read More »Sunday Classic / Fish With Benefits
I was asked the other day what was my favorite species of fish. That’s a really tough question for me. Sort of a Sophie’s choice question. After thinking about it for a long time I answered trout, for a host of reasons, but I quickly added, “and bone fish”! For some odd reason I then felt like I had to defend that answer. I had said trout and I had just finished talking at length about a tarpon trip I had just been on and here I was blurting out bonefish. Why? I went on to explain using a rationale I have used for years. “The bonefish is just right. It’s hard enough to catch, usually because of the conditions, that you feel like you’ve done something worthwhile but it’s not impossible like a permit. When you hook them it’s a great fight, but not an ass beating like a tarpon. They’re the just right fish”.
That’s all true and I believe it but inside I knew there was more. It ate at me, why do I love bonefish so much? I think I’ve come up with the answer. I love the fish but what I really love is bonefishing. When I think of bonefish I think of the Bahamas and when I think about fishing the Bahamas it’s a whole different feeling.
When I’m headed to the Keys for tarpon
Read More »Saturday Shoutout / Landeen’s Ladder
ALEX LANDEEN IS OUT STANDING ON HIS LADDER.
You may remember Alex Landeen as the man behind “Fat Guy Fly Fishing”. You’ve seen his photos and perhaps read his writing in “Pulp Fly”. Alex is a man of many talents. A great angler, amazing photographer and writer, one wonders is there is anything he doesn’t do well.
Alex has a new site. alexlandeen.com. It’s a must see. You couldn’t find a better place to start than his recent trip to Pyramid Lake. The photos are awesome!
CHECK OUT, “WALK SOFTLY AND CARRY A BIG LADDER”
Read More »Bonefish Don’t Dance
DANCING ON THE BOW IS A BIG TURN-OFF.
I had the pleasure of doing a little bonefishing with a good friend the other day. We were poling the flats on the west side of South Andros and the wind was howling. The sky was full of popcorn clouds and their shadows were moving quickly across the flats. My buddy was getting a lot of shots at big westside bones but they all spooked before his fly landed.
We had fished to spooky fish for the last few days and were getting used to the sight of fleeing bonefish. My buddy assumed that he was spooking fish by lining them or landing them too hard. That might have been the case on one of the flat calm days we’d seen earlier in the week, but today the problem was one of footwork.
Like I said, the wind was howling. Thirty to thirty-five miles per hour. In an effort to turn over his fly my friend was casting like a warrior Hun. His casting was so violent that his left foot would come off the deck with each cast. He wasn’t even aware of it but every time that foot landed the bonefish would vanish.
Wind is frustrating but it can be your friend. The broken surface of the water will hide a lot of mistakes. Fish can’t see the shadow of your fly line or hear your fly hit the water but the sound of anything contacting the hull of the boat is instantly telegraphed, alerting them of danger. Fish don’t know how hard it is to cast a fly rod in the wind but they know an unnatural sound when they hear it and it doesn’t make them happy. Even the sound of feet pivoting on the deck can cause them to spook.
Fortunately, dancing on the bow is not part of a good fly cast.
Read More »A Conversation With Fly Tyer Tim Widmer
by Johnny Spillane
TODAY WE ARE SITTING DOWN WITH TIM WIDMER,
fly fishing guide, commercial tier, College professor specializing professor and general good guy. Tim has been guiding for the better part of two decades and his flies have been produced commercially for almost 10 years. Tim was one of the first guys to experiment with foam and his Hoppindicator, Terresticator and other flies have proven their worth for many fisherman. Today Tim is going to talk a little but about what it takes to get your creative juices flowing and tie flies that stand the test of time.
G&G: How long have you been tying flies?
Tim: I’ve been tying for over 20 years. I learned from a guy named Larry Mann in Steamboat and he was a mentor to me. He also got me hooked on tying terrestrials. When I was in college, tying kept me out of the bars and it was a great way to save some money!
G&G: What patterns do you have that are produced commercially?
Tim: The Hoppindicator, Terresticator, Cicadicator and the Nymphicator.
Read More »Sunday Classic / 11 Tips for Correctly Presenting Your Fly To Tarpon
ANYONE THAT’S FLY FISHED FOR TARPON HAS PROBABLY EXPERIENCED HOW EASY IT IS TO PRESENT THE FLY INCORRECTLY.
If you miss your target, even by just a little bit, it can drastically lower your chances for getting a tarpon to eat. Cast the fly too close, and the tarpon will spook. Don’t lead the fish enough, and your fly won’t get down to the tarpon’s depth. Cross the fish at the wrong angle, and your fly will be moving towards the fish and it will spook. The list goes on and on.
Bottom-line, there’s a very small margin of error bestowed to anglers fly fishing for tarpon. You have to execute everything damn near perfect to put the odds in your favor, and even then, you aren’t guaranteed squat. Here’s the problem. The average angler that travels to fly fish for tarpon is not educated on how to read and respond accordingly to different fishing scenarios on the flats. A lot of this has to do with lack of experience and time on the water. If you find yourself falling into this category, prior to fishing, you should take the time to have your guide explain how you should handle common fishing situations that you’re likely to encounter. As a kid the same preparation was used by my Dad to walk me through how to make a clean kill shot on a deer. I can hear him now, “If the deer is faced in this direction, I want you to put the crosshairs here”. He must have gone over a dozen different scenarios during the drive up. By the time he was done talking, I felt like I had been hunting for years. It’s no different fly fishing for tarpon. Taking the time to
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