What to Get The Fly Fisherman Who Has Everything

 Fly fishermen, like most anglers, are always searching for the perfect gear—whether it’s the rod, reel, flies, line, leader, tippet, waders, or boots. The list could go on, but you get the idea. Over the years, I’ve told my family not to buy me fishing equipment for Christmas or any other holiday, since I already have everything I’ll ever need for the rest of my fishing days.

That said, after watching a video from one of the fly fishing channels I follow, I realized there’s one item every fly fisherman should add to their arsenal for the coming season: You can never have too much of this stuff*****Check out the video below.

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Bad, Fair, and Better

 Bad, Fair, and Better is how I am going to evaluate my fly-tying classes. I have spent the last couple of days experimenting with different wooly bugger patterns that are fairly easy to tie. I have found the best way for me to learn how to tie a decent fly is to watch the video of the fly I am trying to duplicate. I didn’t realize how many fly-tying videos are available on the internet, serving as the perfect instructor. 

These flies were some of the first I finished and were mainly an exercise in learning how to use the tools, which resulted in some really bad wooly buggers.

You can see with these two wooly buggers I was improving some.

These are better, but I still need to improve, and the only way to do that is to keep practicing!

Why I Like Fishing With a 2 Wt. Fly Rod

 

As most of you know, I have always been drawn to light fishing tackle, whether it's my 7½-foot micro-lite rods or my 2-weight, 7½-foot Redington fly rod. There’s something special about a 2-weight fly rod. Is it the lightness, the delicacy, the sensitivity, or the simple fact that no other fly rod can provide such a connection with the fish when fighting it? This rod isn’t designed for power or distance; rather, it reminds me that fly fishing isn’t about domination. It’s about truly experiencing the fight, especially when a fish overpowers the rod, challenging me to land it. 

Simply put, I enjoy the challenge. Will I win the fight today, or will the fish? You don't need to catch a monster fish to appreciate this fly rod; even landing a small brook trout, rainbow or a small bluegill brings a thrill. I learned a long time ago that it's not about the size or quantity of the fish but about the experience of the moment.

A 2-weight rod excels in small creeks, lakes, and ponds. Just a gentle flick of the wrist can send a tiny dry fly or tiny popper under a low-hanging limb where a hungry fish awaits your offering.

If you’ve never tried a 2-weight rod, I encourage you to take one to your favorite stream, pond, or small lake and rediscover the quiet side of fly fishing—the side that made me thankful I had a Dad that taught me to fly fish in our five acre pond when I was a young child.

P.S. The image above was taken on Walker Lake last Spring. Five months away before I wet the fly again on Walker Lake or Smith Lake, in the meantime, I will be preparing for another great fishing season!

I Am Still Here

 

Hey everyone, I just wanted to check in. Cathey and I have been supervising a renovation project at our son's house, which started in late September. Unfortunately, this has really disrupted my fall fishing plans. However, as the saying goes, you'll do anything for your children. 

 Jason works in California and doesn't get home often, but when he does, he tries to fish as much as he can. So, the renovation project was something he didn't want to handle himself. Being retired allows Cathey and me to follow a flexible schedule, so we were glad to help him out. 

I hope to go on a couple of fishing trips before the weather gets too cold for me to cast a popper at those spotted bass on Smith. I'm looking forward to learning how to tie some flies for the upcoming spring and sharing them with you all soon. 

The Fall Popper-Action is Close On Smith Lake

Jeff and I made an early morning trip to Smith Lake this past Thursday to test the top action for the bass and some giant bluegill. We were surprised to get some action even with the surface temps still near 80 degrees. The cool nights have started to cool the water somewhat, but not to the point where the hits are more like spring or late fall, as of yet. 

Sorry for the vertical video, my camera was not set a 0 when filming this video. 

The first hit of the morning was this 16" plus spotted bass soft-hitting Jeff's double-barrel popper. The fish put a bend in Jeff's 5wt. rod. Landing these fish never gets old. Even an 11 or 12" can give you a thrill on the fly rod.  

The big bluegill were locked in on the size six black boogle bug popper. I had a feeling they thought it was a black grasshopper or bug. Don't count on them hitting the same colored popper on the next trip: it could be a different color or even a different style popper. I was using my 9ft. 4 wt. Streamflex, which was a blast landing this size bluegill. The side maneuvering using their wide bodies for resistance makes you think you are fighting a spotted bass. The top action will only get better as the water temps start to cool during this month and on into October. Fishing surface poppers in the fall is second only to the Spring action on beautiful Smith Lake!

Fly Reel Review+Catfish On The Fly

 Has anyone noticed the price of fly reels? Most of you know that I fish with the G-Loomis free spool reels, which cost between $150.00 and $ 200.00. That is the most I have paid for a fly reel and probably will never pay more than that price. In fact, at my age, I don't intend to buy another fly reel ever. 

With that said, the three main components that entail fly fishing for me are the fly rod, fly reel, and fly line. The least expensive of the three for me would be my fly reel. One can spend big bucks on a fly reel, but in reality, all it will do is keep your line spooled and provide a decent drag to fight a large fish. In fact, the click and paw fly reels don't have drag. Both my Battenkill reels are the click-and-pawl version, which I like especially when fishing for trout on the tailrace and bluegill on the lake. But what if you want an inexpensive, small arbor reel that features a smooth dial drag setting? 

Enter the Avid fly reel by Maxcatch; at 50 bucks, this reel is a bargain for fly fishermen who don't want to hear the click, click sound of the paw and click version reel. My son Jason purchased this reel at the beginning of this year, and he and I have been using it. I use it sometimes when he is out of state working, and he uses it when he fishes with me when he is home. The reel is super light and measures 2 3/4 inches in diameter with the width of the spool 1 1/4". He has paired it with his Redington 2 wt. 7 1/2 ft. fly rod. To experience the ultimate in light-action fly fishing, this combo will deliver. In fact, I like the combo so well that I have started using it over my click and paw Battenkill combo. 

To get a more detial description of this reel check out their website at Maxcatch Fly Fishing. I thought I would never like a colored fly reel, but after seeing this one up close I was sold. 

I fished the combo one evening last week on Walker County Lake, knowing that the spawn was over for the year, I was there mainly to cast this 2-weight. As usual, nothing was happening on top, so I fished subsurface using my stand-by Krystal Booger. It didn't fail, as it caught the attention of some active catfish that put the 2wt. to the test.

I haven't a clue what these catfish thought this fly was, but I didn't care, hey I was landing fish using one of the lightest fly rod combos I've ever fished with!!

 

50th.

 Well, "as Ronald Reagan used to say," Cathey and I have reached a significant milestone in our lives: our 50th wedding anniversary this Sunday. We look back on that day with fond memories, but we also understand that many of the individuals who attended our wedding are no longer with us. This is why we feel so blessed at this stage in our lives.We celebrated the day early during the last weekend of June at Jason's house in Greystone Farms, with Jenny and her family in attendance. Starting school for the grandchildren and Jason's work schedule didn't align with August 17th, it didn't bother us; we were just glad to be with family on this special occasion.

Everyone enjoyed the food, and of course, the fishing!

The desserts, after everyone had stuffed themselves with barbecue ribs from Jim and Nick's, was a Lemon Icebox cake with stuffed cupcakes and huge chocolate chip cookies. 

The kids love going to Uncle JJ's, which is what they call him. They look forward to spending time fishing on the lake every year. 

Cathey and I are lucky parents and grandparents!! 

The Spawn is Still On!!

Cathey and I have become quite a team when it comes to fishing with Micro Light combos. One of the combos is 7 1/2- and the other is an 8-foot rod. We used both micro-lights this past week while fishing on Smith Lake during the last bluegill spawning cycle of July. There may be another spawn in August if the lake level does not drop too quickly. I hope we get to fish that cycle as well.

I've been using both micro combos for over 30 years. When I purchased the rods, they had a half-dollar-size front guide, which I removed and replaced with a quarter-size guide, resulting in increased casting speed and distance. At the time I purchased the rods and reels, I didn't realize I was fishing with a 3/4-weight fly rod. Thirty years ago, I was into baitcasting reels and spinning reels, fishing for bass. The reason I purchased the micro-light rods and reels was to use them to fish for the super-sized bluegills I kept catching with my bait-casting and spinning reels combos. Little did I know at the time that these micro light combos would become a massive part of my fishing experience for the rest of my fishing days. 

Cathey would rather use the 8-foot micro-light instead of the fly rod. She isn't into fly fishing because of the line management and casting. I'm good with that, because she is landing fish!

We caught these bluegill early last Tuesday morning. We were using crickets with the hook tipped with a red crappie nibblet. Fishing with crickets is Cathey's favorite way to fish Smith Lake. One thing I haven't been able to do is get her to bait her hook and remove the fish from the hook; I'm still working on that. We always look forward to the spawn on Smith. I fillet all the bluegill I land on Smith, and we freeze them to eat in the winter months. 

We landed this group of gills on Thursday morning early. The fight this size bluegill exerts is unbelievable, using a micro-light rod. As I said, it's like fishing and landing bluegill using a fly rod. We landed all these fish in water 10 to 12 ft. deep. One never finds this size bluegill in shallow-water fishing at Smith Lake. The reason is the clarity of the water. We never use corks. We are tight-lining and waiting for that light hit. They never slam the bait. Slowly raise and drop the bait, working it back to the boat; most of the time, they hit the cricket on the fall. Loads of fun, especially fishing with your wife!!

Guys, I wanted to share this image of our youngest grandson, who landed this monster carp in one of the small ponds in the subdivision where they live. Cash is really into fishing. He turned eleven on July 10th and got a spinning combo from his parents for his birthday. What a way to break in the combo. He had the reel spooled with 8lb test line, and fought the carp for a while before he finally got to whole the fish. Congrats, Cash, you're on your way to becoming a great fisherman!!

**Giving Fly Tying a Try*

 I’ve started my beginner lessons in fly tying, using YouTube as my instructor. In my last post on June 6, I began thinking about tying some wooly buggers first. As I progressed, I also tried my hand at tying pheasant tails and caddis flies. These three flies are the top patterns I use 90% of the time when fishing in the lake or tailrace for trout. While using these flies over the years, I've often wondered how a differently colored hackle on the caddis would affect the bite of bluegill or trout. Similarly, I have considered whether using a different-colored body for the pheasant tail, instead of the traditional brown, would make a difference. The same questions apply to the wooly bugger. This curiosity is one of the main reasons why I want to tie my own flies.

According to the YouTube channel I’ve been following, here are the essentials I need to get started with tying basic flies. All the materials, tools, and vice shown in the accompanying image were purchased from Amazon. The vice was the most expensive item. I was advised to invest in a quality vice, which will be beneficial during the learning process. This vice is quite heavy, weighing 2.25 lbs.

Thus begins another venture in my fly fishing adventure. I will be posting some of my flies in upcoming posts, but I should warn you that they may not be the ordinary colors I mentioned at the beginning. I INTEND TO EXPERIMENT!

The Tungsten Bead Krystal Bugger

 

In the second week of April, I published a post discussing this small 1/16 oz. bugger while fishing for bluegill on a windy morning at Walker County Lake. However, I didn't share how I discovered this fly. Many of you probably have a place where flies go to rest, unused until they are rediscovered. For me, that place is a set of small plastic drawers in my fly fishing closet. I found this particular fly at my son's house, tucked away in a small plastic container with other flies that seemed destined for the "fly graveyard." It was the only bugger fly pattern among them—a chartreuse beadhead with an olive green body in size 8. That morning, the bite had slowed with the previous flies I was using, so after lunch, I decided to try something different subsurface, and the bugger was my choice. At the time, I didn't have a name for it, so I simply referred to it as "the bugger." After fishing with the fly that afternoon and successfully landing numerous larger bluegill that were not spawning, I realized I had found a winner. That night, I began searching the web for a beadhead bugger and discovered the name "The Tungsten Bead Krystal Bugger." Since discovering this little gem early last summer it has caused me to have a different opinion concerning small wooly buggers. It's funny how flies that seem useless can turn into some of the best options when nothing is happening on the surface. I have a feeling the trout on the Sipsey will be interested!

This bluegill nailed the black krystal near the bank and believe me there is no mistaking the hit. I don't believe this fish was in the spawning mode, because it hit the fly in water at a depth of 6 ft. Notice the colorful tail fins. The last image was a big gill taken fishing Walker County Lake in April where that morning I wasn't having any luck fishing surface poppers so I tied on the bugger and got results. This is one killer fly not only for bass and bluegill but it is sold to fish for trout out west, I purchased the fly from Yellow Dog Flies in Montana.

 This quality male spotted bass hit the black bugger during gusty wind conditions while fishing the levee on Smith Lake with my son last week during a morning trip. I was actually fishing for larger bluegill when this 18" plus male spotted bass inhale the fly. I landed the bass using my 9 ft. 3wt, which was the highlight of the trip for me. 

I've found that the best leader setup to fish this fly is a 7 1/2-foot furled leader paired with at least 2 to 2 1/2 feet of 5X or 6X fluorocarbon tippet. This combination increases the sink rate and improves overall presentation. This fly will become one of my main flies to fish when the surface bite slow. Next Thurday will be my next trip to Smith to fish for the spotted bass and big gills, so that morning I have decided to fish only this fly for most of the trip and see what kind of results it will produce---stay tuned!

Explaining The Slow Bite, After 10AM

 While fly fishing this past Tuesday in Ryan Creek on Smith Lake, I noticed the bite slowed after 10 o'clock. I also saw that the fish still interested in my poppers were extremely scattered. In other words, I was fishing a lot of dead water, which is water with basically no fish, with the exception of a few tiny bluegills in the shallows. 

 That trip on Tuesday caused me to share my own assumptions about why the bite slows during midday compared to daylight hours and why the bass and bluegill that were aggressive in the early morning hours change their feeding patterns in midday through mid-afternoon. 

I am going to limit my reasoning solely to the bass and bluegill species that I fish for in my home waters, Smith Lake and Walker County Lake. 

If you have followed my blog over the years, you know that my favorite time to fish is at daylight. Simply put, that is when the fish are the most active! Why is this? Because fish like bass, bluegill, or even trout often hunt best in low light, when their prey is less able to see them. Insects and small baitfish are more active or more vulnerable at dawn and dusk, making them an easy meal for a hungry bass or trout, and they are less visible to birds and surface predators during these times. Daylight and evening hours often bring cooler water temperatures, ideal for many species, especially in warm months. Cloudy or overcast skies subdue sunlight, mimicking dawn/dusk conditions, and will extend active feeding times. Cloud cover can also signal an incoming weather system, which often triggers a feeding frenzy before pressure drops. That is why I pay close attention to the barometric reading before and during the times I am on the water. 

If you fish long enough, as I have, you will notice the active feeding time during daylight hours lasts two to three hours, depending on cloud cover. The bite slows from 9 AM until midday because the high sun makes the fish more visible to predators, so they often retreat to cover or deeper water. The insects and baitfish may also retreat or hide during the heat of the day, reducing available food. 

Take heart, there are ways you can still land fish during the slow midday bite. First, I slow everything down, starting with my casting and boat movement, and develop more patience. The fish haven't developed lock-jaw at this time of day, but you must entice them to take your offering. Remember that the fish will not attack your popper as aggressively as daylight hours, so letting the fly sit motionlessly for at least 30 seconds or more will sometimes get a take if the fly is in a shaded area or near cover. I have noticed many times during a slow bite period that the fish will slap, swirl, and sip the bug. The slap, swirl, and sip routine is the time I change to a smaller popper in the form of a size 12 caddis, bogglebullet size 10, or the Orvis bream bug size 12. With these poppers, you are trying to create a quite stealthy presentation. I use my  9ft. 3 and 4-weight rods rigged with a 6X tippet instead of the normal 5X or 4X tippet used with my 5wt. or 6wt. fly rods with these flies. Most of the time, one of these three poppers will produce a take. Remember the amount of water you are covering with no fish in it. So when you encounter a fish to hit your offering during this period, make a great cast, present the fly as life-like as possible, and have the patience to let the fly sit until the water rings have disappeared. The slow bite can be rewarding and discouraging, but remember to stay positive and think every cast will produce a take!! LET'S GO FISHING!!!

Tuesday's Popper Action On Smith Lake

 

Tuesday was supposed to be a slow bite on Smith because two generators ran all morning, but the spotted bass and giant bluegill didn't get the report. The Mountain Laurels are in full bloom on the lake!

One of my former bloggers, Jay Eubanks, joined me for the early morning trip. It was good to fish with him again after a 6-year lapse. 

This spotted bass inhaled an olive boogle bug popper size 6 with little surface action. The bass had me thinking it was a bluegill that sucked the popper under. 

The big bluegill were hitting the olive popper as well. My only regret was not bringing my cooler to ice-down the six I could have dressed. Thanks to Jay for joining me on the trip. He and I will be making more Tuesday trips when his work schedule will allow him the time to go. 

I am down to one fly fishing buddy now, Jeff, who fishes with me on Thursday. My Tuesday guy quit fishing, can you believe that? Nobody quits fishing after fishing most of your life. As I said before I can count on one hand the indivduals who fly fish in Jasper.