The Moth or Muddler Either Pattern Will Produce Savage Hits

I came across one of my favorite early spring patterns this weekend, while selecting flies for my fly swap. It is the Muddler Minnow or what I like to call a glorified moth.  It seems each year I discover a new fly as most all of us do when fishing tends to get slow with your traditional fly patterns. I find the more I fly fish the more I like to experiment with other fly patterns. The pattern doesn’t have to match any hatch or be an insect the fish are hitting that particular time of day or year. It can simply be an attractor to get the attention of the fish. Like most flies the moth, which is what I will it, is that type of a pattern. It is that in your face fly that seems to drive fish nuts when nothing else will get a hit. I started fishing this pattern late last spring and into the July on Smith Lake and had tremendous success with it. My first intentions was to use it to land some monster bluegill in the gin clear water of Smith Lake, but I found out it was an awesome bass fly as well. The reactions from the spots in the lake were amazing. My next quest for this little jewel is the tailrace to see if I can get some rainbow interested. It would be an excellent fly to use in the fast ripples there. Floatant is a must when fishing this fly, because it possesses a big bushy body, which can soak up moisture fast in the form of getting water logged quickly. This fly is not hard to find it is in most fly shops and easily found on the net. The following image proves it worth!!

This beautiful spot inhaled the Moth on one of my early morning outings at Smith Lake early April this year. The action took place in the back of a nook area. I cast the fly right against the edge of some rocks, and  saw the wake before the fish ever took the fly, and knew I was in for a hit. This fish exploded on the fly and the fight was on. I landed it using my 9 ft. 5 wt.

Another spot which was taken by the Moth last year in the first part of July. 

These two bull bluegills were the victim of the Moth. I landed numbers of bluegills from Smith and the smaller lake Walker using the Moth. The 5 wt. was used to land both of these fish.

What I love about this fly is the light presentation one can achieve when casting on a smooth silk water surface. It doesn’t scare or spook the fish on days when the fish are on edge and not in the mood to hit anything. I actually purchased all the above Moths from our local Wal-mart, which has a small fly section set up in the sporting goods department. Today’s post will be the first in a series of reports I will be doing from time to time on flies I think will increase your fish catch ratio. I hope some of you guys will feature a fly you think is a winner in some of your future post as well.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Become a Blogger Fly Swap Fiend!!

I was reading through my blog roll the other day and read a post by Rick at Brookfield Angler concerning his Sculpin flies up for swap. I really go fired up about this pattern and in the process came up with an idea for all us fly fishing bloggers to acquire more flies. I know most of us have more flies than we will use in our lifetime but there is always that new and innovative pattern that we all must have to complete our fly arsenal.

So why not conduct a fly swap once a month. Each blogger sometimes during the month would post a number of flies he or she would like to swap. It could be as many as four or more or could even be one pattern. If someone is not interested in the flies from that particular post that month then they may be interested in next months flies. In other words it wouldn’t hurt anyone feelings if no one wanted to swap that month.

These are the flies I have up for swap this month. Keep in mind one does not have to swap for all four flies. The Brown Hackle Peacock

Experimenting With The Seal Leech Pattern

Fishing the Trout Derby Saturday on the Sipsey tailrace afforded me the opportunity to experiment with different fly patterns and different fishing techniques. The experimenting came about because of the slow bite while fishing the Derby. There was virtually no hatch, which resulted in limited dry action and slow nymph action. A lot of the fisherman started going through their fly boxes to select a pattern that might get some takes.

I had tried all the usual patterns in the dries and nymphs with no luck, so I tied on what I like to call a mini bugger in the form of a fly called the Seal Leech, David at The Trout Zone tied for me back in the spring.

So with about 20 minutes left before check in I tied on the Leech. I knew I was going to fish the fly dead drifting and swing casting it through some of the runs I fished earlier in the morning with the dries and nymphs. I had lost two trout around 9 AM on nymphs in this run, so back for those two and hopefully more. I waded into position and made my first cast up stream and let the line swing into a curve position and started to strip line when I got my first take. It was no earth shadowing take but I knew I had a trout on immediately. I promptly landed, photographed and measured the trout which measured 10 inches and released it back into the water. I checked my watch for the time, which indicated Charles and I had roughly 10 minutes to make it back to the fly shop to check in at the 12 AM hour. So reluctantly I waded out of the water to where Charles was waiting and we walked back to his truck and LEFT!!

 

So with one cast, one unique pattern and no time left to make additional cast that ended my Derby for this year; but rest assure I will be back next year with this little leech and ready for any eager trout to take it. That one take and one trout proved something to me Saturday to always be innovative and experiment, because you never know when you will tie on that magic pattern.





 

Orvis Fly Reel and Framed Streamers

I am sure all of you are familiar with the Orvis Battenkill fly reels. I have been searching for the Battenkill II Reel for some time at a decent price. Well, I found the reel the other day on Ebay for the unbelievable price of 65.00 used regular price 145.00 plus tax. Just goes to show if one has patience when shopping for fly fishing equipment, good things will follow. I bought the fly rod that I was going to used with the reel some months back when Cabelas had a clearance on their Redington Trout Classic fly rods for 75.00, regular price at 150.00.

With this 5 wt reel/rod combo I’m ready now for those 14” to 15” rainbows on the tailrace and some huge bluegills on the lake. 

  The Poudre Canyon Special & Yankee Smelt by Alan at Small Stream Reflections --Alan does a fantastic job creating fly patterns that he has tied. I gave my son these streamers for Christmas and he had all four streamers framed.

The Brown & Grizzly with the Red Baron both by Alan--Sorry for the distorted frame size in the image; I have big-time trouble keep the glare out of the picture when shooting anything that has glass in it--any suggestions how to avoid that? Many thanks to Alan for tying these great streamers--my son has a special place on the wall for them.

Five Different Wet Fly Patterns Ready For a Take!!

I just got my new shipment of wet flies in today from Flydeals and can’t wait to get on the water with them soon. The guys there do an excellent job tying up any pattern one might come up with. I placed an order for 60 wet flies in five different patterns. The minimum order one can place with this company is five dozen, but for 31.00 bucks including shipping, I think I got a pretty good deal. I want to use them mainly as a dropper off some of the dries I will be fishing when the tailrace water recedes. There are more dries and nymphs used on the tailrace as opposed to the wet flies, so these patterns might give me an edge. The rain has caused the lake to rise above the full pool, causing the generators to practically run 24/7. The five patterns below are going to be my go-to wet flies come Spring. Flydeals included a quote with each fly pattern for this order; I thought you guys might enjoy the widsom.

Black Peacock Spider size 14

Quote: Listen to the sound of the river and you will get a trout. Irish Proverb

Brown Hackle Peacock size 12

Quote: Standing in a cool stream with a mountain range or meadow nearby, fly rod in hand, is the way God meant mankind to live. Jon Margolis

 Hawthron size 10
Quote: Calling Fly Fishing a hobby is like calling Brain Surgery a job. Paul Schullery

Partridge Orange size 14
Quote: If people concentrated on the really important things of life, there'd be a shortage of fishing poles.
Doug Larson

Pheasant Tail Soft Hackle Wet size 16
"To him, all good things"--trout as well as eternal salvation come by grace, and grace comes by art, and art does not come easy. Norman Maclean
Please feel free to offer any other patterns you think might work on this pressured tailrace

Learning How to Fish Streamer Patterns on Small Creeks and Large Rivers

The streamer post I did this past week really got me fired up about this fly and how to fish them. For those of you who don't remember or didn't see it, check out this link. I must admit that I have used streamers very little trout fishing. I recently read an article about how to use streamers on small and large streams wading. The article went into detail on how to select the correct size streamers and weight rods for a particular stream you might be fishing. Instead of using a link to refer you to the read, I will display the article below. If you have anything to add please feel free to offer suggestions. 

Fishing Streamers While Wading

Fishing streamers while wading a river or stream isn’t as specialized an endeavor as fishing from a boat, but an angler should watch for the appropriate situation for streamers. The size of the water will dictate the size of the rod. A five weight will suffice on smaller streams and rivers, but a six weight is more appropriate for larger waters with larger trout. The size of the flies and the distance of the casts are the primary considerations.
Flies used on small to medium size waters should be a little smaller than those used on big rivers. The main reason is that there are fewer fish capable of eating a huge fly and a smaller size will get more action.
Streamers seem to perform best on streams when water conditions are high or off-color. As a result, this type of fishing might be effective when conditions are blown out for dry fly and nymph fishing. Tight line nymphing skills will certainly help though.
Many anglers tend to cast across the river and let the fly swing before or during the retrieve. This is fine in big holes and long runs but becomes less effective in broken water. Be sure to look at the water under your feet. Some of our best success has come from flipping a streamer just off the bank, letting it sink, and staying in contact with a tight line as it drifts downstream. This is usually accomplished with only a few inches of fly line out of the rod tip.
Unlike fishing from a boat you are certainly grounded so you can spend as much or as little time as needed on each spot. After a few retrieves, you should change where you’re casting or move on. If you see a fish flash the fly wait a minute before casting back to the same spot. Chances are good the fish will take another swipe if it didn’t get the hook on the first attempt. Keep the fly in the strike zone as long as possible by casting downstream and holding the fly in the current. Give the fly action with the rod tip, letting it fall with some slack, then twitching it back to life. Repeat the process several times before pulling the fly out of the water.
Open, meadow streams often provide the most opportunities for streamers. A fly fisher can proceed quietly along the stream bank and fish both sides of the creek without getting in the water. Again, be sure to give plenty attention to the water under your feet.

The size of the streamer fly you choose will depend on your goals. Pick a smaller size like #8-10 if you want more action. However, the average size trout will be in line with the river’s average size. Pick a larger size if you’re willing to trade action for quality. Most average size trout won’t respond to a larger #2 streamer but a larger fly will often stir larger fish

I also viewed a great video that really incorporates some of the tactics described above in the article. Take a look and see if this clip is as helpful to you as it was to me. The video is a little over 5 minutes long and worth the wait for the big trout he will land towards the end of the clip.-----enjoy!!!
The link for the video---http://btrussell-fishingthroughlife.blogspot.com/2013/01/learning-how-to-fish-streamer-patterns.html



Four Fantastic Streamer Patterns

Alan over at Small Stream Reflections was having a contest back in December involving naming a streamer he had tied. The person who submitted the best name won the streamer. I was lucky to win because there were so many great names submitted. The name that won it for me was “The Red Baron”. I was really excited to win it because it was a streamer I thought I would try in the spring on the tailrace. I couldn’t believe how fantastic this fly looked up close after I received it in the mail. In fact, I will never fish it; instead, I emailed Alan and ask him if he would tie me three more of his streamers that he has shown on his blog. I thought these four streamers under glass would be the perfect Christmas gift for my son who is an avid fly fisherman. Needless to say, he was blown away when he opened the package on Christmas morning.

 Alan was kind enough to include a printed list of all the materials used to create each streamer. My photography does not do these streamers' justice. Jason said he is going to have all of the streamers framed under glass. I will have to post an image when the flies are framed. Alan is not only a superb fly fisherman but excellent at tying flies.   

Just wanted to share with you guys an image of the HUGE 3" snow we got this Thursday

Fishing The Spent Mayfly in Late Summer For Rainbow

Today was my chance to fish with the Spent Mayfly on the upper portion of the tailrace. I was planning on fishing below the pump station in hopes of landing the bigger rainbow, but repairs were being made on the access point in that area so I stayed in the faster water above the pump station. I started at the first access point where I found two other guys fishing above me and I thought I should just move on, but something told me to stay and give the Mayfly a try here.  As usual no rises at all; but I was still determined to fish the dry for a while. After a few cast I had my first rainbow of the morning. I continued working the same area for a couple of hours, which was all the time I had to fish.  There were numbers of fishermen in front of me working the other spots up the tailrace so I decided not to move.  This place gets a tremendous amount of pressure so one has to be on his game to even land a trout, in any of the areas that hold fish. In other words these are highly educated trout. 

This guy was fishing too in the early fog, right after I got this shot off he/she flew on  to tap into another hole 

The Mayfly right where the hook set was suppose to be top lip---this one was really a lot fun on the 7  1/2 ft. 3wt Temple Fork--

The base of the dam is over a 1/4 mile wide----need a dam this size to hold back the amount of water on the other side

Two generators control the amount of water being released at any give time of day--the water here at the dam and 1/4 mile below is between 56 to 58 degrees--notice the white PVC tube, that is the tube used to dump the 3000 trout a month into the area below.

Landed this bow on the famous Zebra Midge. I always have one handy when I am fishing here.

The Spent Mayfly, is just a little variation from the original Mayfly, I like this pattern much better because of the amont of hackle, which in turns helps the fly to stay afloat longer. I was kind of proud of myself today after talking with four other guys who said they didn't land a single trout.  I would like to think my success today was from my own ability, and not from just being at the right place at the right time.  With all the speculation aside I still had a great morning fishing a place I am slowly getting accustomed to.

What Would be Your Top Five Fly Patterns to Use Nationwide

After Tuesday’s outing, I was wondering on the way home; what would be the top five flies that most trout fishermen would pick to fish anywhere in the United States, regardless of the hatch? My top five would be  a mixture starting with: 

My number one choice for going down under would have to be the tungsten bead head Zebra Midge in sizes 18 and smaller.

The Pheasant Tail is my second choice in size 14 and 16, again tungsten bead head

My third fly would have to be the Griffiths Gnat, this little jewel works for me when nothing else is happening on top---size 18 and smaller

 The famous Mayfly in size 14 and 16 is an awesome dry for me on the Caney Fork in Tennessee and has also produced on the Sipsey tailrace

My last is another awesome dry pattern called the Bomber. This fly resembles the Parachute Adams, but has more hackle and stays afloat longer. This fly is tied by Alan at Small Stream Reflections, he has landed lots of brook trout with this one pattern.

A 3 in 1 Punch for Today's Post--Nearing the GOAL!!

Today’s post is a 3 in 1 punch, with three different topics all in one package. I did a post about a week ago on the tiny Tippet Ring. I was looking for an easy way to attach your tippet to your leader, well I found it. Yesterday’s trip involved testing this little bugger and it proved to be a winner. I really like the fact that you don’t have to tie a blood knot when attaching your tippet to the leader when using this little ring. It is so handy you merely tie the tippet into the ring and you are good to go. I broke off a couple of times yesterday in a few trees and had to replace my tippet both times and was back to fishing in a matter of seconds thanks to this little ring. I hope it performs as well with dries and nymphs as it did with the poppers and buggers. I did notice I didn’t get one line twist when using the ring. Now on to the next bit of news—

 From time to time I am going to be featuring new blogs that I have found and joined up with. Today’s feature blog is Spare Time for Fish by Anthony Gardner. This blog has some great information on Warm Water Fishing. The blog covers everything from fly fishing accessories, fishing for crappie, crap, bass and yes bluegill. In fact, food is covered in this blog as well. If you haven’t checked out Spare Time for Fishing it is worth the look.
 Now for my quest or goal; for those of you who have been keeping up with my goal I am trying to land 100 super bull bluegill during the spawning period. Well, yesterday it just got easier. I started the morning at 5 AM in heavy fog and it didn’t let up until 7 AM. It was so thick I couldn’t see to navigate my boat after I launched so I just started fishing down the bank from the launch. Nothing was happening as far as the bass was concerned, mainly because of the fishing pressure all week from the Military Tournament. In fact, I didn’t land any bluegill until the fog let up and I moved up through Butler Creek which I had not fished since last year. I was using my 4 wt St. Croix 9 ft. with a Muddler Minnow. It produced early until the sun came up and then I tie on a Chartreuse Black-legged size 10 Betts Popper which worked better in areas where the sun hadn’t touched the bank. I lost two of these poppers in trees where the fish are never found, and manage to leave with one in tack. I was a little disappointed with the bass. I will take the bluegill any day when the big bulls are cooperating.

 One lone bass which was a largemouth that had been caught in the tournament. It had hook marks inside it's upper lip--this one came on the Olive Boogle Bug with the 5 wt. no more bass action after this guy

This one was really fat and put up some kind of fight on the 4 wt. I think next time I will bring along my 3 wt.

These count toward the goal, a couple here were near a pound. These 10 put me 38 away. I ended the trip with 16 brought to hand. I fished an area today where there was less boat traffic. The boat traffic is a killer when one is trying to fish on top with the fly.

Will This Thing Catch Fish?? Upside Down Bug!!!

Since I can’t get out on the water I thought I would bring the reality of fly fishing a little closer to me. I get lots of email alerts from different Outdoor Outlets and one of my favorite is BreamBugs. One of my fly fishing buddies put me on this company last year. I was really impressed with the quality of their poppers and nymphs. These flies seemed to take more punishment and will hold up longer especially the Boogle Bugs brands after the wear of teeth marks. They just recently started handling a few trout flies; check out some of the patterns below. A really unique bug that they sell is The Upside Down Bream Bug. What makes this fly special is the structured areas one can actually fish without getting tangled up and hung on branches. In fact I ordered some of these bugs last night and will be giving a report soon on their production. Take a look at the Upside Down Bugs and Trout patterns below and give me your opinion.

I would like to thing this could be a good trout pattern

This is one awesome bug, anytime chartruse is used it is a winner

Not as fancy but deadly

A lot of pattern for this dry, which means more float time and less floatant

Unique color combo for this PAdams---like the green

Hares Ear, always effective

Check out this LINK to see the fish that this companies flies have produced.

Foam Body Poppers and Foam Body Hoppers Winners!!

I can’t wait to get out this week and try out my new poppers I just received from ---- Warm Water for Fly Fishing and Fly Tying for Bluegill, Smallmouth, and Bass and More  ---- I am really impressed with these poppers because of the foam bodies. The number 8 size pattern will land lightly on the clear water at Smith Lake. The lighter presentation in clear water the better chance one has to connect. The different colors used on all 5 popper bodies will get the attention of any hungry bluegill. I ask Josh to mail me one of his hopper patterns, which was tied in size 6. The foam pattern body is tied so one can drift it or chug it. The face is designed to create a lot of drag when pulled through the water. I know this fly will be a killer in the early spring for bass, bluegill and even trout. I like to support quality fly tiers and Josh at--- Warm Water for Fly Fishing and Fly Tying for Bluegill,Smallmouth and Bass and More ---- is one the best.

I really like the color combos

Really impressed with this pattern