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Willi
October 2nd, 2003, 12:07 AM
I hit my local river yesterday to get in a half day of fishing before I
start a project that I figure will take week - installing 900' of 3 rail
fencing.

Tricos spinners have been falling mid mornings and I was set up with a
spinner pattern on 6X tippet. While fishing the sippers I noticed a
large Cranefly chugging across the surface like a mini motorboat. It
passed through the pod of feeding fish but they ignored it. About every
five minutes, another would come chugging across the water, always
ignored by the fish. I caught a couple fish out of the pod and the
second fish put the rest down.

I moved downstream to an area where there were a few fish feeding
at the end of a tongue of current. I stood at the head and side of the
current working the feeding fish when a big cranefly plowed up the
current and was taken by a big Brown about three feet from where I was
standing.

I cut off the spinner and being lazy, I tied and greased a large dry
caddis on the 6X. I fished it through the current making a wake and
bouncing it on the surface trying to imitate the behavior of the
Cranefly. The third time through, the big Brown came up and rolled on
the fly. After a protracted battle because of the 6X tippet, I landed
the Brown a Big, fat, heavy fish that had started to color up in
anticipation of spawning.

While I was releasing the Brown, I saw a heavy bulge out of the
corner of my eye that looked more like the roll of the Brown than the
fish sipping the Tricos. With the Brown back on his way, I put a cast
over the area where I saw the rise and begain dragging/bouncing the
caddis back toward me. Halfway through the retrieve, a Rainbow
rolled on the fly and a fight was on. The fish ran downstream and took
me into my backing. I ran after it trying to gain line but as I was
moving, the fish started running right at me. I reeled like mad and
started backing up trying to get the line on the reel. I caught up with
it, then it tried to dive under a boulder in the rapids. I put on as
much pressure as I thought the 6X could take and kept its head up. Then
it jumped. It was HUGE. Biggest fish I had ever hooked on my home river,
one of the biggest I ever hooked. After the jump, it made a series of
runs both down and upstream with me racing after it. It finally started
to tire and I got it up on the top of the water about ten feet out. It
was lying on its side when it saw me and made another blistering run
toward a large boulder in the bottom of the pool. I felt the leader tick
the boulder and it was over.

QUITE A KICK!

Think I would have had a good chance of landing it if I would have taken
the time to replace the 6X with something more suitable. Didn't know
there were Rainbows that big in my home river. It looked more like a
Steelhead.

At least in the places I fish in Colorado, Craneflies hatch out at the
end of the year and their emergence is sporatic. I've seen them swimming
across the surface before, but I can't rememeber every seeing a fish
take one. That probably is because I wasn't observant enough. Yesterday
convinced me that the big fish do like them. It's also alot of fun
dragging a bouncing a big fly across the surface, especially after
straining your eyes to see a 22 Trico spinner on the water. I'm
definately going to be more aware of Cranefly in the future.

Willi

Tom Littleton
October 2nd, 2003, 01:19 AM
Willi,
Very good story, great lesson imparted.
I like to think us Pennsylvanians started you down the rod toward big
flies<g>....when completely converted, simply package and mail those now-
unused little flies you carry to my home address.
Wish I could've been there to see that fishing session, and wonder how a
largish Variant might have worked?
Tom

Clark Reid
October 2nd, 2003, 02:57 AM
I often fish a crane fly here... Not the best of pics, as it is just a scan
of the fly.. but this address will show you my pattern...

www.umpqua.co.nz/daddy.jpg


Nice TR BTW.

Clark Reid
http://www.dryflynz.com
Umpqua Designer Flytier


"Willi" > wrote in message
...
> I hit my local river yesterday to get in a half day of fishing before I
> start a project that I figure will take week - installing 900' of 3 rail
> fencing.
>
> Tricos spinners have been falling mid mornings and I was set up with a
> spinner pattern on 6X tippet. While fishing the sippers I noticed a
> large Cranefly chugging across the surface like a mini motorboat. It
> passed through the pod of feeding fish but they ignored it. About every
> five minutes, another would come chugging across the water, always
> ignored by the fish. I caught a couple fish out of the pod and the
> second fish put the rest down.
>
> I moved downstream to an area where there were a few fish feeding
> at the end of a tongue of current. I stood at the head and side of the
> current working the feeding fish when a big cranefly plowed up the
> current and was taken by a big Brown about three feet from where I was
> standing.
>
> I cut off the spinner and being lazy, I tied and greased a large dry
> caddis on the 6X. I fished it through the current making a wake and
> bouncing it on the surface trying to imitate the behavior of the
> Cranefly. The third time through, the big Brown came up and rolled on
> the fly. After a protracted battle because of the 6X tippet, I landed
> the Brown a Big, fat, heavy fish that had started to color up in
> anticipation of spawning.
>
> While I was releasing the Brown, I saw a heavy bulge out of the
> corner of my eye that looked more like the roll of the Brown than the
> fish sipping the Tricos. With the Brown back on his way, I put a cast
> over the area where I saw the rise and begain dragging/bouncing the
> caddis back toward me. Halfway through the retrieve, a Rainbow
> rolled on the fly and a fight was on. The fish ran downstream and took
> me into my backing. I ran after it trying to gain line but as I was
> moving, the fish started running right at me. I reeled like mad and
> started backing up trying to get the line on the reel. I caught up with
> it, then it tried to dive under a boulder in the rapids. I put on as
> much pressure as I thought the 6X could take and kept its head up. Then
> it jumped. It was HUGE. Biggest fish I had ever hooked on my home river,
> one of the biggest I ever hooked. After the jump, it made a series of
> runs both down and upstream with me racing after it. It finally started
> to tire and I got it up on the top of the water about ten feet out. It
> was lying on its side when it saw me and made another blistering run
> toward a large boulder in the bottom of the pool. I felt the leader tick
> the boulder and it was over.
>
> QUITE A KICK!
>
> Think I would have had a good chance of landing it if I would have taken
> the time to replace the 6X with something more suitable. Didn't know
> there were Rainbows that big in my home river. It looked more like a
> Steelhead.
>
> At least in the places I fish in Colorado, Craneflies hatch out at the
> end of the year and their emergence is sporatic. I've seen them swimming
> across the surface before, but I can't rememeber every seeing a fish
> take one. That probably is because I wasn't observant enough. Yesterday
> convinced me that the big fish do like them. It's also alot of fun
> dragging a bouncing a big fly across the surface, especially after
> straining your eyes to see a 22 Trico spinner on the water. I'm
> definately going to be more aware of Cranefly in the future.
>
> Willi
>
>
>
>
>
>
>
>

Larry L
October 2nd, 2003, 11:06 PM
Here's a terrible ( never tried to photo a fly before ) out of fucus picture
of a Mackay Special, a crane fly I've had some success with on the Big Lost

I've been told, but I don't know <g> that the best way is to fish two in
tandem .. and a long rod held very high to make the closest one nearly fly
over the water as the second one "egg lays" and scoots on the surface

I've only caught small to medium fish with it, but I HAVE seen one of the
naturals disappear into a huge hole left by a long long roll of trout body
curling up then down displaying a very fat flank, ... I fished it pretty
hard that day <G>

Fly is dubbed body, squirrel shell back and wings and lots of hackle ... it
tips from side to side as skated, thus leaving "wing light prints"

http://www.kimshew.com/flyfish/crane.jpg

George
October 3rd, 2003, 03:24 AM
Larry,

The pic isn't too bad but it is obvious that your camera doesn't focus that
close (the railing behind the fly is sharp). The cheapest way to fix this
is to buy a filter that is referred to as a "close-up filter". They are
usually designated as +1, +2, or +3 (sometimes sold in sets of all three
strengths). Looks like about a +1 (the least strong) ought to fix you right
up for somewhere around $15.

George

"Larry L" > wrote in message
...
> Here's a terrible ( never tried to photo a fly before ) out of fucus
picture
> of a Mackay Special, a crane fly I've had some success with on the Big
Lost
>
> I've been told, but I don't know <g> that the best way is to fish two in
> tandem .. and a long rod held very high to make the closest one nearly fly
> over the water as the second one "egg lays" and scoots on the surface
>
> I've only caught small to medium fish with it, but I HAVE seen one of the
> naturals disappear into a huge hole left by a long long roll of trout body
> curling up then down displaying a very fat flank, ... I fished it pretty
> hard that day <G>
>
> Fly is dubbed body, squirrel shell back and wings and lots of hackle ...
it
> tips from side to side as skated, thus leaving "wing light prints"
>
> http://www.kimshew.com/flyfish/crane.jpg
>
>

Larry L
October 3rd, 2003, 03:57 AM
thanks, I'll check it out

-=SAGE=-
October 3rd, 2003, 07:43 PM
Great Story!





On Wed, 01 Oct 2003 17:07:33 -0600, Willi > wrote:

>I hit my local river yesterday to get in a half day of fishing before I
>start a project that I figure will take week - installing 900' of 3 rail
>fencing.
>
>Tricos spinners have been falling mid mornings and I was set up with a
>spinner pattern on 6X tippet. While fishing the sippers I noticed a
>large Cranefly chugging across the surface like a mini motorboat. It
>passed through the pod of feeding fish but they ignored it. About every
>five minutes, another would come chugging across the water, always
>ignored by the fish. I caught a couple fish out of the pod and the
>second fish put the rest down.
>
>I moved downstream to an area where there were a few fish feeding
>at the end of a tongue of current. I stood at the head and side of the
>current working the feeding fish when a big cranefly plowed up the
>current and was taken by a big Brown about three feet from where I was
>standing.
>
>I cut off the spinner and being lazy, I tied and greased a large dry
>caddis on the 6X. I fished it through the current making a wake and
>bouncing it on the surface trying to imitate the behavior of the
>Cranefly. The third time through, the big Brown came up and rolled on
>the fly. After a protracted battle because of the 6X tippet, I landed
>the Brown a Big, fat, heavy fish that had started to color up in
>anticipation of spawning.
>
>While I was releasing the Brown, I saw a heavy bulge out of the
>corner of my eye that looked more like the roll of the Brown than the
>fish sipping the Tricos. With the Brown back on his way, I put a cast
>over the area where I saw the rise and begain dragging/bouncing the
>caddis back toward me. Halfway through the retrieve, a Rainbow
>rolled on the fly and a fight was on. The fish ran downstream and took
>me into my backing. I ran after it trying to gain line but as I was
>moving, the fish started running right at me. I reeled like mad and
>started backing up trying to get the line on the reel. I caught up with
>it, then it tried to dive under a boulder in the rapids. I put on as
>much pressure as I thought the 6X could take and kept its head up. Then
>it jumped. It was HUGE. Biggest fish I had ever hooked on my home river,
>one of the biggest I ever hooked. After the jump, it made a series of
>runs both down and upstream with me racing after it. It finally started
>to tire and I got it up on the top of the water about ten feet out. It
>was lying on its side when it saw me and made another blistering run
>toward a large boulder in the bottom of the pool. I felt the leader tick
>the boulder and it was over.
>
>QUITE A KICK!
>
>Think I would have had a good chance of landing it if I would have taken
>the time to replace the 6X with something more suitable. Didn't know
>there were Rainbows that big in my home river. It looked more like a
>Steelhead.
>
>At least in the places I fish in Colorado, Craneflies hatch out at the
>end of the year and their emergence is sporatic. I've seen them swimming
>across the surface before, but I can't rememeber every seeing a fish
>take one. That probably is because I wasn't observant enough. Yesterday
>convinced me that the big fish do like them. It's also alot of fun
>dragging a bouncing a big fly across the surface, especially after
>straining your eyes to see a 22 Trico spinner on the water. I'm
>definately going to be more aware of Cranefly in the future.
>
>Willi

>
>
>
>
>
>

-=SAGE=-
http://www.njflyfishing.com
0 Limit,Catch -n- Release


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Willi
October 4th, 2003, 01:40 AM
Larry L wrote:
> Here's a terrible ( never tried to photo a fly before ) out of fucus picture
> of a Mackay Special, a crane fly I've had some success with on the Big Lost
>
> I've been told, but I don't know <g> that the best way is to fish two in
> tandem .. and a long rod held very high to make the closest one nearly fly
> over the water as the second one "egg lays" and scoots on the surface
>
> I've only caught small to medium fish with it, but I HAVE seen one of the
> naturals disappear into a huge hole left by a long long roll of trout body
> curling up then down displaying a very fat flank, ... I fished it pretty
> hard that day <G>
>
> Fly is dubbed body, squirrel shell back and wings and lots of hackle ... it
> tips from side to side as skated, thus leaving "wing light prints"
>
> http://www.kimshew.com/flyfish/crane.jpg


Several people mentioned specific patterns. However, for the active
adults I'm pretty confident that fishing an appropriately sized fly with
THE RIGHT ACTION will take most fish. I was two for two with my
skittering caddis pattern and it looks nothing like a Cranefly at rest.
If the fish were feeding on spent adults, it would be a different story.

I did fish it a bit casting blind and casting to fish feeding on the
Tricos, but I figured it was futile because even the naturals were being
ignored.

I do the two fly rig sometimes when fishing caddis patterns in pocket
water. With the anchor fly you can make the top fly bounce along the
surface in a different manner that's sometimes very tempting to the
fish. It's the only time I use a tag from a bloodknot to tie on the
upper fly. When fishing two flies, I usually just tie the secong fly to
the hook bend of the first.

I thought the roll the fish used to take the fly was VERY cool!


Willi