bass on the fly

Steve,

You don't say where you live now. I live in Northern Illinois, and fly fish
for everything that swims around here, which doesn't include many trout. For
the past 3 years, my largest bass of the year has come on the fly rod. There
are quite a few active fly rodders around here, but not as many as use other
methods.

I do tend to use heavy hardware a lot, but always have the fly rod handy
when I go out. On many a trip, the fly rod out produces the flippin' stick,
though I don't tend to throw 3X tippet into tree tops very often.

I actually got into fly fishing to target largemouth and smallies. A 4
pounder on a 5 wt is a blast! I don't target them with the fly rod, but have
caught a couple of walleye, one on a streamer, the other on a crawfish
pattern.

Don't give up the long rod, but you may have to buy a baitcaster if you want
to get invited to go fishing very often. If you're a loaner, just show them
your fish and tell the skeptics to shut up.

Mark


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I should have better introduced myself in the original post, thanks for
the responses so far, keep them coming

I have fished all over the world during my military career and really
found a passion for fly fishing. I believe a fly rodder can out fish a
bait caster in shallow water anytime. I believe we just have to learn
how and for me that's the fun and challenge. First of all let me tell
you that I live in Florida on Lake Istopokga, a great bass lake and
about 45 minutes from Lake Okeechobee. I have hundreds of smaller bodies
of water within minutes. I do not have a boat so I have been focusing
on the smaller bodies of water and canals. I use a 6 and 8 wt set-up
and poppers seem to be my mainstay. I use clousers and deceivers but
algae really fouls up wet flies.

I think the biggest problem is culture shock, coming from pristine
creeks and the tiniest of flies and leaders to these huge monstrosities
is almost like learning to fly fish again. I have learned that there is
very little written on fly fishing for Bass and what is, seems to be
basic and mainly focus at small mouth in gin clear streams. The books
written seem to be trout fishing technique thats super-sized, but I have
learned that largemouth fishing in still water it really is a different
style of fishing. The weeds algae and in many cases along the shores
competing with big old oak trees. My biggest problem is casting. The
wind can be a real bother when I am throwing a # 4 popper. With a back
wind the popper sails but when it is in my face I get no distance.

I like to fish for Bass, big bass are not a must but would be nice. I
land 1 - 3 lbs as normal I haven't weighed any but a 3 1/2 is probably
the largest I have landed. I don't mind bluegill or crappie either but
algae keeps me throwing poppers and for bluegill it's O.K. but crappie
don't hit them.

I have no local fly shops and the closest is about an hour drive. We
have no fly clubs and the local bass club does not allow fly rods in
tournaments. It's just a whole different animal fly fishing in central
Florida compared an outfitter on every corner and clubs sponsoring
clinics every weekend in Montana and Utah. The coast offers
opportunities but it is hard to find time to regularly visit.

Suggestions on equipment, casting and fly suggestions would be a great
start.

Well, I've been down this road on a little bet with some NC scoundrels
who waxed me good -- however, the fact that I was accompanied by one
of the said scoundrels might have influenced the results.

Largemouth feed on insects and often quite voraciously. We should
consider fishing for them as fly fishermen as well as ersatz gear
fishermen equipped with feathers. Leeches, dragonflies, damselflies,
and small streamers should all work fine. Standard bassbugs also work
but wind will defeat them unless . . . Standard streamers work just
fine (Deceivers or Clousers anyone?)

About gear, well, I'm shying away from single handed rods in almost
any situation where distance and wind is on the menu. I can cast
farther and with less effort using a two-hander. For largemouth, it's
often necessary to cast far over lillypads to get at the best lunkers.
I kept thinking while in NC, that if I had brought one of my two
handers with me, I could've sailed casts well into the salad, through
the wind, then used the long rod to keep the fly skipping across the
top of the pads and the fly line off of the salad. My Loop 8/9 tosses
a 35' Airflo 12 wt. shooting head over 100' on an overhead cast and it
can cast short as well. There isn't a bassbug in existence that it
can't cast. Nothing beats a two-hander for covering water.

On Monday, I'm going to hit the Grand for dropback steelies, resident
bows and browns, smallies, or whatever hits the fly, using my Loop
7/8. A few weeks back, I was whacking monster smallies using a big
Daiwa, while after steelhead. In all cases, I'm covering a lot of
water. There was damn near a gale blowing hen I was using the Daiwa
and I could still fish. Some of the smallies were taken in water that
was about 10' deep.

It's time to think a bit out of the box . . .

Peter

"Peter Charles" wrote in message
om...

It's time to think a bit out of the box . . .

Peter
Warren, myself, and my son in law all fished Coeur d'Alene this past weekend
for bass/pike. about the only thing different between us and the gearheads
is that we had a pile of line around our feet/ rod holders/ motors/
cleats/anchors/tackle boxes, and the gear guys do something totally silly
like wind all the line up onto their reels after EVERY cast. otherwise
pretty much the same thing- oh, that and our leach patterns were made of
dyed rabbit fur instead of good ole' amurican plastic.
jh

My thoughts exactly,

I do want to continue to thank all the great responses that I have received

Steve wrote:I do want to continue to thank all the great responses that I have
received


I am surprised that no one has mentioned any of the three editions of Tom
Nixon's classic book Fly Tying and Fly Fishing For Bass And Panfish. Some may
consider it dated, but you must remember that the reason fly fishing is banned
from B.A.S.S. competition is that he beat them at their own game one day on
Toledo Bend when they could not boat a fish and he caught them all day long
Sadly, Tom passed away a little over a year ago, and I lost a true friend and
so did those who fly fish for bass. I prefer the second edition of his book.
You might find a copy on ebay, but I suggest you contact Walt Winter at
EZflyfish.com or Wilson Creek Outfitters to see if he has a copy.

Big Dale

Hi Steve,

I have a small vacation home in Sebastian, FL now that is about 2 hours from
you.

You might put a WF9F 3M Mastery Bass line on you 8 weight rod and then put
on a Rio 7 1/2' 2x leader . This should help your 'bass bug/popper' casting
some.

For small poppers you could put a WF7F Bass line on you 6 weight rod.

Seems like the winter months is the big bass time in Florida?

--
Bill Kiene

Kiene's Fly Shop
Sacramento, CA, USA

Web site: www.kiene.com


"Steve Nyhan" wrote in message
link.net...

I should have better introduced myself in the original post, thanks for
the responses so far, keep them coming

I have fished all over the world during my military career and really
found a passion for fly fishing. I believe a fly rodder can out fish a
bait caster in shallow water anytime. I believe we just have to learn
how and for me that's the fun and challenge. First of all let me tell
you that I live in Florida on Lake Istopokga, a great bass lake and
about 45 minutes from Lake Okeechobee. I have hundreds of smaller bodies
of water within minutes. I do not have a boat so I have been focusing
on the smaller bodies of water and canals. I use a 6 and 8 wt set-up
and poppers seem to be my mainstay. I use clousers and deceivers but
algae really fouls up wet flies.

I think the biggest problem is culture shock, coming from pristine
creeks and the tiniest of flies and leaders to these huge monstrosities
is almost like learning to fly fish again. I have learned that there is
very little written on fly fishing for Bass and what is, seems to be
basic and mainly focus at small mouth in gin clear streams. The books
written seem to be trout fishing technique thats super-sized, but I have
learned that largemouth fishing in still water it really is a different
style of fishing. The weeds algae and in many cases along the shores
competing with big old oak trees. My biggest problem is casting. The
wind can be a real bother when I am throwing a # 4 popper. With a back
wind the popper sails but when it is in my face I get no distance.

I like to fish for Bass, big bass are not a must but would be nice. I
land 1 - 3 lbs as normal I haven't weighed any but a 3 1/2 is probably
the largest I have landed. I don't mind bluegill or crappie either but
algae keeps me throwing poppers and for bluegill it's O.K. but crappie
don't hit them.

I have no local fly shops and the closest is about an hour drive. We
have no fly clubs and the local bass club does not allow fly rods in
tournaments. It's just a whole different animal fly fishing in central
Florida compared an outfitter on every corner and clubs sponsoring
clinics every weekend in Montana and Utah. The coast offers
opportunities but it is hard to find time to regularly visit.

Suggestions on equipment, casting and fly suggestions would be a great
start.

Steve Nyhan wrote:

... I believe a fly rodder can out fish a
bait caster in shallow water anytime.

deja vu!! (eh, petah?)

6-8 weight rod, bass leaders, big popping bugs in various colors... hula
poppers, dixie devils, worm/leech ties, etc. fish edges and holes in
lilly pads, fish the drop offs. and...a good baitcaster or spin
fisherman will kick your butt everytime, shallow or deep water...
that's my opinion.

jeff

On Sun, 23 May 2004 14:47:12 -0400, Jeff Miller
wrote:



Steve Nyhan wrote:

... I believe a fly rodder can out fish a
bait caster in shallow water anytime.

deja vu!! (eh, petah?)

6-8 weight rod, bass leaders, big popping bugs in various colors... hula
poppers, dixie devils, worm/leech ties, etc. fish edges and holes in
lilly pads, fish the drop offs. and...a good baitcaster or spin
fisherman will kick your butt everytime, shallow or deep water...
that's my opinion.

jeff

ya, ya, ya -- that's why I said the fly rodder has to think out of
the box. If you're gonna fish like a baitcaster, take a baitcaster.
PJ would cast into the salad and rip the worm across the top. A short
(9 footer) fly rod wouldn't be able to cast as far nor keep the fly
line out of the salad. I spent a lot of time casting to fish that
weren't home, fishing the cold, empty shallows. The wind played merry
hell with the lighter line but it was of no concern to PJ's
baitcaster.

I didn't play to the strengths of the fly rod that day. Give the
weather we had, the fish weren't going to be in the shallows until the
temperature rose. They weren't going to be moving too fast either.
They were either in deeper water or under the salad that probably
acted like an insulating blanket for that water. I bet the temps
under the salad were one or two degrees warmer than the open shallows.

I should've been fishing the canals like a UK stillwater angler,
dropping damselflies and dragonflies into the canels and retrieving
them very slowly along the bottom. Would've driven PJ nuts as I took
the better part of five minutes to retrieve a single cast, but that in
of itself would've made the day interesting. ) If I ever went
back, I'd take a two-hander, blast casts 90' to 100' down the length
of the canals using a shooting head, then slowly retrieve a team of
flies along its length. Don't think I wouldn't pick up a few?

The interesting thinks about models, is that far more people follow
existing ones rather than use their brains and a bit of moral courage
to try and forge new ones. Fly fishing for largemouth exactly like a
gear chucker is a losing propostion in my books. IIRC, we had a
similar discussion before I left for NC.

Peter

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On Sun, 23 May 2004, Peter Charles wrote:

Would've driven PJ nuts as I took the better part of five minutes to
retrieve a single cast, but that in of itself would've made the day
interesting.

Yeah, I've done the fly fishing thing quite a bit side by side with
hardware and bait *******. It's not very productive because there are
differing boat handling requirements that are suited to the different
methods.

Mu