Shad - How to Find Them

Delaware River

In continuing the posts on the upcoming shad season, I thought I would share what I know about locating the fish.  Shad are different from most warm water fish I target since they are anadromous. This means they spend the majority of their lives in salt water, returning to fresh water to spawn.  They are only available to anglers for a short window of time and during this period, they are always on the move.  What was a productive spot one day may be a waste of time to fish the next.

First a little about the fish themselves.  When I refer to shad, I am, in fact, referring to American Shad, not to be confused with the slightly smaller Hickory Shad.   Both species may be present at the same time in some watersheds.  Shad are members of the herring family.  These fish spend the vast majority of their lives in salt water, returning to freshwater to spawn, much like salmon.   It is interesting to note that many shad survive spawning and return to the ocean in the northern part of their range.  When I refer to freshwater, I mean rivers.  Although the historical range of the American Shad has been reduced due to dams and pollution, shad can be found in most major river drainages along the eastern seaboard including Florida and Nova Scotia.    Originally native to only the east coast, shad were transported to our western shores in the 1800's where they took to the Pacific Ocean like a fish to water.  West coast runs of shad in some rivers may, in fact, be larger than runs in their native rivers back east.

A female shad is typically larger than males.  Their average weight is 3-6 pounds, but they can run quite a bit larger.  The current IGFA all tackle record is a hefty 11lbs 4oz.  Male shad typically range in the 2-4 pound range.  Shad are feed mostly on plankton like other herring, but they have been known to consume shrimp, small fish and fish eggs.  It is puzzling why shad readily take flies and other lures, being the plankton feeders that they are.  It could be out of aggression or perhaps simple curiosity.  Fortunately, we don’t need to worry about why they hit flies, just be confident that they do.

When shad enter freshwater, they are doing it for one reason, and that is to spawn.  Depending on where you are located this can occur anytime from late winter to early summer.  In my area, the major fishery is the Delaware River.  In most years the fish are in the rivers in catchable numbers by late March.  Once in the rivers, the fish are constantly on the move towards their spawning grounds which could be hundreds of miles upstream and into tributaries along the way.

Shad tend to orient themselves to the river bottom, sticking close to it as they move or rest in the river.  They often tend to stick to river channels, but occasionally can be found in shallow water.  Shad also tend to congregate behind obstructions in the river, using the break in the current to rest before pushing up the river.  Shad gather in schools in the marine environment, so if you locate one fish, you are likely to connect with more.  In the rivers, shad behave differently than they do in salt water in regards to forming schools.  In freshwater, a school of shad is more likely to be a long narrow line of fish opposed to a dense school.  They move upstream in conga line fashion instead of a large pod of fish.

If your are trying to locate shad, you need to keep these facts in mind.  You are going to need to present your fly in a manner that it gets down in the water column, real low, just over the bottom low.  You will probably have more success if you can locate structure in the river that will provide a break in the current if you are looking for a concentration of fish.  Keep in mind that these fish are on the move constantly so you may find them anywhere.  Finally, you want to be able to reach the main channel with your cast as the fish tend to seek out the deeper water of the main channel more often.  Find a location that gives you one or more of these features and you're likely to catch shad if they are there.

The Shad are Nigh

It won't be long now.

I am starting to hear reports of shad caught in the Delaware River.  Their numbers over the last few weeks have been on the flat side indicating that the run has not begun in earnest, but it should not be long now.  I friend of mine was on the river last week and reported the water was lower than it should be at this time of year.  Low water will have an effect on the run.  A flush of water should encourage the fish to begin their upstream push.  With some wet weather in the forecast perhaps we will see some better numbers caught.  I know most anglers pursue shad with a spinning rod, and there is certainly nothing wrong with that!  If you have never fly fished for shad, I highly recommend it.  The fish eagerly take flies and fight like hell on a six weight rod.  I am a relative novice when it comes to fly fishing for shad having fished for them for only a few years.  In any case, I am happy to share what I know.

The most challenging part for me has been finding sections of the river that are suitable for fly fishing.  With fly fishing, an open bank for unobstructed backcasts is necessary, unless you are going to employ spey gear.   Being able to reach the main channel give you access to more fish as they tend to concentrate there.  With the limited casting range of a fly rod (compared to a spinning rod) the channel needs to swing close to the shoreline your fishing.   On the Delaware River, spots that meet these criteria are few and far between, especially if you don’t want to interfere with the efforts of other anglers using spinning tackle.  That being the case, I need to keep specific locations to fish close to the vest.   I’m going to leave finding a place to fish up to you, but that’s half the fun.

As far as rods go, I have been using a nine foot six weight for most of my shad fishing.  Since you are throwing shooting heads with fast sinking or intermediate lines, a fast rod with a bit of backbone helps to cast this setup.  When the water is high, I will often switch to a seven weight nine feet or longer.  Late in the season, I may drop down to a five weight and may even use floating lines.  When fishing with shooting heads, a stripping basket of some type is mandatory equipment.

Colorful, flashy and easy to tie!

The flies are very simple to tie with bright and flashy being the norm.  It takes a bit of experimenting to dial in on a retrieve that the fish find appealing.  In most cases a fast, steady retrieve is what the fish prefer.  A two handed retrieve with the fly rod tucked up under your arm usually does the trick.  If you are a saltwater angler, you know the drill.

I hope to report more in the weeks to come and plan on sharing more information on gear, terminal tackle and fly selection so stay tuned…

Shad Flies

I needed to restock my shad fly box for an upcoming trip this weekend.  Normally I would recruit my 9 year old son to whip up a bunch off shad flies for me, but the lad broke his finger last night so I got stuck behind the vice.  I had only one hour to spend fly tying this evening.  Fortunately, shad flies are quick and easy to tie.  The patterns are only limited by your imagination and fly tying supplies.  For me it is crystal flash, and bright colored standard and crystal chenille, nothing to them.

When tying shad flies your looking for brightness and/or contrast.  These are all tied on an #4 Eagle Claw Nickel Teflon Salmon hook (model NT1197FS).  I carry a assortment of colors and sizes (2-6).  Follow the basic rules - bright flies on bright days, dark flies on cloudy days or low light periods.

Shad!

Many years ago I chased the Delaware River's shad with spinning tackle.  About fifteen or twenty years ago, I laid the spinning and casting gear down and chased fished exclusively with the fly rod.  Up until this year, I never pursued shad with fly tackle.   One of the main reasons I have never gone after shad with a fly is the timing of the run. It occurs during our primetime for trout.  This year, with so much excellent fishing opportunities this winter, I felt I could take a few days off from trout fishing and finally give shad on the fly a go.  Thanks to some friends who shared their expansive knowledge of fly fishing for shad, I have discovered a new thrill.

These fish are a blast!  Shad eagerly take a fly and on a 6wt fly rod they make a good showing of themselves.  On this tackle you will not land every fish! They will push 6wt gear to its limits and will escape from time to time.  Though they take a fly readily, their bony mouths can offer a bit of resistance to a hook, they are prone to leaping and on occasion a large fish will break a ten pound tippet on the initial strike like it was made of sewing thread!

When the fish are pushing through the action can be hot and heavy.  When they are not, you cast until your arm wants to fall off.  But they can show up at any time, so you cast away.  This time of year it is running lines and fast to moderate sinking shooting heads.  The use of a stripping basket is mandatory.  There is nothing graceful about fly fishing for shad but it can be terribly effective.  Although it is certainly not always the case, on the days I have been out, the fly guys have out produced the spin fisherman.

The flies are ridiculously simple to tie and they are a great patterns for new fly tiers, especially children.  The brighter and gaudier, the better, and the kids love combining colors that would have not have a place on any respectable trout pattern but are perfect for shad flies.  I'll put up a post in the next week or so on the flies used for this species.

But like most forms of fly fishing, you occasionally connect with a trash fish like this brown trout!  What did I say about colors that don't belong on a respectable trout fly?  I may have to rethink this one!

Gizzard Shad

I caught a new species on the fly rod...Gizzard Shad.  The day had started out as a trip for panfish.  I went out to a local lake at first light to play with some bluegills.  I heard a bit of splashing down in the creek below the lake's dam.  I went down to investigate and found water filled with good sized Gizzard Shad.  I forgot all about the blue gills and spent a few hours with these guys.  Caught a mess of them up to about 18"-20" long.  They put a serious bend in my 5wt Hardy glass rod.

Fly Detail