You don't see these too often...

The first 800 - Win a Thomas and Thomas Fly Rod

The first 800 Thomas and Thomas is looking to expand their footprint in the world of social media. Visit the link above and follow the instructions to throw your name in the pot for a new fly rod of your choice. All you need to do is follow them on Twitter, like um on Facebook or subscribe to their newsletter. Easy as pie!

The Not So Super Ant

Original Super Ant

Two summers ago I put up a post about a simple terrestrial pattern dubbed the super ant.  The super ant is a ungainly creation consisting of just three materials - foam, hackle and thread. It was a creation of my buddy Rick, during a late night tying session in our West Yellowstone cabin, fueled by one too many servings of "cabin punch".  This jumbo sized attractor pattern scored big time on fish in the West Yellowstone area.  The browns on the meadow section of Gibbon River fell particularly hard to its charms.

Super Ant Country

When I brought the pattern home to New Jersey it worked well most of the time for warm water species, but our trout here on the east coast sometimes cast a suspicious eye upon the pattern. They would often rise to inspect the fly, sometimes following a good distance downstream, before ultimately refusing the offering. They were definitely interested, but there was something about the pattern they were not sure of.

Super Ant Redux

As it turns out, it appears that the "super" in the super ant was turning fish off.   Downsizing the pattern has made it much more effective on our east coast trout.  It has also greatly improved its hooking abilities on small mouthed panfish as well,  which sometimes had a little difficulty choking down the original pattern.  The sample pattern I was given was tied on an old, discontinued Mustad barbless hook (3257B). It just so happens that I have thousands of these funky, old irons lying around. This hook was supposedly discontinued because of its poor hooking abilities. Although the hook held well, it was said to have penetration problems due the pronounced hump in the point. I have used the hook for a while now and have not observed any issues with penetration, so I am continuing to use it (I have to do something with them).  Another option in the same style of hook would be the Partridge Roman Moser (CS27) barbless dry fly hook (also discontinued, but easier to find). In the end, any old dry fly hook, barbed or not will work just fine.

This batch was tied up using some quick sight ant bodies I had lying around.  To get the hi-vis indicator tips, I simply tinted the white sections with permanent markers in various colors. The standard white works well enough but in some light conditions a little bit of color improves visibility on this low riding pattern.

In addition to the not so super ant I also tied up a few not so super bees with some foam bee bodies I found lying in the same drawer. I have a feeling the bluegills are going to tear these up!

Recent victim of the Super Ant

It's 'Gill Time

'nuff said

The Sulphurs are Flying!

Just a quick post for the local folks.  The Sulphurs have been around in dribs and drabs for a few days now, but last night they were out in numbers that had the fish looking up!   The bug pictured was on the small size most were considerably larger (as large as size 12!).  The fish ate good last night!

Usually, I would have more fish porn but I forgot the camera.  I took my iPhone on the water (which I never do) but I almost dropped the damn thing in the drink taking this shot, so that was the end of the pics!  I need to invest in a waterproof case...

This water was boiling with fish an hour after this photo was taken!

Farmington River

I recently took trip to Connecticut's famed Farmington River with a group of friends.  We headed up to the river on the tail end of a nor'easter, so we had some adverse weather and water conditions to deal with.  Despite less than ideal conditions it turned out to be a great trip.

There were plenty of chunky little rainbows to be had.  They were everywhere and eagerly took our nymphs and streamers in the morning and rose to Hendricksons and caddis in the warmer afternoons.  The rainbows averaged 12 to 14 inches with the largest nosing up to about 16 inches.  They fought surprising hard for their size.

 The brown trout averaged a inch or two less and were just as abundant.   I managed to hook a few larger browns in the 20" class, while fishing streamers in some of the deep runs and pools, but they got the best of me and never made it to the net.

The fishery folks on the Farmington have an interesting way of tagging fish to identify when they were stocked.  The small recently stocked brown trout all had this green laser etch behind their right eye.  I have never seen this method of tagging before.

We managed to have one phenomenal afternoon when my buddy Rick and I got into a riffle that was just teeming with fish.  There were actually more fish in this one spot than I have ever encountered on a river before.  We discovered that they were staged in that riffle taking emerging Hendricksons.  Fishing soft hackles we took fish on almost every casts for hours right up until dark.  The numbers of fish caught was astounding, between the two of us it was one of those rare "100 fish days".

Fishing two fly rigs and catching two fish at a time was just as common as catching one!  More often than not, everyones rod was bent over at the same time.  Since we left fish biting the night before, we returned the next morning morning with another friend and found the fish there again.  This time they appeared to be taking spent little yellow crane flies.  A partridge and yellow soft hackle did the trick and we did it all over again.   This had been my first trip to the Farmington, I can't wait to head back!

Not your typical trout stream resident!

I was standing in the shallow water on the edge of the river, tying on a new section of tippet, when I felt something heavy climbing over my wading boots.  I looked down and almost jumped out of my skin when I saw this large snapping turtle clambering over my boots.  I had been standing motionless for a while watching a few rising fish on the opposite bank so I guess he figured I was part of the landscape.  Once my heartbeat returned to normal I left this fellow to his own devices and I proceeded to catch one of those rising fish.

The Perfect Bass Fly?

Although my writing may not show it, I am an avid warm water fly fisherman. I am forced to be, because the nearest quality trout water is an hour from my house. Fortunately, I am blessed to have a number of warm water venues minutes from my front door. Despite the fact that most of this blog's posts revolve around trout fishing, much of my fishing involves the pursuit of warm water fish.

One of the most effective lures for largemouth bass has to be the plastic worm. For decades, I have been searching for the fly fisherman's equivalent. I believe that search is now over.

At a recent fly tying course offered by Central Jersey Trout Unlimited, I took a break from instructing and sat in on a workshop put on by one of the chapter's most innovative fly tiers, Bill Ninke.  Bill introduced me to materials and techniques to tie very effecting looking worm and tube jig imitations. Bill was quick to point out that these flies were not his original patterns.  He stated he had picked up the patterns and techniques from a source on the internet. The originator of this wrapping technique is Rich McElligott who works hard for the Illinois Smalmouth Alliance.

These flies are quick and easy to tie and they look great in the water.  The pattern's design keeps the long tail from fouling the hook point, an issue I have always had with other worm style flies.  The fly is tied in two stages.  First take a length of yarn equal to whatever you want the overall length of the fly to be and touch the end to an open flame to taper it.  I have been working with a fly that is 5 1/2 inches long. Take the none tapered end and tie it in behind the eye, bead or cone. Take a second piece of yarn three to four times longer than the first and tie it in behind the eye as well. Begin wrapping this longer piece of yarn around the hook shank until you reach the bend. Then continue wrapping the long piece of yarn around the standing portion of the tail. Make seven wraps down the tail then reverse direction and make six wraps back towards the hook.  Now continue wraping on the hook ending back at the eye.  Whip finish, tie off and your done.

I am adopting this technique and material to several new patterns I am developing.  I can't wait to field test them this spring.  I also started tying these flies on wire guard weedless hooks which results in a near weedless version that can be cast into heavy cover without the risk of losing the fly.  It can be weighted by attaching wraps of lead wire to the hook shank before tying on the yarn.

Recipe:
Hook: Mustad 3366 1/0 or substitute a weedless worm hook
Weight: Brass or tungsten cone or wraps on lead wire
Body:  Patons Bohemian Yarn (available at local craft stores)

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!