Popping Bug - Bass Fly Pattern - Flip Flop Bug

I bought some piping and made some better foam plugs/bodies for popping bugs. Here is a better photo of a Flip Flop fly pattern. Recycled bass fly pattern - if you will.

You can bid on these here: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&salenotsupported=true&item=250438115737

Recycled foam popping bugs "FLIP FLOP BUGS" - Bluegill fly pattern

This is the first time that I have made flip flop popper bodies. I found a copper tube in a pen that my wife threw out. I smashed it to bits this morning while making the bodies. These are a bit crude but effective - I am sure.

STEP 1 - Use a copper tube or PVC or something that will cut holes into flip flops.

STEP 2 - Put a hole in the body with a bodkin or something similar.

STEP 3 - Push onto hook shank - I use Zap-a-Gap to keep to keep the body in place. Put some adhesive on the shank and move the body back and forth a bit to get some inside of the body. Let it dry a bit.

STEP 3 - Tie in tail feathers and hackle.

STEP 4 - IF THE BODY IS LARGE ENOUGH - put a hole through the body with the Threader or bodkin and pull the legs through. BE GENTLE.

I am sure this is effective. After all, it's a popping bug!!!

Flip Flop Popping Bug for Bluegill and Bass

This is the first time I will have tied this popping bug for bluegill and I think it would be effective for bass too. I got this fly in a fly swap. It was cut out of a flip flop with scissors. I will be selling these on ebay shortly - along with some other popping bug patterns that I took out of my flip flop with copper tubing.

This is a piece of flip flop. I think some folks hammer them out with tubing or use Dremmel Tools - I do believe this wedge was cut out with scissors. Recycled bluegill popper bodies!!!!

STEP 1 - Tie in body at slim end - this is a quad or penta cut body WEDGE - try to think cone.

STEP 2 - Tie in hackle - tie it into foam and up to crease of foam body tie in.

STEP 3 - After wrapping hackle - pull foam body forward and tie down = make some semi-loose wraps and pull thread tight.

STEP 4 - Tie in legs - place some on one side and wrap. Repeat on other side - pull tight but not too tight.

Step 5 - Half hitches - tie it off.

Smallmouth Bass Outing - Illinois River - Lots of litter

You probably can't see the litter very well. I took other pics but they all suck. I would've had some great shots of the litter in the parking lot but someone picked it all up. Beer cans, alcohol bottles, 2 litre jugs, flip flops, crocs, etc.

I went back to the truck once, and I think a gentleman in a white Dodge Dakota picked all of it up out of the parking lot and at this spot where I took the photo. This is on the Arkansas portion of the Illinois River. Today, a lot of folks where starting to show up as I left.

There was an obscene amount of trash but someone was very nice about it and is looking after Mother Earth - and probably cashing in on aluminum and glass. Some folks ask why I don't take pictures of my fish - it's because I always step in big holes to get across somewhere or to get a fly unstuck. It happened today again. I walked across the river to get my fly - on the way back I deviated about a foot and took a plunge. My waders filled up.

I started out with a chartreuse and white Clouser tied to my sinking tip line. I worked the bank drifting it as I moved west along with the river. I found a dead pool onthe other side of some extremely swift water. there gar were pretty active at the edge. I cast several times and caught a largemouth on about the 10th cast. Great fight - good size - at least 13 inches or so. The raging water helped the fish seem larger and a better fighter than we may have been.

The next cast, I got hung up and lost my fly, braided leader and all - the fly line broke. AHHH!!!! I walked back to the truck and almost went home. I decided to use my 4 wgt. I dislike using streamers with floating line.

Made my way back to the fishing hole and tried several patterns and lots some more flies. I tied on a yellow and chartruese Clouser and hit a few spots but could not present the fly in a manner that I prefer with sinking tip line. Plus, it sucked because the weighted fly was harder to turn over - due to rod size and lack of braided leader - which I feel helps turn over heavy flies.

I walked down the river to portion where it spilled into a large pool. Off the the rear was some "backwater or a little "slew". I tried several patterns but did land two smallmouths on a yellow Crappie Killer.

I stripped it in bit by bit and let it sink back down or went so slow the fly had little chance to rise - due to the floating line. My second bass of the day was a good fighter - probably 13 to 14 inches. I caught my third bass off the same rock - that thing was a few inched short or measuring from my finger tip to elbow - hard to land - I kept pulling him out of fallen trees and branches.

3 great fighting large bass - not huge but large - I dedicate this fishing day to my father who knows why!

I found a canoe paddle. Also, wading back up the river due to dense woods and lack or shore, my hip muscles hurt. This is the best day out for my this year because I caught 3 awesome bass. Forget all the crappie and stuff - I have been trying to land some great smallies this year.

Instead of tying my own flies, I bought a selection from the local fly shop - and it's paying off. I broaded my fly selection - different clousers mostly.

More crappie on the fly.

Today, I started out with a chartuese popping bug and landed a bunch of small sunfish and a few decent bluegills. I switched to a chartruese and white Clouser. I used floating line instead of the sinking line I always use with streamers.

I came out for crappie and bass. I hit that same hole that I caught several crappie on a popping bug the day before. I landed several small crappie. One of which I may have taken home if it was a bit longer. They were short striking me all morning. They provided soft strikes as usual and it's not jsut exhilirating but frustrating.

I moved to the far side of this pond. I waded in a little bit and landed several more crappie with the Chartruese and white Clouser off a fallen tree. After getting hung up and breaking my leader at the Surgeon's Knot, I switched to a Silver and Chartruese Bead Head Woolie Bugger.

I landed only one more crappie off that fallen tree and it was the biggest of the day. I almost brought him home for a meal.

I took my largest Ozark bass ever. They usually weigh 1/2 lbs. on average but I think this was pushing 1 lbs. Wonderful coloring. I landed it on a Yellow and Brown Clouser - the first time I used such colors.

I used to take the boat out to Lake Elmdale and land a bunch of Ozark bass (Rock bass) on popping bugs. They would take full size deer hair bugs!! I also used to drift Elk Hair Caddis for Ozark bass on the Middle Fork of the White River.

Crappie on the Fly - Chartreuse Popping Bug

Memorial Day outing. It was overcast all day - misting and raining softly. I went out right before the sun came out at about 5 pm. The sunfish and bluegills were hitting my California Coachman and hitting my popping bug on every cast.

For the first time ever, I took crappie on a popping bug. What a surprise!
I would say it must be my year for crappie but I haven't landed that many - much less large ones. But I will take what I can get.

I landed a few decent size bluegills and a bigger than average one. The crappie were small with just one keeper.

This a a pic of a variation of the California Coachman. It's kind of torn up from landing so many panfish. I will update a proper picture - I used purple rubber hackle for the furls instead of peacock hurl. I think the orange throat is gone too. I can almost always count on this fly to land panfish.

Crappie on the Fly - Clouser fly pattern

This is the first time that I have used this Clouser - Pink and chartruese. I went out to Crystal Lake and landed a few crappie on this fly pattern. I haven't landed crappie on a fly in a few years. I walked out on the ledge of what I think is the concrete dam - NOT THE SPILLWAY further west with the gate. I waded along this wall that was about an inch longer than my shoe.

There was about a 5 ft. drop or so on one side and about 3 ft. on the other. I was casting along the wall of the deeper side and sometimes further into the lake. I used sinking tip line. Wading along the wall, I could get into deeper water - as it deepened further out from the dam wall.

I landed a few slabs of crappie - what a surprise. Figured I had a bass on too.

After fishing from the bank of the west side of the lake and landing nothing, I walked back towards the boat ramp and landed several large bluegills. Good fighters today. These were large and yummy, I didn't have my stringer, so I gave them to a bank fisherman. I was using the Jeremiah Two Nymph with sinking tip line - to get it closer to those bluegills on their beds. I would take a photo but I lost it in some underwater brush.

When I first arrived at the lake, I fished at the eastern end. There were small and large bass everywhere - everywhere!!!! I landed a few small bass and some panfish.

Here is a pic of the flies I was using for panfis and bass. They are still wet. The yellow fly pattern with bead chain eyes is a Crappie Killer. The other are custom.

Some of my smallmouth and panfish flies. I am hoping to make it out to a few more streams before the kids get out for summer - too much rain this spring!!!