2011 First Day Out

Crummy weather is moving in. It's supposed to snow anywhere between 2 to 10 inches between tonight and tomorrow. Hello, I'm in the South . . . gimme a break Mother Nature!!!

The fog moved in on the stream and choked me up. I couldn't breath without choking and didn't want to risk getting sick from too much moisture. The water temp was pretty chilly - Not unbearable but the water had to be less than 40 degrees.

Started out with my "Yellow Stream Fly" and landed a few bass fingerlings. Hung out on the stream for about 2 hours before cursing the late winter. Not a bad day out. I did better than expected.

Wish I took my camera - caught a large crawdad on the butt of my rod - BIG pinchers. He did not want to let go of my rod - I had kicked him up out of somewhere and was booting him downstream as I walked. Poor guy. I finally put him on a nice shallow shoal.

I got rained on too. Twice. At one point, I stood under the bridge and tried to wait it out. Time to tie up some wooly buggers.

Later.

Note to self.

Diversify fly box more for lake bass. Not just poppers and Clousers and a few other streamers but also wooly buggers too. Most of my lake bass have been taken on woolies.

Need more brown and yellow Clousers too. Time to tie up a few more. Need to make trip to fly shop. Maybe Academy too.

"Popping Bugs" - Custom Bass and Panfish foam bodies

https://joshs-flies.myshopify.com/

Pictured above, you will see a flip-flop which is being cut into smaller pieces. Pieces that will eventually end up in a fishes mouth. Yes, something that had a foot in it will tempt a fish to put himself onto a hook.

I have made bugs from flip-flops before. Some of those flies were created in a large cylindrical form for bass. But these foam bodies will be mainly for bluegill and probably the occasional bass. Last year, I did fairly well catching bass. I hit a couple of new locations and am happy with the results. It doesn't matter if it's a pond, a stream, or the local creek running through town, I am going to hammer those bluegills hard this year.

Stay tuned and I will show you how these foam wedges will turn into seemingly tasty morsels.

More Bluegill Flies

Most every fly fisherman knows that you can chuck just about anything at a bluegill and it'll take it . . . more than most other species anyway. I have tied a lot of custom flies, bought 'em, and collected them from fly swaps.

So, you could say that my list of bluegill flies is pretty long. But I will share a short list with you anyway. At least those currently with me now.

• Serendipity - light green
• Renegade
• Elk Hair Caddis
• Bitch Creek Nymph
• Green Humpy
• white stillborn midge
• flashback pheasant tail nymph
• brown CDC emerger midge
• red brassie
• Copper bead olive zebra midge
• P.T choronomid
• black parachute caddis emerger

I will end up losing about half of those the first day out. Most of these will also be used to drift for bass. Out of these, I think the Elk Hair Caddis has been most successful for me. I take small bass on those midges. Large Pumpkin Seed usually pummel my Bitch Creek.

I like to tied up a bunch of Jeremiah Nymph Two's for landing 'gills. It's a Tom Nixon pattern. I just might share it with ya'.

Tying up a few fly patterns today.

This fly pattern was sent to me by a friend who chases Whitefish. I am going to throw this ugly thing at a few fish this year. I pulled most of my fly tying materials out of the attic and scattered it about the living room. I have got to clean this mess up before the wife comes in.
This fly pattern is a take on a fly I came up with while trying different patterns for stream bass. You know, smaller Kentucky type bass . . . anyway, unlike the original pattern, this is tied with regular yellow chenille instead of FLAT YELLOW chenille. I added pheasant tippet and a red throat. This is a size 6 bait hook. Yes, a bait hook.
This pattern is a evolution of that same small stream bass fly except that it has hackle. I have landed a lot of bass and bream on this fly. This is on a size 8 bait hook. Flat yellow chenille.
This is the original pattern for small stream bass. I have landed some decent size bass on this fly. This pattern excites me because bass have left their cover to dart out even to the mid part of a stream to take it. I landed two nice bass on this pattern in less than 3 minutes on a small pond.
I forget the hook size but it is a larger nymph hook - probably an 8. This is my copy of a fly I purchased at the local fly shop called the Crappie Killer - except that I forgot to tie in the bead chain eyes. I have indeed landed crappie and rock bass on this pattern . . . along with what is close to my largest smallmouth ever.

Getting revved up for this spring. I may tie up some bug patterns from flip flops today. So exciting!

Scouted some new water today.

I tied this popping bug about 5 years ago. The fly got hung on a log and lost on a stream. I went out with the kids and scouted out a few streams in the area. For the most part, these streams aren't thoroughly deep. They do shrink up quit a bit during a heat wave. You probably won't pull

out any lunkers either.

However, I do think these streams are a perfect fit for me. I enjoy fishing warm shallow streams - clear, beautiful streams. A stream without anybody else on it. These creeks will definitely be filled with bream and bass. And from what I can surmise, crappie too. Won't go into detail about the crappie because I don't want to give away the location.

I do prefer fishing remote locations. I prefer fishing without anyone or others on the same stream. It may sound selfish but it's more relaxing for me. I like to enjoy a serene location to it's fullest. I like clear and quiet streams where I can focus and gather my thoughts. I leave my issues on the stream and go back to life in a relaxed state.

I just might post a pic . . . maybe. But I best not see you.

Cheers.

Fishing habits/superstitions

When I go fishing, there are certain things I do, not only because I enjoy them but also because it's a bit of a routine and possibly superstition. Back in the day, as a kid I had to have a Coke and a Snickers bar.

Now, I have to stop and buy a cup of coffee and sunflower seeds. GOTTA HAVE MY SEEDS. And I know this is going to be odd to some folks. Especially because most people either haven't heard of The Pixies or think they are odd. But I have to listen to The Pixies to get worked up about slodging the stream.

Maybe it's just me but I have got to be a gear minimalist. I take just enough - water, a case of flies and an extra leader. And a phone.

Searching for warm water fly fishing patterns.

If you are searching for warm water patterns, please use the search feature on my blog to locate patterns. There are a lot for panfish but also some for bass too - not just pics but tying instructions too.

I caught one of my biggest bass on this fly at Lake Swepco in Gentry, AR. A power station uses a local creek to cool something within the facility, so the outflow is very warm. The lake stays warm all year round. The bass usually spawn in January. This lake is stocked with Florida strain bass and was at one point and may still be off limits to keep any bass.

Parmacheene Bass

Originator: Tom Nixon

Hook: #2 - 1/0, 4X long
Tail: Two red and two white hackle tips
Body: Red chenille ruff at bend of hook, rest of body white chenille
Hackle: One white and one red saddle hackle plamered together over white chenille portion of body
Wing: White topped with red topped with white bucktail. This example substitutes white mylar and red mylar fibers from mylar dusters


Tyer: Mark Delaney, Lake Charles, LA

Some more flies.

Bluegill flies. Just a little something to help tide us over until Spring.

Fav Bass Bug

I only have two of these - held onto 'em for about 6 years. Tied them from cylinder foam. Had a few nice bass on this baby!

Catchin' the fever.

Bass Bugs, etc.

Snowy and boring today. I thought why not show a pic of flies I tied up for bass and bream. Simple patterns. Nothing fancy but you know these are effective.

Just watched a show on Versus, "Fly Fish TV". The host was fly fishing for bass on Beaver Lake, ar with top water patterns. It made me go nuts!!!!!! I cannot wait for spring - shoot, the white bass run will be first!!!!!!!!!!