Category Archives: bass fishing

I managed to seduce a few of the unwary

It’s an excuse to fiddle mostly … the discovery of something new that you’ve never tried stimulates both optimism and creativity. The normal guardrails that exist when being shown something vanish when it’s a chance encounter; something read, something seen, or something accidentally observed.

This week I was fiddling with “balanced leeches”, and after viewing several videos, numerous fly patterns and articles describing the style and theory behind the practice – it sounded like great fun. A large Bobber-cator suspends a leech pattern in the water – with beads tied forward of the eye to “balance” the fly in a horizontal attitude, versus hanging from the indicator perpendicularly.

In theory, the wave and wind action would then make the fly dance fetchingly on the end of its tether, compelling even the most wary fish to scarf it down.

While it was fun staring at the strike indicator waiting for it to disappear, the theory and the practice proved much different. I hooked and landed three fish but each ate the leech after I moved the indicator with a short strip. I tried diligently but the wave action induced dance failed to yield a fish strike – but mitigating circumstances might have altered the result.

I was fishing the deep end of the lake – which is less conducive to flies fished close to the surface. I opted to fish the fly about 3.5 feet from the indicator to give it some sinking ability – but I was attending a local club’s Berryessa outing and launched where the club intended, versus launching where shoreline and depth aided this style. While the club promptly roared away towards parts unseen (likely shallower), I was left in the “knife cut” portion of the lake where the canyon near the dam makes the depth drop away abruptly.

I moved out of the creek arm and into the open portion of the lake where waves and gusty wind made the action on the fly much more vigorous. I focused on the points and drop-offs that were visible close to shore and managed a few grabs as well as a brace of spotted bass.

Water temperature was about 62 degrees, which is on the chill side but not excessively so, and might have made fish less willing to chase or swim up from the depths below.

I encountered a few fish chasing minnows in an after bay and managed to land one of them. These fish had proven (in earlier trips) difficult to catch as they move about with great speed chasing the bait swarm. With the balanced leech technique you can leave the fly stationary until the feeding fish return to where it was cast, then give it a twitch to induce a take.

In simple sight testing the fly, observing wave action on the suspended bait, the sparser dressed flies were much more animated and “swam” better. Large clumps of marabou do not respond to the gentle motion of wave and wind and tend to simply “bob” up and down. Traditional leech flies, with the wing (tail) tied sparsely – swam quite nicely when the indicator was disturbed.

I used enough marabou to give good silhouette but not enough to make the fly opaque. The overall flue length was chosen to position the hook in the center of the fly, offering ample movement of the tail and palmered hackle, but not so long as to induce the short strike, where the fish misses the hook entirely. The double bead offers a chance for a “rattle” when yanked – and is something I am fiddling with to add sound to my bass flies.

As the weather warms I’ll move to the shallower sections of the lake to fish over the emergent weed beds. Numerous weed “shoals” exist on the east side of the lake that harbor a lot of fish during summer months. I’m thinking this method will give me the opportunity to fish within the clumps – as well as suspend a fly above the weeds indefinitely .. offering a couple options I’ve not had before.

I did manage to bend a few of the dressmaker pins used to support the beads. They will deform on the occasional snag – as well as yanked through wooden snags or similar underwater obstacles. I simply bent the pins back into their original shape with finger pressure. I could see some flies having more issue with pin deformity – but only if fly components were attached directly to the pin instead of the shank. As my flies were simplistic in design, akin to Wooly Bugger flies, I had no issue with the pins and fly construction.

My war against the 25 pack continues

I held my nose while ordering a 25 pack of “balance leech pins”. I needed a sample of the genuine to confirm what these really were – and from which industry they came. Possession of a 25 pack of anything from a tackle store typically requires me to blush profusely and commit the obligatory toe scuff to distract onlookers.

I hate 25 packs of anything, unless it’s Twinkies.

In fly fishing, the twenty five pack is just enough material to fiddle with and then run out when you discover some unknown yet useful quality.It’s enough to give your fishing buddy a handful, then find you only have three for yourself.

Today’s case it was enough to identify that “balanced leech pins” at $2.95 for 25, are simply dress maker’s pins – available at any fabric store for $6.95 for 750 of them. This wasn’t earth shattering as many fly tiers have guessed similarly, but as I noted the pattern recipe called for fly tying beads to balance the fly, and beads being another exorbitant 25 pack item, I thought I’d mention that standard metal beads will work better than the fly tying version – and are much cheaper.

Dressmaker pins are used as they have a flattened head which prevents our bead from slipping off the end of the pin.

DressMaker500

Solid copper, steel, or brass beads are available from Etsy, eBay, or Rings & Things and most hobby stores that cater to jewelry making. They work on barbless fly hooks with model perfect bends as they are not slotted to accommodate barb or sproat-style bends, but are sold for about $4 per hundred, versus $4.5 per 25 at the fly shop.

“Balance Leeching” is tying the fly on a 60 degree jig hook and including a bead on a dress maker’s pin to hold the fly level when suspended from a strike indicator. I had an idea this would work well on shallow weed flats for bass, and was intent on tying a couple dozen to try with minnow imitations as well as leechs.

balance_minnow600

Any chance I have to thwart the sale of a 25 pack of anything is worthy of the effort.I used some “diamond cut” 4mm iron beads to act as the balance element and tied others with dual beads so they would bang against one another (rattle) during the retrieve. Weeds are not yet available in the local lakes but they’ll show once the warm weather starts in earnest.

In Spring a Young Man’s thoughts turn to Cloudy Water

Spring is synonymous with the “Great Flush” wherein increased water levels caused by rain and snowmelt sends leaves, branches, empty water bottles, discarded Pandemic masks, and everything not nailed down – into whatever body of water is downstream.

I always seem to run into dirty water regardless of where I’m fishing and am always fiddling with flies attempting to find a solution to their visual appeal being obscured by debris and dirt.

The drought has complicated matters as well. As the water in lakes are drawn down it exposes loose dirt with little vegetation to hold it in place. Wave action caused by wind will stir that mix into a coffee colored slick that will extend it’s plume into the lake from the windward side of every point.

Wind and shallow water are common to both freshwater lakes and the California Delta. Vegetation tends to cleanse dirty water but a drought, coupled with the time of year, weeds are not available. Much of the underwater vegetation dies back during the Fall and Winter months, and the spring flush often empties into lakes whose weeds have not yet started their new cycle. The California Delta has less water level fluctuation and much more resident vegetation but is prone to wind which stirs the water in the shallows – disturbing bottom debris and sediment which quickly discolors water in the surrounding flats.

As fly fishing lacks many of the sensory elements of other types of fishing, like scent or sound, we are at a disadvantage when water conditions are less than ideal. Watching those Pro Bass shows often tempts me into using “Scent of a Thousand Nightcrawlers,” but I’ve resisted thus far only because the oily mess is likely to mat all materials and render flies lifeless and stiff.

Sound is a viable option on flies, but their method of attachment is a bit problematic. Many kinds of rattles exist for the bass jig market and might be adapted to flies with a bit of ingenuity.

The volume of rattle equipped baits on the lure and plug market suggests both lure manufacturers and anglers believe it attractive to predatory fish. As I’ve not read all the science (yet), I’ll assume the mob is onto something and all those rattle equipped lures are something more than a means to separate a fool and his money … and sound is an attribute to a fly in discolored water.

While not expert on sounds emitted by baitfish – it’s likely digestive noises and excess air are present in the innards of anything that isn’t a plant. Water transmits sound readily but I’m unsure whether “bad” noises exist and whether gastric noises or baitfish flatulence is attractive to predators. The act of swimming, either leisurely or frantically, is likely to add vibration (sound) into the water as well. The receptor on a predacious fish is likely its lateral line – as sound is likely transmitted through water as a vibration.

The bigger question is, which sounds and what pitch are triggers for large fish? Big sound, loud or soft, continuous sound or discrete notes?

I’d guess that the species and feeding behavior of the predator adds a unique mix of triggers, and Sailfish may respond to bigger sounds that would send a trout fleeing in terror. Schooling bait likely “sounds” different than a solitary minnow, so part of the mix will vary with the fish sought or imitated by the rattle equipped fly.

rattle700

Rattles exist in a number of options, most are for jigs and bait casting gear. Three basic styles are the dual harness type (XTech), the “Pepper Jig” type – whose rattles fit into a rubber harness akin to a set of Mickey Mouse ears (rattles in the box), and the fly tying rattle (Eye Glass Rattle) – which are shaped like a traditional “barbell” eye, and attached in the same way.

All of these are “dogs with fleas” for the adventurous fly tier. Both the dual harness and the Pepper Jig rattles rely on a rubber element that can be lashed onto a hook with ease. Unfortunately, rubber will oxidize and you might lose the rattle after a season or two. The basic cylinder of the “Pepper” shaped rattle is problematic and bulbous, so securing it to the shank without using the harness is an issue, both in secure attachment and in its interference in tying the actual fly itself.

The “barbell” style rattle eyes have little or no sound as the beads are so tiny, so if it’s the noise you’re after, the fly tying version are essentially worthless. As I am unsure which sounds are most desirable to Striped Bass and Largemouth/Smallmouth, and sound is the solution to combat discolored water, I choose to use the larger beads and noisiest rattles ; the double barbell and/or Pepper Jig flavor.

The physics of rattles has to be considered as well. Rattles create sound as one or more “BB’s” hit either end of a air filled chamber. Air is buoyant so the larger rattles (containing bigger beads and more trapped air) can alter the buoyancy of the completed fly. Using a double rattle will exacerbate the issue, so it’s prudent to drop your flies in a glass of water to determine whether you’ve affected the rake or pitch of the fly in the water.

I chose to use a single rattle from the dual harness. I trim the harness at the center bulb and tie the stem portion onto the hook shank in the tail position. this allows the bucktail or marabou to flow around the rattle body and hide it within the fly.

It’s worthy to note that both the dual harness and “Pepper Jig” variants can be threaded onto the fly by simply forcing the hole in the center harness over the fly head or onto the leader itself. This offers the ability to add and remove rattles to your existing flies but relies on the elasticity of the plastic to remain securely attached. It’s plain the maker would have chosen a plastic that resists oxidation, as jigs are subject to sunlight as well as flies, but the force of casting the fly coupled with stretching the rubber ring over the hook eye will likely cause it to fail sooner than its traditional use.

645rattleBluegill

On the above “Little Bluegill” you can see the single barrel of the rattle tied in at the tail position. I have spread open the marabou to show the rattle, and when fished the rattle is not visible nor does it seem to affect the fly action. Any buoyancy issues will be overpowered by the lead eyes up front.

Mounting the rattle at the tail keeps it from obstructing the gape of the hook. Threading rattles onto the leader or eye means the barrels have the ability to dangle below the fly and may cause some issues with hook setting on smaller hooks. I trimmed the tether short to keep the barrel up tight to the shank of the hook rather than allowing it to sag to one side or the other.

Marabou striper flies fully loaded with water are already heavy things to hurl, so I didn’t notice issues with the increased weight. A fully loaded 2/0 is about as aerodynamic as a small school bus, so wear protective gear regardless.

8lbStriper700

I fished Sherman Island just after two days of blustery wind last week and managed to score a single eight pound striper. The water was noticeably dirty from all the wind activity and while I cannot say it was the rattle that seduced the slimy SOB, I’d like to think I outwitted him on his own turf ..

More testing is required to prove anything however. I am scouring the Internet to see if there is any scientific work on the subject, that can translated from Latin into English, as I am interested on how pitch and tone might attract or repel – and whether I can manufacture something suitable to confirm any theories on this subject.

In the meantime, enjoy fiddling with these options most are available from any shops catering to lure and jig making.

I plan on using the same flies for Largemouth to see if they aid in catching fish on the muddy plumes of water that come off the points in the afternoon. Wind traditionally makes an appearance in early afternoon, and my wandering about on the bank has revealed that schools of Threadfin Shad use these plumes as cover from predators, foraging with relative impunity .. Dragging my fly out of such a plume might trigger something to dine, and I do so love to share my flies with things smaller than me…

Ling Cod Meets Largemouth

The earlier Indian Valley expedition got my creative juices flowing. Knowing how fly fishermen view big water with suspicion – and meeting no like minded anglers in my lake and estuary travels, has lent an element of sadism to my determination to make big water fly friendly.

Big water is winning … if you’re keeping score …

With physics stacked against us large water tends to be the Achilles Heel of fly fishing. Strong winds, deep water, and no visual cues on predator or prey, and no visibility of bottom structure and environmentals, all put the fly guy at a disadvantage.

On creeks we can sample the bugs, can watch the fish, and neither winds nor water depth are insurmountable. Big open water is much less forgiving as our lines can’t sink fast enough, nor deep enough, to make fishing deep efficient. The bigger the water the stronger the wind, which makes painless fly fishing only possible down wind, and even then we need to ensure the line and fly is outboard of us – instead of on a collision course with our spleen.

With the kayak I can now carry more than fly gear, and am always equipped with a spinning or casting rod and related sundries to keep fishing in the most hostile conditions.

The issue is success (or failure) with lures doesn’t translate to flies, and what I learn with one type of tackle isn’t always exploitable when the wind dies, or I move into shallow water. Fish eating a Purple Worm might mean a Purple fly is the hot ticket, but I’m not carrying any of those at the moment, they’re in my steelhead box at home.

Fast forward to this morning as I’m reading about Ling Cod fishing in Pacifica and I realize that I can transport the same solution to freshwater fishing, and at least home in on what flies the fish like …

We’ve all admired the brightly colored “Shrimp” fly rigs used for Rockfish and Ling Cod. A heavy weight coupled with two or three synthetic flies to jig off the bottom …

RockfishShrimp500

… I can use two of my regular flies in a “drop shot” configuration, that would give me the same capability to fish off the bottom in deep lakes. This would allow me to try two different flies at once to see which they like better – and I can change them out at will with a simple “loop to hook eye” knot.

DropShot500

Early Spring always features a warming lake with recalcitrant fish hanging in the deep water until temperatures rise to optimum. Spring fishing can be hit or miss due to “too early” – and this would allow me to confirm the fish are still deep AND what fly color they liked best (although depth does alter color perception).

I’m sure the Purist’s are aghast at the potential marriage of fly and salt, but our collective definition of “fly fishing” requires the device to be hurled by a fly rod to be considered really fly fishing … “Hurled” is apropos as jig-headed flies and beaded monstrosities cannot be cast … ever.

I could still claim, “I caught them on flies” … if I wanted to be perverse …

It’s something. It’s also better than the “Purple Worm, ain’t got no Purple flies” Conundrum. Can’t wait to try this out on the next trip.

Indian Valley Reservoir Scout

Conditions: Morning temperatures about 61 degrees, afternoon about 80 degrees. Gusty mid morning winds to about 20 mph, dying in early afternoon to a steady breeze. Water temperature measured at 58 – 60 degrees.

I figured all my recent scouting and fishing “hard knocks” would eventually put me in the proper water at the right time, as it’s the nature of taking so many cuts at the ball – eventually you have to connect.

Today was Indian Valley Reservoir, which is off of HWY 20 near Clear Lake, CA. To get to the lake requires tracing the ridgeline on a 12 mile long, spine jarring and dusty, dirt road, replete with all the divots and pot holes that come from a lot of off road traffic and the hellions that practice that fine art.

Indian Valley is a BLM management area and frequently hosts off-road clubs and the California Militia, which is mix of Off-road Crazies, Trump supporters, and leavened with Proud Boys and castoff Fox News anchors, and it’s not uncommon to encounter well armed Turkey hunters on the way in – and better armed camo-clad militia on the way out.

It’s safe to assume you’re outgunned … so wave cheerily and try to minimize the rocks and dirt you spatter them with – as you blow past.

The lake proper has a small campground (without water) next to the dam, a long concrete ramp used to launch boats, and is operated by the Yolo County Water District, which is very tight-lipped about information on the locked gate and whether the lake is open or closed. The Bureau of Land Management operates the surrounding terrain, and may be the better source for early and late season access status.

I got to the lake around 9AM and was the only person at the campground. No boat inspection despite the numerous placards mentioning fines. Lake County requires Quagga inspection stickers on all boats (you must have one for the current month), but kayaks are exempt from this requirement. There is a $6 day use fee ($15 for overnight camping) that is collected via honor system.

With the lake like glass I started on the West side of the dam and fished through all the sunken timber enroute to the North end of the lake, some miles distant. In normal years the lake is about six miles long, but this year it’s only about two-thirds full, so is closer to four miles in length.

Indian Valley is full of timber and underwater stumps, and the lake has a posted speed limit of 10mph for all boat traffic due to the danger of disemboweling your craft. All that wood makes for a marvelous fishing environment, when you’re not snagging up, as there’s nothing like fishing at something – versus blind casting hoping for something to swim by.

I found the Smallmouth Bass first. They were overly protective of the rocky points entering the lake and dragging a #4 Grey Wooly Bugger over the shallow hump would often bring something from the deeper water to the sides.

I landed about a half dozen fish while wandering about the West bank, and got thumped by something that felt bigger ..

Indian Valley Catfish, my first on the fly

… which wound up being a good sized Catfish, my first on a fly rod. I had seen numerous Catfish caught on flies in magazines, but this was the first I had caught on my own. It was a great fight and a worthy adversary. The thought of fish dinner entered my mind – as Catfish are wonderful table fare, but I opted to release him instead.

Indian Valley Reservoir is plagued by wind that materializes about 11AM and lasts through till the afternoon. You anticipate this gusty period, as the initial burst is quite blustery, but typically will die back in early afternoon. I always bring conventional tackle to fish during the worst of the wind, as fly rods are ineffective and dangerous when gusts start ripping down the valley.

Emboldened by early success I pedaled over to the East side of the lake just in time to greet the blustery Northern wind that pushed me back South towards the dam. Waves appeared almost immediately and made for a few anxious moments as I adjusted for the return crossing with waves hitting broadside to the boat. Angling kayaks are a little less seaworthy than their sunken cockpit cousins, so I took a 45 degree course to give me a “following sea” and less of a tipping issue with the waves hitting me obliquely versus broadside.

Returning to the West side I shelved the fly rod and beached the kayak to make it easier to fish in high wind. I tried a mix of Spinnerbaits, top water plugs, jigs, and finally settled on tossing a 6” Green Pumpkin Senko (#318 Green Pumpkin with large Red flake) into the deeper water.

With the change in tackle (and depth), the Largemouth appeared – and couldn’t leave the Senko alone. I landed a couple dozen fish (and an even larger Catfish!) during the worst of the windy period all on the big rubber worm.

It’s a lesson I’ve learned many times over. Scouting large bodies of water requires numerous tackle types to get a firm read on quarry and conditions. Fly fishing has glaring weaknesses – casting distance and fishing at depth being the most obvious, and being able to fish through a blustery three hours with conventional gear made quite the difference in understanding where the fish were holding – and what they thought tasty.

In short, had a great trip – caught quite a few fish – and of the four lakes scouted this week, found Indian Valley bite to be “earlier” than the others, something I will log and confirm in coming years.

Indian Valley is all rock and shale covered with a leavening of goopy algae. I saw no evidence of spawning fish, no beds of any kind, no Crappie, Kokanee, or Carp, and no humans nor trash (even in the campground).

Some observations and cautions: The road to the lake does not need four wheel drive, despite the many potholes, and there is no cell phone coverage, so if you get stuck you’re on your own. Remember if you launch a boat you’ll need to get Quagga inspected (Lake County requires MONTHLY inspections) and go slow on the water as the sunken timber is quite thick in the coves and edges of the lake.

This is heavy Rattlesnake country, so if you camp or bring little people, you need to keep an eye out for visitors. There is little water in the area other than the lake – so anything resident to the area must move to the water which may mean unsolicited visitations or encounters in the brush surrounding … there are tons of snakes in the area.

East Park reservoir–Half Full and Fishing Crappie

Conditions: Air temperature 60 – 80 degrees, light wind in the afternoon. Water Temperature 62 degrees, with water clarity of about 36”.

With the fuel moisture levels in valley brush already at June levels, I recently switched gears and moved from “deep and narrow” lakes to exploiting the “shallow and bowl-like” lakes before they warm to bathtub temperatures.

The rationale is simple, the deep lakes will remain cool at depth no matter how warm the summer gets – but the shallow lakes are already half empty, are warming quickly, and will be unfishable come July.

East Park Reservoir is a little known impoundment off of I-5 that most fishermen pass while headed North into the blue water of the Cascades. It is a agricultural reservoir just above Williams, and services much of Colusa county. Last year (drought year One) I visited it in May and July – and while the May trip was good fishing, the July trip was a warm off-color mess.

East Park isn’t well known, hosts few services, including no boat launch, and doesn’t get the pressure of the popular lakes like Clear Lake or Berryessa. This lack of humans means no trash at the water’s edge, no floating debris, and no overflowing garbage dumpsters to draw wildlife and the curious.

As the lake is accessible only via a Colusa county controlled gate, it is accessible only from April till October, after which the gates are closed and locked for the Winter.

Being about the only person on the lake the prior year, I assumed the opening of the lake would be a quiet affair, so I made the trip jsut to see what the lake offered for the April 9th Opener …

crowdedLaunch450

… and while it appears that most of the locals had the same idea, there was plenty of room for everyone due to the low lake levels and the expanded parking and launch facilities that created. Parking is plentiful on the sandy lake bed, and launching a bass boat simply needs an outcropping of hard pan near the water’s edge for success (see above).

The lower portion of the lake was already dry and reminiscent of late summer of last year, so I expect this year will be critical to lake levels, as its current 50% fill will be drawn down quickly by the local rice, almond, and tomato crop.

East Park hosts numerous bass species, carp, and an aggressive Crappie population that shows itself with regularity. With about a dozen boats on the lake – and at least eight fishing kayaks, the fish were plentiful and most succumbed to an assortment of “rip” baits, spinnerbaits, and a few even blew up on top water lures.

The Crappie preferred a weighted Grey Wooly Bugger (size 6), which I use for a standard “minnow” or Shad imitation, and the Largemouth Bass preferred the larger, Crawdad colored, variant. (Use Orange and Brown speckled chenille, brown marabou tail, furnace hackle tied Palmer)

BlackCrappie450

The bite was pretty good considering all the extra traffic on the lake, which killed the the daylong serenade of Coyotes singing from Coyote Point, but the trip was an unqualified success on all other measures.

The kayak allows full access to the lake, if your legs are in good enough shape to pedal the distance. East Park is shaped like an inverted “V” – and at half full the round trip distance between southern launch and northern dam is about three miles, with a similar length for the far “leg” of the lake.

Ample campsites exist, but they are Spartan and lack water. The fluctuations of the lake level alter the camping area drastically as most follow the receding waterline and camp on the lake bed proper.

Colusa county operates the camping concession, and you can reserve campsites (and pay for day use) on their website. Day use is about $8, for a single vehicle, and camping is $15 per night, which is cheap considering.

I did not see any evidence of Bass spawn yet, and the 62 degree water is still a bit chill for full mating debauchery. It will be soon, but will be difficult to spot based on the rocky shale bottom of the lake. Largemouth beds are more obvious scars on muddy bottoms than on a rocky surface, and are less easy to spot.

The few fish that broke the surface for top water action suggests the activity level is consistent with a warming lake, so the best bite will be soon.

Lake Berryessa Scout Trip & Conditions

Conditions: Morning breeze (stiff) to 12 mph, afternoon calm. Air temperature 61 – 80 degrees. Water temperature 58 to 60 degrees.

Launch: Oak Shores Day use area (west side of Berryessa).

With this week’s temperatures threatening to break seasonal records, and the latest “wind event” rumored to die out that evening, I assumed it safe to look for largemouth beds and see if any bass had moved into the shallows to spawn.

The wind finally died around noon – which is why I consider all weather men to be knaves and scoundrels. All morning I endured a steady 12 mph breeze – which threatened to impale me via errant false cast. As the wind was quite violent on the windward points, I opted to beach my kayak on several of the islands in the area so I could fish without being blown out of range before the cast could land.

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Lots of boats in the area, several were trolling for Kokanee, so there must have been some action in the deeper water off of Big Island.

I fished the small hummocks emerging out of the water between Oak Shores and Goat Island, crossed the deeper water to fish two of the larger bays of Big Island, then returned to Goat (after the wind died) to fish back through the hummocks and navigation hazards to the launch area.

No largemouth beds visible, no holding fish (guarding beds), four fish seen cruising the shallows on one side of a bay (shown on map in blue) on Big Island. No strikes and nothing left on …

Of the boat and bank fishermen seen, no fish were caught. Lots of boats roaring into the water nearby – and leaving just as quickly.

As expected for this time of year, there is no weed cover on the bottom. Lots of rocky areas but no additional cover to hold baitfish from predation – nor was any bait visible singly or in schools.

I covered a lot of water yesterday to ensure I eyeballed both shallow and deep areas for signs of fish. I covered the sandy and rocky bottoms, the shallow pitches as well as the deep drop-offs, and saw nothing of consequence.

“Bob Simms” of the Outdoor show appears to have echoed a similar experience for this Saturday’s broadcast (April 3rd). The commercial mentioned he blanked as well until late afternoon, then caught fish in 20 foot of water off the deeper drop offs … I’m sure he waked me several times yesterday –as the V8 crowd was quite restless.

I would guess the spawn has not started in earnest on the West Side of the lake. A combination of cold water temperatures (58-60), the lack of visible fish, and the absence of bed scars on the bottom – supports that conclusion … but in the end it is only a guess.

No Table Manners and the Appetite of a Glutton

I’ll go out on a limb and suggest our sport could use a few pedigreed opponents with both table manners and appetites of a Tyrannosaurus Rex.

I’m thinking selfishly naturally, but think of all the knick-knacks we could remove from our vest, the words – like “gossamer” or “refined” we could purge from our vernacular, and the Jihad we could embrace as we rose to defend all the little kids and sunbathers frolicking at the beach …

I met one of those yesterday, and only managed to fight him to a draw.

Now I’m nursing the bruises and teeth marks, the line burns and the wounded pride that comes with knowing that had I hooked up with a real Striper I might have suffered the same fate as Jonah, swallowed whole by a great fish.

The tides were favorable the last couple of weeks so I tried Sherman Lake twice on Thanksgiving week. The Tuesday of that week was great weather and no fish, and the following day featured gale force winds that pushed the fly line (and sharp 2/0 hook) into the boat, while pushing me and my craft towards the rock jetty. Choosing between being skewered and a watery grave made the remaining option – a hasty retreat back to the launch area, the only viable alternative.

Fish 1, Me Zip ..

This week promised a return to calm air and a continued spate of middling temperatures, so I returned to the waterway on Tuesday in pursuit of my first fly-caught Striper.

13inchStriper

I don’t know which of us was more surprised, him … as he’d swallowed a fly that was half as big as he was – or me, who was expecting a Pikeminnow or small largemouth. The sure gluttony exhibited by my new pal gave me pause, as he had swallowed a 6” White Whistler… completely. (I had to remove the fly with pliers quickly – as I feared it would be digested before I could release the little Beast.)

This encounter got me thinking of the overall sport – how the evolution of the Genteel Angler; the woodsy Plaid shirts, and Pipe smoke of the Crosby era might have fared with silvery T-Rex’s inhabiting traditional Trout turf. Would we have been so eager to wade knowing the carnivorous little beasts could knife through your Seal-Dri’s and take your leg off at the knee?

Finally, this … was an adversary worth killing.

My thirteen inch nemesis whetted my appetite for additional carnage, and I continued flinging my six inch offering at anything that looked promising. As the tide came in I had two more brief flurries of activity, a good sized largemouth ate the fly before losing the hook, and what I assumed to be another 13” glutton slammed the fly before also coming unbuttoned.

I returned the following day to fish this same general area; the northern edge and the three islands at the entrance to the Sacramento, as well as part of the northwest shoal of tules and floating water hyacinth.

As there were a half dozen boats in the center of Sherman Lake, I assumed some fish had been caught recently – half appeared to be bait fishing and the balance were casting lures and plugs of some sort. I had a lone fly fisherman roar up to my side and we both drifted with the incoming tide towards Antioch.

I was flinging my usual fare, 2/0 White Whistler, whose hook I had touched up to razor sharpness, when I was slammed by another Striper, this one a bit bigger. As I was out of sight of most of the boats I didn’t mind the noisy complaint from my old click-pawl reel – as I knew I was out of earshot of the flotilla jockeying in the center of the waterway.

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After towing me around a bit I managed to boat the Glutton and retrieve the offending White Whistler from his maw. Apparently my comment to the smaller fish, “…and return with your Big Brother!” had been followed to the letter – and while a 6 pounder is not a big fish, it was the prettiest thing I had seen in some time. I smuggled him off the deck and back into the water without commotion, hoping to remain unobserved.

Most of the small fleet of boats had left the center of the lake and moved either north (to the Sacramento) or south (to Big Break) and I was in sole possession of the area. I have a theory that the amount of horsepower present is indirectly proportional to attention span, and their owners tend to hop about making use of all those carbon credits – to the detriment of their fishing.

I managed to catch a largemouth and another 13 inch striper while pedaling in the area. The fact that every species will eat the same fly is a real treat. Fly fishermen are quick to change fly if the fishing slows and it’s nice to simply face the mathematical odds of a fish being able to see your fly, and no activity means no fish, versus something more sinister like the wrong phase of insect or it’s abdominal color.

I swapped sides of the lake and fished down the rock jetty portion and landed a third Striper similar to the first.

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To say I was ecstatic is an understatement. These fish are brutal fighters capable of towing my small craft in the ensuing tussle. I am rethinking a bit of my tackle in preparation for meeting the larger fish common to the area. Currently I am tossing an 8 weight 10’ Echo on a WF floating line, but may need to increase capacity a bit to allow for additional brutish behavior should the fish be in excess of 10 pounds.

Towed into the center channel of the Sacramento would be thrilling until the first freighter appeared …

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As I have an overabundance of Yellow NYMO thread, the Whistler’s tied above are tied with a few random changes. The classic is a white-red-white layering of the wing, but I also tie the fly with the red on top. I suppose some years I feel “extra bloody,” and some I adhere to the classic dressing.

In summary: The fish are starting to show but are not yet in great numbers. I have managed to land a Striper on a fly rod – which was a Bucket List item, and while I’ve caught numerous Stripers on conventional tackle, am really impressed at their fighting ability on a light fly rod (and smallish fish).

Angling Conditions: Water temperature 58 degrees, ambient temperature 65 Degrees. One fish caught at low tide, one caught on incoming, one caught at full high tide.

Somewhere between a Float Tube and an Evinrude

Contrary to what you think of retirement, the reward is not being able to watch Saturday morning cartoons uninterrupted, rather it’s fishing on weekdays while all the drunken Meatheads embody cartoons as they crowd the launch ramp on weekends.

After 30 years of toiling for CALFIRE, we parted on good terms and I took some accumulated time on the books from pressing emergencies and late-night phone calls – and gifted myself a “Yak”, or fishing kayak, and the ability to wield it in retirement whenever the mood suits me.

Fishing kayaks require a lot of thought and configuration to suit fly fishermen, and I’m still learning what works and what doesn’t. How to optimize storage, how to NOT carry everything with me, how not to lose it all when I flip the boat, and more importantly – how not to leave anything on the deck without thinking about the coils of fly line underneath and how the kinetics play out when I release the cast …

Hint: Sploosh.

I’ll elaborate on my final configuration and more importantly – how to fish out of these shortly, once I’ve got enough hours to be a credible source. Fly fishermen have little experience fishing from boats that move while casting – and pedal powered kayaks allow both versus having to wield a paddle to move. Float tubes are stationary objects and prams bob contentedly in place but if your boat is moving while the cast is in the air a mess ensues as you have new things to snag with your line and new gods to invoke while swearing mightily at great puddles of fly line being run over by your boat.

This week was the California Delta, and the pursuit of Striped Bass – which like every other gamefish I’ve targeted – gleefully thumb their nose at me despite my new “water-legs.” While my pedal kayak and angling pastime has now been blessed as “heart healthy” by all lab coated professionals, the Striped Bass remained unimpressed and likely pirouetted around me while I pedaled around the confines of “Sherman Lake” and Sherman Island proper.

“Sherman Lake” is just a wide spot in the Delta at Sherman Island, and is a popular spot for duck hunters, striper and sturgeon fishermen (in the main channel), and hosts the occasional wind surfer or kayak angler. It is about 1.2 miles across and has five or six miles of bank ranging from rock jetties to dense Tule mats. With pedal power I can cross in about 15 minutes – but have to factor in drunken boaters, waves caused by wind or tides, and everything else that haunts a navigable body of water.

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I did find seventeen new ways to penetrate my fat frame with really large and sharp fish hooks. All wounds were aided by bead chain eyes (Whistler), lead hourglass eyes (Clouser), and anything else capable of being lashed to a fish hook and able to turn a timid false cast into a lethal weapon. Most involved hastily applied tourniquets and a great deal of swearing, which may be why the bird watchers gave me a wide berth.

Kayak fishing in a heavily trafficked waterway is not for the faint of heart. Boat wakes and the boating curious can send enough water in your direction to give your small craft a fit if you’re not paying attention. Stability dictates your bisecting the oncoming wake with the bow of your craft, versus getting hit broadside by the wave, and the unwary angler can be sorting a tangle of running line, or netting a fish, unaware of the new threat and a little too much lean coupled with the arrival of the swell can lead to a rollover.

… which is why everything of value has to be tethered to your craft or should float unaided. Fishing vests are no longer an option as you need to wear a life jacket, so storage of all the little things; tippet dispensers, hook hones, and fly boxes has to be rethought as well.

Petite flies and the gossamer fly rods of stream fishing are replaced by those capable of hurling an entire chicken saddle or bucktail with ample lead. Casting skills are essential as you’ve got to impart lift to a rapidly descending Clouser Minnow, a fly which shares the aerodynamic profile of a paving stone, and with only a single double haul or you’re going to wear the fly instead of the fish. Rods and flies are heavy, and casting them all day requires minimal “air” time; one roll cast to bring them to the surface, one false cast to get them aloft, one double haul to impart momentum – then fling the accumulated mass as far from you as possible to avoid injury.

Despite all of the environmental and platform changes, all of the rod and fly differences, and despite the vagrancies of migratory fish and tides, it’s comforting to know that my ignoble pal, the Sacramento Pikeminnow, is a delta resident – and while not as showy as a Striped Bass, has also been sucked South due to all the lawn irrigation in SoCal.

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They’re quite a bit bigger and silvery versus the yellow variant in my local creek. The Good News is they retain their aggressive nature and swallow a six inch Clouser with as much gusto as smaller flies. It was a welcome grab given how much water I covered and how little I had to show for all that effort.

The first day I crossed to the West side and fished the Tule mats, with a lone Pikeminnow my only seduction. The second day I drifted the rock jetty on the East side and caught both Largemouth Bass and Pikeminnow but no Stripers. I saw a few fly fishermen in the main body but the frequency of their movement suggested their luck was identical to mine, fish scarce and Stripers scarcer.

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I’ll continue to investigate the area as the tides permit. The fish are typically here most of the Winter, but tides determine the useful fishing hours and many occur too early or too late to fish. Most folks familiar with the area insist on fishing the incoming tide but others like any tide movement, both incoming and outgoing. This is consistent with all the Striper fishing I did in San Francisco Bay – as the fish were active on any tide so long as it was moving.

Trip Log: External temperature 70 degrees. Fished the incoming high tide until slack tide. Water temperature 58 degrees. Flies used: assorted experimental ribbon yarn streamers, Flo Green Clouser, Shad Clouser, White Whistler.

And One to Rule them All

If you tie a lot of bass flies a pandemic is a welcome interlude given how enforced isolation and “work from home” is instrumental in creating the debris field from all those large hooks you stuffed with marabou, rubber legs, lead wire, and spun deer hair.

… and, even better, most of the folks sheltering in place with us have seen us lick our fingers after handling all those dead animal parts, and we’ve got no one pestering us to wash our hands, either.

My last trip afield showed my fly box had more plastic showing than flies, and knew I was overdue for an extended “self quarantine” period with a couple fistfuls of Marabou and a lot of Olive Grizzly hackle.

Fortunately, bass flies are not like trout flies and the typical angler need not carry every phase of insect life, in every color, and in both floating and sinking varieties. Instead bass fishing is limited to Big Things that Float, and Big Things that Sink, and only a handful of colorations are required: Shad, Crayfish, Frog, and anything that resembles a small child or escaped Chihuahua.

While many thousands of sinking bass flies exist for bass, few can match the qualities of the Wooly Bugger. The simplicity of construction, low material cost, and seductive fishing action has made it a prominent option at your local fly shop – and likely earned a spot in your fly box already.

Over the years I’ve had to slim down the volume of flies carried and shift focus to colors instead of patterns. Bass are usually associated with frog, minnow, and crayfish baits, and typically are pursued in lakes and ponds. where depth is always an issue given how fly tackle sinks so poorly. The long shank hooks typically employed with a Wooly Bugger allow us to pack lead, bead chain, beads, and allow us a platform for adding considerable weight – which is a boon in lake fishing.

The regular pulse of marabou has always been attractive to fish, and the palmered chenille front and marabou rear make a reasonable facsimile of a swimming crayfish (which swim backwards), as well as resembling a minnow when yanked with a sustained retrieve, and in a pinch can approximate a frog – with its thin legs and bulky body, despite the fly not being on the surface – where frogs are found.

As a terrestrial angler wandering the bank I look for flies that can be used in more than one role – or simulate more than one prey, as space in my vest is always at a premium. Bass flies, especially the top water deer hair poppers, are bulky and ill suited for traditional fly boxes forcing bass anglers to cut back on the diversity of flies they carry versus trout fishing. The physics speak for themselves, as a dozen deer hair Dahlberg Divers requires a couple of square feet of fly box space versus the tiny amount needed for a similar amount of #16 Griffith’s Gnat. The Wooly Bugger being one of the few styles that compress well in a fly box, allows bank anglers to carry a lot of them (or more colors) without having to carry a suitcase to accommodate their bulk.

Many of the flies I carry loosely map to roles seen in traditional bait caster tournament lures, as crank baits, jerk-baits, poppers, worms, jigs, and spinner baits, possess actions that are timeless and have been fished successfully for decades. The Wooly Bugger falls into the “jig” category when weighted, due to it’s up-down dance when equipped with a bead head, and is more of a “jerk-bait” when unweighted – as the hackle and marabou provide no resistance to sinking allowing the angler to retrieve it with a variety of fetching motions that resemble numerous food groups.

Lake fishing requires a lot of weight to sink the fly quickly and the fly’s design lends itself to bead chain, cone heads, or large lead – none of which will affect the fly’s action. Streams or shallow ponds typically require less weight, but most of the Wooly Buggers that I fish are heavily weighted – simply due to the big water I’m fishing of late.

Lastly, the attribute that few consider is how the Wooly Bugger is often taught as one of the first flies learned in a beginner fly tying class. Cagey parents might be able to add a request for a few dozen as part of the allocation of weekly chores. Since the pandemic requires both parents and children to stay at home, what better way to ensure their online education complete – then researching the patterns and colors you’ll need for your next family adventure … after they take out the trash …

While it’s certain your stable of newly christened fly tiers will have a lot of defective product and won’t hold together long, it’s still a good bargain. That fly eating tree limb behind you coupled with the two wind knots in your leader will ensure your goodly supply is less so – in short order.

Marabou is cheap and a few minutes away from Tik Tok is downright patriotic …

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Fly fishing the Unloved & Unclean