May Minnow Madness!

Baitfish, minnows, little fish, whatever you want to call them, bigger fish eat 'em.  That's the food chain.   Baitfish imitations are a standard in your arsenal, regardless of whether you bait fish, gear fish, or fly fish.

I've been working on a series of baitfish imitations that improve upon the standard baitfish fly.  In my opinion, a fly of this nature:  1) should be durable; 2) shouldn't foul easily (or at least not often) and 3) should have as many triggers as possible to entice fish to strike.

After much time spent at the vise and on the water, I have come up with a series of flies that should cover most of your baitfish situations.  I call it the Hard Head series.  They're tied on a #2 Daiichi saltwater hook.  The head has an epoxy finish.  There are five minnows in the series; these will cover nearly all your baitfish imitation needs worldwide.  And before you ask... although you may not have seen them, the elusive chartreuse minnow is bountiful in your home waters.  ;-)

All month long you can take advantage of this months special on our Hard Head Minnows! Visit our website Flies of Fancy to Order!

Hard Head Chartreuse 

Hard Head Gizzard Shad

Hard Head Minnow

Hard Head Mackerel

 Hard Head Silverside

Pollock!

Earlier this week, I found a few CDs with pictures from when I lived in Ireland. I was very excited to see that among pictures of family and friends there were also a few photos of fish. Very exciting! Here are two pictures of pollock that were both taken on baitfish flies. Pollock are one of my favorite fish to target; they are strong fighting fish that make deep dives when hooked. I have broken at least two rods that I can remember on fish that were above 8 pounds. Much like carp, when you get them near shore and are ready to lift them out of the water they typically have one last run in them. If you have the line clamped tight and you are not expecting this last run, it can spell disaster if you have a large fish hooked.

Schools of pollock will attack just about any baitfish that swims close by. A selection of streamers in sizes 2 through 1/0 will cover most situations. The two color combinations that I have had the most success with are red/yellow and blue/white. 

Deceivers, whistlers, sliders, hollow ties, epoxied flies, not epoxied flies, pollock are not biased; they'll hit patterns without discrimination! And so fly selection is not as crucial as presenting the fly at the appropriate depth. The fly needs to get down quickly, so a lead core sinking line is the best option. Armed with a fast sinking line, a selection of baitfish patterns and a stripping basket you will be prepared for battle.

When pollock are close into shore, they prefer the deep rocky reef and cliffs that overhang on the water. They school up underneath these areas and ambush their prey. Cast out and allow the fly to sink to the appropriate depth then retrieve in short strips or long fast pulls. To find the right depth, I would count down the sink line until I found the depth the fish were at. Takes often occur right at your feet a few feet below the surface of the water, and rest assured that these takes are very hard. It is extremely exciting to be pulling your fly out of the water for a cast only to have a pollock that was chasing your fly leap out of the water and take the fly in the air! That is an awesome experience!

Just to note, pollock are cousin to the cod and are lovely tasting fish! Their flesh is a bit softer and more flakey but nonetheless gorgeous for fish and chips or fish pie. They were a favorite in my household and I really do miss fishing for them! So if you're visiting or you live in Ireland or the UK, do put some time into fly-fishing for these fish, you will not regret it! I miss being in Ireland and fishing for these fish, so write and tell me your pollock stories! 

Tight Lines!

Nikki

The Gurgler

It's springtime! The water temperatures are rising. The bass are beginning to move; it's time for their spawn. Active, hungry, aggressive smallmouth bass:  Can we say fun, fun, fun!

Jack Gartside's Gurgler is a great top water pattern, especially for locating active bass. I tie this pattern in white, chartreuse and black, and I typically tie on an overwing of natural grizzly hackle. The black works well at night and early in the morning, and depending on where you are fishing it may even entice a walleye for some top water action.

I dress my Gurgler a bit differently than the original as I opt for cactus chenille for the body; Jack palmered a hackle feather for the body. I have also tied huge bulky versions on wide gap stinger hooks to imitate frogs with great results!

Heavy thread wraps may cut through the closed-cell foam so be mindful of this when working with this material! Measure a piece of foam that is twice the length of the hook shank and tie it on the length of the shank. Once you complete the body, fold the foam over and secure it directly behind the eye of the hook. I add a few drops of head cement to the foam crease for added durability.  The portion of foam that extends above the hook shank is the part that will cause the commotion in the water. If you want a slider action in the water then simply whip finish after tying down the foam at the head. If you would like the fly to have more popping action, then make wraps in front of the foam. These thread wraps will cause the foam to be angled.  Whip finish once you are satisfied with the angle of the foam.

When fishing this pattern I retrieve it in three different ways:

1. Jerk the rod tip while doing a figure of eight or slow stripping retrieve of the line.  This causes the fly to skip and spit water.
2. Jerk the rod tip and strip one to two feet of fly line simultaneously. This action will make the most noise and disturbance.
3. Cast out and simply lift the rod tip slowly, causing the fly to skim across the surface of the water, making a wake.

I vary the retrieves until the fish let me know how they want it!

It is worth mentioning that this pattern is a multi-species fly; it will catch many different fish that are willing to hit a top water fly. Tie it in the appropriate size for the species that you are targeting and have fun!

Seriously…. what is more exciting than watching a fish explode on a top water fly?

Hooking and landing it I suppose!   ;-)

The Gurgler

Hook: Standard fresh or saltwater hook

Thread: White

Tail: White Bucktail, twice the length of the hook shank. Pearl angel hair on each side with one cock grizzly hackle feather on each side of the tail.

Popper: Closed-cell foam

Body: Pearl cactus chenille

Poon fly

I have been asked to post a tarpon fly, here ya go!

This fly is tied in the Keys style of tarpon flies and the one pictured below is dressed on a 2/0 hook. I tie it sparse and after much time at the bench tweaking and testing on the water it has become a fantastic pattern.

I suggest sharpening the hook point at the vise before tying the fly and periodically on the water as well. You want to be sure when you hook up you can get the hook to stick, tarpons mouths are extremely hard to penetrate and a sharp hook is essential! I list the Owner Aki hook as the first option in the dressing simply due to this hook having grown to be used by many as "The" tarpon hook. Whichever hook you may choose to tie the fly on provided it is a strong saltwater hook with a sharp point will work fine.

Tie the tail as far back on the shank near the hook bend as possible and once you are happy with the position of the bucktail make a few parachute wraps to "kick" the tail up a bit. This will also aid in the tail not fouling during casting. When applying the epoxy I make sure to cover all of the tread wraps, the eyes and the base of the white hackle feather slightly. The fish are simply brutal on the flies and this will help create a more durable pattern. And as always, be sure you are happy with the shape of the epoxy before you hit it with the UV light.



Poon Fly
Hook: Owner Aki or Daiichi 2546 in the appropriate size.
Thread: Hot pink
Tail: The tail is comprised of four parts, they are listed here in tying order. A small clump of un-stacked white bucktail that is slightly longer than the shank of the hook. A few strands of pearl krystal flash tied on top.  A small pinch of pink Icelandic sheep hair on each side, half of the length of the bucktail. One natural grizzly hackle feather on each side.
Collar: 2 White cock hackles tied on and wound wet fly style.
Eyes: 3D Holographic eyes, size to match the fly.
Epoxy: UV knot sense covering the eyes and all of the thread wraps.

Tight lines!
Nikki