Fishing tips

Podcast Discusses Casting in the Wind; Underground Says It’s Time To Talk

February 5, 2010, by 10 comments

Get past the horseplay right at the start of the most recent Orvis podcast (the player should appear below), and it’s a pretty good listen. Fly fishing in the wind is one of my least favorite activities, and I’ve heard literally  mounds of advice over the years. Some of it, frankly, seemed pretty bad.

Orvis has avoided all that in this podcast, but I’m looking for the Undergrounders to throw down their ideas.

Here, Tom Rosenbaeur and Perk Perkins advise anglers to not push the rod harder and don’t fight the wind, all of which is transparently good advice.

He and Rosenbauer also offer up a few non-controversial ideas, including:

  • Keep casts low to the water (less windy there)
  • Use a Belgian cast (a constantly loaded elliptical cast) to keep the line moving (haven’t tried it for wind, but it’s handy when you’re casting heavy flies like streamers)
  • Use shorter leaders and smaller flies
  • Cast a shorter rod

Interestingly, Perkins suggests he does just as well with a mid-flex rod in the wind as he does with a tip flex – something I did once experience fishing 6wts on a lake. I don’t get it, but it was true for me.

Is that simply because moderate tapers suit my casting style, or is there something else? (Discuss)

The Chainsaw Death Match Part

Finally, we get to the good stuff; Lefty Kreh has famously suggested underlining a fly rod by one line weight on windy days, apparently so you can throw tighter loops and generate faster line speeds.

And yes, I tried that once. The results weren’t pretty.

Apparently, Perkins and Rosenbauer don’t think much of the idea either, and in the interest of fomenting an Industry-Wide Death Match between Big-Name Heavy-Hitters, I’ve gotta ask the Undergrounders: has anyone else actually tried this, and had it work (or not)?

In my case, I’d suggest the lighter line loaded the rod less and offered less mass to “boss” the fly.

Perhaps If I’d been throwing a midge, it wouldn’t have mattered, but I was throwing a #14 parachute during a Callaebatis hatch, and eventually switched back to my original 6wt line (the rated line).

I’ve heard of anglers opting to overline a rod by one line weight on a windy day, so clearly, there’s ample room here for violent disagreement discussion.

Obviously, there’s plenty of room to screw around with all this stuff, but after years of mucking about, I simply fish a 6wt when it’s windy. Sometimes the simple solution is the best.

Where do the Undergrounders land on the subject of wind, fly rods, fly lines, and the prospect of an industry blood bath stuff?

The October Caddis Arrive Back In Town Before The Trout Underground (Damn)

October 13, 2009, by 9 comments

It was late Saturday and the L&T and I were blasting our way up the Upper Sacramento River canyon – new, cranky daughter in the car seat and two barely conscious adults piloting – when the October Caddis started bouncing off the windshield (more on the trip later).

Sometimes, an unfortunate group of pumpkin-colored caddis sometimes mistake the I5 freeway for a river, forming up over the asphalt ribbon in ill-fated mating flights, and while cruel ironies are always appreciated at the Underground, I truly have little interest in seeing what an October Caddis looks like from the inside.

Big Fish on October Caddis?

Big trout on October Caddis dries? Yep, but not as often as you think...

Still, the caddis were flying, but after better than two weeks spent literally on the other side of the globe (completely without Internet access), the disconnection struck me, and I had to ask: “How did the caddis happen without me?”

The Caddis-Go-Round

The October Caddis have become a milestone event on the Upper Sacramento and McCloud Rivers; the October emergence of these amberish-colored, small-hummingbird-sized caddis often occurs in front of the year’s biggest crowds of fly fishermen (several fly fishing clubs plan outings), yet the weather – while often cold at night – is still pretty comfortable during the day.

The result are a lot of fly fishermen throwing big, big dry flies (#6-#10s) at trout, some of whom will actually eat the things in splashy, aggressive takes.

Of course, no fly fishing hatch comes without its “gotcha” moment, and what’s true is that often, the big October Caddis don’t generate much in the way of interest from the trout. In fact, it’s common to fish a #18 PED through an October Caddis hatch and catch more trout.

It’s also true – when I first wrote about the October Caddis in 2007 (“Fly Fishing the Upper Sacramento in the Fall: An October Caddis Primer“) – that the best October Caddis fishing might be found in early winter, when the bugs are dying and falling into the water.

Presumably, the trout “know” that dead bugs won’t make a last-minute getaway, and the party (as they say), begins.

Now For a Real Expert

Everything I’ve told you about the October Caddis I’ve said before (but oy, nobody listens, nobody writes, nobody calls, especially you kids with your iPods and fancy-pants phones, and hey get off my lawn).

Still, I’ve always stopped far short of claiming expert status around the October Caddis, mostly because I may have caught a fair number of big trout during October Caddis season, but never with the kind manly, chiseled-jaw confidence I have when hitting the Green Drakes of spring.

And while it seems that becoming an online commando is all the rage these days, I’m going to defer to someone who hasn’t spent the last month on kid-related stuff: Craig Nielsen of ShastaTrout.com, who does the responsible adult thing and posts real fly fishing reports while I’m over here changing diapers and ruminating on the power of bikini photographs to change our lives for the better.

Right now, it’s raining hard at Trout Underground/Man Cave/Soiled Diaper World Headquarters, and the river’s starting to come up, though the line between an unfishable river and a refreshing plug of water that turns on the trout is finer than you’d believe; at some point, both conditions may be true. (What, you wanted easy? Take up checkers…)

Simply put, I’m back, and there’s more to come, though what “more” looks like is yet to be determined.

See you fishing the October Caddis, Tom Chandler.

Winter Midging According to Engle (or, an Underground Thumbs Up)

February 25, 2009, by 12 comments

Fly fishing writer Ed Engle remains an Underground favorite, largely because he’s a real predator on the water , and his writing is largely free of the ego and artifice that clogs the efforts of so many fly fishing writers.

Fly fishing in WinterHis latest column in the Boulder Daily Camera is typically clean and clear, focused as it is on winter midge fishing, a pursuit that – in the style of predators everywhere – Engle’s stripped down to the bare bones:

It may sound strange, but my strategy on these difficult-to-catch fish is dogged simplification. I use a “soft” 9-foot, 5-weight fly rod, a hand-tied 12-foot leader of my own design and a single size 22 or smaller fly pattern that imitates a midge pupa or, less often, some sort of low-riding dry fly or cripple pattern.

I would probably be more successful if I fished a tiny dry fly and trailed the midge pupa imitation behind it because I could use the dry fly as a strike indicator. But I’ve caught enough midging trout using two-fly techniques and it was a good day for me when I finally figured out that what I like most is catching a trout in the most direct way possible.

My most memorable fish have been the ones where there was as little between me and the trout as possible. That means no junk or gizmos attached to the leader other than a single small, unweighted fly that I’ve tied myself and the application of a no-nonsense aesthetically pleasing, but practical, cast.

The icing on the cake is when the trout takes my artificial fly in precisely the same way that it has taken the naturals.

I wish I’d written that.

In truth, this is precisely the kind of fly fishing I thought we’d get when the Upper Sacramento was opened to winter fly fishing.

Oddly – unless I’m completely missing the right time slots – we almost never get fish working midges in the winter, though it’s something we often get in the summer. Go figure.

I’m not complaining about the Upper Sac’s winter BWO hatches: challenging fish, clear water, small “technical” flies, long casts – these are a few of my favorite things (unless I’m doing poorly, when it kinda sucks)

As further proof that Einstein’s theory of relativity applies to fly fishermen, it’s clear that in the Underground Universe, one trout caught on a nearly invisible #22 emerger is more satisfying than one caught blind nymphing.

My infrequent trips to Idaho’s Big Wood River in winter have produced the kind of minimalist, tiny-fly fishing Engle’s talking about, and yes, every time I approach the Upper Sacramento in winter, I wonder if this is the time I’ll find them eating midges.

See you on the river (chasing midges), Tom Chandler.

Fly Fishing the Upper Sacramento in the Fall: An October Caddis Primer

September 21, 2007, by 6 comments

Fly fishing the Upper Sacramento River in Fall means two things: October Caddis and unpredictable weather. Here are some strategies and tips for success.

Read more →

The Six Indispensable Fly Fishing Hints The Magazines Never Print

July 11, 2007, by 12 comments

The fly fishing world is awash in them — the endless “Ten ways to be a better nympher and score more babes” articles. You’ve seen them:

Seven Secrets to Catching Bigger Fish.Ten Tips for Better Split Shot Management. The 20 Places You Must Visit if You Need Dumber, Bigger Fish Than You’ve Got at Home. And so on.

People apparently read the hell out of “Top Ten” articles, so naturally, I wanted to cash in too. But what could I write when all the obvious “Top Ten ” ideas are already taken?

With the help of Wally the Wonderdog (and a few of Mt. Shasta Brewery’s finest), I present:

The Six Fly Fishing Hints You Absolutely, Positively, Can’t Live Without — But Will Never Read about in the Fly Fishing Magazines. Read more →

Fly Line Care Tip of the Day So Far

May 14, 2007, by 8 comments

From Opax (our Finnish finny blogger friend) comes this photograph without comment:

Drying a fly line using the toilet roll

Well damnit, we’ll comment. Drying or cleaning a fly line on the toilet roll is sheer genius.

And imagine how nicely it might work in a hotel room (assuming you stay in a hotel offering indoor plumping — never a sure thing on a fishing trip).

Sure, some will see this as a neat little time-saving technique. Visionaries like me? We see it as proof the voyage of discovery that is life never ends. Never.

[tags]fly fishing, fishing, fly line[/tags]

Time to Take Ticks Seriously. And Damnit, We Do.

May 11, 2007, by 6 comments

The Winehiker blog reminded me that it’s tick season again.

I haven’t had many problems with them up here, but fly fishermen are seriously at risk for the little bloodsucking critters like Nestle who burrow into your skin and transmit pretty debilitating diseases.

Group of ticks photo from Winehiker
Blood suckers of the worst order. Remind you of Nestle anyone?

He’s posted a short article about ticks, and links to another site with more complete instructions, including this straightforward primer for tick removal:

Ticks should be removed promptly. The longer it is attached the higher the chance of disease transmission. Remove it carefully to prevent disease transmission:

  1. Using fine pointed tweezers, grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible without squeezing the tick’s body.
  2. Firmly pull it straight out (expect to feel some resistance). Save the tick for future testing by placing it in a plastic bag or in a small jar of alcohol. If a tick is to tested for spirochetes place it in a small jar or vial with a blade of grass to keep it alive. Be sure to note the date and site of the bite for future reference.
  3. NEVER: squeeze the tick, burn it, or cover it with Vaseline or any other substance.
  4. Remember to disinfect the site of the bite, wash your hands and disinfect your tweezers.
  5. Contact your doctor.

Interestingly, I’ve heard that vaseline, heating and the others were the best way to remove Nestle a tick, but the Stopticks folks say don’t. Since it’s on the Internet, it’s gotta be true…

As for the Underground, I’m going to place a very high priority on group tick detection, where people pair off and search each other for ticks after an outdoor experience. (Obviously, I’m going to place an even higher priority on going into the outdoors with attractive folks from the opposite gender.)

See you in group, Tom Chandler.

[tags]fly fishing, fishing, ticks[/tags]

Observing Trout Underwater: Field and Stream Gets All Wet.

January 24, 2007, by 10 comments

Here’s what you get when you combine a scuba diver, a couple fishermen and the South Platte River: 11 different observations about fly fishing that may or may not surprise you.

Field and stream picture

From the diver:

I’m in the middle of an experiment to find out what trout really do under the river surface. The only way to truly understand the fish, I figured, was to be the fish, so I got out my scuba gear and jumped in. Here’s what I learned.

Read the rest of the article at: Field & Stream – Photo Gallery – Going Deep In The Name Of Trout Research

Some of the “tips” were surprising; others less so. Many run counter to some of my own fishing experiences, and while the article is hugely interesting, it’s best to take it with a grain of salt.

We’re talking about the behavior of trout on the South Platte – one of the most pressured trout fisheries on the planet.

I’d expect those trout to develop behaviors less-pressured fish might not share.

What parts resonated?

  • False casting spooks fish (true).
  • Suspended fish are active fish (duh).
  • Trout often hang out at the edges of different currents and structures (double duh).

What parts made me wince? The bit where the diver noted that indicator nymphers missed about the half their strikes.

His solution was for anglers to set the hook from time to time when a trout “could” be eating it.

He might call that smart. I call it snagging.

Still, a very interesting read. In fact, it’s today assignment; read the thing (it’s fairly short), and then let us know what you thought. See you behind the mask, Tom Chandler.

[tags]fly fishing, field and stream, trout, nymphing[/tags]

Considered Fly Fishing the Surf? Why the Hell Not?

December 30, 2006, by 2 comments

The Fly Fish NorCal site – in addition to having the good taste to run some of my material – also showcases articles from other writers, including this thought-provoking little beauty about fly fishing the surf from Ken Hanley.

Fly fishing the surf isn’t perhaps the first thing that leaps to mind when you hear the words “fly fishing,” but saltwater’s the fastest-growing part of the sport, and if there’s something California has in abundance, it’s surf.


It’s pretty. It’s wet. And there are fish there. Why not?

The Underground’s Southern Cal Saltwater Correspondent Jim Troyer has become something of an expert on the genre, and frankly, his e-mails detailing his adventures sound like a hell of a lot of fun.

Sure there’s sand there (icky, scratchy stuff), and those of us in the Jaws generation will never look at the ocean without some level of suspicion, but there’s water, and big, strong fish in that water.

Someday I’ll trick Jim into writing a basic “how-to” article about it, but in the meantime, give Fly Fish Norcal’s article a try.

Any surf fishers out there? Let us know how you like it. And if you’ve ever seen Jaws.

[tags]fly fishing, fly fishing the surf, surf fishing, jaws[/tags]

Leader Madness: Sully’s Extraterrestrial Underground

November 8, 2006, by 6 comments

It’s that time of the year when long leaders are part of the game – especially when fishing small bugs in the low, clear flows.

And when the Underground talks leaders, it talks to Underground Montana Correspondent Sully, who has spent a lifetime testing leader formulas to a state of perfection. (Well, not a whole lifetime. He’s not dead.)

This is perhaps the most unusual of all the Sully recommended leaders – a 16.5′ specimen that always turns over.

When asked about its origins, Sully simply said the original formula was found on twisted fragments of an alien-looking metal during a recent visit to Area 51. Then he pulled out an odd penlight, flashed it in my eyes, and… wait, where am I?

Upper Sacrmento River in Fall requires long leaders
The low, clear flows of fall and winter mean BWOs – and long leaders.

Huh. Lost my train of thought.

Anyway, I see I’ve already pasted the leader formula below. Nobody knows where the formula comes from, though it’s easily the most extra-terrestrial of the Sully leaders, two of which we already passed along (links to those at the end of this post).

I use this leader extensively fishing small flies in the low, clear water of Fall and Winter. The turnover on this is truly amazing, and the drifts are spectacular.

It responds well to caster inputs, so pile and reach casts actually work like they’re supposed to.

Like any long leader, there’s little joy to be found fishing it in the wind. There is, however, a lot of joy in hooking tough fish.

Dia. Length
.025 4′ Rio Powerflex Butt Material (start with 4 feet but trim down length if leader doesn’t turn over well)
.022 3′ Rio Powerflex Butt Material
.017 8″ Rio Powerflex
.015 7″
.013 6″
.011 10″
.010 20″
.011 11″
.009 15″
.007 8″
.005 30″ (6x)

Sully’s pretty specific about materials, but this design will stand some tinkering.

He recently constructed a prototype using Orvis Hy-Flote butt material, which is smaller than the listed sizes and very flexible. It’s a perfect match for my more flexible fly lines (Cortland Sylk and 444 Peach).

I would definitely try a smaller butt diameter if I was trying this leader with a 4wt line.

Other Sully Leader Designs

Sully’s Big Bug Leader design: 10.5′ long and it turns over big dries beautifully. My favorite all-around leader spring and summer.

Sully’s short-range accuracy leader: 7.5′ long, but a small stream killer.

[tags]fly fishing, leader, leader design, BWO[/tags]