How perfect does your cast need to be for a fish to show some interest?
I have been fishing a crab pattern, so I haven’t been giving much action to the fly, and I have had a really tough time getting the fish to notice it. I had a fish cruise by really slowly yesterday, and I got several casts before he passed me and went out of range. These were some of the best casts I’ve gotten at a fish since I’ve started chasing tailers – many landed less than a foot from his head. I was a little worried he would spook, since I was throwing a fly with large dumbbell eyes (that was landing like a jig head), but it didn’t seem to phase him.
He didn’t spook, but also didn’t pay my fly any mind. He wasn’t actively tailing, but he was moving really slowly through some grass so I don’t think he was just cruising. Is it really a game of inches, and I need to drop the fly literally in his mouth, or was this a fish that just wasn’t interested in eating?
I’ve seen lots of fish this year, and caught zero. Lots of times it’s my fault because I can’t get to them before they have moved on, or I line the fish or something, but I’ve had at least 1-2 fish that I feel like should have gone for it! I’m trying not to get discouraged, but I can’t believe it’s this tough to catch one fish on the fly – there’s got to be a piece to the puzzle I’m missing.
1.) just because a fish doesn’t bolt, doesnt mean he didn’t spook… sometimes they just go stealth mode and slink off… either way they don’t eat…
2.) Do not drop the fly that close to the fish… lead the hell out of them, and move the fly into position by stripping a little as the fish closes the distance… Also if your fly is landing like a jighead it’s too heavy, or your cast needs some work. Getting the fly down is important most of the time, but so is getting it into the water without causing a big scene…
Also if the fish aren’t noticing your fly you should change flies… try something they will see… I fish alot of gold and copper flash on my stuff… not because it resembles anything they are eating, but because they can see it… realistic crab flies are fine an dandy, but crabs are built to blend in for survival… why would you want to fish something thats gonna blend in… give em’ something they can see, and they will either eat or run like hell… either way, they see it…
It took me about 40 years to finally hook up with a Redfish on fly. Most of that time was due to lack of opportunity, and during the few times I had opportunity in the early years, I lacked the necessary skills. I had caught them on bait & on spinning tackle, but not a fly.
I have to agree with what Mike has said. I like to add bronze or copper flash to most of my bass & redfish flies since most places I’ve fished for either water clarity is about the same. It provides enough flash for them to see the fly, but not so much as to scare them off. Scaring them off is easy enough with other things we do. I’ll also try to cast the fly a couple of feet in front of them, and wait, then slowly move the fly or give it a very quick, short strip (3" to 5" at the fly) particularly when it might be down in the grass. The fish are looking for movement if they’re eating, which means they may not see the fly at first but may see the grass move, which hopefully causes them to investigate & find the fly.
One small detail I’ve found works best for me is try to keep my casts in the 30 to 40 ft range (or less) whenever possible. I can cast out to about 80’ comfortably, but find I loose accuracy when getting out that far. I can cast most accurately out to about 40 ft. That may mean I have to rely on stalking & stealth skills more to get within range, and that means have enough patience to let the fish get within range. The down side is they don’t always come within range, but trying to force the issue isn’t something that ends well either, so again have enough to patience to let them go if they’re not in a comfortable range.
I was once wading a grass flat & watched a Redfish moving around for about 30 minutes. It never got within casting range, even though it looked like it was going to. There was a ditch between me & that fish, and I knew I won’t be able to wade across or have time to wade around. So all I could do was watch & wait. I ended up hooking up with another Red in the ditch, but had I become impatient with that f