How Picky Are You...

Saltwater Fly-Fishing
1

When choosing your flies for redfish?

For example, reds tailing in the grass – are you guys throwing “strict” crab patterns like a kung fu crab or drum beater, or just something that looks crabby/shrimpy, like a kwan or redfish ritalin type thing? Reds in a low tide creek where you see lots of finger mullet, are you throwing a baitfish that really looks like a mullet or just something swimmy?

Basically, what is it that makes you tie on the fly you do? Color? Shape? Movement? I’m still very new to the game, and I really feel like I’m shooting in the dark. I also feel like I’ve gotten all of these different flies to cover all these different scenarios, but I don’t have that much confidence in what fly I tie on.

1994 Hewes Redfisher 18, 2004 Yamaha 150 VMAX
Malibu X-Factor Kayak

2

Heck Bryson, if I knew how to catch fish with them, I wouldn’t have given them to you :smiley:

Bright colors on bright days, dark colors on dark days. Small flies for spooky fish. Crab patterns for reds feeding on fiddlers. Clousers and deceivers for fish feeding on minnows or shrimp Presentation is probably more important than the fly. You’ve got a real good selection to work with.

Now you know about as much as I do. If I want to catch a fish with a fly rod, I usually end up putting a live shrimp on the hook [:I] Lots of people here know more about it than I do.

Capt. Larry Teuton
Swamp Worshiper

3

I’m by far an expert, but I have caught my fair share of marsh jugbellies over the last few years…that’s almost all I do inshore these days. I’ll tell you this, any fly I’ve ever put in front of a red on a flat with a half way decent presentation has been eaten. I’ve successfully fished crabs/shrimp/baitfish patterns typically with lead eyes so they sink. They’ll eat a Dupre spoon too, but some say that’s cheating. If they are tailing, they are eating. If they are eating and see your fly, they will eat it. In my experience of course.

I have been refused several times on the low tide fish. Low tides I typically fish baitfish or shrimp patterns. Sometimes, more so in the cooler months, a great presentation is ignored while a different fly altogether will get hammered. There is no perfect recipe; if you know you have a good presentation and the fish sees it and doesn’t eat, switch flies.

To me, 75% of the battle is finding a fish to present a fly to. Its like anything in life that’s worthwhile to pursue; tinker until its perfect and then realize that you can never truly reach perfection…

May all your favorite bands stay together…

4

I fish like 3 flies year round… My need to catch a redfish has dwindled over the years… they either eat, or they dont, I really don’t care… My need to go fishing however has seemed to increase… weird how that works…

Mad Mike

"to hell with insane… I’m OUTsane!!! "

5

First & foremost, you need to have confidence in yourself. If you don’t think you can catch them, that they’re smarter than you are, then they will be & you’re defeated before you start. If choosing a certain type of fly gives you confidence, then go with it.

quote:
75% of the battle is finding a fish to present a fly to.

This second. You can’t catch what’s not there.

quote:
Presentation is probably more important than the fly.

This next. The most meticulously tied, perfect imitation is worthless if you botch getting it in front of the fish. WE, people critique fly patterns. Fish are only interested in what they can eat, and the “real thing”, shrimp, crab, baitfish is going to be doing it’s best to not get eaten, so the form of the fly is less important than the impression it conveys by it’s movement. Fish don’t think, they don’t analyse, they don’t care if your fly is supposed to be a crab, or a shrimp or whatever.

Choosing your fly is not difficult, but it’s too easy to make it such!

I agree with light & dark colors for the conditions, and often go with flies that might imitate anything they’ll feed on, and some that don’t necessarily look like anything real. Size, profile, movement is often more important than color or fly type. I like imitation patterns, (shrimp, crabs, baitfish, etc.) but also like “generic, nondescript” patterns. I call them “creature” patterns.

Doesn’t matter to me if it’s Redfish, bass, panfish, Carp, Flounder, Striped Bass or whatever I’m targeting, the above has worked. We label flies, the fish don’t care.

It’s fishing, there’s no guarantee’s, and if it was too easy, we woul

6

Great post Big Jim, I think you nailed it :smiley:

Capt. Larry Teuton
Swamp Worshiper

7

Thank you Capt Larry!

I’ve been fly fishing for 50 years. I went thru exactly the same type of uncertainties that bryson is going thru. I’ve been tying all those years & was always trying to design that “special”, never fail fly no matter what fish species I may be targeting. The one that worked any time, any where. I subscribed to several outdoors & fishing magazines over the years & read all the how to articles & “secrets” to catching fish. I dreamed day & night about all I had read & that special fly. Of course, there have been many flies tied by others too in those magazines that always catch fish!

Eventually, I figured out that there are no special, always catch fish flies, no secrets and that all the hype in the magazines was to sell the magazines & advertisers products in them.

I enjoy tying flies & being “creative”, but now I understand that flies that create an illusion of life, something any species of fish might eat is all you need. Even then it’s not always about them eating. They may grab a fly as a defense against an intruder, or possibly out of curiosity. Perhaps even out if annoyance. They don’t have hands & fingers to use to inspect a fly, so their mouth is their only means of testing or inspecting. What we see in a fly pattern, may not be what the fish see, we can never really know what a fish sees when they see our flies and frankly is doesn’t matter, as long as they eat them. Fish, as most animals, do not think. They do not & can’t use reasoning, don’t know what a fly is, except their instincts tells them that combination of tying materials on a hook is moving like something they eat all the time. It’s an illusion and a fake and the fish have no clue.

Usually, when they won’t take a fly, or they spook, there’s something else that causes it. Again, instincts that preserve their existence causes a negative reaction. It might be something with the fly, or it might be something else. Most of the time we’ll never know why. But, you can bet it’s not because the fly didn’t look like

8

Excellent post Jim! Definitely something I was thinking about the other day when my fly line was moving grass that wasn’t even near the fly… Doesn’t matter how perfect the fly is if a line of grass is moving how it shouldn’t be! I need to worry more about dialing in my cast before I sweat fly selection too much. I had several shots at the happiest fish I’ve seen, and couldn’t put the fly right in front of his nose like I needed to.

I think that your last sentence really nails it: “Choose a fly, present it to fish that are present & do as few things as possible to not screw up the process if we hope to be successful & catch a few fish.”

Thanks everyone!

Bryson

1994 Hewes Redfisher 18, 2004 Yamaha 150 VMAX
Malibu X-Factor Kayak

9
quote:
Originally posted by 23Sailfish

I’ll tell you this, any fly I’ve ever put in front of a red on a flat with a half way decent presentation has been eaten.

My experience also. No expert. But, as an illustration, was fishing the Davidson River (Western NC) and having no luck with the recommended flies. Out of frustration, I tied on a Bow River Bugger (as in Bow River, Alberta Canada). It was a big fat fluffy wet white thing that made a lot of noise when it hit the water. Got it in the water up current of a little rip, drifted into the rip and stripped = fish on. I don’t know if there is anything in that part of the Davidson that is 1" long and stark white. But, that rainbow thought it was food and he ate it.

17’ Henry O Hornet w/ Johnson 88 spl
26’ Palmer Scott project hull
14’ Bentz-Craft w/ Yamaha 25

10

Something crabby for tailers. Slow sinking/suspending shrimpy fly for cruisers. Gurgler is I want to get them on top.

From my experience, for Carolina (North and South) redfish, color doesn’t matter, as long as they are in the mood, if they see it, they will eat it.

For Louisiana redfish, I learned this spring that they are picky over color. Natural definitely outfished unnatural colors. Those fish were super spooky. Don’t know why they cared about color down there, but they did.

There is no normal life, there’s just life.

Knot the Reel World Fly Fishing
www.knotthereelworld.com

11
quote:
Originally posted by Hokieflyguy

For Louisiana redfish, I learned this spring that they are picky over color. Natural definitely outfished unnatural colors. Those fish were super spooky. Don’t know why they cared about color down there, but they did.

Do you think that could be an angler pressure thing?

I know of a few spots in Charleston that get hammered by the guides on a regular basis and its a lot harder to get an eat there than on most of my other fishing areas that don’t see nearly the fishing pressure. I have to believe its because they get bothered so much in that area that they are weary of anything that doesn’t look feel smell authentic. “Learned Fish”

May all your favorite bands stay together…