Fly Tying Dave-May 20, 2015. Along with the skagit line, you will need to purchase tips to cover different conditions. Coldwater smallmouth fishing is a big fish game. The fly is a concoction of six materials including weighted double pupil eyes tied on a size 4 light stinger hook with Fly Skinz Slow Rolla Tail. We won't send you spam. However, in the last 10 to 15 years, swinging Great Lakes steelhead, browns, and salmon has become extremely popular, and many opportunities exist in the Great Lakes for any swinging enthusiast. Swinging my fly across the front of ledges was the best presentation. The thoughtful fisherman pays attention to weather trends. He did say he caught it swinging the fly. The Dupage is a quaint little river that holds a wonderful population of smallmouth. There were some great points made to me and may be helpful for people getting into it for the first time or new switch rod users that can use some refinement: 1) If you can afford it, buy a reel for your sinking head with Skagit line and a reel for your floating head with Scandi line. You've read about winter steelheading where fly-fishermen spend hour after hour, day after day, casting heavy lines, swinging heavy flies in the often-unrequited hope of getting a single bite. I touch on that as well. If it's a big fish, it needs ready access to an occasional mid-winter meal. Imagery of a focused angler, stalking trout around meandering streams or swinging flies for steelhead elicits powerful emotions in some folks. Tradition dictates that when swinging flies for steelhead you make your cast, swing the fly into shore, and take a step or two down river. It’s not as easy to spey cast with a single-handed rod, but can be a great option to get into swinging without a large investment. Realistic patterns tied with hard materials are pretty to look at but they are static and fail to imitate the natural life-like movements of the real creature swimming in the water or crawling along the bottom. However, you can use singe-handed rods to complete these casts as well. Swinging was better when the water was up more. Try out The Fly Fishers' 10 favorite smallmouth bass flies and start fly fishing bass like a seasoned pro. Here are Mike’s Top 5 moves for getting your bronze on in the early season, in his own words. However, we were glad to get it because for the past twenty years it has been one of our most productive smallmouth flies.---It is also one of our best flies for big brown trout in large western rivers but that is a fringe benefit. You are lucky here in that the heavy skagit casts makes casting easier. Sometimes it works to their advantage. The prefect size at 4″ and 6″ long and hold a huge profile in the water. Scandi lines don’t have as heavy as a front belly, so they lay out a little smoother and easier. skagit Max short from Rio should do the trick for swinging. And if you’re interested in the right spey rod for steelhead, Click here to see the Echo Spey Rod that has helped me drastically improve my spey cast and find more steelhead at a super reasonable cost (You also get a free spey line if you pickup the Echo Spey). Watch others and see where fish are being hooked. Chironomids are always hatching and can be an important food source as winter wanes and spring rolls around. Fly Lines Dave-May 12, 2015. Jerry shares his favorite goto pattern for steelhead and why he's heading out into the bigger water to chase fish these days. Unsubscribe at any time. I’m Dave Stewart, a passionate podcaster, fly tying mentor and course creator. This fly is a direct decedent of Mike Schultz's Swinging D and Eric Snyder's Twisted Swinger. Fish the right water. He noted that Swinging flies, nymphing and stripping streamers for steelhead are the top techniques and that all are tested these days in the area. Those fry that haven't already become dinner have grown to juvenile size, and their parents are full-sized adults. Swinging Be prepared to lose gear when slow-walking your fly. Last couple days swinging flies with the Stewart group has made for enjoyable days on the river but tough overall steelhead fishing. document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id", "a345a8f0ebe19c5c00c37ea9abfbfc55" );document.getElementById("c94e73e5b9").setAttribute( "id", "comment" ); —> Steelhead Tips PDF Quick Guide from our Pros, (Enter your name and email below then choose your PDF Guide). My question is, for those who swing/strip for smallmouth, do you run trailer hook/intruder style rigs? #1. You need your smallmouth fix but don't know where or how to catch smallies when the water is cold, your digits are rigid and when a single bite makes the world seem sunny and bright. The snap T and singe spey/double spey are some of the best. Easton FMJ Arrows Offer Bowhunters More Penetration, 10 Best Long-Range Rifle Cartridges Ever Made, How to Battle Cold Fronts for Big-Chill Bass, October Game Plan: Find the Food, Find the Bass, Go Big, Fast or With the Flow for August Largemouths, New for 2021: Rage Broadhead, Nockturnal Nock, Carbon Express Arrows, Understanding Reel Retrieve Ratios and How it Affects Lure Presentations, Catch More Bass on a Jerkbait in the Cooler Months, Hobie MirageDrive 360 Kayak Propulsion: Amazing Control and Power. The Rio skagit max short is the line to go with if you are casting larger and heavier flies. Does anyone else have a good fly fishing failure story out there? These are the Skagit and Scandi lines. Olive, brown, black and purple top the list. It needs security from the environment and predators. Mad props to Mike Schultz for introducing me to swinging flies for smallmouth bass! And fish can follow. It’s obvious you have put some good time in on the water. Streamers patterns should be fished with a pause, followed by a pause, followed by a short, slow strip. Field-proven big-game arrows for lethal hunting results. Airflo Skagit Scout- Late Season Trout Tactics; And I Thought I Covered Water; Big Trout on Big flies take 3,472 Update with Chad Johnson and Kelly Galloup; Swinging flies for Winter Trout: Updated! His steelhead, smallmouth, and trout flies have been published in books, magazines, and online. Swinging, nymphing and egg flies are working. It can be performed equally well with both single-handed and spey or double-handed fly rods. I like to give a mend to the line at certain points in the swing. Top Tactics. Rocks and bottom debris can be unforgiving but using a stouter tippet can help save gear. An even better solution is using flies tied on Daiichi 45-or 60-degree jig hooks so the hook rides point up. Some might well insert the word "insanity" here. Find out how to fish the St. Louis River, how to set hooks with streams for smallmouth, trout and pike. When swinging flies, you’ve got a big challenge in front of you. by Steve Kuieck. Do you still need more information? This link gives a few examples that work well in the Great Lakes. Increase a lure’s effectiveness by pairing it with the ideal reel speed. Now the bigger question. Well, that is how I used to prepare myself until I met Garth Wellman and Armand Flies. It’s covered. A few more examples of streamers that work for steelhead….. Here’s a johnny darter streamer, and here is the honorable mention. ... Smallmouth bass also start running the lower river from Lake Erie in April as an added bonus to fly fisherman. When setting up your line, the first question is to ask what length and weight is your rod. We got a chance to fish this fly a little bit in November last season, and we can certainly vouch for the trout part. Attractors are usually fished with a quick, darting retrieve and that's not the way the food moves this time of year. I sweetened the fly by applying crawfish scent to the fabric claws to encourage the smallmouth to hold on longer and give me an extra split second to set the hook. What type of cast do you use to get the fly out there. The location of pattern was very distinct today. Warm water ramps up metabolism, meaning each prey item is quickly consumed, making it necessary for each fish to keep returning to the chow line. Tradition dictates that when swinging flies for steelhead you make your cast, swing the fly into shore, and take a step or two down river. I love swinging with a two-handed rod and this really extends my season. Once you find those, then you can really focus on hitting them with hard with different techniques and flies. Stay focused and passionate and you will hook fish. Thankfully the trout were moderately accommodating yesterday before the big winds kicked up. Scandi lines are great for fishing lighter and smaller flies on or near the surface. Swinging, nymphing and egg flies are working. Nice comment Mike. 3) On the same topic, rules are made to be broken… It was drilled into my head to swing and maintain the rod position to give the fly a good steady route of travel. As most catfish anglers know, blue cats, channel cats and flatheads will eat darn near... Who needs live bait when the big 'gills are so eager to strike these lures? The Swinging D was a purpose-driven swim fly design with built-in wounded baitfish motion. Rio lines and Air flo are still leaders in most of the new development of lines here. Since moving to the Upper Peninsula in 2000 he's fished all corners, waters and species in this area. The basic setup is a length of sinking tip, like the MOW attched to your skagit line, plus a 4-5 8-10 lb mono leader. Perhaps you are one of those yourself. I’m developing a fly tying course and would love if you can check it out. Here is a nice background summary of these larger intruder style flies. That’s the easy answer. I’ll get you geared up today so you will know how to use the switch rod, what to fish and how to fish it. Swinging flies for smallmouth bass and other species in rivers can be equally deadly. |   Put your time in and you’ll get there. Smallmouth bass spend the winter oriented toward the bottom. Our top-producing Smallmouth fly of 2014 was cooked up by our own Mike Schultz. The latter sounds too much like rational thought. Stalcup's Flash Fry - Orange - Bass or trout fly, this fly is a great pattern that we use for Smallmouth Bass but some of our guides use it for Largemouth Bass too. . Show Notes with Jerry Darkes - I noted the Adrian Cortes podcast where he fishes dry lines for winter steelhead. Instead of using a long inflexible hook, you can use your prefered stinger type hook. Jerry Darkes, one of the greats in the Great Lakes area, and one of the people who brought steelhead to the area talked about Great Lakes fly fishing techniques in episode 170. I’ll show you the different lines and flies you can use for swinging flies for steelhead. If it hesitates, feels mushy or its movement is restricted, set the hook. Anglers should have bass flies that both float and sink. The ORIGINAL Bar Flies – Mike Schultz, Swingin’ D Streamer. Doing so counterbalances the hook bend and point so the fly rides point up. Instead, the sinking line gets your fly down and leaves your fly with plenty of movement. Steelheading is not my Religion… These are Amazing Fish. I’m assuming you have an 11.5’ switch rod, or simiar size. Light weight and easy to cast with a great swimming action. The Swinging D is a fantastic fly, one of the best Smallmouth flies out there. The cold water makes that an unlikely happening. You can add your correct tip to fit the needs of the stream and situation you find yourself in. Big flies more closely imitate what winter fish food is abundant and available. Employ these expert tips for world-class smallmouth bass fishing in rivers and streams. Downsize your gear a have fun with big numbers of fish. The last forage fish spawn is months in the past. A proven favorite for largemouth bass in Size 2 and smallmouth in Size 6. There are contrarian fly-fishermen as well when it comes to crayfish fly color. This article from Deneki talks about the MOW tips. Tactics for Swinging Flies for Winter Chrome in all Types of Water; Videos and advice about setting the hook on Steelhead; Derek Wiley Video…Some Dandy Chrome Hookups! Drift boat trips only. Darin Sakas / January 23, 2015. March 16, 2018 in Spring Steelhead. 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