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I went fly fishing last night on the Monocacy and got a smallmouth and a pumpkinseed. Water was low, so we started off with minnow streamers then went to a black popper for topwater. Feels good man I need to work on my casting, of course. Guy I went with is a guide and its just amazing watching him cast.
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Jul 27, 2020 19:01
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| # ¿ Apr 26, 2024 09:56 |
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That's awesome, and some huge smallmouth. You've got some amazing fishing up there, and some monster muskie and pike. I just spent a wonderful weekend in Western MD fly fishing.  I do several different types of fishing: Spin fishing for whatever, but heavily target smallmouth bass in the Potomac. However, since I live in fly fishing country, I now fly fish. My only rod is a 5 wt 7.5' rod I bought off of a friend of a friend to get me started. This generally suits me fine for when I fish small streams for heavy cover. However, most people go with a longer rod. Should I abandon the 5 wt 7.5' in favor of a rod that is longer? Or should I keep this smaller rod, and get a 3 wt 9' rod so I've got different weight rods? Longer rod will let me do some nymphing and cover distance in wider streams. I'm at a bit of an impasse about where to go with either keeping the smaller rod and just getting a longer 5wt (or a 3wt) and just swapping out reels. Could use the insight if anyone has it. I have a spare reel downstairs too. The current reel I have on my 5 wt 7.5' is a Battenkill BBS III. Unrelated, I am thinking about getting a bass rod to throw bigger flies. I assume a 7wt would be best.
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Sep 24, 2020 13:30
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Dangerllama posted:Is this mostly going to be a trout rig? If so, how big are the fish you’re expecting to catch, on average? And would you rather do nymphing, throw streamers, or delicately land dries from 70’ away? Ugh, I dont know. I don't want to get too sucked into gear, but I am usually catching small trout but also half of the time I'm fishing for whatever in the monocacy river (bluegill or smallmouth). There is a place to do high stick nymphing in southern PA, but I don't go that much, and when I do, I borrow a friends rod. I wouldn't mind buying a 9' 5 wt, as that covers me for small trout and small to medium sized smallmouth. The 9' gets me a little more distance for the potomac and the monocacy. I assume a 5 is strong enough for smaller smallmouth. I could also go up to say, a 7 for smallmouth and just keep my shorter 5 wt for trout. I used a 7 a few times with larger bass flies and it was pretty great Dik Hz posted:If you're fishing for trout, 5 wt 7.5' is plenty for anything if you're on foot. You're almost always better served getting into a better casting position and making a shorter cast than casting a long rod from farther away. Also, it's not like a 9' rod is going to add much to your cast over a 7.5' rod. Thanks for this perspective too. Planet X fucked around with this message at 00:15 on Sep 25, 2020 |
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Sep 25, 2020 00:10
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I like that post: Salsa avatar, check Fish trying to eat a huge lure, check Muskie shirt check Edit: I want that shirt really bad, was it online or in the store
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Sep 28, 2020 17:26
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thanks!
Planet X fucked around with this message at 18:13 on Sep 28, 2020 |
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Sep 28, 2020 17:38
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I have a fishing trip coming up and could use some advice. I fish the Potomac for smallmouth. The bottom is really rocky. I usually use ned rig, but dont rig it weedless or anything, just that ned rig hook. Problem is, with the rocky bottom, I know I'm going to hang up a lot. I've just got a Dobins Fury rod, and am new to running braid and a leader. If I don't figure out how to rig up a worm so that it doesn't get hung up on the bottom, I forsee a day of not a lot of fun for me tying a ton of alberto knots and lost lures since i'm running braid / flouro leader on my main rod now. Any suggestions on how to avoid this? I can also run a texas or carolina rig with a bigger worm, but never really learned how to do this that well. I can always do some internet homework but figured I'd start with this thread first. I might bring an extra rod to just have something else on so in case I do snag a lot, I'll be able to tie on more lures quickly. I can also run other lure types, like rapalas or whatnot so suggestions welcome.
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May 5, 2021 02:28
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I currently have a 5 wt 7'6" rod that I bought a while ago to start fly fishing with. I do more river fishing for panfish and smallmouth bass than I do small steam for trout, so was considering getting a 5 wt 9' so I have an easier time casting. I'm also going to be doing some fishing on the Beaverkill river in NY. I'm not really tall so I figure I could use the length increase to get some distance on the Potomac, which is close to me. Unless I hear otherwise, any reason not to just go to my local shop and pick up a clearwater rod or are there other manufacturers I should consider? I want more than a beginner rod but I don't need anything high performance. I don't think I need to move up in rod weight, as I like the versatility of the 5 for trout and small bass.
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May 22, 2021 21:17
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how does one remove the hook from a pike or muskie? grab it under the gill plate, gloves and pliers? I hope I catch one one day, but I'll probably be unprepared if I do.
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May 26, 2021 19:51
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I ended up pulling the trigger on an Orvis clearwater 6 wt 9 ft. This gives me a little bit heavier rod than a standard 5 so I can throw both standard trout flies and a littler larger flies for small smallmouth. Fished the Shenandoah this am up near Harper's Ferry. Beautiful morning.
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May 28, 2021 22:00
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King of Bees posted:Jealous. Have you tried stripping a muddler minnow behind the rocks? Its bass candy. I just got some muddler minnows, so not yet, but I'll do that soon. My weekend float trip was rained out, so I took my friday off to scout around fishing locations on the Potomac, Shenandoah and Monocacy. I only landed a chub, but it was a nice morning to be out. Since I live in both bass and trout country, I'm trying to figure out my tackle. Various names, hatches, etc can be daunting, as I don't tie, I just like to fish. Many of the access points are overfished or property of the various river outfitters, so I'm trying to figure out where I can park, wade and, and slog up or downriver to a good spot with riffles and rocks.
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May 29, 2021 13:00
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Thanks. I live close to Big Hunting, I just don't go up there as often as I should. That'll change this year, especially after they stock in the fall. I've been up on the Breeches once a few years ago with a guide friend, it was a ton of fun and I should (like Big Hunting Creek) make a point to get up there again. That's where I was introduced to nymphing with scuds. The person I was with tied on two on one leader, I need to figure out what knot that was.
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May 29, 2021 22:43
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LeeMajors posted:bass Nice, that's great you have that kind of fish in your neighborhood ponds! Liquid Banjo posted:Just picked up a 5wt 9' Orvis Encounter to start fly fishing with but need to ask a couple of things. Where are you fishing, out of curiosity?
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Jun 24, 2021 01:52
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Man that's way in there
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Jun 24, 2021 13:58
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I caught the biggest smallmouth in my life on a tiny torp topwater. I've since removed all front treble hooks on any rapalas or torps that I use. Also - I fished the Beaver Kill river up in the Catskills over the holiday break. Went with a guide and had the time of my life. Learned a lot about fly fishing and caught some beautiful rainbows and browns.
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Jul 7, 2021 23:00
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I lurk this thread as a spin and fly fish in the midatlantic and yes good lord yes do I fish for bream and bass with a fly rod. Fish for nearly anything with a fly rod. Fact I just bought a rod just for smallmouth. I fish for trout too Get an Orvis Encounter setup if you want something decent to start out with. 5 wt 9 foot sorta thing, good all around rod for whoever above was looking for a beginner setups. I'm sure there are others but I have an Orvis shop nearby so thats what I know One thing I like about fly fishing is that if you get a strike, you just whip the line out of the water and within literally seconds you're casting back in that same spot. You dont have to speed reel your stuff in, cast, and pull to the same spot. I wanna get me a snakehead on a fly rod 
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Aug 18, 2021 21:17
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You nymphin or just slayin breeyums?
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Aug 20, 2021 03:13
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| # ¿ Apr 26, 2024 09:56 |
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I second this. I started fly fishing only because I ended up settling in a place that is fly fishing heavy (some streams are fly / stocked trout / catch and release only) so it was a "when in Rome" situation for me. I've come to really enjoy it , and as others have stated, if you can get presentation and drift right, you can do pretty well. I match hatches as much as I can, but most times I have little idea of what I'm doing and just go for it. You can spend a lot of money quickly, of course, as some of the Orvis, Filson, and other associated brands get expensive. Rather than spending $ on a fly fishing sling, I bought a used camelbak sling at a secondhand store for $5 and put a fly patch on it. Waders do help, but you can use waders for spin fishing too.
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Aug 20, 2021 14:24
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