Anyone fly fish in stillwater?

[ccc_]

where I live stillwater is your most accessible option with brownwater streams and rivers .coming second

I started fly fishing in the 70's....a cork popper and an 8wt
now I have dozens of outfits...2 to 11wt...5 feet to 10 feet in length

I carry a 4pc 9ft 6wt with me wherever I go
sometimes it's too heavy, sometimes too light
however I've netted 4 foot gar and four inch trout with it.

I've used a 10wt for pike and gar but it is way too much for your average freshwater venue
I usually recommend 4-7wt rods with 5-6wt being the easiest to master and the most fun in use
9 foot rods seem to be the standard length now

you can walk into a cabela's or basspro and walk out equipped (adequately) for under a 100usd
btw...where I live they are my fly shops, prior to that it was kmart

the tenkara rod mentioned above is fun when bluegill or bass are close to shore but can be somewhat limiting, it isn't where I would start

most shops will teach you how to fish this way and be more than willing to sell you what you need

good luck!

 

[collk22]

Still water is fun; just got back from a weekend of still water fishing in Wyoming. We got into rainbows, brookies, and cutties. Beautiful property, well managed fishery, and an all around good time. I'm also a big fan of fishing the front range alpine lakes in the summer time. Always a beautiful hike in and the fish, while smaller, are typically eager to play and attack with reckless abandon. Makes for a fun afternoon. I use a 9' 5wt, for what it's worth.

 

[waveslider]

Uh oh, sounds like someone spent the weekend at Monster Ranch........so how was it?

 

[collk22]

Uh oh, sounds like someone spent the weekend at Monster Ranch........so how was it?

Monster Ranch? Never been, but it looks nice. We were fishing some private property close to Cheyenne.

 

[waveslider]

Nice

 

[lowrider1]

I'm kinda busy building a house but have been out a bit for flat water flies. Local lakes are stocked with rainbows and browns and back in the Spring the were all hungry for top water flies. Bought a new 8' 3wt a couple years ago and have been using it when I can. Not many things that much fun with your clothes on. When we lived in AK my 10 and 12 wt rods got used a fair amount on Kings in the Kenai River. I'd love to chase tarpon someday but the 3 wt is probably more fun with a 16" trout in fast water.

Keep your powder dry and your flies wet.

 

[Jeep or Tacoma]

Nope, man. You can't make it. Your dear fish without good filtr will die.

I don't understand i see big trout in mtn lakes allthe time?

 

[Overlandtowater]

Yes but I am nowhere near trout. Panfish is my usual bass sometimes

 

[robert]

Been thinking seriously about getting a Tenkara rod to keep in the truck. I've got a crappy rod that's essentially a knockdown cane pole (too lazy to go outside and look at the brand) but I really like simplicity of the Tenkara. I think I read somewhere that they may be closing up shop, another victim of this craziness. Sad if true.

 

[68camaro]

Been thinking seriously about getting a Tenkara rod to keep in the truck. I've got a crappy rod that's essentially a knockdown cane pole (too lazy to go outside and look at the brand) but I really like simplicity of the Tenkara. I think I read somewhere that they may be closing up shop, another victim of this craziness. Sad if true.

pan fish on tenkara rod is lots of fun. Most all water has ‘em so real easy to roll up with no fuss.

 

[robert]

Ha- I just realized I typed "crappy" when I meant to type crappie. Everyone around here calls that style rod a crappie pole or a bream buster even though Bream Buster is actually a brand. We use them for crappie and "bream" which includes essentially all pan fish that are worth eating. The one in the truck is a HT LG-903, it's a really cheap (like $10) fiberglass three piece. I usually have a Shimano spinning rod/reel in the back too but I haven't gotten around t doing any fishing lately.

Fisheries joke- there are three types of fish: round fish, flat fish and bait.

 

[Overlandtowater]

Love my ht crappie rods but my fly rod was just as cheap eagle claw. Amazon reel cheap white river fly line from bass pro and walmart leaders. less than 50 for the whole shebang. I catch every thing on that light weight rod blue gill to buffalo.

 

[Sating54]

Stumbled on this topic and by now I hope you have made significant progress with fly fishing in still water but I thought I'd chip this in to add to what other people have mentioned.

When fly fishing in still water, try as much as possible to turn your stealth mode on. Don't go about stomping your heavy foots along the banks or dropping your heavy fishing gear on the ground. Keep it quiet and gentle not to spook the fish. Don't get them suspicious and they will be more likely to pick your fly.

I hope you find this helpful.

Cheers!

 

[DirtWhiskey]

I mostly fish trout in western freestone rivers, high streams and lakes. I now fish almost exclusively Tenkara. The most simple, flexible style there is. Two nots. One for the Lilian and the other to join lines and tie flies. You can nymph, Provo river bounce rig, throw fairly big streamers. Also field repairable. I backpack a lot and I carry a Nissin Prospec 2 way 7:3 and a Tenkara USA Iwana with a few spare sections. All in including flies my entire rig (2 rods with spare sections) is less than 10 oz. Amazing flexibility and ability to move because you aren't stripping and fiddling with your gear all day. Want to toss a small stream that runs into a big wide pool section? No problem, tie in five extra feet of level line to hit the scum line across the river. Moving from one Creek/lake to the next? You can pack your rod away and redeploy in one minute, fish huge amounts of country in a day. You can walk-cast from shore in thick brush.

Done with spinners and conventional rods. But probably not the best choice to flip big mice and stuff. BTW I almost never try to match the hatch. I catch really well on reverse hackle traditional Tenkara flies (dry or wet, one fly) caddis, buggers, hoppers and royal wulf almost exclusively. Line, tippet, fly. Sometimes a little weight. Cheers and best of luck!