Perfect Fly November Fly Fishing Journal
Contents:
- Late Autumn/Early Winter Season Tips
- Articulated Streamers
- Fishing Spring Creeks
- Winter Steelhead Fishing
- Pre-rigged Trout Flies
- Holiday Gifts Guide
- Fly Fishing for Speckled Trout
Late Autumn/Early Winter Season Tips
By James Marsh
When the first cool mornings of Fall come around, anglers come out from their airconditioned hangouts to pursue their favorite fish on the fly – the trout. Light jackets may be needed in the early mornings, but shirt sleeves are the normal attire during most of the day. Gone are the annoying biting bugs of summer. New species of aquatic insects begin to emerge from the water due to just the opposite change in water temperature from the spring season. As the water cools, it brings about new hatches of fall caddis, mayflies midge and stonefly species of insects. Terrestrial insects will still be around until the first hard freeze.
The first hints of the late Fall season take place in the high elevations of the Rocky Mountains as early as mid-September and by the end of October, temperatures below freezing become normal. At the same time, air temperatures in the Southwestern states like Arizona remain hot during the day but begin to cool down at night. The same changes can take place on the East coast in the state of Maine as well as other upper New England states. At the same time, trout fishing in Great Smoky Mountain National Park goes into high gear with mild, late Fall temperatures. Early season snow falls may begin in the upper Rocky Mountains as early as late September but may not occur in the Southwestern states until late
December or January. The same variations can occur in the eastern Appalachian Mountains from Maine to Georgia.
As the water temperature falls, brown trout will begin to venture out from their summertime hiding places in search for the perfect place for their redds. Rainbows, brookies and cutthroat trout will perk up with the cooler water temperatures and continue to feed from the bottom to the surface of the water as long as the water temperature remain above about forty degrees or higher.
The green colors of summer change to beautiful shades of yellows, oranges, reds and browns. When that happens, it won’t be long before the trees and bushes lose their leaves. When that happens, many anglers fishing dry flies get frustrated when their fly keeps hanging up on the leaves. It can be frustrating but fishing dry flies on the surface with leaves can also be very effective as long as the water temperature is still in the middle to upper forties or higher. Midges and Blue-winged olives among other aquatic insect hatches. Trout quickly get used to seeing the leaves and can still pick out the emerging insects easily. The leaves can serve to distort the trout’s vision of you, your gear and leader. You just need to take advantage of the leaves as cover and target open areas to place your fly.
Cold nights and warm days are typical of late fall and early winter, again all depending on the geographical location of the stream as well as the type of stream. Most of the time, hatches will occur at the warmest part of the day. Like the spring month, cold fronts seem to pass every few days with some days being very cold and others nice and warm. The fish usually become more action on low pressure systems with cloud cover than high pressure systems with clear skies. Just because there’s some snow showers in the forecast doesn’t necessarily mean there isn’t going to be anything hatching. It isn’t uncommon to see baetis Blue-winged olive hatches when it is snowing lightly. Generally, as long as the water temperature is in the mid to upper forties, you can expect some hatches to take place. Except for midges, hatches rarely occur in water temperatures less than the mid-forties. That doesn’t mean you can’t catch trout. It simply means most of the feeding activity will be below the surface. Having a thermometer with you and taking the water temperature at various time of the day and different types of water can be of great assistance provided you know how trout react to the changing water temperatures.
Remember, trout want position themselves in fast water very long when the water temperature is very low. It becomes a matter of them expending more energy to swim in the fast current than they can replace with food. In colder water temperatures, trout tend to hold in slower moving water. Keep in mind there is often slow-moving water in holes in the stream bottom beneath fast moving water.
During the late fall and early winger months, spring creeks and tailwaters offer the most stable water conditions for trout. Freestone streams, especially those in warmer climates of can also provide excellent fishing conditions but the conditions do vary much more than they do in spring creeks and tailwaters. In spring creeks, water comes from underground and is usually range from about 50 to 56 degrees. In tailwaters, especially those with discharges from deep water lakes, the water temperature remains almost constant, usually from 40 to 50 degrees. In freestone streams, the water temperature is strictly controlled by mother nature. It can vary drastically, even overnight, so keeping a close water on the weather becomes very important.
Another big variable is the type of water you fish during the late fall and early winter months. By that I don’t mean just shallow or deep water. I also mean fast- or slow-moving water or whether you are fishing riffles, runs, pools, flats, etc. However, selecting and fishing the better type of water is also varied largely by water temperature. In general, when water is cold, you should fish slower moving to still water. When the water is warm, say around fifty degrees, you can fish faster moving water.
2. Why Articulated Streamers
By James Marsh
Perfect Fly Albino Articulated Sculpin
Click Here to see or purchase any of our Perfect Fly articulated streamer patterns.
The word articulated means having two or more sections connected by a flexible joint. Most fish, including baitfish, propels themselves forward by moving the tail back and forth. Certainly, a fly that is designed to imitate a baitfish should have a similar action and that is the big benefit of an articulated streamer.
Our patterns are designed to move easily and freely with current and/or rod tip action. We use hollow plastic beads at the joints to help enable the movement. The flies come in single or double hook versions. Some fish regulations prohibit the use of double hook flies and some don’t. They also come with rattles as an option. Small, glass beads in a tube designed to be used with flies accomplish this by providing sounds that attracts fish.
Articulated streamers are fished the same way regular streamers are fished. The best places to present streamers are areas where fish have some protection and where they can hide and ambush food. They can also be effect in current seams and pockets of water; however, they are usually most effective when presented around cover or during times when the water is off color. They are effective in seams of current.
Casting methods for articulated streamers vary depending on the weight of your fly. Articulated streamer flies are usually heavier than other types of flies. You should always select a target prior to making the cast. Cast upstream and across. The fly needs time to sink to the right depth. Try to finish the cast with the rod tip up high. You need to get your fly down to their level. Once your fly hits the water, let it sit for a few seconds. At this point, is usually helps to throw a downstream mend in your fly line. Allow the current to assist by pulling the fly down near the bank. This is especially useful if the bank is deep or undercut. When thefly heads downstream, tilt your rod tip down to as low as it can get and even allow the tip of it to enter the water if needed. You want to keep it there while you strip in line. This allows the streamer to stay deeper during the retrieve. Small two-to-four-inch strips will usually work well. Continue stripping in line until the fly is about to approach the end of its drift. Don’t work the fly back upstream against the current. Let it swing across the stream a few feet. Strikes often come at the end of the drift.
Perfect Fly Gray Leech Articulated streamer
Click Here to see and/or purchase any of our Perfect Fly articulated streamer patterns.
3. Fishing Spring Creeks
By James Marsh
Small Pennsylvania Spring Creek
Tired of hearing the water is too cold or too warm, or too high and fast or that runoff is still underway? Maybe you are tired of hearing there isn’t anything hatching. Spring creeks have clear and consistent water flow, and the aquatic environment stays relatively consistent. That all sounds good and sweet but trout in spring creeks become used to things being stable and they adjust their behavior to adapt to it. Generally, spring creeks have more food for the trout than either tailwaters or freestone streams. Trout feed more consistently and regularly as opposed to a fast water trout stream where trout can feed more opportunistically. Trout in most spring creeks are very selective. Since the water is usually smooth and clear, the trout usually get a much better look at your fly and are not as easily fooled with the artificial imitation as trout in fast, more turbulent water that only get a quick glimpse of the fly. The two different types of water, meaning fast and turbulent versus slow and smooth, presents another problem to anglers. In spring creeks, the trout can usually see you, your fly rod, line and leader much better as well as your fly.
A spring creek is a stream formed by water “springing” from underground to the surface. They eventually get some of their water from surface runoff from rain and snow but the majority comes from beneath the surface. Most of the spring creeks in the eastern U. S. comes from a formation of limestone that runs along the Appalachian Mountain range. This water has a high or alkaline PH which supports a lot of food for trout.
Irrespective of the type of spring creek, they all have a steady flow of water that usually remains consistent year-round. Contrary, freestone streams are subject not only to runoff but heavy rain as well as drought conditions. The flows and the clarity of the water can change drastically overnight. Tailwater flows are also usually inconsistent due to electrical power demands or flood control measures. When you regularly fish freestone streams or tailwaters, you constantly have to change methods or presentations to adapt to the changes in water conditions. When you are fishing spring creeks, you basically face the same challenges in water conditions day to day.
Many of the spring creeks in the western states come from basalt which is porous rock that was left from volcanic eruptions. Several of these exist in Yellowstone National Park such as the Firehole River. Others in the western states come from rivers that flow beneath the surface of the earth and re-emerge from beneath the surface as spring creeks.
Just about all spring creeks have soft bottoms that usually consist of soil, mud or fine gravel mixed with soft soil. Aquatic plants usually grow prolific. They range in water temperature from about 50 to 56 degrees year-round. Of course, the stream begins to warm up some in the heat of summer when it gets a good distance from the source of water or in winter, can get colder a good distance from its source. In all cases, much of the stream can be fished year-round. In some cases, more smaller streams exist along the stream a good distance from the main source which helps keep the water at a more constant temperature throughout its length.
Typically, you should use lighter tackle than you normally would in other types of water where trout exist. This isn’t necessarily because the fish may be smaller but because the fish can see everything much clearer than they normally can in a freestone stream or tailwater with fast flowing and more turbulent water flows such as runs and riffles. Often, more precise presentations and better drag free drifts are required than they are in other types of water. It certainly helps to improve your odds of success if you use flies that closely resemble the naturals. That is why our Perfect Flies are so popular in Spring Creeks. We have high volumes of sales wherever spring creeks exist because anglers learn quickly, they are far more effective than the typical generic patterns simply because the trout can see the fly better.
Spring creek trout are very skittish. Some spring creeks have some overhead cover of trees and bushes but most of them don’t. Most trout are afraid of predators from above the water. Shadows cast across the water usually sends them to the nearest cover in a heartbeat. Walk slowly and as low as possible along the bank and crawl on your hands and knees if you have to. Approach the water you’d like to fish carefully staying as hidden as possible. If your wading, wade slowly and get into position as gently as possible. Take advantage of any cover such as bushes or trees. Boulders and large rocks are not common in spring creeks but if they do have any, take advantage of them as cover.
In fast-flowing freestone streams with broken pockets, riffles, and runs, you may can high stick nymphs and/or use the Czech nymph rig effectively but this isn’t a very effective method when are fishing a slow, moving spring creek. You would end up spooking every fish in the stream and the trout would stay hidden for the next hour or two.
One successful strategy in some cases is to cast to fish you spot before the fish spots you. Sight fishing isn’t exactly easy to do, but it can be very effective. To do this, you will need a good pair of polarized sunglasses. Take your time and carefully scan the water to find fish. Watch for rises or just rise rings. Often, just a quick flash of a feeding trout will give away a trout’s position. That is usually all you seen when they are feeding on emerging insects. It is often easier to spot the trout’s shadows on the bottom of the stream than the trout itself.
Some spring creeks, such as Penns Creek in Pennsylvania, do have rocks and boulders and in those types of water, both strike indicator rigs, high sticking methods and Czech-style euro nymph rigs can be used effectively; however, I personally don’t think they are as effective as a basic traditional nymph rig. In most all spring creeks the water is very clear, and the surface is very smooth. Any unnatural disturbance on the surface of the water will spook the trout. Whenever possible, avoid using strike indicators. Personally, I never use them in a spring creek but there are streams where they could be used effective. A good, rather long, knotless tapered leader with a very tiny split shot and a single fly is the best option in most cases. A fly line is easy for trout to see in clear, smooth spring creeks and in many situations, you should have a longer than normal leader than you may need otherwise. You want to as much space between your fly line and your fly as possible but not so long that you have trouble straightening it out. If you’re fishing nymphs or other subsurface small flies, you may want to use nothing smaller than a fluorocarbon 6x tippet. For small dry flies, stick with a 6x nylon tippet.
You want to look for water that allows you the opportunity to get a drag free presentation. Most spring creek have a huge and productive insect population. The same is usually true of the trout population. They too are usually dense. It is best to try to find runs that makes it easier for you to get a good drag free presentation. Selecting runs that allow for the right drift line is a big plus. Just moving a few feet to a different position can sometimes change the drift just enough to get fish to take your fly.
In summary, get your thermometer out, check the water temperature and then make your decisions as to the type of water to fish in the stream you are fishing. Provided you are familiar with aquatic insects and other trout foods, it is also a big aid in determining what is hatching.
Click Here for Perfect Fly Trout Flies
4. Steelhead Fishing
By Alan Snyder
Chris Tobias with a Great Lakes Winter Steelhead
For the benefit of those who may not know what a steelhead is, lets first cover that topic. A steelhead is essentially an anadromous rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss), or trout that have migrated to the ocean, grown to a large size and returned to spawn in the same freshwater system they were born in. Their ability to return to the same freshwater system where they were born is an amazing thing. It’s like they have had built GPS centuries before man. Steelhead spend the majority of their life in the ocean or Great Lakes, feeding on larger size food that inland trout have available and is the main reason they grow to much larger sizes. Unlike salmon, they don’t die when returning to freshwater after spawning. Steelhead may return to the ocean or Great Lakes multiple times. When they do return to freshwater, they provide a very good sportfishing challenge for the fly angler.
There are basically two types of steelhead. Wild and/or native fish as well as hatchery steelhead. Hatchery steelhead are hatched in man-made hatchery ponds. Most hatchery fish have their adipose fin-clipped such that that they can be identified and harvested by anglers. A “Wild” steelhead refers to any steelhead that was hatched in the river system and usually have wild parents. While wild and hatchery fish may look almost identical (minus an adipose) they are genetically different and will have very different levels of success creating the next generation. It is no surprise that more recent studies have shown that hatchery steelhead and salmon can have a hugely detrimental effect on wild steelhead and salmon.
Steelhead also differ within the species itself. They can have a very diverse life history. Each strain may be a little different. Some grow larger than others, some act differently, even grow differently. One main difference is the timing of the runs. Anglers refer to them as either a summer run steelhead or a winter run steelhead. The main difference between the two is summer steelhead enters the freshwater when they are sexual immature. Winter run steelhead enter the river sexual mature. The summer fish typically enter rivers anywhere from May to November, which is highly dependent on the specific river. They develop and mature for several months in the river system. This added time allows them to travel further to spawn than the Winter run fish.
Summer steelhead are always more aggressive and will take dry flies. Summer steelhead are also smaller than the winter steelhead. Summer run fish spend much more time in freshwater than winter run fish. Winter fish may be in the river system only for a few days, and summer fish may be in the freshwater system over a year. Winter fishing conditions such as snow, icy roads, and high rivers make winter fish harder to find and catch.
Skagit lines are used to present the larger flies. Sink tips are used to break the surface tension and to get the fly down in the water. Winter swing fishing requires shorter rods, shorter Skagit heads, and shorter leaders.
Click Here to see Perfect Fly Great Lakes Steelhead Flies
Click Here to see Perfect Fly Pacific Steelhead Flies
Click Here to see Perfect Fly Steelhead Fly Rods-regular and switch rods/reel
5. Pre-rigged Trout Flies
By James Marsh
The older I got, the poorer my vision became. That is generally true of us older guys and gals. Poor vision can also be a problem for many even at a younger age. Rigging and tying small flies became more and more of a problem for me and often, I had to rely on my much younger wife Angie, to do my rigging and tying, especially when it became necessary out on the water. Of course, the small the flies and lighter the tippet, the tougher they job becomes for anyone with poor vision. Fly sizes in the 20’s become more difficult for those with good vision. This is especially true if the rigging and tying in needed while you’re out on the water fishing. Low light conditions from early mornings to late afternoons as well as cloudy conditions also makes it more difficult.
For those anglers short on time and/or those anglers who have a difficult time of pre-rigging their flies due to vision problems, we offer several different types of pre-rigged flies. We first began to do this with our Perfect Fly midge patterns.
Click Here for Pre-rigged Midge Larva and Pupa
A couple of years ago we started offering pre-rigged dropper rigs which have a larger size dry fly on top with a nymph or emerger spaced about 18 inches below it. These quickly became very popular.
Click Here for Pre-rigged Dropper Rigs
About the same time, we began to offer pre-rigged double nymph rigs. They have three feet of tippet above the top fly, which is a nymph or emerger, with a second or lower fly, another nymph or emerger, spaced 16 inches below the top fly.
Click Here for Pre-rigged double nymph rigs
For the above reasons, it is always best to pre-rig your flies as much as it is feasible to do so prior to getting on the water. This is true of anyone with good or poor vision. For those anglers that want to do it themselves, we sell two sizes of round foam rigging spools, flat foam rigging boards, and two sizes of fly boxes with rigging spools.
Click Here for Pre-rigging Flat Foam Boards
Click Here for Pre-rigging Round Foam Boards
Click Here for Pre-rigging Fly Boxes and Spools
6. Holiday Gift Guide
Our Number One Most Popular Gifts: Our top selling fly-fishing gifts are our Perfect Fly Selections. They come with or without fly boxes.
Selections of flies are available for the following sections of the United States: They come in good, better and best selections for: New England States. Northeastern states, Mid-Atlantic Streams, Southeastern Streams, Mid-west and Great Lakes Streams, Northern Rocky Mountains, Southern Rocky Mountains, Pacific Northwestern Streams, and California Streams, Great Smoky Mountains Selections, and Yellowstone National Park Selections.
We also offer Custom Selections for Particular Trout Streams and Lakes. You can email or call us and purchase fly selections for any major trout stream or lake in the United States. They come with or without fly boxes and in good, better and best price options.
We also offer different price ranges of: Steelhead Fly Selections, Saltwater Fly Selections, Streamer Fly Selections, Terrestrial Fly Selections, Midge Fly Selections, Pre-rigged Dropper Selections, Inshore Saltwater Fly Selections and Saltwater Flats Fly Selections.
Click Here to see the details of all fly selections
Click Here to see the details of other freshwater bass, pike, panfish selections
Our Number Two Most Popular Gifts: Our number two top selling items are our fly rods, fly rod/reel/line combinations, and Getting Started Fly Sets.
Click Here to see the details of our fly rods, fly rod combinations and Getting Started Fly Sets
Click Here to see all our Perfect Fly Products
Help Us Get Your Gifts Delivered on Time
You can’t watch, hear or read any form of media -TV, radio, newspaper, or Internet, without seeing adverse reports about product shortages and shipment delays with emphasis placed on the upcoming holidays. We are and have been taking steps to prevent running out of product by ordering and/or manufacturing our products well in advance of normal schedules. Please help us get your orders out fast and delivered on time by simply placing orders in advance of normal.
7. Fly Fishing for Speckled Trout
By James Marsh
The late Tom Mann and James Marsh with a nice, speckled trout
The Speckled Trout, or Spotted Seatrout, Cynoscion nebulosus, are found in the southern United States along coasts of Gulf of Mexico and the coastal Atlantic Ocean from Maryland to Florida. Despite the use of the name “trout”, they are not actually trout but rather members of the drum family of fish. speckled trout from its close relative, the weakfish (also known as gray trout, yellowfin trout, and sea trout). They have a distinct pattern of black spots along the silvery, upper body. They also have a very prominent set of two fang-like teeth in their upper jaw. You do not want to grab a speckled trout by the lips like you might land a bass. You get some bloody fingers. Speckled trout can grow to length of up to 34 inches and weighs of up to near 20 pounds, but fish that size are very rare.
Along the Gulf Coast, the speckled trout follows schools of shrimp which typically come into the bay and back waters in October or earlier. Along the Atlantic coastline, trout feed mostly on migrations of baitfish such as mullet and scaled sardines typically following them into coastal bays. Specks are usually found in relatively shallow water. Grass beds, oyster bars, creek mouths, dock pilings, stump fields, and drop-offs, generally in less than 10 feet of water. Young, speckled trout can be found in very shallow tidal creeks and weed beds. Their shallow water habitat makes them a good species to catch on the fly rod.
Many anglers think that fly fishing for saltwater species takes rather heavy tackle such as eight to ten weight fly rods and lines. That is way too heavy for speckled trout. I prefer a 6-weight fly rod and line. There isn’t anything wrong with a 5 or 7 weight rod and line. Yes, you may hook a large size redfish, snook or other species but that’s the exception, not the rule. You should size the rod and line to the flies you are using and a 6-wight should cast any of them you should be using, even for gator trout. By the way, a gator trout is just a name for a large, speckled trout.
Leaders should be long. We recommend twelve feet as it reduces the chance the fish will see your fly line. It keeps the tip of the line far enough away from the fly to keep from spooking the fish. It also lets you place the fly further past the fish without spooking them. This keeps the tip of the fly line further away and allows you the opportunity to drop the fly further past a fish, without them realizing it.