FISHING STREAMERS IN STILLWATERS
There is more to using streamers in stillwaters than tying on a Woolly Bugger, Muddler Minnow or Zonker and casting willy‑nilly about.
Streamers can be used as both imitative patterns and as attractors. But the first step in understanding the proper use of streamers in the stillwater environment is understanding the food chain. If there are forage fish (minnows) such as dace or fathead minnows present in reasonable numbers then you may be using the streamer as an imitative pattern, providing that the trout species in the stillwater are of the type that prey an forage fish as a matter of course.
If the trout contained in the stillwater are not known as predator types, (not all are) then you still may use an imitative pattern relying on the trout's reputation of being an opportunistic feeder. At times both imitative and attractor style patterns can be employed to entice the trout into striking by playing on their natural responses of anger, curiosity, territoriality and hunger.
Therefore, the stillwater angler needs a complete understanding of the trout, the food forms available, and how and where the trout will feed on these food forms during the various seasons. This goes right back to the "Formula for Success". The stillwater angler who follows the "Formula" is going to know what forage fish are contained within the stillwater being fished and how the trout feed on them.
Anglers often think that the forage fish are located in some secret area of the stillwater. This simply is not true. Forage fish are in many of the areas you already know about. Let's take a look at some of the prime locations where the trout will find and feed on forage fish.
I call these prime locations: fishing the edges, hedges, ledges and current lines. These are the same areas that contain the bulk of the aquatic life forms. Therefore the forage fish are also found in these areas as they also prey on various aquatic life forms in the food chain and are, in turn, preyed upon by the trout. Now we will examine each of the prime locations.
EDGES
When fishing moving water, many are fully aware that trout are often found on the edges of the stream and many pages have been written about using caution when approaching the edge of a stream. The same is true of stillwaters. Anglers who charge up to the shore and start beating the water, have generally spooked several trout that might have been taken if care had been taken with the approach. The edges hold plenty of aquatic food forms and often you can find trout that have caught the forage fish in shallow water and are almost herding them as they charge and feed on them.
HEDGES
Simply put, hedges refer to the weedbeds, both floating and submerged, and the lanes between the weedbeds. These weedbeds may be clearly visible to the angler in two to four feet of water, or they may be deep, five to fifteen feet below the surface. Either way, they are full of various forms of aquatic life. Once again, the minnows also feed in this area and thus are preyed on by the trout.
LEDGES
The ledges are the drop-off edges and edges off of steep banks. Once again this is a collection point for various aquatic forms along with the minnows and the trout. Some drop-off edges and rocky ledges are obvious, others have to be searched for and identified for what they are.
CURRENT LINES
Current lines are natural collection points for many members of the aquatic food chain, including minnows and trout. The obvious current lines are where a stream enters or leaves the stillwaters. Others can be created by spring holes in the bottom of the stillwater and still others are created by the wind. Current lines created by the wind are constantly changing with the changing directions of the winds.
Therefore, the angler must be aware of what to look for under the varying conditions. I watch for slicks, foam lines, the shoreline in the direction the wind is blowing, on the downside of rocky points, bars, shoals or trees that are in the water, and also on the downside of floating weedbeds.
Once the angler has determined what types of minnows are in a stillwater and where they may be found, we can gain an understanding of how the trout feed on these minnows and how the minnows swim and react when being chased. Once we determine the depth of water we need to be fishing in, then we can select the proper line, leader, pattern and presentation method that will allow us to place the fly in the trout's feeding lane and keep it there for the optimum period of time.
Once again this is simply following the steps in the "Formula". Those anglers who use the "Formula" soon come to realize that problem solving on the stillwaters is nothing more than the application of common sense.
Enjoy & Good Fishin'