"Flies for Largemouth Bass" article

I enjoyed Bob Boese's informative article, which concisely and clearly presents some very good information.

However I, based on my experiences fishing my home waters in Southern California as well farther north in the Sacramento/San Joaquin river delta that his assertion

"...that fly fishing for bass is most successful (1) in the shallows (2) during the spring and fall."

is a bit too generic and may steer some anglers from some excellent bassin' on their local waters. The information Bob provides can help anglers determine when the bass fishing may be good on their waters, and explain why in some waters excellent fly fishing for bass can be had in winter and summer too.

For example, in the Delta region, the combination of river flows and tidal motion and weather patterns provide conditions where bass fishing can be excellent spring through fall. On the waters of the lower Colorado River on the California/Arizona border, water temperatures regulated by outflows from the big lakes farther up river ensure that even when summer air temperatures reach 110 degrees for many days in row during the summer, there are some great shallow water bass fishing very early and very late in the day (no one wants to be out in that heat mid day to try to see if the fish will bite). And my local reservoirs, mostly created by dams on deep canyons, and affected by mild southern California weather provide for decent winter and summer bassin' with a fly rod. The biggest bass of the year of usually taken during winter here. Anglers that learn how to work the depths (I have successfully fished depths greater than 30ft with lead core shooting heads) as well as the shallows will find success year round if they fish the right waters, whether that be a lake formed in a deep canyon that is good fall through spring or another lake 50 miles east at 4500ft altitude in the mountains where the best bass angling is in June, July, and August. So what I find is that each of my local waters has its own character and while some may offer poor bass fishing in January, or May, or July, others, often just a few miles away, may provide excellent angling at the same time.

But as I stated, there is some very good information in the article and it will help you determine when your local waters may fish best.

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Originally Posted by tailingloop

I have successfully fished depths greater than 30ft with lead core shooting heads

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In "Jerry Maguire", Renee Zellweger said to Tom Cruise, "You had me at 'hello'."

Well, you lost me at "lead core shooting head". If the fish are deeper than five or six feet, I lose all interest in fly fishing and happily pick up spinning gear.

To each, his own, though. :)

Tailing loop,

I also picked up on a few things in that article that made me blink a bit...but all in all a decent summation of what most fly fisherman think bass fishing is.

Like you, I've managed to learn to catch bass year round with fly tackle...and while I do use sinking lines, I seldom fish deeper than 15 to 20 feet, even in winter.

But the man did say 'most successful', and if you interpret 'most successful' to mean 'easiest', then he's correct...shallow water, spring and fall, are the 'easiest' times to catch bass with a fly rod....that's also when you'll see the trout guys trying for bass.

Buddy

Most of my bass come while I am wading or on gravel bars or banks of smaller rivers and big creeks. Most of them come from the lower half of the water profile. Few over 8-9" are taken on the surface. The clarity of the water is likely to be a factor.

Ed

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Originally Posted by Buddy Sanders

But the man did say 'most successful', and if you interpret 'most successful' to mean 'easiest', then he's correct...shallow water, spring and fall, are the 'easiest' times to catch bass with a fly rod
Buddy

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I did interpret it that way. Mostly I was trying to point out there are many waters that do not fit the 'standard' rules of thumb and that the info in the article may help to identify when any water may be most productive. So it may pay for anglers to learn more about the character of their local waters.