Ray,
In the surf, you're looking for a fly that is large enough to be seen in the turbulent white water and also has enough mass (or weight) so that you can keep in contact with it.
"Matching the hatch" can be important too. Size, profile, action, and color in about that order.
In rivers, the fish still feed in the fastest water they can find. Places where the bait will be disoriented
They hold just out of the current much the same as a trout in a stream would. Seams, structure, drop offs...
My go-to flies are fairly large and have plenty of action, but you still need to be able to "match the hatch". There's a lot of shrimp in tidal rivers as well as sea worms along with the normal bait fish, both mature and immature.
Bait fish might include the different river herrings, silversides, mummichogs, sandeels, menhaden, mullet, anchovies,(locally known as rainbait) and a host of other fishes
I like bright colors and lots of flash for stained water and natural colors with a minimum amount of flash for clear.
Last edited by dudley; 03-27-2008 at 05:29 PM.
The simpler the outfit, the more skill it takes to manage it, and the more pleasure one gets in his achievements.
--- Horace Kephart