Mayfly hatch....omg!

[Big Bad Wulff]

I have never seen bass go so crazy. Never seen bass go nuts over a hatch either. It was crazy. Just glad i had the fly rod with me Caught 5-6 as fast as I could get the line in the water and get them off the line. Then, as fast as it started, it was all over.

[EdD]

BBW,
I caught a gray drake hatch on Old Hickory Lake many years ago. It was awesome. Even catfish were slurping them off the surface.

Ed

[bobbyg]

What particular fly was hatching?

[poke flyfisher]

I've seen bass got nuts a few times in farm ponds over a dragon fly hatch with some of the smaller fish (10-12 inches) literally going completely airborne to snatch hovering dragon flies skimming the surface. It you're lucky enough to be on the water when that happens, they will just drill a well-done dragon fly imitation without hesitation.

[Rick Z]

Watch for the swarms of midges around farm ponds. Great time to throw midge patterns in the water.
Several times that has worked very well for me.

Rick

[Big Bad Wulff]

What particular fly was hatching?

Seeing as though I'm not an entomologist..... . Actually it doesn't matter much to me. I just throw something out that looks like it. And in this case it was just a popper. Something to land on the surface. It got hit like a ton of bricks.
Hell it might not even have been a mayfly
Large(1-1.5 in) light-yellow bug with a long abdomen.

[bobbyg]

Seeing as though I'm not an entomologist..... . Actually it doesn't matter much to me. I just throw something out that looks like it. And in this case it was just a popper. Something to land on the surface. It got hit like a ton of bricks.
Hell it might not even have been a mayfly
Large(1-1.5 in) light-yellow bug with a long abdomen.

Just curious. I would say a Hex but it's very late in the season for them?

Glad you were able to use the popper so well!

[jszymczyk]

I've seen Hexagenia hatches on some lakes in the Florida panhandle where the big bluegills were as "selective" as any snooty trout I've ever been around. Once the Hex hatch got going in full swing, there were a few weeks when you could only get the occasional fish on the standard poppers or bugs during the day, and not at all when the flies were hatching. When the sun went down, the hex started coming off and the big bluegills and bass would be feeding like crazy, but they were keyed on the emergers. The locals actually quit fishing during that time because they couldn't catch them on poppers or crickets. We caught extra large bluegills till our arms were tired and we couldn't see anymore.