Up here the leaves are turning and the combines are in the fields. Friday after work my canoe goes into the water, and again on Sunday. Mainly for bluegill. Just wondering if you folks change tactics as the waters cool. What do you do? Use? Etc. I like using a something that comes in just under the surface. Fun time to be fishing. JGW
CLOSE to cover is hard to beat in the fall. I’ve caught some truely memorable red breasts by hitting a stump with a fly and allowing the fly to sink right along the side of it during the fall. You may consider fishing a bit deeper until the nights turn really cool. Down here, fish are still in late summer mode, a bit deeper. If its cooler where you are, a shallow sinking fly will be fine. Have you considered fishing a gill buster? They’re deadly in the close cover/early fall situation.
Hope that’s helpful.
Swamp
Oh I love my Gill Busters. Esp black with a white head. Wouldn’t think of leaving home without one.
I’m down south too. The best thing about fall here is that the water gets very lonely b/c everyone hunts but me…and also that the heat index drops below 100.
This is our driest time of year and I love the increased water clarity. As far as tactics, I start fishing topwater earlier in the day because the fish will respond to it earlier.
PS-can ya’ll post a link on the gill buster fly. Never heard of it. Thanks.
Tight Lines-
otter.
Early fall, wooly worms (although I like 'em ALL the time)on a slow dead drop & McGinties are very good.
John, fall has always been my favorite time of year to fish. Not only do I love the scenery, but waters are less crowded & I tend to catch my biggest fish in the fall.
Mike
Locally the bluegills have really been tearing up the surface. We have some leaves dropping and those are getting torn up too. Small bass have also been active on the surface, but nothing over 10" that I’ve seen. I haven’t seen as many red-bellies and shell-crackers. Streams are fairly low and not too clear, but visibility is still a couple of feet into the water. It is a great time to be alive and out fishing. Temperatures around Nashville haven’t been much above 90 and the humidity isn’t too awful, so that counts as comfortable down here. Nights are down into the 60’s <Brrr>
There are a fair number of people out on the streams, to judge by the talk, but I’m not seeing many of them. The Harpeth River system seems to be recovering from the pollution spills of a few years ago, at least in some places. LM Bass up to 2-3 pounds can be seen in good numbers. Smallmouth are a bit smaller.
I did real well last sunday morning using a small (#10) Al’s hopper with a biot midge on a 18" dropper. Over 20 gills and 4 bass. I was only fishing for panfish with the 2 fly setup though, the bass were just accidents 
. Course we had that cold front come through Wed that may have pushed them deeper a bit. I would think after 3 days they would be back to normal.
Water is just slipping below the mid 70’s here [northern Indiana]. Last Wednesday landed 38 bluegill and redear, mixed. Caught a coupla on a chart gill getter, 2 or 3 on a foam spider [that doesn’t really float anymore] and the balance on a #10 white popper with rubber legs.
[Note to above: the gill getter pattern is in Terry Wilson’s book on bluegill. You can get it from [url=http://www.feather-craft.com:f255e]www.feather-craft.com[/url:f255e] ]
A coupla weeks ago ran into a large drake hatch [I think green drake] and caught 18 redear up to 9" on the foam spider that does not float anymore up on the flats in 2-3’ of water. No surface feeding at all at that time.
All in all the fish are moving back up on the flats and channels especially late in the day. But you have to move a lot to find them and try various presentations to catch them. Last Wednesday I had caught 4 fish in the first 2 hours I fished and when I finally found them 34 in the next 2 hours.
Donald
I tie a Gill Buster using a size 10 hook and a short, 2 1/2 inch or so black zonker strip. Tie down a 1/32nd or so hourglass weight Clouser style, then lay the zonker strip down over the top. Wrap to the place on the shank up from the hook point and back to the weight, then tie in the head. Very simple, quite effective on all sorts of species BG included. I think the first I saw of the pattern was in the old Warmwater Fishing Magazine many years ago. Use different colors. White is great for walleye in rivers; olive works well with smallies. You can substitute a bead chain for an hourglass weight if you don’t want so much drop. JGW
white43,
See below. Is this the same Gill Buster you’re talking about?
[url=http://flyanglersonline.com/features/panfish/part187.html:88e33]http://flyanglersonline.com/features/panfish/part187.html[/url:88e33]
The first time I heard of the Gill Buster was on Bill Byrd’s website:
[url=http://www.byrdultrafly.com:88e33]www.byrdultrafly.com[/url:88e33]
He ties his without the legs. He used to have tying instructions on his site, but I think he has removed them. I also think he used to write for the warmwater FF mag and may have written the article you mentioned.
That’s it. I like 'em in olive, chartreuse, and orange, with small, black hourglass eyes. BTW, don’t be supprized to pick up bass and crappie while fishing that fly. I don’t tie in the legs, though. If you like legs, and shallow water, go with a brim killer and hang on.
Swamp
I don’t tie in the legs either, and I match the thread to the color of the zonker strip. Besides bluegill I’ve caught crappies, LMB, smallies, a 10 lb. flathead catfish, channel catfish, walleye (white), freshwater drum, green sunfish, and there must be something I’m leaving out. An incredible warmwater fly. JGW
John,
This is my fav. time of the year to fly fish warm waters! It’s time for wire leaders and surface fishing for pike first on the 8wt and after a week or two when you get the signals…it’s muskie time bub!
10 wts and muskies…another “gotta do” in fall!
Jeremy.
Yeah, Jeremy. Was into some small bluegills Friday afternoon before moving to “the pipe” – in inlet at a nearby lake. A white Clouser did very well on largemouth bass. Sunday after the game i went back in the rain and scored a 3 lb. bass, several smaller ones and a northern. Now that was fun. JGW
John…you’re a go-getter. You deserved those bonus fish!
So, you’re just a kid, right? G
Jeremy.
I have been using a black or white leech made with boa yarn the last few trips. It has worked very well for me. I use a small bead head on it. Usually a size 8 or 10 hook
About a 4 inch strip and then a pause of about 5 seconds.
Rick
Is that one you’d tied for one of the swaps, Rick? I used something like that of yours up near Boston the weekend before last and tagged a few BGs with it. JW
Anybody got a link to the Brim Killer pattern? It looks like Elmer’s Jars of Flies are no longer available. 
Don
<EDIT>
Okay, changed the search to bream killer and found it right here. Shoulda known FAOL had it SOMEWHERE. <begin_tongue_in_cheek> This site is just getting too darn big. Too much info to look thru to find what you need. I guess it’s time to move on. </end_tongue_in_cheek>
[url=http://www.flyanglersonline.com/features/panfish/part258.html:29554]http://www.flyanglersonline.com/features/panfish/part258.html[/url:29554]
</EDIT>
Don
[This message has been edited by drolfson (edited 27 September 2005).]
Don,
I think Elmer said on the WWFF site that he’s switching host providers and to tell him if something isn’t working so I think it will only be temporary 
. Elmer’s quote below.
Over the weekend of September 24-25, 2005, WarmWaterFlyFisher.com switch hosting providers. I believe that I transfered every this correctly and everything appears to be working alright. If you find somethng on the site that is not working correct please email me with the Subject as Site Problem. Let me know what the problem is. You can email me at emeiler@inetnebr.com .
I posted to let Elmer know on the Yahoo Warmwater Angler group.
Robert B. McCorquodale
Sebring, FL
“Flip a fly”
[This message has been edited by dixieangler (edited 29 September 2005).]
Allright Robert;
Where is this so called WW board you are visiting? That is probably where most of the people in my area are hanging. Shoot me a link or post it if you wouldn’t mind.
Don