Hello to all of you,
Last season I started flyfishing for trout on a lake. I was quite successful, but I guess that was just beginners luck. What rods, lines and tactics do you use most when fishing lakes for trout? Since I don’t own a bellyboat(yet) I am interesting in shore or boat fishing only.
Hi CrisD,
While my lake doesn’t have trout as it
is a warm water lake in SC, I imagine my
fly fishing has a lot more similarities to
yours than differences. A boat is necessary
for fishing my lake and I really enjoy boat
fishing. It increases the comfort level
immeasurably. As to gear, you can use any
that you are comfortable with. In lake
fishing you don’t need a 9’ rod for mending
line as it’s all still waters. You can
position the boat where ever you want it.
Casts of over 40 feet are not required.
I find my favorite gear for lake fishing
from a boat consists of slower and shorter
rods lined with Cortland 444 lazer series
line in peach. Seven foot leaders and lots
of scuds and nymphs in my fly box. Just
avoid banging the boat and practice good
stealth techniques. Keep a low profile
and avoid casting shadows in the fishing
areas. Fish slowly and quietly. Warm
regards, Jim
I do alot of still water fishing with a fly rod in fact 99% of my fishing is in lakes. I use a 6 wt 9ft rod with a sinking line. My friends use sink tips in luie of a sinking line. My reel is a pflugear medalist. I use a 6 wt because I catch fish up to 26 inches and as we al know trout that big are also very fat and heavy. I use nothing but streamers. My favorite is the stayner ducktail and then the holloween leech, the rb special (my own fly I designed) and last but not least the good old woolly bugger and leech. I look for the same thing I used to look for when fishing for Bass. Points that run into the lake, a break in the lilly pads, and deep water with tall moss or any type of structure, creek beds running into the lake etc. If you have any other questions feel free to e-mail me at nightprowler87@hotmail.com. I will be happy to answer any questions.
I use a 9’ 6 wt GL3 and a 8’6" 4 wt GL3. The 6 wt is used when there is some wind (which in MT mountain lakes is frequently) or when tossing buggers or marabou damsel nymphs. The 4 wt is pretty much a dry fly only rod except for when using small scuds.
I have two reels with each having a WF floating line and have a spare spool for each reel with a full sink line.
As for tactics, up until this year I have pretty much concentrated on casting from shore and fishing within ten - twenty feet of the shorelines for cruising cutts. I also look for places in the lake where the water drops off to at least 6 or 7 feet within just a few feet of the shore. Cutts like to cruise the dropoff. All of the lakes I fish for cutts have yellowstone cutts and I dont know if this holds true for other varieties of cutts in lakes.
I have also caught a few cruising rainbows but generally I dont fish many lakes with rainbows (except for Hebgen Lake in May)
If the lake has brookies then I do have to cast a bit farther out since they dont tend to cruise the shorelines as much as the cutts. In lakes with big brookies (up to 18") working farther out really increases my catch rates. In lakes where the brookies have over populated the lake, then it doesnt matter where you fish or what fly you use because they pretty much take anything anywhere.
As for flies, the previously mentiomed buggers, marabou damsel nymphs, a scud, small pheasant tail, or midge larva/pupa pattern have all produced fish for me when fish arent feeding on the surface.
When I see fish feeding on the surface, then my first choice is an EHC in size 14 or 16. If that doesnt work then I switch to a midge emerger or griffiths gnat in sizes 18-22. I have frequently caught cutts cruising the shore with the EHC despite not seeing any caddis on the water or in the air. Dont ask me why but it seems to work and catch fish even when they are rising to something else. It might be that it makes a fair hopper imitation but thats the only reason I can come up with.
Lastly if you really some good tips for fishing stillwaters, then try the stillwater section on this site. I have learned so much for fishing lakes from here.
Hope this gives at least a few ideas.
Take care everyone and cya around. Mark
[This message has been edited by MarkKillam (edited 26 February 2006).]
Mike Croft’s “The Fish Bum’s Guide to Catching Larger Trout” is a fun and easy read that will help you a lot with stillwater fishing.
I live in Maine and fish lakes almost exclusively for brook trout, landlocked salmon, and lake trout. Lake trout is mostly trolling tandem streamers on fast sinking line. We have good mayfly and caddis hatches and I catch many fish on dry flies and emergers. I use mostly a 9’ 6 wt. I keep two rods rigged in the boat, one with a floating line and usually a tandem rig of a dry fly and an emerger of whatever is or is most likely to hatch, and the other with a sinking line and a tandem rig of nymphs. When the caddis are hatching I sometimes use a floss blow line (described by Gary LaFontaine in his book Fishing Mountain Lakes). It is nothing but dental floss. The wind lifts the line and the caddis imitation daps on the water. Obviously, you need some wind to do this right. I don’t cast streamers much, but on some ponds they work really well. I use the same rod and sinking line as for nymphs.
Cris,
There should be some good “stillwater” stuff on this site somewhere.
But a real basic tactic…fish edges! And w/o floatation you are somewhat confined to the very best edge in the system…the one between shore and water. Add the other grand edge, water and air, and you are limited to the very best and most productive. Toss in a weed edge, current edge, or mud edge and you will eventually realize traveling away from shore in a pond or small lake is usually counter-productive.
We use a boat and a tube sometimes. What do we usually do…get out in the water and toss BACK AT THE SHORE! Go figure. 
…lee s.
Cris
For what it’s worth I’ll let you know my experience, 25 years of boat fishing for trout in lakes (lochs)in UK.!0 foot 6 wt rod, usually long leader, 24 feet,5 or 6lb fluorocarbon. I have lines from floater through sink tips, slow and fast intermediates, slow med and fast and ultra fast sinking lines. You’ve got to be fishing at the fish’s depth, and fine and far off with your leader. I like to cast 30 - 40 yds, especially where the fish are deep, then count down your line until you find the feeding depth.
Re flies, I usually fish a cast of 3, 6 feet between each then a good distance to the fly line. Flies vary, usually lures and boobies early season moving to nymphs and dries as the fish move on to them as the weather warms. In addition to flies and depth the speed of retrieve is vital from static thru slow figure of eight and fast stripping.
The important thing boat fishing, either free drifting or at anchor is to change what you’re doing if you are getting no interest.
Where to fish is obviously important, round features is good, whether visible or not, ie sunken islands. Where possible get a map of depths and underwater features. By the way my favourite deadly flies through much of the season are Diawl Bachs, but always be prepared to change.
Your lakes may be nothing like ours in which case disregard the above.
The older I become, the more I think like a fish…six second memory.
CrisD
I guide trips on stillwater and use float tubes or not. We catch fish either way, however we catch the bigger fish from the belly boats. Besides the wonderful information already posted above, the other advantage to tubes is mobility. I have found that the fish in lakes are often times cruisers. You could fish the same water and eventually the fish will show up, or you could use a boat or belly boat to find them.
I also like to fish the edges, but I will be out 30 +/- yards, cast into shore, weeds, or shelf and strip back to the boat. I use a 4 wt, fast action with either floating or sinking line. The fish are closer to the surface early and late in the season and early and late in the mornings. During that time, a floating line, with a long leader and a nymph works wonders. In the heat of summer or middle of the day,however the fish will go much deeper and you will need a sinking line/tip.
I like to fish with egg sucking leeches, blood worms, and fresh water shrimp patterns for sinking and mosquito, adams or gnats for drys.
I believe that every Jim Teeny line has a DVD that has some wonderful casting and fishing strategies and tips.
You can find images of some of my stillwater trips at [url=http://www.alaskanfishguides.com/galleries.htm:f4c82]www.alaskanfishguides.com/galleries.htm[/url:f4c82]
Good luck.