“It is self evident that no fish which inhabit foul or sluggish waters can be ‘game fish’…The may flash with tinsel and tawdry attire; they may strike with the brute force of a blacksmith, or exhibit the dexterity of a prizefighter, but their low breeding and vulagar quality cannot be mistaken.”
Charles Hallock “The Wit & Wisdom of Fishing”
Rick
I guess that disqualifies bluegill, bass, northern pike, crappie, and all of the other things I waste my time flailing the water after…
Don’t sweat it Hugefish…
Ol’ Chuck was from the time when salmon and trout were the ONLY fish considered game fish by him and his elitist brethren.
We’ve evolved quite a bit since then.
Buddy
EVOVLED!!!PFFFFFFT!!!:roll:
Does that mean carp aren’t a gamefish? I guess I should stop enjoying fly fishing for them so much. And how about catfish? I’ve almost got them down to a fool-proof method of fly fishing.
I feel so …dirty!
How do you catch cats on a fly?? It has only happened once for me. What a plasure…
Gig, what fly do you use to catch carp? sounds like it would be a riot…
I cast behind the tailraces, using one of three flies. Here is the first:
The next is a shad imitation with the same Polaris N.E.W material:
I spray them with the appropriate Smelly Jelly scent when using them, as catfish are real big on scent.
The third fly I use are the medium sized Pom-Pom balls from Hobby Lobby. I just glue them on a hook, like a Glo-Bug, and soak them in Catfish Smelly Jelly scent, and cast upstream and let them drift. These are deadly on medium sized catfish, as you can see:
Fly fishing for catfish is definitly a workable proposition under the right conditions.
I use an 8 wt. rod with a fighting butt, and a reel with a disc-drag. Use a 5-6’ heavy leader and tippet.
Semper Fi!
Carp are an absolute blast on a fly. It’s like freshwater Permit or bonefishing.
My best fly is a variation of the Swimming Nympth:
Other great patterns imitate cotton-seed balls, blueberries and other stuff that carp eat. My next best fly is those small Pom-Poms from Hobby Lobby. I use the white colored ones for carp. I just glue them on, like a Glo-Bug, then soak them in real vanilla extract for a minute or two. The carp hit these with total abandon!
You have to understand carp and thier habits. Sometimes carp are just cruising, and not feeding. You have to stalk them. They are spooky, suspicious, and very strong. I use an 8wt rod with a fighting butt, and a 9’ to 12’ 4X or 5X leader, and a 5X tippet. With the light leaders required, you have to finesse the fish in. There is no brute-force overpowering of a hooked carp.
The real up side (aside from the fact that carp is delicious when properly prepared), is that it gives you great practice for when you hook into that trophy bass, or Permit on your next Dream fishing trip. If you lose a 13 lb. bass at Lake Guerrero, Mexico, or a 20 lb. Peacock Bass in Venezuela, it is the loss of a lifetime, but if you lose a 13-20 lb. carp on your local lake…who cares? Rig back up and catch another! You’ll get the hang of fighting large fish on light line sooner or later.
If you have never targeted carp with a fly rod, I highly recommend it.
Semper Fi!
I left out 2 more of my favorite quarry. Freshwater stripers, which I consider a ‘Poor Man’s Salmon’, and snakeheads. You can fish for striper below tailraces the same way you’d fish for salmon on big rivers. Only the flies are different. I am learning how to spey cast for them. The best flies are anything that resembles a shad or bluegill. Use heavy tackle and be prepared for battle!
Snakeheads are an introduced species here in Ga. They are indigenous to Korea and Southeast Asia, and were imported primarily as a food fish and aquarium stuffers. The DNR keeps saying that what I am catching is not snakeheads, but a variant of a Bowfin. I am a biologist and I know the difference. I also catch Bowfin on flies. I have given up trying to convince them. I just enjoy them myself. I have tried to warn them.
Thier range is limited at present to a few rivers, and the only species I have caught has been the Bullseye Snakehead, in the Ouestenala River system, near Calhoun, Ga. They average about 3’ long, put up a great fight, and are gourmet-delicious! There are 2 other species that have been reported up north, the Northern Snakehead, and the Giant Snakehead in Maine. The Giant Snakehead can grow to 6 feet and has been reported to attack humans on occasion in Asia! I wish we had that one down here!
I don’t think they will be much of a problem environmentally. They are not extrememly prolific breeders, and thier eggs and fry fall prey to bluegills, crawfish and bass, creating more forage for them. They don’t really compete much with native bass, except maybe smallmouths in some areas, because thier habitat requirements are a bit different. They are actually more apt to become bass and catfish prey themselves. I believe the eco-system here will adapt to accomodate them with out much trouble to the native species. The Giant Snakehead, which is very agressive and large, may be another story. Northern species of fish don’t seem to be quite as tough or adaptable as the ones down south are. Only time will tell.
I use a 5 wt rod with a 6’ leader and 5 X tippet. The best flies for these guys seen to be San Juan worms, Hard-Hackle worms, small streamers and crawfish imitations. My best fly for them has been Richard Komars wonderful Hard-Hackle Worm, in purple and black. Here is one I caught a few weeks ago, near Calhoun, Ga.:
I still can’t use my wife’s camera very good. I’ll stick to mine in the future. Hers is a pro-quality digital with a thousand settings on it. Mine is just point-and-shoot. Be advised that when you catch one here in Ga., you must kill it immedeatly, and put it on ice, because it is illegal to be in possession of a live snakehead (strange that they would pass such a law for a fish they say is not present in Ga. Hmmmmmm?) in this state. Perhaps they are doing like the Federal Governement does…If they keep denying something long enough, maybe it will just go away…
Another candidate for the non-game Gamefish catagory is Gar. I catch them regularly, too. They fight like a tarpon, and are of a comparable size. Any minnow imitation will work for them, but be prepared…they will destroy your fly so that it will not be usable again. They are a bit of trouble to prepare, but good table fare. Just pretend they are a turtle and proceed accordingly.
Happy Fishing!
That’s a nice kitty there. Where can I get flys like that! LOL.
You can get the materials at :http://1a-fly-fishing.com/. Be sure to watch the free videos on using this wonderful new material. They have truly brought fly tying into the 21st century.
The Pom-Pom balls are at Hobby Lobby. Just put a bit of super glue on the hook shank, and then impale the ball on it, like a Glo-Bug. Then soak it in your favorite scent.
If you have any troubles, let me know and I will send you step-by-step instructions on tying these flies. They are really easy and quick.
Happy Fishing!