Post by reelteacher on Sept 5, 2008 21:52:34 GMT -5
Greetings fly fishers!
I apologize for not giving tips weekly, but time seems to just fade away into a vapor these days. Monthly tips may be all I can do for awhile.
So here are my next tips: With the water flowing very low and slow these past days, the fish are being very finicky. Don't be afraid to use extremely small flies and poppers to attract big fish. Many people fall for the big flies, big fish thinking, but this is just not true in August and September. When the water is low and slow, the water temperatures can exceed 78 degrees and the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water can dip below 7 part per million. What does that mean?? Most bass need at least 5 ppm of dissolved oxygen to survive. As the water temperatures drop, the dissolved oxygen level rises substancially. This is why trout can only survive in cooler waters. Trout have a much higher dissolved oxygen demand than bass do. Less than 7 ppm of D.O. can cause trout to suffocate and cause bass to be seriously stressed and thus, bass will seek cooler, shaded, deeper waters in the heat of the day and swift, turbulent water below riffles in the morning and evening to feed. All of this stress cause the fish to eat smaller meals that are easier to digest and they tend to eat more frequently if the prey is easy to catch and readily available. Smaller food forms do not use as much oxygen to metabolize in the fishes gut. During these times the fish will be keying in on smaller minnows, baby or molting crayfish, and of course, terrestrial insects that fall into the stream, such as grasshoppers and crickets.
While fishing at these times, it is very important not to fight the fish for an extended time. Use barbless flies to remove the hook quickly and revive the fish in fast clean water before releasing it. Remember, this fish is fighting for it's life, you must get it in quickly and release it quickly. Many times, I will not even remove it from the water, but rather just remove the hook while the fish is still in the water, and let it go immediately. While bass are a very hearty, resiliant species, during low, slow, warm water periods, these fish can be as fragile as a trout, if you handle it improperly.
Summary: Keys to fishing in low, slow, warm water are; use small barbless flies, present these flies in the in areas where the bass will be during different times of the day, and fight and release the fish quickly. These tips should help you have a more enjoyable experience on the water.
Of course as I write this, the rain is falling steadily. This is good news for our local streams!
Now get out there and fish!
Regards,
Dustin
I apologize for not giving tips weekly, but time seems to just fade away into a vapor these days. Monthly tips may be all I can do for awhile.
So here are my next tips: With the water flowing very low and slow these past days, the fish are being very finicky. Don't be afraid to use extremely small flies and poppers to attract big fish. Many people fall for the big flies, big fish thinking, but this is just not true in August and September. When the water is low and slow, the water temperatures can exceed 78 degrees and the amount of dissolved oxygen in the water can dip below 7 part per million. What does that mean?? Most bass need at least 5 ppm of dissolved oxygen to survive. As the water temperatures drop, the dissolved oxygen level rises substancially. This is why trout can only survive in cooler waters. Trout have a much higher dissolved oxygen demand than bass do. Less than 7 ppm of D.O. can cause trout to suffocate and cause bass to be seriously stressed and thus, bass will seek cooler, shaded, deeper waters in the heat of the day and swift, turbulent water below riffles in the morning and evening to feed. All of this stress cause the fish to eat smaller meals that are easier to digest and they tend to eat more frequently if the prey is easy to catch and readily available. Smaller food forms do not use as much oxygen to metabolize in the fishes gut. During these times the fish will be keying in on smaller minnows, baby or molting crayfish, and of course, terrestrial insects that fall into the stream, such as grasshoppers and crickets.
While fishing at these times, it is very important not to fight the fish for an extended time. Use barbless flies to remove the hook quickly and revive the fish in fast clean water before releasing it. Remember, this fish is fighting for it's life, you must get it in quickly and release it quickly. Many times, I will not even remove it from the water, but rather just remove the hook while the fish is still in the water, and let it go immediately. While bass are a very hearty, resiliant species, during low, slow, warm water periods, these fish can be as fragile as a trout, if you handle it improperly.
Summary: Keys to fishing in low, slow, warm water are; use small barbless flies, present these flies in the in areas where the bass will be during different times of the day, and fight and release the fish quickly. These tips should help you have a more enjoyable experience on the water.
Of course as I write this, the rain is falling steadily. This is good news for our local streams!
Now get out there and fish!
Regards,
Dustin