The past few trips to this pond didn't yield any Crappies at all. I figured the tepid water would have driven the crappies deeper in search of cooler water. So, I set a Springbrook Wunder microjig about 4.5' under an indicator and tossed that out beyond the shoreline dropoff. I had to work this very slowly with lots of pauses to keep the microjig almost vertical beneath the indicator.
Success! I ended up landing at least 10 Crappies, along with 6 Bluegills, 4 Largemouth Bass, and a 10" Yellow Bullhead.
Most of the bass and about 1/2 of the bluegills hit a deer hair pellet fly that was on/near the surface. I also had a nice fish hit that fly, and broke my line when I set the hook. It was fresh 9 lb tippet I had tied on earlier that evening! I suspect it was a nice bass, but it could have been a catfish or grass carp. I hate not knowing!
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I continue to have line problems. The previous evening to this report, I went fishing with Jay again. We fished Saylorville Lake from shore. Part of the time, I was pursuing carp with the fly rod. Had one carp strike an egg pattern, and once again I broke my line on the hookset! I wondered if maybe my hooksets with the 8wt rod I was using were just too strong for the 9 or 10 lb tippet I was using?
Last night I was using a 5wt rod, and had tied on a fresh length of tippet for the evening. Still broke the line when I set the hook on the nice fish that hit the deer hair fly. Since I leave my rods strung up in my car ready to go all the time, it is easy to believe that the sun and heat deteriorate line that has been on the rod a few days. But that was fresh tippet! I also leave my fanny pack in my car all day, which carries my spools of tippet. Sun damage is out of the question, but HEAT damage could be the culprit? That line is easily a year old, and possible several years old. Maybe I just need to toss all my old tippet and replace with new? The line LOOKS good and feels strong, and the knots all seem really good (I use the Trilene knot, which I feel is a very strong knot since the line passes through the hook eyelet TWICE). It really seems like the line should NOT be breaking like it has been...and spooled tippet being deteriorated by heat and time is the only explanation I can come up with at this time.
Ah, I date my tippet on the back with a Sharpie and after a year test it really strenously both in percieved breaking strenth and on a fly with the knot of your choice. I trust no tippet past one year old. And in my mind the heat MAY have a affect on this, I have my stuff in the home until the night prior when I load up and go next AM. Just yesterday caught a very nice carp on 1X with repeated jabs to set the egg hook. Never a hook set break off, your problem vexes me. I use a 6, but it should not matter.
ReplyDeleteGregg
Ah, I have another idea. I noticed in my trout nymphing, when I still did that often, that rocks would damage a hook's eye and every tippet put on afterward would sever easilly. Our your hooks fine? Just an idea.
ReplyDeleteGregg
I had not considered hook damage. I don' t think that is it. In nearly all cases of the line breakage, it was the first time the flies had ever been used, and I was not fishing in areas where I would have been bouncing flies off rocks when casting, and I was fishing waters that weren't flowing. Two different styles of hooks were used. So far it seems more likely that it has something to do with the Tippet. Maybe I should just try mono instead of fluoro...
ReplyDeleteThat may be it as well, I have piss poor success with all fluorocarbon due to knot strength issues. So do others I read. I know, still more people love the stuff. I'm going to try Frog Hair Mono as all I've heard is good. I'll let you know how that goes.
ReplyDeleteGregg
Ionce had some similar issues one year and it turned out to be a bad batch of hooks. These were name brand hooks but the wire was bamaged on several creating a sharp edge some of which was into the eye. Just something to check. Good report!
ReplyDeleteGood suggestion, Kevin. I haven't looked hard at the hooks. The breakage has occurred with at least 2 different hook styles & sizes. It has happened on the egg patterns I tied, and on the deer hair pellet flies I tied. I think I've lost about 4 or 5 eggs so far due to breakage on fish, and 2 deer hair flies due to breakage. Egg flies are pretty quick-n-easy to replace...but the deer hair flies take some time to make!
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