Friday, September 29, 2017
Late September 2017
Flyfishing and the weather has been good. Bass are still hitting topwaters, but I have also been experimenting with some subsurface fly patterns, mainly baitfish (shad) imitations. I caught fish on almost all of them.
Thursday, September 14, 2017
2nd Week of September 2017
Flyfishing over the past week could be described as really slow to decent. It would be a stretch to call it "good". But catching any fish at all is still fun, that's why we do it.
Friday, September 8, 2017
Late August-Early September 2017
Actually used a spinning rod for a couple fishing trips to Saylorville Lake, hoping for some White Bass & Wipers.
Other than that, I've just been flyfishing the local public ponds. Its been cooler than normal for the past few weeks. The fish don't seem to notice.
19":
18.5":
Also tied up some floating-diving flies:
And some "Shark's Wasps":
Other than that, I've just been flyfishing the local public ponds. Its been cooler than normal for the past few weeks. The fish don't seem to notice.
19":
Also tied up some floating-diving flies:
And some "Shark's Wasps":
Wednesday, August 16, 2017
NE Iowa Trout Streams, 8-15-2017
After targeting Smallmouth Bass yesterday, we decided to flyfish two trout streams today. One we had been to before, and one we had not. We visited the new-to-us stream first. It was a small stream with wild, naturally-reproducing Brown Trout.
I caught a dozen Brown Trout on beadhead patterns. I also saw a BIG brown that was excitedly checking out the fly, but it was so big it was having a tough time manuevering in the narrow channel it was in, and once I lifted my fly to drift it down that section again, the trout disappeared and I never saw it again.
Wear long pants or waders to these streams, even if you aren't wading. There were lots of tall weeds and lots of poison ivy, wild parsnip, and nettles.
This was probably the biggest one I landed. Not too big, but they sure are pretty!
Next, we visited a creek we'd fished before. I was totally different. I appeared a deluge had wiped away much of the creek banks, leaving steep cut banks and wide, shallow, rocky runs. We hit some pools, but I caught most of my fish in areas with more flowing water. We caught Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout, Creek Chubs, Rock Bass, Striped Shiners, Hornyhead Chub, and a surprise Bluegill.
Rainbow Trout:
Rock Bass:
Hornyhead Chub (a new flyrod species for me):
Striped Shiners:
I caught a dozen Brown Trout on beadhead patterns. I also saw a BIG brown that was excitedly checking out the fly, but it was so big it was having a tough time manuevering in the narrow channel it was in, and once I lifted my fly to drift it down that section again, the trout disappeared and I never saw it again.
Wear long pants or waders to these streams, even if you aren't wading. There were lots of tall weeds and lots of poison ivy, wild parsnip, and nettles.
This was probably the biggest one I landed. Not too big, but they sure are pretty!
Next, we visited a creek we'd fished before. I was totally different. I appeared a deluge had wiped away much of the creek banks, leaving steep cut banks and wide, shallow, rocky runs. We hit some pools, but I caught most of my fish in areas with more flowing water. We caught Smallmouth Bass, Rainbow Trout, Creek Chubs, Rock Bass, Striped Shiners, Hornyhead Chub, and a surprise Bluegill.
 |
| Jay shooting the fly. |
Rainbow Trout:
Smallmouth Bass:
Rock Bass:
Hornyhead Chub (a new flyrod species for me):
Striped Shiners:
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