Warmwater fly fishing

wgmiller

wgmiller

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Perhaps this has been brought up before and my apologies if it has (I did a search and didn't get a hit), but how many people warmwater fly fish? I kind of get the impression that a lot of fly fishermen are exclusively trout fisherman and don't really bother with warmwater fishing.

As my skills get better (hopefully) I hope to branch out a bit into warmwater fly fishing so as not to "pigeon hole" my interests or skill set with strictly trout fishing. With so many warmwater opportunities here in the Commonwealth, it seems like a natural fit to enjoy warmwater fishing in addition to trout/steelhead fishing.
 
WG: There's an entire forum section here dedicated to warmwater FF. When you're looking at the entire list of forums, it's about halfway down.

I think most folks do the learning process backwards. This is partly the strong association that trout have with fly fishing, but it's also IMO, got a little bit to do with what our sporting society/press sees as "glamorous", etc. I started out flyfishing for crappie in the creek behind the house. It was 7 years before I caught a trout on a fly. But I didn't care because I was catching (and eating) so many crappie. WW FF opportunities are of course, way way more numerous than their CW counterparts. But most folks start out on trout. I've never really understood it other than the glamour thing..
 
I primarily fish for trout with the fly rod. Glamour has little to do with it. I focus mostly on dry fly fishing and this leads most naturally to trout in streams. However, I do enjoy catching bluegills and other sunfish at the local lake in late spring and summer up until the vegitation starts to become an annoyance. Again, this is a top-water pursuit for me. The last two years, I have spent a few days on smallmouth streams, but tossing streamers seems more like spin-fishing.
 
I started out fly fishing for bass and bluegills in farm ponds. Like RLP, it was years later before I started fly fishing for trout.

I personally think that is the best way to learn. It certaily is not as frustrating. Bluegills and bass are much more cooperative. But to each his own.

I still like to flyfish for bass and bluegills (see avatar).
 
I'm an avid warmwater FFer. I do, however, prefer moving water and focus most of my fishing on rivers and streams. Once you get hooked on bass, esp smallmouths, you'll develop a new respect for these wonderful game fish. During the summer months, I target bass and sunfish more than trout nowadays. I also am addicted to saltwater as well. As for glamour, smallies and sunfish have enjoyed a lot of positive press in recent years from writers like Dave Whitlock and Harry Murry. Trout guys have traditionally regarded bass as unsophisticated lunkheads that strike any fly thrown at them. Sometimes this can seem true, esp for sunnies and little bass, but find an 18" smallie in a clear stream or river here in PA and see how easy it is to catch him on a fly. This is about a twelve year old fish and has seen it all. While I'll always love trout and always consider myself first and foremost a trout guy, many FFers are missing out on a great time by ignoring warm water fish.
 
Like Fishidiot, I enjoy fishing moving water most, but I do fish lakes or ponds for bluegill and LM Bass on occasion. While FF for trout is king to me, I really look forward to fishing for SM bass in rivers and streams in the summer.


JackM wrote: "Again, this is a top-water pursuit for me. The last two years, I have spent a few days on smallmouth streams, but tossing streamers seems more like spin-fishing."


Jack, I agree that stripping streamers is not my favorite way to fish either, but when the smallies hit poppers or sliders on top, it's hard to imagine a better day fishing than that. It's a real blast...literally!
 
afishinado wrote:
Jack, I agree that stripping streamers is not my favorite way to fish either, but when the smallies hit poppers or sliders on top, it's hard to imagine a better day fishing than that. It's a real blast...literally!
Click to expand...

I almost forgot about the handful of smallmouth I caught on poppers this summer and you are right, it can be as exciting as a 14" wild brown rising to gulp a March Brown imitation on Fishing Creek ---NOT!
 
I like warmwater fishing, but like others said, I really prefer moving water. I definitely do way more WW fishing in the summer, but my weapon of choice is a spinning rod. My goal for next year is to branch out and attempt to fly fish for my usual spinning rod targets: catfish and carp. It aint gonna be easy.

I haven't fly fished for largemouth bass in some time. Perhaps I'll get out after them next year.

I know it's often spun as snobbery, but when it comes to FF, coldwater species are all I'm really into.
 
Thanks for the feedback. It sounds as though there are a fair number of ww fly fishers out there.

I don't know that I see myself hopping in a boat and doing some lake or pond fly fishing, but I can see myself cruising the banks of the Susquehanna or other warm water fishery and seeing what I can land. From what I've seen and read, bass can be just as much of a thrill to land as trout. They sure seem to jump and carry on quite a bit as well. Catching carp, catfish and other ww fish also seems to be more of a challenge on a fly rod.

I was always curious why the magazines gave all their press to trout and other salmonids. Perhaps it's because they can't cover all fishes in a magazine or that there is a "glamor factor" with trout and a stigma attached to the ww fishes. There is no doubt that trout are a beautiful fish and easier to handle than many of the ww fishes though.
 
afishinado wrote:
Jack......Why NOT!?
Click to expand...

Because I've never seen a blue spot on a smallmouth bass.

But, seriously, it probably goes back to the old quote from Teddy Roosevelt (?) that trout don't live in ugly places. More often, smallmouth do.
 
JackM wrote: “Because I've never seen a blue spot on a smallmouth bass.

But, seriously, it probably goes back to the old quote from Teddy Roosevelt (?) that trout don't live in ugly places. More often, smallmouth do.”

Jack,

You and your son have an open invitation next summer to fish with me for smallies. I’ll take you to places with great scenery, and great fishing on top, with smallies up to 20”+/-. On the right day, your arms will be sore from fightin’ those brutes. SMs are a lot of fun to fish for in the summer, and a welcome change from fishin’ for those finicky trout. No blue spots though.
 
Thanks for the offer. I can't see myself driving to Chester County to fish for bass, though at 20" it certainly presents a temptation.
 
I do a lot more trout fishing than warmwater fishing, but flyfishing for smallmouth is a blast. I love it and would do more of it there was more good smallie fishing closer to me.

I've done some bluegill flyfishing over the years and really love that too, if you can find a pond that has decent sized bluegills. There was a lake nearby that was good, but they rebuilt the dam, and it hasn't been good since. I'd do a lot more of that too if there was quality bluegill fishing nearby.

In Lancaster County there are lot of farm ponds. Get to know your neighbors and see if you can get permission!
 
Jack, I was fishing for big trout when I caught this ugly thing. :-D
 
Oh come on Dave. We've seen your face before!
 
My back yard is one of the reasons i don't get to trout fish as much as I used to.

And in case you think that is a small cane rod, I've included a steelhead picture. Would I use a small cane rod for steelhead? No way. Small plastic rod, maybe, but not split cane. the fish flopped as i snapped the picture. I didn't take him completely out of the water.
 
I used to fish strictly for trout back in the early 80's. But I have grown to love fly fishing for bass -- largemouth, smallmouth and hybrids. Maybe not quite as much as fishing for wild trout, but pretty damned close. And in the trout-starved waters of SW PA -- compared to other parts of the state -- the variety helps to keep me fishing strong throughout the year.

In fact, the whitefly hatch has become my favorite hatch of the year. Not only because of the abundance of bugs -- and fish -- but because of the willingness for bass to commit suicide to smash poppers and white millers skimmed on the surface. And the fight is much better than most trout I've caught, excluding Steelies.)

I would never, ever go back to being a trout snob.
 
JackM wrote: Thanks for the offer. I can't see myself driving to Chester County to fish for bass, though at 20" it certainly presents a temptation.


Jack,

I live in Chester County, but the SM fishing I described was on the North Branch of the Susquehanna and/or the Upper Delaware River.
 
Boy, in reading through some of the threads on this site, there definitely appears there can be two camps - cold water and warm water! http://www.warmfly.com/index.php?option=com_smf&Itemid=26

"Trout snobs" :-D

Although I'd have to guess that there are a good many people who are somewhere in the middle and just enjoy the fine art of fly fishing...
 
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