Doc's Rods and Flies

During the Tri Lakes Fly Fishing Expo, I was approached by a really nice guy named Sam.  He approached with a big smile on his face and his hand extended for a hearty handshake.  Right off the bat, I liked this guy.  He proceeded to introduce himself as well as hand me a business card and large fly.  He said that he had followed me on social media for quite some time and that he wanted to introduce himself.  He told me that he was a fan of what I post and that he would be happy to help me with any flies that I found myself in need of.  I was blown away by his kindness and thoughtfulness.  Right away, I knew that I had to try to return the acts of generosity in some way.  

While this post is not equal to the gift that Sam gave to me, I am hopeful that maybe I can send him some business his way.  Feel free to give Sam or Roger a call if you need some flies or a custom rod.  You can also follow Sam on Instagram.  His handle is @samstewart888 and I think you will dig his content.  Sam, if you're reading this, thank you again for being so darn nice.

Largemouth are NOT Afraid of the Boogeyman!

Link: https://www.facebook.com/share/1Cdfoj9kos/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Email: rmiloshewski@gmail.com

Instagram: @ryanmilo19

TikTok: @ryanmiloshewski

My buddy Milo sent me some flies to try out.  (If this name rings a bell, it might be because he recently started an online fly shop and I posted about it on this blog.  Click here to read that post.)  the flies he sent me are streamer patterns that are best known for catching big trout like the ones that can be found on the White River.  He asked me if I could throw these patterns for the warm water species that I chase like largemouth, white bass, and hybrid stripers.  Recently, I was able to throw a couple of the patterns on some public water for largemouth bass.

The patterns that I threw are called a circus peanut (articulated streamer) and a boogeyman (single hook streamer).  I liked the circus peanut's action and sink rate but started to wonder if it was too big for the largemouth I was targeting.  If I had been chasing 2 pound or bigger bass, I would have kept throwing the fly but I figured that I needed to downsize.  I was looking for more hookups and believed that there would opportunities if I was throwing a smaller fly that could fit in a smaller largemouth's mouth but could still handle a larger fish if the opportunity came along.

I tied on a boogeyman with the hopes of my takes and thus, more fish in my hand.  The fly sunk like a rock which was what I wanted since I was fishing with floating line.  The fly had a tapered profile and a great flutter to it as well.  I liked the dark colored head as well as the flash in the body and wiggle of the tail.  It looked a little like a baitfish, a little like a tadpole, and a lot like something that a largemouth would eat.  I didn't get bites right off that bat which told me that the bass might be in the middle of their annual spawn or that maybe I was fishing the wrong time of the day.  It looked so good in the water, I just didn't understand why I wasn't getting bites.

To make a long story short, I did get bites on the boogeyman.  They came in bunches when I found just the right spot where the bass were stacked up.  I ended up putting 6 largemouth in the boat and a really aggressive bluegill.  I have a feeling that this is only be beginning of my stories that include a boogeyman.  Under better conditions and in a better fishery, I have a feeling this thing could put up some gaudy numbers.  Bass are definitely not afraid of the boogeyman and apparently big, and aggressive bluegill aren't either!

A 1/80th Ounce Jig Under an Indicator Catches A Lot of Fish, But...

...most of them are small.  On the other hand, if you're wanting to have a lot of action on the water, catch a lot of different species, and just keep things simple, you can't go wrong with a jig under a float!  For example, I recently spent a morning on the water with a jig and a bobber and I ended up catching redear sunfish, green sunfish, bluegill, largemouth, white crappie, and black crappie.  On occasion, you can catch something a little bigger as well.  I have landed a few largemouth over 2 pounds and quite a few channel cats with this setup.  This is also a great way to catch trout on impoundments or streams as well!  

No, watching a bobber is not exciting like watching a fish eat a dry fly or popper.  What it lacks in excitement is made up for in productivity though.  It's a great way to introduce newbies or kids to fly fishing as it is pretty simplistic.  I utilize this tactic almost exclusively with the middle school fly fishing club that I sponsor due to its effectiveness and quick learning curve.  It is as easy as it is effective and any experience level of angler can use it to catch fish.  I usually run a 6-8 foot leader of fluorocarbon from the fly line to the fly and that's about it.  Tapered leaders are not necessary and I just use an improved clinch knot to connect to the fly.  If this isn't a tactic that you use on the water, why not give it a shot?  You might be surprised at how productive this simple setup is!

On a side note, I caught every fish on the same jig, which was dubbed "The Standard" by Tom Phipps, the gentleman that taught me how to tie the jig.  It is available for purchase in the online store and can be accessed by clicking here or by clicking the link below.

Link: https://www.etsy.com/listing/768151207/3-pack-of-the-standard-trout-fly

Finally Got On the Water Last Weekend

Finally!  I finally got to go fishing for a little while last weekend.  I almost go the boat out but decided to keep things simple and just do some bank fishing at a local HOA pond.  I've fished this pond for long enough that I understand the spring pattern that it follows.  I thought that I had a chance to catch a mixed bag of species if I threw some flies along the dam of the lake.  

This particular lake has a great population of bluegill and small largemouth bass as well as a population of crappie.  I can't figure out how many crappie they have but I have caught healthy crappie that are 12 inches long and even saw a guy catch a 14 inch crappie on a stick worm that was wacky rigged.  There are also white bass in the lake but I don't catch them very often.  They move around a lot and I struggle to get a fly to them because of distance from the bank (usually) and the depth they hang out in (sometimes).

I decided to throw a 1/80 ounce jig under a strike indicator because it is a good "search fly".  It can help me cover a lot of parts of the water column and give a slow presentation as well.  I used this fly over streamers when I am trying to figure out where the fish are (or are not) and what they want (a fast retrieve vs. slow retrieve).  This fly did exactly what I wanted it to do and produced the mixed bag that I was expecting.

I ended up catching about 12-15 fish.  Some of them were largemouth (that all under a pound), some bluegill, some small crappie, and some nice (to me) crappie.  I don't target crappie other than during the prespawn that takes place about this time of year.  I choose to target them at this time because they tend to be accessible from the bank and you can get into some fish that are in the 12-14 inch range which is what I like.  I don't like wasting my time on smaller crappie as I don't find them particularly fun to catch.  I also don't eat crappie so I just want to catch the big ones for fun.

I was fortunate enough to get into, what I consider, nice crappie.  I caught a white crappie that was 12 inches long and a black crappie that was 12 inches long as well.  Both fish were really healthy and I decided to throw the black crappie on a scale because I was curious what a 12 inch, healthy crappie weighed.  The scale went right to one pound, which was a surprise to me.  After a little research online, I found out that a healthy crappie that is 12 inches long has an average weight of 1 pound.  

Overall, it was a great morning on a pond that I really like to fish.  My time on the water allowed me to block out some of the stresses that everyday life (and the end of the school year) can present.  I found myself just focusing on my casting and catching.  I'm hopeful to get some more time on the water soon and to get that feeling of refreshment back.  I hope you are able to do the same and that you have a wonderful start to your week!

A Few More 3D Print Builds

After last weekend's time on the water, I have again been too busy to we a line this week.  However, I have been building some items on my 3D printer than I thought were worth sharing.  First, I made a Dungeons and Dragons dice tower for one of my colleagues that has been a co-facilitator for the middle school fly fishing club that I sponsor.  He also sponsors an after school Dungeons and Dragons club so the dice tower felt like an appropriate gift to show my appreciation for his time and energy.  I also printed a flower pot for some flowers that I bought recently.  I couldn't just make something plain so I decided on going with something a little more gothic and edgy.  Finally, I printed some tippet holders in two different versions.  I have never owned one of these before but I'm pretty excited to have a couple of options to use now.