Fly or Not ?

[2sheds 125]

Is a foam beetle considered a FLY and allowed on Blue Ribbon Trout waters ?

Does addition of rubber legs change the classification ?

[fishinwrench 12,530]

It's a legal fly.   As is a Chernobyl Ant.

 

[tjm 930]

(B) Soft plastic bait (unscented)—Synthetic
eggs, synthetic worms, synthetic grubs, and
soft plastic lures.
(C) Artificial lure—A lure constructed of
any material excluding soft plastic bait and
natural and scented bait as defined in (A) or
(B) above.
(D) Fly—An artificial lure constructed on
a  single-point  hook,  using  any  material  
except soft plastic bait and natural and scent-
ed bait as defined in (A) or (B) above, that is
tied,  glued,  or  otherwise  permanently  
attached.
 

[Gavin 3,235]

Some tread wrapped around a hook shank and you are good to go.

[tjm 930]

We really need to just drop the "fly only" regulations or find a better way to define  "fly fishing".  Some states call for use of fly rod and single action reel and others just call for "artificial lure only" , which is about what we  have. Remember when MDC tried to define "fly" by listing all the materials allowed, and always missed something, so they added "any other material"?  It used to say "tied" to a hook, which made glued stuff illegal so they included "or permanently fastened to" ; and now after the upset last season over rubber legs that had been legal for years, they dropped the "other" so it just says "any material except" .

As I read the regulation quoted above from the Code, "egg flies", "sucker spawn", "glow balls" etc. made of "synthetic" material would be "synthetic eggs" and thus illegal on "fly" waters, but I'm sure that's not the intent. All synthetic materials are some form of "plastic" and a large portion of modern flies are built of synthetics. 

I'll ask, are "squirmy worms" flies? they are allowed in international fly competition but they are no doubt soft, and plastic, and I can smell the plastic, so they have scent but are technically unscented and they are "worms"- they fit the "soft plastic bait"  profile perfectly. Why if the fly fishing competitions allow them as fly do we not? (maybe we do, I don't know) Even the San Juan Worms are "synthetic worms" and I see a lot of those in the park.

On an international fly fishing  forum the question of "it's not fly fishing" got about 25 pages and 500 responses with no consensus, although the most common idea was that fly rod, fly reel, and fly line must be required. A common notion is that the line must carry the fly and not the other way around, this would eliminate spinning and casting gear. But the imortant take away is that all these fly anglers can't define "fly fishing"  to everyone's satisfaction.I think that what can't be concisely and clearly defined can't be regulated clearly.

I'm not sure why we need or want areas designated as "fly only" ?

[tjm 930]

6 hours ago, Gavin said:

Some tread wrapped around a hook shank and you are good to go.

no thread required, glue or any other means of "permanent" fastening works.

Under this definition a Johnson Silver Minnow is a fly, the metal shell is "other material" and soldering is "permanently fastening".

[Gavin 3,235]

Yep, but I would go with a Kastmaster instead. 

[Gavin 3,235]

Those are the rules. Used to be the purest of the purest fly fisher. Glad I gave that up.

[Flysmallie 5,283]

Purist fly fishermen in Missouri are the fakest people alive. 

[fishinwrench 12,530]

A buddy and I had a running argument about "tippet size" at Bennett Spring and I proved him wrong by impaling a grasshopper on a #12 hook and cutting my leader down to the diameter of about 15 pound test (just barely able to thread it through the hook eye).    

Immediate bite on the very first drift.  😅 

We then set out to design the PERFECT hopper fly.   The end result looked nothing like a real hopper other than it was the same size and color of the naturals, but it got bit just as quickly as the real thing.  The only problem was that it got tore up easily and was only good for 2-3 fish if you were lucky.  

I'll have to dig around and see if I can find one to show ya.  If you know what a "COOPER BUG" is, it was kinda tied like that with some lime green deer hair sticking out from both sides, and touched up with a red Sharpie.