Fly On A Spinning Set-Up

[K4muskies]

Hi All,

I am planing on a trip to the Taneycomo lake in a couple of weeks. It turns out that I will have some time to do some trout fishing but not enough time to actually get into the real fly fishing stuff (fly rod etc) so with that being said can I use my ultra light spinning reel with a fly. If so what type of set-up would I use for this.

I know that the flys can be tricky to get out without the right rod/reel combo but I just don't have enough time for a few classes. I have everything else. Simms waders, ultra light trout combo, etc... Usually the trout fishing I do is at the Meramec Springs park so it's not like I dont have any experience its just that I never tried using a fly.

What fly to use and how to set up my rod for it?

Any advise is greatly appreciated.

Thanks

K

[Gatorjet]

Why use fly? Small jigs are great for trout anywhere on Taney. Either very small, down to 1/250 of an ounce under a float, or up to 1/8 ounce fished without a float. If your "park" equipment is the typical short, ultralight spinning rig it won't be very good for jig and float. It will work for straight jigs, but usually something 6' or longer works better.

[K4muskies]

Thanks for the reply. I totally forgot about the jigs, but since I never used any I wouldn't even know where to start, what type/kind of jiggs to get not to mention the color choices. In the "park" I usually fish on powerbait and home made bait. I do have three different rods I use. One is a 5' and the other two are 7' and 7'6 ultralight with 2LB test on it.

[Quillback]

Lilley's Landing carries the jigs, they can help you I'm sure on what the best colors/sizes are.

Check out this video.

[Gatorjet]

White has been a hot color this Spring. But you usually can't go wrong with most "earth tones" sculpin, olive, ginger, Brown, and combinations of those.

The 7' rod is plenty long for jig and float, but the UL action may make setting the hook a little difficult.Phil has some great instructional videos here on OA. Search for them, and you can learn just what to do.

[K4muskies]

Thank you guys. This was a big help in the right direction. I do have a little stiffer rod that I can try as well.

Thank you again

[fly2fish]

The small clear plastic casting corks that you fill with water work fairly well also, or if the water is off and you can wade just use the small clear regular corks. Make sure that your line is 4 lb or less or use a leader of the same. Casting corks have a spindle that runs through cork with a hole for your line to go through, you have to tie a swivel after you run your line through and that acts as a stop also. Tie about 5' to 6' of leader onto the swivel below the cork and then your fly. Pull the spindle to fill about 1/3rd to 1/2 full of water depending on how far you want to cast.

F2F

[Seth]

3/32 oz sculpin/orange is killer at Taneycomo and Meramec when fished like Phil show's in his videos. You will be fine using the longer UL rods for drifting under a float, but I would recommend a light action rod for the jigs and preferably a medium light. As for drifting bait, just take the best of both worlds and drift a jig about a foot off the bottom and then tie a dropper leader about 18" long and tie on a scud. Dad caught several fish last weekend doing that. Most fish came on the scud, but he did get a few on the jig as well. The jig was more less just the weight to get the scud down, but also gave the fish one more thing to eat. I recommend using a 2# leader for the fly dropper.

[K4muskies]

Thanks one more time. I have a pretty good idea on how to start. I will be staying at a cabin about 1 1/2 miles from the dam on the south side. Looking at the google maps the access is poor to get to the water so I may be driving to the other side of the lake. Also if I bring my boat how far up stream can I actually get with the boat? This is off topic question sorry...

[Seth]

You can make it to the Narrows just make sure you take it slow and hug the left side as you head up stream in front of the big houses above Fall Creek. We ran to the cable a few times last week, but the Narrows was about the best area for us overall. If you run a jet, you can go up farther, but you will have to watch out for waders by Lookout.