Our Buddy Charlie Reading

[Kayser]

I grew up running tackle for bass, panfish, and catfish, and the odd trout trip once I was in my teens. Then I picked up a fly rod and chased bluegill every chance I got. If it swam, I tried to catch it on a fly rod- every warmwater I can think of (even buffalo and grasscarp!). High school saw me catch the trout bug really bad, and college saw it take over entirely- I spent more time chasing trout during daylight than doing anything else- probably even going to class.

But in an odd twist of fate, now that I've moved to Montana, I find myself reaching for that spinning rod with a rapala more often than I ever thought possible. Is it as graceful? No, I don't think so. But it has its own challenges, and it has definitely cut the learning curve for some of the nearby streams, as to where the fish lie, the quality of fish available, and the overall density in those rivers. And it while it isn't the same as fly fishing, it can be graceful in its own way.

But it's going to be blowing 40+ over the next couple days- I think I'm going to try out that new vise my brother got me for Christmas. And fix my 8wt. And condition my lines. And seal the pinholes in my waders. I've got the bug again during the preparation season.

[tjm]

Those vimeo always say the "player is down, will repair soon " or something like that. Probably my browser but I can't recall one ever working.

I see fly fishing for any fish as the lazy man's approach, I can roll or flick my lure  back into "the spot" a hundred times without ever "cranking in" line a single time. Same rod and reel is adaptable for micros to 4# bass or strippers in the Bay, so I don't have to carry around 12 dozen rods and reels. Back when I was young a lot of trolling  was done with fly tackle, Pfleuger's Sal-Trout 1558 at ~5.5" and ~1 1/4 # was designed for not casting midges. 

The only way that any fishing method excels over any other method is in our minds, if I had to use casting gear, I'd quit fishing altogether, but for many casting gear is the bee's knees. No rod and reel (or pole and line) method is an efficient way to harvest (catch) fish or there would be no net users and no trotlines. 

[fishinwrench]

3 hours ago, tjm said:

 

I see fly fishing for any fish as the lazy man's approach

One day with me stripping streamers for Whites will change that.   

At the end of a slow day I feel like my arm is gonna fall off.....and sometimes wish it would!  😅

[BilletHead]

1 minute ago, fishinwrench said:

One day with me stripping streamers for Whites will change that.   

At the end of a slow day I feel like my arm is gonna fall off.....and sometimes wish it would!  😅

           Yep!

BilletHead

[jdmidwest]

There was a time where the fly rod was the only thing going in the history of fishing.

If you fly fish and do it well, then any species can be had well with the fly rod.  Spin rods and Bait casters have their limits.  But fly rods can do it all for the most part.  They are the only thing going for small, light imitations.

I started with bait casters and spin rods.  Found a cousin's fly rod in the shed and started using it.  Started tying flies. Years later, they were the only thing I used on all species.  Then I got lazy and picked up the spin rods and bait casters.  Started fishing out of boats.  Not really lazy, just older and wore down.  I still like the fly rod.

[Flysmallie]

3 hours ago, fishinwrench said:

One day with me stripping streamers for Whites will change that.   

At the end of a slow day I feel like my arm is gonna fall off.....and sometimes wish it would!  😅

Or spend a day chasing smallmouth with Trigg. Ain’t nothing lazy about that. 

Or I can wear your posterior out in a few hours walking a beach. 

Maybe roll casting to a trout is lazy? But it’s still fun too. 

[tjm]

 I could go on any of those excursions and never have to crank in between casts, unless I just wanted to make it hard. I stream fish mostly and "the spot" may be  a few feet long and less wide, do you think it's easier just to flip a fly line back into the spot or to crank and crank and then cast back into that spot?

But I ain't likely  to  fish all day, 10 or 20 fish I'm ready just to watch or go home. Might just watch from the start, or maybe you don't understand lazy?. You guys ain't gonna talk me into buying no spinning or casting tackle just because you think cranking is easy. All that shift the rod to the other hand stuff too. While I'm thinking about it name the best roll casting rod- that one that you'd pick if you knew for certain you'd never ever make another back cast?

What about whites is it you like wrench?  I've never caught one that I recall, but the ones my son in law caught for a fish fry didn't impress me much as an eating fish. Do they make long runs or spectacular jumps?

[Flysmallie]

We ain’t talking about conventional gear we are saying that very few fly fishing methods are lazy. 

It would be much easier to use a spinning rod on the beach but I always go with the fly rod when possible. 

 

[tjm]

I always go to the fly rod.  period/dot/the end/etc.

But the  comment was casting gear is better than conventional fly rod for some fishing. My point, whether it applies to you or not, is that for me fly rods make all fishing easier- hence more suitable for my lazy self. I will grant that some people can make any activity harder. I supervised construction long enough to see every job made to look far more difficult than it  is.  Humans are remarkable in their ability to complicate simplicity.

Ever wade out a hundred yards or so in the salt and cast streamers for stripers and blues?  I did several/many times and it was always the wrong day or time. The ocean is so big and the fish keep moving. There's supposed to be a place where you can wade clear across Narragansett Bay, ~3 miles at low tide but i never got that far in. Stream fishing is so much more predictable, or one  could say easier.

[fishinwrench]

14 hours ago, tjm said:

What about whites is it you like wrench?

Oh man, I could write a book. 😊

To me they are the perfect warmwater fly-fishing target.   Not a lot is written about them and very few "studies" have ever been done, so basically you are on your own to figure them out.  I find that to be a very rewarding challenge.  Since I mostly fly-fish for them I only target the ones that are in the shallows (6ft. or less), and I actually like Summer/Fall out on the flats better than the Spring spawning run up the creeks. 

They hit like a freight train, fight like hell, are delicious to eat, and they often run in large schools so once you find them you can usually load the boat in under 30 minutes.  Not always though, sometimes they'll throw you a curve and you may not be able to figure out if they've changed locations or just changed their feeding strategy.  

The technique I use to find them involves a fly that you can see underwater, and a high speed erratic retrieve.  They can't seem to resist a RACE, so if you zip a sexy pattern by them real fast usually one (or 15+) will rush after the fly and either body-slam it or flash at it.  Once you see THAT then buckle down and try to figure out a way to catch a few.  As you start catching them the rest of the school often gets all fired up by the activity and becomes more and more aggressive.  It's fast, furious, and even after doing it hundreds of times I still get all excited and have to work at staying calm so I don't blow it.   If you make a really sloppy cast, or make too much noise you'll put them off and they'll either move or quit biting/chasing.   

What's not to love about that ?!!! 😎