Gorge Fly Shop Blog: Boats, Fly Rods and Warm Water

I grew up with warm water fishing. Bass, Bluegills, Crappie! Boats, Canoes, Creeks, Ponds. Mosquito, ticks, chiggers. Wouldn't trade it for anything.

Last few years I've really have embraced warm water lake fishing. Specifically fly fishing. It's funny to see the look on other anglers faces as you fly cast and catch fish after fish while they sit there in pedestal seats, casting spinning rods meanwhile complaining about the 6" of wind chop.

I have to remind myself the fact that I've gotten pretty good at this game over the years. Here is some hard fast rules to follow when fly fishing warm water lakes.

Never sit down

Fly fishing is a stand up sport and most lake fishing involves hitting targets. You need to spot your targets and remain vigilant at all times for fish reacting to you fly.

Embrace the wind

Wind brings more positive attributes then negative. Sure it can make casting tough and there is a limit to how much wind one can fish in but in my experience some wind is usually better then no wind. Wind breaks the waters surface providing you cover so fish don't see you or your fly line. Wind stirs the water and adds oxygen helping fish feel good. Fish may also remain more shallow in mid day sun on windy days. Face the facts fly anglers, our fly techniques are depth challenged. Wind, especially in mid day can help us more then it will hurt us.

Leave the 5 weights at home

Wind, heavy cover, big fish, big flies are all good reasons to step up in fly rod size. I equip my boat with 6, 7 and 8 weight rods. Six weights for the easy stuff like hard body poppers and eights for big hair frogs or big streamers. I know many think an 8 weight is too big for this fishing but consider that you may be casting 6 inch streamers all day long with wind. It doesn't sound too big now does it?

Bigger Flies...Bigger Fish

This is one case you don't always match rod to fish but instead match rod to what the conditions will require from you. If you're casting terrestrials to small fish then a five weight will do you fine. I will tell you as a fact that there is a strong correlation between fly size and fish size. If you want to consistently catch bigger fish you will need to throw bigger flies.

Risk your fly

If you're not willing to power cast a 6 inch deer hair frog into tight heavy cover then don't expect to reap rewards. Sure, snagging shore can become frustrating. Get use to it and in time you will naturally become, not only better at casting, but also better at un-snagging. One technique that I've learned which has helped tremendously is to roll cast a snag. You have to be within the head of your fly line to accomplish this but with practice you will be surprised what you can free your fly from.

Why Not

I see warm water predator fly fishing becoming more popular everyday. I can't just sit around and wait for some special week long fly fishing trip once a year. I've got to be fishing whenever I can and warm water is a part of that. I love the reactions from gear anglers...Are you catching any? You're fly fishing? Does that work? lol... In many ways the fly angler is some much better equipped for this fishing. I know this because I have years of gear angling warm water experience to compare it too.

If you have warm water fishing available to you I highly recommend you take advantage of it. Please feel free to reach out to me and tap into my experiences. I'd be thrilled to share my knowledge and promise to get excited for your success.

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