Guest post by Steve Richards
We all have different methods for putting life into a fly and it can be said how you move a fly can at times be the difference between success or failure.
I’ve given a lot of thought on the subject over the years and here are some of my thoughts on it.
One of the most famous and successful flies, the Clouser, can be fished a couple of ways depending on what you are trying to imitate.
Most commonly it’s used to fool a fish into thinking it’s small bait, the kind that shoals up throughout the season.
Early summer large shoals of bait move in seemingly perfect unison but there always seems to be small bait getting separated from the main shoal and trying to catch up.
These are the bait I try and make my fly imitate using long pulls, mixing in short and fast strips. I try and make my fly move as though it’s one of the stragglers try to catch up.
When I fish this way I very rarely pause too long, that’s not to say you shouldn’t occasionally add a pause because it certainly can work. Another method worth employing is to let your clouser drop to the sea bed and give short strips this can make it bounce along giving the impression of a Sand Eel trying to borrow back into safety.
The other thing a Clouser can be very good at copying is shrimps.
Shrimps tend to shoot backwards when startled then stop briefly and move again, by letting your Clouser drop to the seabed you can replicate this behaviour. Short sharp strips followed by a pause can work very well, speed up or slow down the strips and leaving the pause for longer can all work as well.
Shrimp patterns can obviously be fished the same way, although some shrimp patterns can have lots of moving components, so I tend to leave them static a lot longer especially after the strip. It’s the initial strip believe that gets the attention of the fish and the moving parts like legs act to entice a strike.
Another famous fly and favourite of mine is a Deceiver. There are many variations of this pattern, some tied in natural material like bucktail others artificial materials.
The Deceiver is a bait fish pattern that’s tied to fool the fish into thinking it’s anything from a pouting, sand smelt to a baby mullet.
Harbours its worth mentioning have areas which you will find lots of baby mullet, something bass will take full advantage of.
This type of bait fish behaves in a way that can be quite easily copied.
Mullet in harbours I’ve noticed move in shoals sometimes in hundreds other times in small groups of a dozen or so.
I tend to fish long steady strips adding in occasional pauses, I don’t tend to move the fly too quickly rather concentrating on keeping the fly moving consistently.
If I’m fishing open water and especially around rocks or structure, then I move the fly in a slightly different way.
Smelt and small bait will have very skittish behaviour around structure, short jerky movements followed by a pause before moving again looking very nervous. They seek comfort in rocks and structure knowing it gives them protection. A quick move will give them a safe haven among the small holes and crevices.
In this situation a mix between a short strip and a long followed by a decent pause will often get some interest.
The strike in most cases will be just after the pause as you start to strip again. This can be very exciting especially when the thing you think is a snag starts to move in the opposite direction.
Surface flies are probably the most exciting way to experience a take apart from maybe sight fishing a crab or shrimp.
Now there seems to be a few different variations on how to fish one. Some like to strip like mad relying on a bass’s predatory instincts to kick in and chase. Others believe a gentle steady retrieve creating a nice wake as the fly glides across the water is the way to go. A gurgler is perfect for this type of strip.
Crease flies and poppers make much more of a commotion on the surface so short sharp strips can work very well.
Fast retrieves and a pause are another method I’ve used especially when I’ve found feeding fish.
It’s worth noting that the best times to fish any surface fly is generally on the days when the water has very little wind or swell on it.
Crab flies and I don’t have too much experience fishing them in the uk but have fished them while targeting striped Bass.
In shallow water in the east coast of the USA sight fishing with a crab is very exciting.
What you aim to do is intercept a feeding fish as it moves with the tide. Now, crabs have a habit of staying completely still when it knows a predator is on to it.
The method used is to first spot the incoming bass and try to place your fly in its path. Ideally you want your fly to drop quickly to the bottom and sit completely still.
I know some crab patterns are designed to be moved at speed like the strong-armed crab, but moving a crab as a striped bass is about to intercept it just ends up spooking the fish.
Obviously, there are times when they are happy to chase a crab pattern.
Dan Wilcox and his excellent silly crab he fishes among the bladder wrack is another, which I believe he casts and strips.
I’m not convinced the fish see it as a crab but due to its appearance moving across the weed their predatory instincts kick in inducing a follow.
With so many different flies it stands to reason multiple different methods will be used to fish them.
At the end of the day, I suppose it depends on the day so don’t be afraid to try something a little different you might just get a tug.
And as they say the tug is the drug.
