Articles

WHAT FLY SHOULD I USE?

By Mike Rice

I am asked all the time what the best fly to fish with is. It's not an easy question to answer. Saltwater fly patterns are few in number when compared with flies used in freshwater "match-the-hatch" tradition. Saltwater flies are somewhat limited in their scope - mainly baitfish and crustacean patterns, but the same philosophy of matching the available bait is relatively the same. The Yankee in me usually wants to answer the question with, "Somethin' the fish are gonna' eat, ayuh." The truth of the matter is that there are factors other than what bait is around that also need to be looked at before tying on a fly.

Secondary to the issue of what the prevalent bait is, what type of gear you are using and what kind of water are you fishing. Rod weight, line type, water and wind conditions are often as important as the available bait in choosing a fly. I am no expert when it comes to the technical aspect of gear selection, but I've learned enough through trial and error over the years to make some general recommendations.

I think the first two things to look at are what type of water you are fishing and what weight rod you are using. Estuaries are best fished with a 7 or 8 weight rod and flies up to 1/0. Inshore waters, bays, coves and river mouths call for an 8 or 9 weight rod with flies up to 4/0. Offshore fishing requires a "meat stick" (10 to 12 weight) and flies as big as you can cast them.

My favorite type of fishing is in saltwater estuaries. Coastal rivers, shallow coves, tidal creeks and the marshes and lagoons of Northeast backwaters are where I cut my teeth on saltwater fly fishing. I now have a boat but most of my fishing experience has come from inside a pair of size 9 Hodgeman waders in estuarine waters. Fishing these areas provides an opportunity to dead - drift rips, blind cast to deep holes, sight - fish on flats and skinny water and fish fast moving channels. For these waters I think a 7 or 8 weight rod with an intermediate line is the best choice when wading. The 7 weight will handle flies up to size #1 while an 8 will go up to a sparsely tied 2/0. The thing I like about the intermediate line is that it can serve as a pseudo floating line when fish are surface feeding. Simply change from a subsurface fly to a popper or slider and using a fast retrieve, you'll be back in business quickly. Carry an extra spool with a sinking line and you're covered for any type of water. Flies of choice here are patterns that mimic sand eels, herring, silversides, anchovy, mummichog, grass shrimp and crab.

Fishing from a boat in inshore waters gives you access to bigger fish and a better chance at seeing the fish when you are casting. They're still eating the same stuff but the baits are often larger and probably grouped up or schooling. An 8 or 9 weight rod with a sinking line is a good choice here. Flies up to 3/0 and some size 4/0 can be thrown sufficiently with a 9 weight. Larger patterns imitating herring, mackerel, bunker, mullet and squid are the flies of choice to feed to these bigger fish, although I've caught a lot of big fish on a 9 weight using a 2/0 bucktail sand eel or a 1/0 baby bunker.

Offshore fishing means big fish, big rods and big flies. Teasers and chum are often used to entice these big fish into casting range. Flies used here are large, sometimes bulky and difficult to cast far. These flies will imitate big bait. They might be single or tandem hook streamers, top water poppers and sliders or chum flies depending on what you're fishing for and the tactics used by the skipper.

Another concern is always the color of the fly. There are so many color combinations available that it's nearly impossible to definitively say one color scheme works better than another. Some say chartreuse and white works all the time while others swear by all white all the time. It comes down to putting in time on the water and figuring out what works best when, where and for what through the process of trial and error. One thing is a constant though when it comes to color selection. Generally, light colored flies work best in light or clear water; dark colored flies work better in dark or turbid water and black works best at night.

Being a commercial fly tier, people often think that my fly box holds a plethora of flies in all conceivable patterns and colors. It doesn't. I carry a few "oddballs" with me for that "just-in-case" situation (that has yet to develop), but for the most part, I use a handful of patterns from Mud Dog Saltwater Flies when fishing in the Northeast. These are:

When the idea to start Mud Dog Saltwater Flies was being developed, I decided to go with flies that I fish myself and to stay with what I know works. All the flies my company produces have worked for me or for those fortunate souls who have the opportunity to frequent other waters. I've put together "packages" within our price list that group together flies that cover Northeast and Southeast fisheries.

Concerning the question about the one fly to use, I'll answer it this way. There are two flies that I have fished in the Northeast, Bahamas and the Dominican Republic that I will always carry with me. The Baby Bunker in olive/pink/white has caught stripers, bluefish, dogfish, jacks, snapper and something in the Bahamas that I can not identify. It's small enough to throw on a 7 weight and is my fly of choice on a 9 weight. It imitates most baitfish from herring to pilchards and apparently some critter in the Bahamas.

The second is the 2/0 Bucktail Sand Eel in white/white. It has caught stripers, bluefish, jacks, snapper, barracuda and a few smallmouth bass in Maine. This fly imitates sand eels, silversides, anchovies, juvenile herring and other small baitfish.

An old-timer from Boston's South Shore once told me that "there ain't no need fer nothin' but a few feathers and a hunk o' bucktail on a hook" to catch most fish. All in all, it comes down to knowing the water you are fishing, what type and size fish you're gunning for, what the local bait situation is and what type and size fly you can comfortably cast.