BUSTING BASS ON BUGS
Other Types of Baits for Flies
Editor's
Note: Tom Schneider has fished with a fly rod since
1988, and has guided fly-fishermen since 1992. He guides
primarily for saltwater stripers, hybrid-striped bass,
spotted bass and largemouth bass on Lay Lake. But he
also has access to some private ponds and guides some
small streams in Alabama.
Question: Do you use any other type of bait for flies?
Answer: Yes, I do. I Texas-rig small plastics. I use
the 3-inch, salt-and-pepper colored, Silver Phantom
jerkbait. The real secret to fishing this bait is to
make sure your hook is inline with the centerline of
the bait. Sometimes, I'll fish this small jerkbait with
no weight at all, and sometimes I'll use as much as
1/8 ounce.
When I'm fishing this bait deep for stripers, I use
a line called a Streamer Express. This line has a sink
rate of about 5 or 6 inches per second on an 8-weight
rod. Using this set up, I can get my bait down 20-feet
deep. If you're fishing more than 20-feet deep, the
fly rod is not the rod you want to use.
Question: What is the average size saltwater striper
you will catch with this rig on Lay Lake?
Answer: The average size stripers will weigh around
4-pounds each, but I have caught a striper that weighed
29 pounds on a rig like this.
Question: Tell me about the best day of fishing you've
ever had on Lay Lake.
Answer: Fall is generally the best time of year to catch
a large number of fish at Lay Lake. The best day of
fishing I've had is when a buddy of mine from Colorado
and myself caught and released about 75 fish in one
day. We caught most of these bass on the Bama Slammer,
and they were from 6 inches in size to 6 pounds in weight.
Question:
What is the biggest largemouth bass you've caught on
your fly rod?
Answer: I caught a bass that weighed 7.68 pounds on
a Junebug-colored Brush Hog, which is another soft-plastic
bait I fish on fly rods.
To learn more about how to catch bass with flies, or
to schedule a guided trip with Tom go to www.sunriseanglers.com;
call Tom at Sunrise Anglers at (205) 669-2110 or (205)
410-0964; or e-mail Tom at kingfisher@sunriseanglers.com.
TOMORROW: FISHING WITH TOM SCHNEIDER
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