Fly Fishing for Striped Bass in June

Posted on June 4, 2011 by Ed Mitchell

Dusk & Dawn are productive when Fly fishing for Stripers

Here in New England, June has always been a prime month for catching striped bass. Over the reefs or out on the beach, it doesn’t really matter. The bass are in town. And June is also the finest month for sight-fishing. Shallow water haunts, such as Monomoy on Cape Cod, have plenty of forage. And the water is still cool; by July temperatures will climb.

For sight-fishing, obviously you’ll need the sun overhead, but for everything else low light is king. Night fishing in June is red hot and provides the beach angler with a chance to hook a Kahuna. But if the wee hours are not your bag, focus on the ends of the day. Dusk and dawn are your magic hours. If dawn is your pick, get in position about 2 hours before the scheduled sunrise. Yes, I said two hours prior. Bass bite best in the faint light of false dawn. And once the yellow orb shows its face the bass boogie. Dusk, on the other hand, can offer a longer window. As soon as the shadows start to grow, around 6:30pm on a June afternoon, the stage is set. Things should heat up slowly and then peak between 8-9:30PM. After that the bite typically fades, only to return hot and heavy late in the night.

Posted in Fly Fishing in Salt Water, Fly Fishing On the Beach, Wild Things | Leave a comment

Eyeries – On Ireland’s Beara Peninsula

Posted on May 26, 2011 by Ed Mitchell

Eyeries on Ireland’s Beara peninsula

Eyeries is a gem-like village on Ireland’s Beara peninsula. Nestled between Coulagh Bay to the north and a string of mountains to the south, Eyeries’ brightly colored homes offer a festive and infectious optimism. Hey, it’s fun just to walk down the street; I really liked this place.

If you ever get to Eyeries, and I hope you do, I suggest you look for a big rock about 2 miles outside of town. Yes, that’s right, a rock. Located near Ballycrovane Harbor, it sits on a hillside, with a fine view of the sea. This black & white boulder is said to be the petrified remains of Cailleach Bheara, the fabled Hag of Beara. The Hag is the most important goddess of pre-Celtic times, and perhaps Ireland’s oldest mythological being. She is believed to have roamed the Beara and beyond, and to have been older than time itself.

Cailleach Bheara – The Hag of Beara

She was a healer, a goddess of fertility, and had many husbands and many children. So how did The Hag end up a here? According to legend, she stole the prayer book of a Christian saint, who in retribution turned her into stone. Tough on the old girl. Ever since The Hag has remained perched here overlooking the endless tides. But hey, she still has many friends. People come and cover the stone with offerings -coins and trinkets adorned the rock – all in the hope that The Hag will grant a wish. Maybe she will…..

Like to see more images of Ireland? Click this link.

 

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Fly Fishing with Nymphs is Deadly

Posted on May 17, 2011 by Ed Mitchell

Nymphs are deadly on Trout

You can catch trout on all kinds of flies. Dries, emergers,wets, nymphs, streamers, bucktails, soft hackles, buggers.  The list is long. But in my opinion, the single most productive fly is a nymph. For one thing, trout eat a lot of nymphs.  Second, nymphs work all season. With a hatch; without a hatch; high water; low water; fast water; slow water; and even still water. Yeah nymphs are versatile and deadly.

There are three principal ways to fish a nymph: “High stick”, strike-indicator style, or “Czech” nymphing. “High stick” is the oldest, at least here in our country. Strike-indicators came to light over 20 years ago, and remain, even today, the most popular method.  “Czech” style is relatively new, and all the rage. It works very well; I used it to catch the brown trout above.

Since indicators are king, let’s take a look at them. Indicators come in many shapes and sizes, but some work far better than others. Skip the putty stuff and the stick on dots. Neither is very good. You want a strike-indicator that is reusable and can be quickly adjusted up and down the leader to compensate for changing water depths.  Now you’re talking. It must also ride high enough to be visible, and must stay secure on the leader. And it can’t twist your leader during the cast. Yes, a lot going on here.

Thingamabobbers

I feel the best strike-indicator on the market today is the “Thingamabobber“. This indicator is essentially a small, plastic bubble. My friend Charlie Place joking refers to them as “trapped air technology”.  Man, what will science think of next?  Thingamabobbers are easy to put on the leader and come in different sizes and colors. The 3/4″ size works in most situations. Most importantly, Thingamabobbers are extremely sensitive. Every time the your nymph touches something – be it the bottom or a big brown trout – the damn indicator wiggles. Beautiful, it’s like having sonar. If you haven’t tried them, you’re missing out.

Posted in Flies and Fly Tying, Fly Fishing in Freshwater | Leave a comment

Little Averill Pond

Posted on May 11, 2011 by Ed Mitchell

Little Averill Pond in New England

One summer day, I was on the road up in northern Vermont. My self-imposed mission, that bright morn was to see two ponds –Big and Little Averill. I had read about both, yet had never laid eyes on either. Needed to fix that.

Locating Big Averill turned out to be easy; it sat quietly in sight of the road. A pretty pond, for sure. Little Averill took more effort, however. But eventually I made my way there, and I was glad I did.  Little Averill proved to be a pearl.

I got out my camera; I had my Nikon F100 with me, the nicest film SLR I ever owned. With a 20 mm lens, I knelt on Little Averill’s shoreline. Through the viewfinder I framed the water’s edge and the far off mountains. Wow, it was beautiful. “Click” After taking the picture, I looked over the top of the camera, and stared down the pond’s tranquil expanse. The surrounding warmth of a summer day. The hyaline waters. The silent forest. The clouds climbing the green hills. A sense of perfection hung in the air. And for that instant, time disappeared.

Posted in Environment, On the Road, Photography | Leave a comment

Stripers love Sand Eels

Posted on May 4, 2011 by Ed Mitchell

 

School of Sand Eels

Like to fly fish from shore for striped bass? Along the northeast coast? Well then sand eels are your friend. How come? For one thing, these slim, oily forage fish call stripers like a moth to a flame. And that includes big bass too. Real big. Sand eels are also easy to match with a dressed hook, another plus. And to top matters off, sand eels pull bass extremely close to the beach – well inside casting range-  and do it in a fixed circadian rhythm, allowing anglers to predict when and where the action is likely to unfold. Sweet stuff.

Stripers love sand eels of all sizes

Look for them along sandy strands, especially where terns build they nests. In protected areas of modest current, such as you find up inside lagoons, and salt ponds, you’re apt to find juveniles sand eels. Expect them to arrive by mid May. These “paper match” size pups were born during the prior winter. A cold December -January period produces the right conditions for spawning success. And yes, these little sand eels are one that flats anglers encounter. The young tikes are often only 1.5- 2″, requiring small flies on hooks down to size 4#.

On the open coast, or in places of stronger current such as salt pond inlets, you’ll run into the adults. These dudes are considerably bigger, typically running upwards of 4″. On occasion, you may run into some much longer. These are the offshore variety of the clan, and do visit some open ocean locations. Block Island, ocean side of the Cape Cod, some to mind. Now 6″ flies are on the menu.

After watching bass chow down these things for years, hell, I decided to try one myself. Grabbed a sand eel, popped it into my mouth , and gave it a few chews. ummm. It had a fresh salty flavor, much like a quahog. Yummy, actually. Boy, those striped bass know what they’re doing!   ,,,,,,,,More Below

YoY Sand eels      Tying a Sand Eel Fly

Posted in Flies and Fly Tying, Fly Fishing in Salt Water, Fly Fishing On the Beach, Wild Things | 1 Comment