brian dunigan
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Mike and I have pretty much developed our tailwater streamer technique side by side, in a sense, so it’s no surprise that our experiences are similar.
Missed strikes can be incredibly frustrating, especially when you get a day full of them and nothing else. There is nothing quite like seeing a 6 to 8 lb. trout blast out of cover, inhale a streamer all the way into its mouth, and spit it out before you can set the hook. I have had the same thing happen with a striper in the 30 lb. range as well – it would have easily been the largest one I’ve caught on a fly if I’d been able to get a hook in it.
Mike states that he is satisfied just to see fish like these. He is obviously more insouciant about it than I.
Unfortunately, missed strikes go with the territory when fly fishing. A flyrod is a rather poor tool for fast-paced fishing, placing several obstacles in the way of a quick reaction to a strike. The thick flyline tends to bow in the current, and you have to take up that slack before you drive the hook home. Additionally, a weighted sink tip line is not very sensitive, dampening vibrations and making it harder to feel a bite. The rod works against you too – even a “stiff” flyrod is relatively limber compared to typical baitcasting gear, meaning it requires a lot more force to drive a hook home.
About the only advantage you get with a flyrod is the length of the rod, which allows you to move a lot of line in a hurry. However, the rod position for the “jerk strip” retrieve doesn’t place you in the best stance for a rapid hookset. Plus, any gear fisherman who has ever thrown jigs or spoons knows that fish almost always strike such baits on the fall. It is the same with streamers. This means that the strike is most likely to occur between strips. This is the most inopportune time for the angler – you’re taking up slack and repositioning your left hand for the next strip. It takes an added fraction of a second to get your hand into position and get that slack out of the line for the set, and that fraction of a second is all the fish needs to spit the streamer.
Also, big trout tend to attack large streamers out of territorial instinct, meaning they often may be trying to “tail bite” and chase the intruder away, rather than actually intending to eat it. Thus, the fish may not actually get the hook very deep into its mouth in the first place.
With all these obstacles, you’re destined to miss a lot of fish. The fish you hook often practically hook themselves – a lot of times, they gently inhale the fly between strips and they happen to still be holding it when you strip the line again, and the resulting hookset is largely due to chance.
If you ever get up to my neck of the woods for a striper trip this winter, we’ll spend a chunk of the day throwing streamers at skipjack. They strike a streamer much like a trout does, but you get the advantage of getting bit on every few casts all day long. It’s a great practice arena for perfecting your streamer technique and sharpening your hookset reflex.
bd
I’ll leave the ratings to the experts.
All I have to say is what I alluded to in the other thread – my 3wt G.Loomis Streamdance Metolius is my favorite flyrod in the whole wide world.
I have a 7′ G. Loomis “Streamdance Metolius” 3wt, and it is absolutely, hands-down my favorite rod in the whole wide world.
This coming week I am returning to the Cumberland river and we’ll definitely get some pics, come hell or high water (both are likely).
High water is likely.
I heard a baseball card collector just the other day saying something about a Mickey Mantle Wookie Card…
bd
Do you dead-drift the black fly larva, swing it, or something else?
Also, do you fish it right at the bottom or higher up in the water column?
Midge fishing is something I could stand to learn more about.
