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After reading all of Ernie's reports on catching bluegill and seeing guys hauling in shad on the fly, I decided it was time for me to give fly fishing a shot.
Based off a suggestion I read from Ernie in another post, I picked up a 7wt and hit up a pond to give it a go.
I was amazed at the attention the poppers were getting even with my horrible casting skills. I was able to pick up a bunch of 1-2lb bass off a larger chartreuse popper. I loved how easy it was to remove the hook from the bass.
a big bass guy at heart, i gave into my desire to throw a big bait. I threw out a big swimbait and got slammed by this 4lber right where I was catching the smaller bass. she would've been fun on the fly!
After some fun with the larger popper and swimbait, i decided to explore the rest of my new fly tackle. Tied on a clouser (i think?) and was pleasantly surprised when i hooked up with a large bluegill. LOVED the way these guys fight. forgot how much fun they could be. missing my days on the upper potomac.
here are some pics of the bluegills. they loved the smaller blue popper. they'd nail it as soon as it hit the water. The thing that sucked, for me, was how hard it was to unhook bluegill with their tiny mouths. Going to have to invest into a dehooking tool for those guys.
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Nicely done Andrew!
The BG issue will get better for you as you learn the nuances of those quick strikes. Keeping the line tight will help as well as lifting the stick quickly.
It's all good!!
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A nice pair of fishing forceps will do the trick for deep hooked BGS. I also crimp down all of the barbs.
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Well done for your first time! I need to give it a go...
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give it a try! Orvis is doing free lessons right now. I signed up for it. they have this one rod/reel combo that appears to be a great one for beginners, the encounter. they're giving 20% off right now too!
only problem with the encounter is the 7wt is hard to find and might be on back order.
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