Cast Adventures Posted September 4, 2008 Report Share Posted September 4, 2008 The Canadian Fly Fisher Magazine and Fly Max Films came down to Niagara Falls for a visit last week. We spent four days fly fishing the Niagara region for Smallmouth bass and Muskie. For all you readers that have never tried this before, you don’t know what your missing~! Oh ya, and if you fish bass tourney’s, this is way super sneaky way to catch huge smallmouth bass when the bite is tough or your dealing with pressured waters. The first two days were on Erie. Conditions were near perfect, light winds with just a sight chop on the water. You could see the bottom in 12 feet. The game plan, run and gun areas looking for schools of bass. This is what made it so much fun for me, sight fishing! With the Electric motor on high, we searched the flats for the bronze backs. Good polarized sunglasses are a must. It takes a little getting use to, but spotting these fish on the bottom is easier then you think. Once you have one in your sights, getting them to take your fly is another story. This is when the Adrenaline would kick in and your heart rate doubles. Steady hands and good fly placement will determine the number of opportunities you get thought out the day. These bass will spook, it is best if you can make the right cast on the first try. You don’t want to cast right on top of the fish you’ve spotted. Try and put the fly slightly ahead of the bass. This really helped us. I found that the best flies on this trip were ones that looked like gobies and fished right on the bottom. I haven’t had this much fun bass fishing in years! It was really challenging, but very rewarding. For equipment we used 7 and 8wt rods in lengths from 7”11 to 10 feet. Sage has designed a new line of bass rods that meets the requirements of Canadian bass tournaments (not permitted to use fishing rods greater then 8’ length). Presenting a fly to smallmouth bass in a tournament……hmmmm……that could just be the ticket at times. What’s the difference if you cram a few more rods and reels in the rod locker……Trust me, learn how to cast and try it on your favorite smallmouth waters. Small baits catch big bass! We caught some fish deep, fishing depths from 20 to 27 feet. Here we used full sinking lines with weighted flies but the shallow bites was on! and sight fishing for Smallmouth was extremely exciting!!! There is nothing like it, watching a huge bass swim over to your fly and suck it up off the bottom, man it’s cool!!! Fly fishing for smallmouth on the flats of Lake Erie is right up there with any style of fishing I’ve ever experienced, I highly recommend this! This whole trip was captured on camera by Fly Max Films. Lots of high flying jumps and big smallmouth! If you like the pictures in this blog, Be sure to check video when it’s out! http://www.flymaxfilms.com/ I’ll leave the Muskie story for next time……..(chucking 14” bucktail streamers with a fly rod!!!!! SICK!) Don’t underestimate the power of the fly rod………… Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reef Runner Posted September 4, 2008 Report Share Posted September 4, 2008 Amazing footballs Paul. Cant wait for the Musky on a fly report. WOW. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leecher Posted September 4, 2008 Report Share Posted September 4, 2008 Great report and pics Cast Adventures Real nice looking hogs Looking forward to the musky report. Thanks for sharing Leechman Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwl Posted September 4, 2008 Report Share Posted September 4, 2008 that sounds like a blast Paul, and a great twist to hunting for huge smallies for the day Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cast Adventures Posted September 5, 2008 Author Report Share Posted September 5, 2008 JWL, Hunting for big smallies is the best on Erie when the winds let you! Last night was perfect, clam,clear water. Even the Walleye bite was on fire before dark. This morning......CRAZY waves and strong winds. No chance for hunting the flats. Try it next time your on the lake and things are flat..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jwl Posted September 5, 2008 Report Share Posted September 5, 2008 JWL, Hunting for big smallies is the best on Erie when the winds let you! Last night was perfect, clam,clear water. Even the Walleye bite was on fire before dark. This morning......CRAZY waves and strong winds. No chance for hunting the flats. Try it next time your on the lake and things are flat..... might try it in the fall,right now my boat and pretty much all my stuff is at my trailer, heading up with a couple guys in 2 weeks to do some serious fishin, and some musky hunting without the wife and kids..won't be bringing the boat home until like Oct,by then is a good chance of some 6-7 lber hogs wind permitting, some muskies on the river,pike in a couple spots...then of course will soon begin the winter of steelie fun on the river ,you will be seeing me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Johnny Bass Posted September 6, 2008 Report Share Posted September 6, 2008 Very impressive smallies and caught on a fly to boot! Thanks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lunkerbasshunter Posted September 7, 2008 Report Share Posted September 7, 2008 wow nice blonde, oops i mean fish! Great report and great smallies on a fly! Cheers! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now