Fly Fishing In Early Spring Presents Challenges, But Can Be Very Rewarding

Ah, Springtime, the months of fly fishing ahead are on everyone's minds. Well, the true diehards have been fishing all winter practically, but Spring is the renewal of nature and the official launch of the new season of fly fishing ahead. For aficionados, this is an event to be sure not to miss.

Spring fly fishing, however, offers its own set of challenges that anglers should be aware of. Landing that big trout in a high-mountain stream, or a dream bass in a back-country river will be reward enough for the extra care and caution the fly fisherman must take in the Spring.

Spring, as everyone knows, brings showers and pretty much every body of inland water, but especially rivers and streams, will be running high with all the extra moisture. In the mountainous areas of the West and East there will also be significant snow melt and those tranquil brooks of summers may be torrents of rushing energy in the Spring.

This is a safety issue, surely, but it also has an effect on the fish themselves. With the rivers and streams running strong, fish looking to feed will concentrate in pools or in the slower water near the river's edge where it's easier for both the fish and the feed sources to navigate. Plus, the fish will be coming out of their winter doldrums, and as the water heats up through the Spring months their appetites will grow increasingly voracious.

The rushing water, though, will often cause the streams to be muddy, and many fisher people believe that this makes for bad fishing conditions. On the other hand, many veteran fly fishing experts and river guides believe quite the opposite, because the rain and snow run-off has a tendency to wash more food into the river, causing the fish to be more active in dirty water. These experts advise that trout especially will be active in such conditions, and will congregate in the so-called "seams" in the river, the areas where the muddy water and clear water are side by side. Look to cast the "seams."

In areas where steelhead are prevalent, the very early spring is an excellent time to catch them on the fly. These beauties are heading to spawning spots and to go after the ones you really want, catch them upstream before spawning.

Unlike summer, when air and water temperatures in any given area will remain fairly constant, Spring is a time for constant change. Since the water temperatures will be just above freezing early on, and then warming up as the months turn to summer, the basic foods of many a great sport fish will change almost every week. Experts advise to keep a tackle box well stocked with a wide variety of fly types to meet the rapidly changing conditions.

Early on, when water temperatures are still quite cold, there won't be many insect hatches, so trout and other stream fish will be on the lookout for the type of food sources available year-round. These include leeches, scuds, minnows and immature nymphs. Keep a supply of streamers as well as a good stock of large and small nymphs.

As the water warms up, first hatches, usually with dry-fly favorites like stoneflies, midges and little black caddis, can be seen. The extent of the hatch will depend on the river's temperature, speed and depth, but look for trout during the warmest part of the day just below fast riffles and in side eddies in the stream.

When water temperatures start to rise consistently into the high 40s, the first of the mayflies will appear, usually the BWos and Blue Quills. Just before noon in many places is when you will see the heaviest activity because it is the warmest part of the day.

The bigger hatches will begin when the water temps get into the mid-50s for a few consecutive days. Where the early hatches bring only limited fish activity, the bigger hatches are usually too good for them to pass up, and they will beat a path to the surface for a feeding frenzy.

Also, spring fly fishing experts advise that the most effective fly fishing at this time of year includes dead drifting a heavy nymph with a strike indicator or a larger dry on a weight-forward floating fly line. This gives the sports person the option of fishing nymphs deep or dry fishing on the water surface. They add that floating fly lines in early spring should be about 9-feet to 12-feet in length, matching the tippet to the fly size, and that anglers should use longer, fast-actions rods - 9 to 9 ½ footers - to help handling the excess fly line on the water. Longer rods also are a wise choice for the larger pre-spawn fish.

Early spring fishing can be a cold, damp experience , but that doesn't mean it won't be rewarding. It's been a long winter and there's no time like the present - the arrival of Spring - to begin a new season by tackling your first fish since fall.


Copyright (c) 2011 Gerry Stringer