Who throws streamers in July? Seriously. Why would you want to? There are swarms of insects covering the waters, and trout are hungry for them, greedily sipping them from the surface. Well, that’s the dream anyways.
The truth is sometimes flows are down, waters are hot, the wind is too much for much of anything on top, or the fish just aren’t interested. And we all dream of that 22-incher sticking his nose up in the air to grab your perfectly presented size 16 Elk Hair Caddis, but most of the time we get fish in the 12-14 inch range. While still fun, sometimes the big boys call your name.
Then its time to break out the big stuff.
One of the best joys of fly fishing is watching a fish come up and look at your dry, then eat it. But I think I have come across something that gives just a bit more rush and thrill: Watching a very sizable fish chase down and chomp a big streamer. When you can see the follow, watch them open their mouths and eat it… It’s pretty damn cool.
I got onto a streamer kick after a recent float on the Yellowstone with Shane. He’s a streamer fanatic, so when the dries weren’t working and we grew tired of catching whitefish on nymphs, he tied on a bright ass yellow monstrosity and handed it to me. Within 15 minutes, I had four fish turn on it, with me being able to see the action every time. And these fish were BIG too.
After a couple fish like this:
I was hooked.
Just the other day, we fished a local small water that is legendary for it’s big fish. Most people in the summer are throwing dries, and thinking about it, we bet we were the only ones chucking streamers on that particular water in a while. And it worked great!
Fall is kind of the prime time for streamer fishing, but don’t be afraid to break one out any time. Think outside of the box. That’s always good advice, regardless of if its fishing, working, or living. You’ll be surprised how well it works.
