Bass Fly Fishing Overview and Introduction

Bass Fly Fishing Tools and Tips

The sport of fly fishing has in the past been all about catching trout. Today though, just about any fish can be caught using fly fishing techniques, whether it be freshwater or salt-water fish. Because of the fighting qualities of bass, bass fly fishing has become extremely popular throughout the world. Bass on the whole put up a tougher fight than trout – the exception being the big steelhead trout species. Because of the shape of bass (they have a flat body shape), there is increased resistance when you try to pull bass through the water with your fly rod. Although bass fly fishing differs slightly from trout fly fishing, the fly fishing skills and techniques used are the same.

Smallmouth Bass Fly Fishing Technique

Smallmouth bass are found in rivers and streams. With fishing rivers and streams, quite often there are trees and bush lining the river or stream, and therefore not enough room behind you to make a full overhead cast. Therefore learning to roll cast is recommended. Take a look at the following fly fishing casting techniques introduction for more information on roll casting. Alternatively, you can wade far enough into the river or stream to give you enough room for an overhead cast.

When fly fishing rivers and streams its also important to know how to mend the line. As rivers have faster and slower currents, the fly line may overtake the fly, or the fly may overtake the line, thus disturbing the natural drift of the fly, and possibly spooking the bass. Mending is the technique whereby a section of the fly line is lifted and moved in order to re-align it with the drift of the fly. Smallmouth bass mostly sit and wait for prey in the small pools in the river which are formed by submerged rocks, trees, or other objects. Target these pools when casting for smallmouth bass. Streamers that look like small baitfish or look like crayfish are quite effective for smallmouth bass fly fishing.

Largemouth Bass Fly Fishing Technique

Largemouth bass are found mostly in ponds and lakes. Largemouth bass flies commonly used are normally pretty big. Deer hair flies are commonly used, and poppers are also quite popular. Terrestrial flies (flies which resemble land based insects that land on the water by accident) are also quite effective. When casting dry flies for largemouth bass, its a good idea to land your fly near to weeds, rocks, lilies or other underwater objects where largemouth bass love to hide when stalking prey. Let the dry fly float on top of the water for a few minutes after casting. Make the fly twitch on the water, then slowly retrieve the line. Often the bass will strike the fly as it hits the water.

Bass Fly Fishing Equipment

You can use the same equipment for bass fly fishing that you would use for trout fly fishing. Bass fly fishing normally requires a fly fishing rod between a 6 to 9 weight. Select your fly line weight to match your fly rod. It’s not necessary to have an expensive rod and reel for bass fly fishing, and a good fly rod for someone starting out in the sport of bass fly fishing is the fairly priced St Croix Triumph Fly Fishing Rod. You can use the same double-tapered line used for trout fly fishing, but its recommended that you use a weight-forward line for bass fly fishing. Although you can catch bass with normal trout flies, you will have more success with bass specific flies.

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