Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => Fly Fishing Cafe => Topic started by: rhino on August 31, 2009, 05:56:59 PM
-
hello,
I have just got into fly fishing this year. Had a couple successful outings so far and Im hooked!. I am interested in learning about some flows (i know about the vedder but I dont know if I would i have room there to back cast and also so many people) where I could go fly fish for coho/spring. some techniques, presentation pointers and type of water to look out for will be much appreciated. Not looking for secret spots.
I have a 4pc 8wt sage flight with a lampson reel. does this rod have enough power for a big coho or average size spring?
Thank you in anticipation! :)
-
It will be fine for any coho but a bit on the weak side for springs. I use a 9/10 for springs.
-
It will be fine for any coho but a bit on the weak side for springs. I use a 9/10 for springs.
thanks for the post. any other tips you willing to share? :)
-
almost any run below the Vedder crossing will have ample back casting room and be the better water for fly fishing. you will primarily be using a sink tip for river fishing and some of the time with weighted flies. an 8wt is perfect for all smaller and medium sized salmonoid species. an 8wt is doable with bigger springs(20lbs +) but i wouldnt go after them all day because its not good for them or you but the odd one once in awhile especially if you plan to kill it can be done or you just point and snap it off. my biggest to date on the fly was close to 40lbs :o i knew i was going to keep it which is the only reason i played it out, since then my biggest is around 15lbs cause i normally just bust them off instead.
If you know the Vedder then you should already know the popluar spots and for the not so popular spots you need to do some walking and searching.
-
Your rod will be fine for a big coho or average (10-20lb spring). I actually like an 8wt better for fish this size. I tend to lose the smaller fish I get more easily than the big ones, I attribute this to the lighter rod flexing more and absorbing more of the fight whereas a stiffer rod (relative to the fish of course) will have less damping and more spring to it....its not necessarily a "springier" rod.... I hope that makes sense. Anyways I'd bet you would do fine with an 8...just make sure you have lots of backing, and don't be afraid to break a fish off if it starts to pull your pants down....you don't want to lose your line.
-
thanks for the tips guys. i know the vedder pretty well. any other flows ideal for coho for fly fishing?how should you strip for a coho vs a spring or chum?
thanks again. :)
-
fast strip no pause. Faster strip than spring/pink or chum.
-
what Marmot didnt add is. fast strip in slow to almost non moving water, in a good flow you can get them on the swing no problem as the fly is moving fast enough on its own. I catch lots of them on the swing myself. one thing you might notice though is that you might get more wild ones then hatchery ones. I have found this true every year fly fishing for coho (in the Vedder) you will probably also find you get quite a few jack springs because they just love little flies ;D
-
what Marmot didnt add is. fast strip in slow to almost non moving water, in a good flow you can get them on the swing no problem as the fly is moving fast enough on its own. I catch lots of them on the swing myself. one thing you might notice though is that you might get more wild ones then hatchery ones. I have found this true every year fly fishing for coho (in the Vedder) you will probably also find you get quite a few jack springs because they just love little flies ;D
thanks foe the info guys. it will be very helpful shortly! as far as water type is concerned do you have any recommendations/suggestions?
-
Try the Harrison as well. Not the main flow but all the back channels. Its requires lots and lots of walking. Look for frog water and fish moving.
-
what pound test you guys running for leader? This is my first coho fishing yr.
-
I start off with 8lb normally and if i find im not getting hits then i will go to 6lb however if im getting fish on the 8 and breaking off i will step up to 10lb which usually means no hits so i go back to the 8lb ::) landing them on 6lb can be a task in the river though and you tend to tire out the fish to much for a good release (if you cant keep it) thats why i use heavier line.
-
Thx hook.
-
8lb and I have never had a problem. Short leaders around 3-4 feet.
-
8 lb or 10lb if the flow is faster with color, but remember to always check your leaders for damage from rocks and stuff.
Nothing worse than losing a fish due to beat up leaders and that's how I lose most of my fish.
-
do you guys fish mostly pool type water for coho's on the fly? or shallower choppy stuff?
-
well coho water is kind of everything LOL they really like pocket water (hard with a fly rod) and frog water (almost like stillwater) but they will also sit along the edges of where the chinook and chum are and will mix in completely with them also (bigger coho mainly) I have caught them in all types of water. I dont go out specifically targetting coho water because i just like to go fishing but i do manage to get some anyhow ;D
-
Actually I find it differently than what Hook describes it as. The coho I have found usually are nowhere near where the chum and springs are. The springs like the deep stuff and the coho will usually stay away from the springs and hug the edges. Just from my observations.
-
LOL I did say that in my post BB ;) coho will also occupy the tailouts of runs especially if big springs have taken over the deeper areas. Lets just say i have found them everywhere LOL but then again i have had huge numbers of big springs in less then 3 feet of water also but you couldnt see them sitting there which was awesome. ;D I find i catch more jack springs when fly fishing then i do coho and the coho i get tend to be wild like say 5 to 1 needless to say i dont get very many hatchery coho which im fine with anyways cause i just like to fish and dont kill to much anymore.
Rhino - just go fishing, pick an area to explore and you will find some fish and if not then have other options. Unless you find a great spot right away then try different areas each time which will help to learn the river alot more and even find uncrowded areas with loads of fish.
-
will do . i like this post. very helpful. Last year I figured out to be a little more consistent with the coho. but thats center pin fishing. not fly. some are very deep runs and pools and others were white foamy water thats moving very fast. seems to difficult to fly fish. for me anyways as this weekend will be my 4th time fly fishing but i have connected 2 out of the previous 3 times. looking to extend my streak!!Here is a pic from sunday. fist ever salmon on the fly! *%$#in awesome! ;D ;D
(http://i829.photobucket.com/albums/zz217/m1vancouver/020.jpg)
-
Actually I find it differently than what Hook describes it as. The coho I have found usually are nowhere near where the chum and springs are. The springs like the deep stuff and the coho will usually stay away from the springs and hug the edges. Just from my observations.
Totally agreed, you have to ask yourself. Do I want mr. Ho or do I want to catch fish? You can catch Coho in different type of water, but hard to catch them on fly.
-
Has anybody been out fishing for coho on the fly yet?
-
Has anybody been out fishing for coho on the fly yet?
Yes but no luck.
-
I am looking for a few coho patterns to tie for the river this year. I am a rookie "coho" fly fisherman. Most of my experience has been honed on stillwater lakes but I am really interested to give the river go this year. I read an article about Kelly Davidson (sp?) doing a study a few years back and concluding that coho are more likely to target yellows/reds. I believe that is how his KCK fly pattern developed. I've read on the board about rolled muddlers etc... anything else to throw in the box?
-
I dont have a picture of it but my best coho fly besides the rolled muddler is an Xmas tree variation. its just basically a flash fly very basic and easy to tie
Size 6 Tiemco (2488 or 2499SP-BL) or any size 6 glo bug style hook (egg pattern hook)
crystal flash - do in these three colour patterns. Blue/green, silver, silver/blue. there come together like these so its just three packs.
1/8th sized bead (metal bead not lead/tungsten)
I use red thread myself but you can use whatever i guess.
1 put bead on hook so that the Larger hole faces the hook eye
2 anchor hook in vise
3 push bead to the rear of hook, now anchor your thread on close to the hook eye
4 tie in your crystal flash so that it hangs forward OVER the hook eye. whip finish and cut off thread
5 push bead up OVER the flash material, re attach thread behind bead
6 pull flash material over the bead trying to keep it from rolling around the bead at all.
7 tie thread around the material to anchor it down behind the bead, DO NOT run the thread down the hook very much.
8 whip finish and cast off thread. cut the flash to a little longer then the entire hook.
9 add lots of brushable head cement over the flash on the bead so its strong.
10 DONE !!!
it seems like alot of steps but it really not, i just broke it down really well. this fly will also catch cutties, I know because i got a 22incher last year on one ;D ;D
Have fun out there
-
Hook,
Thanks for the detailed break-out. I'll definitely give those a whirl.
Mike
-
Oh yeah,
I stumbled into an interesting article last night from Steelheader Magazine. It was about Bill Turnbull's Vedder River coho flies. This may be of interest to those who tie. There are no recipes given but they provide pictures of some of his favorite's.
I am going to tie up a few of these too.
http://www.steelheadermag.com/article0216.html
Mike
-
I'd try the lower Vedder on some slower moving runs or maybe the Dewdney Slough or Stave River toilet bowl for that Frog water.
-
Olive wooley bugger in the Cap works everytime
-
di wanna try inch creek this year for coho on my fly rod. Do u think that the coho will take trout beads or glow bugs under an indicator its basically tghe same thing as the drift fisherman right?? just wondering if anyones has tried this technique with some degree of sucees?
-
when you guys are referring to Inch creek are you actually meaning Norrish (Suicide) creek. Inch creek is basically a really shallow trickle and im not sure if you can even fish it :-\
if your talking about Norrish then yes very small glo bugs can be very good especially if your amongst a bunch of roe chuckers. I would also try swinging/retrieving flash flies and rolled muddlers (try pink) because they work well in that river. The fly i mentioned in this thread is my go to fly for this river however im not giving away where i like to fish it ;)
-
yeah i mean norrish so they do work there. what size is "small" size 10,12 or should i fish trout beads. oh maybe peg a pink trout bead above a peach coloured glow bug so i have to different colours and a better chance. what kinda indacators should i use?? yarn ones or the new dne balsa ones?? also its pretty hard to cast and retrieve with all the gear sluts chucking their wool and roe.
-
I would use the big quick release indicators, and i mean the big ones because your going to want one or even two decent sized split shot on the line. you could also try using a tiny dink float LOL which they do sell cause i have some. I would tie glo bugs in like a size 6/8/10 in a few colours like Red, Orange, Pink, Peach, Green and perhaps even blue. If you notice the roe guys getting fish on a certain colour its a good idea to copy it because the fish will key on colour if the water is being chummed for you ;D Of course you could try trout beads i dont see why they wouldnt work. With the glo bugs i would tie some mixed coloured ones also like Orange with a dot of Red.
-
When should a person use split shots?whats this indicator your talking about. I usually just fish with no weight, tried split shot before but found line wasn't flowing off the rod nice so I took it off.I'm using a sinking line, maybe just a bad fly to weight combo?
-
im only suggesting split shot if you wanna fish a glo bug like a tuft of wool on a fly rod. I tie my glo bugs with metal beads to keep the fly down but also add a split shot. you can get the strike indicators at alot of places, here are a few that have some: Reaction Fly & Tackle, Michael & Young, Army & Navy, basically all shoprs should have them. the tiny dink floats i got at A&N for fishing jigs for pinks (for my brothers when they were down)
you can also just cast with a sink tip and let your glo bug dead drift this way also. you want to make sure your mending properly or you will just be swinging and long lining fish however. if you choose this way i really suggest adding a bead above the egg yarn but when you do the yarn tie it up close enough that it sort of hides the bead ;) using this technique for glu bugs while very effective its also a little tougher to keep your fly in the zone longer like the other method does. If im going to bother fish glo bugs i like the first method but i dont fish them much for salmon at least.
-
I use a sinking tip so i guess strike indicators would out of the question then.Can you buy glo bugs I've never heard of them?
-
Hey Mike,
Glo Bug = http://www.danica.com/flytier/jwestphal/glo_bug.htm
Can be purchased at any fly shop or A&N.
-
I slayed a lot of Coho,with the odd pink thrown in this weekend on the Vedder ,man my arm was sore.Seen a few springs taken,that's the next fish i want.
thx Hookmeup
-
I use a sinking tip so i guess strike indicators would out of the question then.Can you buy glo bugs I've never heard of them?
Here's a link to a fly tying video (very easy and quick to tie): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dH89oNSlMIA (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dH89oNSlMIA)
Cheers,
Todd
http://www.bcflyfishingadventures.com/bcflyfishingadventures_034.com (http://www.bcflyfishingadventures.com/bcflyfishingadventures_034.com)
-
You might increase your chances by using a faster sink-tip line, fast-sinking poly leaders or tungsten beads, which will enable your fly to reach slightly greater depths in the heavier water, but it is important to resist the urge to strike at every bump or tug, as your chances of snagging fish will increase as well. Using "circle hooks" will also help to redue the chances of snagging fish.
I tend to use a medium-paced, erratic hand-twist for situations such as this, and employ a strip-set once I've felt the weight of the fish. This retrieval method allows "followers" the opportunity for multiple strikes when the fly pattern has a longer tail or if they miss their target - while avoiding the flesh of salmon that the hook might have inadvertently bumped into.
Another proven tactic is to "high-stick" with heavily-weighted egg patterns or peach-coloured Czech Nymphs. I have caught many Coho in pocket-water and pools using this technique, where 'conventional' methods simply aren't as effective.
If you're fairly new to Coho fishing, I'd personally recommend focusing on the type of water that is more conducive to fly fishing (frog-water, shallow pools and sloughs), which is generally much easier and offers instant gratification that builds confidence for newbies and novice anglers. The key is to make any form of angling a fun and enjoyable experience, as a happy and confident angler is a successful one...
Cheers,
Todd
http://www.bcflyfishingadventures.com/bcflyfishingadventures_034.com (http://www.bcflyfishingadventures.com/bcflyfishingadventures_034.com)
-
I gotta say there are many inconsiderate people that fish on the Vedder.I was fishing this pool or say edge of bank that the Coho seemed to like very still water.Nobody was fishing this spot it was clear all around me I was like sweet! good area to back cast and space from others.There was still a lot of people lined up and down the bank on both sides.Some were catching the odd coho and still catching pink.So I started casting and it didn't take long before I was hitting fish and landing coho after coho.People started to notice,then they started to close in! I had floats coming in from everywhere even as I was in the middle of a cast,even had one hook my line.I was getting mad but said nothing by this time it was the middle of the day almost turkey time I had caught 20 or so already, arm was dead.I was shocked to see that people were like this over fishing I love fishing too,but have some respect for each other.I would never do this to any body.Oh and I couldn't believe all the beer cans.I'm not a tree hugger but clean up after yourselves.