A Story From Spring Fly Fishing
and The Lessons It Taught Me
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Everyone loves a good fly fishing story.
But, as an online educator, I’m always attempting to gain a further understanding as to why some days are more productive than others. Was it location, timing, presentation, fly selection, or that I had just enough beer to become a master fly fisherman? It’s hard to tell.
Usually it’s a mixture of all of the above (minus the beer). Even still, from every story, there are lessons to be learned. And hopefully, you can learn something from a one of mine.
Here are a couple lessons that I’ve learned from fly fishing in the Spring:
Fishing the Spring Stonefly Molt
Right Place, Right Fly
Sometimes, by some stroke of luck, I come across a great fishing day where everything just goes right.
Or, at least it seemed that way at the time.
More often than not, after further inspection, I discover that everything aligned for a reason. Sure, I stumbled upon the spot itself, but there were several extraneous factors that led to catching fish.
I had a day like this several years back, when I was fishing the Headwaters of the Colorado River, just below Byers Canyon in the great state of Colorado. It was early March, and the flows were beginning to climb from the abnormally warm weather we experienced over the previous weeks. Usually, in mid-March, the snow still covers the ground, but on this day the snow was nearly gone, and the water had a terribly muddy look to it from the runoff.
I had done some bug seining up there last time I was there, and had come across loads of Golden Stones and Salmonfly Nymphs.
So, I decided that was as good as any place to start. My buddy was rigging up, but I finished before him, so I decided to go make a couple quick casts.
Within five casts I had landed two medium sized brown trout. My buddy came over to ask how the fishing was as I calmly replied, “not bad” holding back a smile that couldn’t be contained. I quickly blurted out, “actually it’s incredible, I already caught two fish!”
He didn’t believe me so I made a few more casts and caught yet another. Our faces lit up with excitement and the rest of the day seemed to be on pace with the first five minutes. If we could throw a Pat’s Rubberleg Stonefly Nymph along soft water in a new hole, we were guaranteed two to five fish per hole. By the time the day was over, we had fished nearly every access point, and had success nearly everywhere.
In total, my buddy and I landed over 25 fish, and hooked into dozens more.
What can you learn from a lip rippin’ day like that?
More than You think!
First, we can recognize that fish are almost always biting on a primary pattern.
Sure, you could pick up a few fish on a streamer or a one-off fly occasionally, but if you spend time dialing it in, you’ll find that most of the fish are feeding on a single insect, sometimes even a single fly.
They also seem to feed in certain spots: at the end of holes, on the runs against grassy banks, or on the edges of any hole in the story above. These are all examples, but finding the fly pattern or insect species + stage they’re primarily eating, along with the main feeding location, can yield great results.
So, how do we figure that all out? For starters, when it comes to insects, you’ll need to hone in your fly selection skills. Which, in turn, combines a mix of knowing your insects and stages, so you can come prepared with a well stocked box for that particular river and season. This also might take a little observation when you’re actually out on the river itself.
Use a bug seine, tip over a few rocks. Find the insects themselves, and attempt to distinguish what they are. If you’ve yet to develop these skills, check out my course on Fly Fishing Entomology. Or, sign up for my five-part fly selection mastery series (free).
Figuring out feeding spots is typically trial and error. I find it helps to dial in the insect or pattern for the day first, then try it everywhere on the river until you find the most productive locations. Usually, at that point, you’ll end up with some seriously fun double-digit fish days.
In the story above, we were most likely fishing in the middle of a stonefly molt. Stoneflies hatch above the water on land, and before they come out of their nymph shell and turn into adults. Before hatching, they’ll move to shallow water and molt, often turning a bright color as they do, making them a target for trout.
This is why a Pats Rubberleg in the soft water was so killer. Though we didn’t put it all together the day we were up there, with my increased Entomology knowledge, it’s pretty clear to see in hindsight. If you want to have a day like this, find an insect event (a hatch, a molt, or nymph activity) near you that you can predict and track and you’ll be on your way for success.
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The second lesson to learn here — always take notes of your best fishing days. The truth is, you aren’t lucky that you caught fish that day. You were lucky to have stumbled across what was already happening on the river. So, take note of the weather, the streamflows, water temps, clarity, and the date you fished it. This way, when all of the variables that you’ve already recorded perfectly align (or close to it), you can and should consider repeating your best fishing days.
The final lesson = learning the importance of covering water. Truthfully, if we hadn’t moved around that day, we wouldn’t have caught more than five or six fish. Fishing fresh holes and runs always seems to yield more fish than hitting the same spot over and over again. Every time you cast, cast with purpose and direction. On any given stretch of water, there are five to ten drifts you can hit that might produce fish. Generally, I cast a maximum of three times in the same drift before moving on. All in all, covering more water = discovering trends faster = more chances to exploit patterns. Never put all your eggs in one basket, don’t put your time into one hole. Exert the extra effort, try a new location, find the eager trout!
I’ll close with this question: what was one of YOUR most memorable fishing days? Think about it now, relive it in your mind some. Now, did you catch a lot of fish that day? It’s likely your answer is a firm ‘yes.’ More often than not, big fish + plentiful fish days are our most fond memories as anglers. And, when you have another day like this excellent day on the river, pay attention to the lessons it provides. Figure out the primary patterns for fish for the day. Take good notes so you can remember when to revisit the spot. And most importantly, cover a lot of water so you can maximize your fishing success, get some good exercise, and see as much of the beautiful rivers as possible. I’d wish you good luck out there on the river, but let’s be honest — luck isn’t as important as a lesson from experience.
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Passion that isn’t shared with others is wasted. That’s why I teach every one of the 500,000 people who come to this site every year about how to become a better lifestyle angler based on my 20 yrs experience fishing. When I’m not on the river, I’m a husband, father of three, entrepreneuring, keto-loving, deep-thinking, God-fearing man who’s just trying his hardest to love others and serve them the way I’m called to. I love a good laugh and not afraid to waddle down the bank of a river in a water master to get to the good fishing…
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