Stocker Trout Fishing News

Lotta fun fishing Denison Dam Saturday for Striped Bass! Brought the Cabelas TLR 6wt Switch Rod with the Echo Ion 6/7 Wt Fly Reel and the OPST Skagit Head. Bite was good on small stripers hitting on the Denison Dam Dawber, Bennet’s Lunch, Bucktail and Craft Fur Clouser Minnows. Fast retrieves using short pulls and fast pulls worked, then they wanted a 10 count delay, later a 5 count delay, and then later no delay in the start of the retrieve. Also, did get better hook up rates by dipping the rod tip in the water while retrieving. And then… later had a high stick, sweep the rod style retrieve that seemed to work well. All of this before the started generating power. After they started generating, then it was cast upriver, let the fly drift downriver and swing the fly, and then twitch the fly as you retrieved in back upriver at an angle. Learned lots while there… bottomline: vary your retrieve, change fishing flies, and adjust to the fish as the pattern changes!

Was in Fort Worth Sunday, fly fishing under a bridge on the the Trinity River. It was just down the street from the Fort Worth Zoo. Used the 2wt Discount Switch Rod aka the MaxCatch Fly Rod with Orvis SL1 Fly Reel and Rio Trout Max Skagit Head. Great combo when fishing under the bridge; was able to get the fishing fly where needed with minimal false casting. Mainly caught Bluegill and Sunfish as well as some Longear, but did get a couple a Bass, too – a small fingerling and another that went about 12 inches. All went for a White Damsel Fly fished wit varying retrieves. Do check it out! MaxCatch 2wt Fly Rod: https://amzn.to/2UfM8FG Orvis Hydros Sl1 Fly Reel: https://amzn.to/2UiRCPS Rio Trout Max (200 grain): https://amzn.to/2HiT2Bs Rio SlickShooter Running Line (35lbs): https://amzn.to/2GGIVsZ

Number 5 in our “Little Red Book of Fly Fishing” series podcast where I review fly fishing tips in preparation for the upcoming Trout Stocking Season.  This week it’s fly fishing tips 17 through 20! Tip 17: Flicking the Tomato Tip 18: Tossing the Grape Tip 19: Tuck It In Tip 20: To Much Too Soon Do check it out! Book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2QczofU

As part of our Little Red Book of Fly Fishing series on our iFishNews Fishing Podcast, here is a video to expand on Tips 3 – Point Your Cast and Tip 10 – Watch Your Thumb. Point your cast suggests where you point your rod tip is also where your cast will go. Watch your thumb is a good rule of thumb… LOL, to keep you from bringing your rod to far back on the backcast. Both tips are solid… so since we are at a pond “practicing” decided to go ahead and go fishing, too!

Here is a simple but effective variant of the Mickey Finn fishing fly. It makes for fast fly tying, made with minimal material, and can be upsized to target larger fish. In our case, we opted to tie it small to pair it with the Cabelas CGR 2wt Fiberglass Fly Rod when fishing for little fingerling Bass at our local pond! Recipe is as follows: Size 12 or 14 Streamer Hook Pearl Tinsel White Dacron Tying Thread White Deer Hair Green (Chartreuse) Deer Hair Click on pictures to see more about Cabela’s CGR Rod/Reel Combo and deals they are offering!

Number 4 in our “Little Red Book of Fly Fishing” series podcast where I review fly fishing tips in preparation for the upcoming Trout Stocking Season.  This week it’s fly fishing tips 13 through 16! Tip 13: Tighten the Loop Tip 14: Anticipation… It’s Crazy Tip 15: Groove Your Swing Tip 16: See the “U” Do check it out!

Saturday, made the run to the Lower Mountain Fork for some fishing at Beavers Bend State Park near Broken Bow, OK. Been awhile since we went fishing on the Lower Mountain Fork, so did learn a few things… new fishing regulations and park fees – specifically, parking. Was a hot day with lots of people out and about. Water was murky, too. So, struck out on trout but at least caught a couple of Bluegill to avoid a strikeout! Do check out the video… lessons learned fishing the Lower Mountain Fork at Beavers Bend State Park – stay up to date on fishing regulations and park rules; fish for trout in cooler weather, and try scheduling a trip during the weekday to avoid the crowds. All for now and Good Luck and Good Fishing!

Back to Lake Lavon for more fishing. This round went kayak fishing with the jug lines, putting in at Highland Park. Was a calm morning on the lake when we started fishing, but later the wind kicked in. Caught several Blue Catfish and Channel Catfish. Ended up keeping three Blue Catfish. Jug lines worked well as well as the Safety Pins for the Tennis Ball Stringer… worked much better putting fish on the stringer compared to the shower clips we used before. Bite was steady with Gar taking more like stealing our shad. But, once we adjusted the jug line sets to fish the area near the trees, the bite picked up on Catfish! Liking the jug lines when kayak fishing; mix of diy jug lines styles posted by  @LakeForkGuy  and  @Soat Mon  Fun trip… do check it out!

Another round of fishing with the Cabelas CGR Fiberglass Fly Rod – 2wt fly rod with an Echo Ion 2/3wt Fly Reel. Fun time catching fingerling bass using a Mickey Finn variant. Tied the pattern on a size 10 streamer hook that cast easily with the Cabelas CGR Fiberglass Rod. Still liking the flex of the fiberglass rod! Will plan to get a video on how we tied the Mickey Finn variant. Do check back! Click on pictures to see more about Cabela’s CGR Rod/Reel Combo and deals they are offering!

DIY Jug Lines worked…! Will get a video posted of the trip. Here is a Livestream update for now:

DIY video to answer the mail… how to make jug lines for kayak fishing. In this case, the jug lines we used to catch a nice Catfish the other day… https://youtu.be/xEr5F5tYT3g Have tried various jug lines including commercial and homemade diy jug lines. So far, liking this one. It does not flag but works well in windy conditions and is sensitive enough to see the strike. Do give these a try! Easy to make jug lines, and you don’t have to use the same material as listed below. Can substitute material as needed! Here is the material list… 3/4″ PVC Pipe 3/4″ End Cap Braided Line Dropper Line Circle Hooks Trot-line Clips Screws Barrel Swivels Zip Ties Weights

Third in our “Little Red Book of Fly Fishing” series podcast where I review fly fishing tips in preparation for the upcoming Trout Stocking Season.  This week it’s fly fishing tips 9 through 12! Tip 9: Take a Bow Tip 10: Watch That Thumb Tip 11: Say Hello to Good Casting Tip 12: William Tell Overture Do check it out! Book on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2QczofU

Another fun trip to beat the heat; this one is a TBT to Turner Falls Park in Davis, OK. The OPST Commando Head made for ease of casting by the Waterfall using an “air anchor” to avoid the metal railing along the walkway. See full video at: https://youtu.be/n-vkX-REKkc

Decided to fish a little feeder creek with the Cabelas CGR Fiberglass Fly Rod. It’s a 2wt with an Echo Ion 2/3wt Fly Reel. Handy fly rod that makes for fun fishing for little bluegill, sunfish, and fingerling bass! Been using the Cabelas CGR off and on over the years, and have not had any issues… do need to make a slight adjustment in timing the cast as the fiberglass rod has a slow action. Liking the rod and the ability to take advantage of rod’s slow action to get a fishing fly to where the fish are lurking… of course in this case, a little feeder creek required minimal casting distance. PS: Lots of rain that morning caused another pond upstream from where we fished to overflow. Able to catch a Bass being washed down the feeder creek. See it at… Cabelas CGR Fiberglass Rod 2wt Echo Ion 2/3 Fly Reel: https://amzn.to/2JvGgjZ Click on pictures to see more about Cabela’s CGR Rod/Reel Combo and deals they are offering!