Stocker Trout Fishing News

Decided to fish the Blue River Saturday on short notice. Plan was to go next weekend, but not sure how work and play will conflict in the next few weeks. Saw an opening for Saturday, so went for it. Tied a number of fishing flies Friday night after work. Mainly tied Near Deere, Pat's Rubber Legs, and Mop Flies with plan to tie more GRHEN, Pheasant Tail Nymphs, and Muddler Minnows at a future date. Was worried that the heavy rain on Friday into Saturday morning would make the river murky and fast flowing. Luckily, the river stayed clear and the current was not heavy... actually seemed slow. Caught a number of trout releasing all but three. Lost a lot more as my mojo was off.  No worries, was a great start tot eh 2022 - 2023 Trout Stocking Season. PS: Shout out to Donavan and Okie Fly Gal... great seeing ya'll again. Hope to be back on the Blue sooner than later! Try a Redington Classic Trout Fly Rod in 5wt, 9ft

Limited out on trout today to kickoff the 2022 - 2023 Trout Stocking Season in our area! Lots of fun... did learn trout eat clams. Found a small clam in one trout after cleaning it!

It has been some time since we posted the Bass Weight Estimator on our archived blog - CityOfAllenFishing.blogspot.com , but after a few tweaks, it is available once again on our current blog - Stocker Trout Fishing ! Check it out and keep it handy when out in the field fishing for bass. Information is derived from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (link to TWPD's site) . It's meant for catch and release fishing for Bass and estimates the weight based on the length measured to the nearest 1/8 inch. Give it a try by clicking on the picture below, or clicking here - Bass Weight Estimator.

Decided to tie a Wooley Bugger to my  @GoFish Cam  several seasons back, and then "troll" it in a shallow side creek to the main channel of the Blue River. Was surprised how many trout were in the less than knee deep water as well as some that were near my feet! Step lightly when wade fishing! 

Good pattern to keep at the ready with the upcoming trout stocking season in Oklahoma and Texas for us local fishermen. It's a Mop Fly... simple, effective pattern that has worked well for trout fished on a dead drift under an indicator. Do keep this one handy for trout... but keep in mind, it works for Green Trout, too! PS: Here is a quick tie video of how I tie the pattern... Mop Fly!

Betts Hand Tied Popper did well even after getting clobbered multiple times by fish! Fish were liking the pattern. But, I had to eventually swap it for another fishing fly. Bett's Poppers from Walmart

Next in the $2 BFS Lure Series has your's truly fishing an imitation Rooster Tail. Learned a few things that has me leaning towards the Original over the imitation.

Back out to the local pond fishing a Muddler Minnow using vintage gear - Southbend Bamboo Fly Rod and Shakespeare Fly Reel. Was a little slow at first but managed to catch several Bass and Bluegill. Water was clear, could sight cast to most of the time. Was frustrating at times as I could see fish look and then turn away from the Muddler Minnow. Overall, the series has been a fun one to do!

Sometimes a downstream drift to trout may be needed. Here is how I fished the Blue River in Oklahoma one trip when trout were lurking in a pocket. Do give it a try! This trip the trout were not cooperating. They were staying in the pocket but were ignoring the fishing fly. I moved upstream and started using this retrieve and once I got the timing and depth dialed in, the trout struck immediately!

Round 3 of the $2 BFS Lure Series. This one has yours truly struggling fishing an imitation Snapbean. After using less line on the reel and tweaking the magnetic breaks, was able to cast the lure well. Just need to pay attention to casting into the wind... may lead to a backlash so be careful. Also, fished several ponds getting only a fish in each but did well the following day at another pond. Key take away... slow retrieve seemed to get more bites than a fast one! Check the lures out at Walmart Online!

TBT to a trip to the Lower Mountain Fork River fishing for trout at Beavers Bend State Park in Oklahoma. Was a fun time with warm temps but cool waters and lots of trout in the River! See full video at Lower Mountain Fork at Beavers Bend State Park ! Want to get started fly fishing but don't want to spend a lot; do checkout our video series - "Getting Started in Fly Fishing..."

Was out fishing the other day when something splashed in front of me. Was not sure but figured it was a Bass. Checked out the video; it was a Bass chasing a Bluegill.... who won?

Here is the second in the $2 BFS Lure Series where I fish discount lures using ultralight baitcasting gear.  First round, I fished a Crawdad. This time, I fish a hard bait that looks like a Yo-Zuri lure. I started out fishing a Chartreuse one but switched to an Inline Spinner because the pond had lots of greenery fouling the lure. Soon after, a Bass chased a Bluegill into the shallows directly in front of me. Got some cool video of it! That said, I cast the spinner and caught a Bass... may have been the one that was chasing a Bluegill! Afterwards, I lost the spinner to a Tree Fish. I decided to go back to the $2 Lure but went with a White one. I also removed the rear hook and left the front hook on in hopes of fouling the lure less. It did work, caught a Bass and also lost one! I learned a stop and go retrieve works well, and watched a Bass swallow the lure... I set the hook but did not land it. Fun times... to check back, playing around with another $2 Lure... another Yo-Zuri imit...

Another round of fishing in the ongoing Vintage Lure Series where I find old lures at antique stores and fish them using ultralight casting gear aka Bait Finesse System (BFS) Fishing. So far, I have fished the following lures and posted videos on a playlist on YouTube - see video player at the end of this post. Lures fished so far: Round 1 - Cisco Kid Diver - Caught and released 7+ Bass Round 2 - Rapala Floating Minnow - Caught and released multiple Bass Round 3 - Abu Garcia Inline Spinner - Caught and release 20+ Bass For Round 3, I fished an inline spinner that was made around the 1960s. Working the bank of a local pond  which is more like a lake in size and affectionately called Lake Glenn after yours truly. The bite was steady with 20+ fish caught and released. It was Bass and Bluegill.  The Bass were small and scrappy; the Bluegill were small as well except for one section of the pond that held some Bruiser Bluegill. Do checkout the video! Vintage Fishing Series - Lures ...