Fly Tying

More articles from the COAF Field Team. This category is about fly tying. Do check out the articles and let us know if a particular pattern worked for you!



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Annual Channel Catfish Spawn-Lake Ray Hubbard***

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  Great write up on Ray Hubbard!   TxPacker4: ***Annual Channel Catfish Spawn-Lake Ray Hubbard*** Every year, around this time of year, Channel Catfish move shallow to spawn, and become extremely easy to catch. Most people, when they think about catfishing, they picture tossing a rod out, letting it sit on bottom, and staring at their rid/line all day. No one really pictures catfishing as "fast-action". Let me tell you, right now, it's FAST-ACTION. Channel catfish spawn in late spring or early summer when water temperatures reach between 70-80 degrees.. Males select nest sites which are normally dark secluded areas such as cavities in drift piles, logs, undercut banks, rocks, cans, etc. A golden-yellow gelatinous egg mass is deposited in the bottom of the nest. Males guard the nest, and may actually eat some of the eggs if they are disturbed. The eggs, if not devoured, typically hatch in about a week. Fry remain in the nest, under the guardianship of the male, for ab...
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Largemouth Bass Weight Estimator

Here is a Largemouth Bass Weight Estimator developed by Texas Parks and Wildlife! We modified the table to use a calculator format. Here are the details on how the Estimator was developed: Estimating Weight of Largemouth Bass This information is provided for those who wish to hold “paper” fishing events, releasing bass immediately after catch instead of holding them for weigh-in. Figures in the conversion table below represent average weights calculated from statistics on 3,178 Texas bass. By using this table, you can get a reasonable estimate of a fish’s weight. This method is not accepted for official fish records and will never be as accurate as weighing on a certified scale, but it can be helpful at slot limit lakes, or for fishing clubs that wish to provide better care for bass during the hot summer months when fish are easily stressed. Instructions Measure the bass to the nearest eighth of an inch. Go down the first (left-hand) column and locate the row corresponding to the...
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Kastking Zephyr | Checkout Our First Impression Fishing With the BFS Reel | Liking It!

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Kastking Zephyr BFS Reel delivered yesterday. Was able to take it fishing to the local pond. After a few tweaks was able to cast a 1/16 oz Rooster Tail without issue, even caught a little Bass. Here’s to more fish caught using this BFS reel. More to come from an Average Joe’s perspective on BFS fishing! PS: In keeping with our “Learn to fish by our trials and errors” motto, here are thoughts for this round. LEARN BY OUR TRIALS AND ERRORS Adjust spool tension so the line does not overrun the spool when the lure hits the water. Adjust the magnetic brake to reduce a backlash and shift the casting release point left or right as desired. Windy conditions will impact the cast more than a standard bait casting reel. Be aware when casting into the wind and against the wind. Make adjustments as you change lures and when using lures that soak up water like a Rooster Tail, make them after they have soaked in water. Practice “training your thumb” but take it one ...
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Q&A: How We Fish a Tailrace... Denison Dam Tailrace #denisondam #tailracefishing

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Answering the mail from a Reader’s question concerning Denison Dam Tailrace and Lake Texoma. Do check it out and do stay till the end for a bonus tip! Also, here is an outline of the info provided in the video for reference. Question 1: Daily limits for Texoma vs. Denison Dam (tailrace) Answer: TPWD 2019 Regulations and ODWC 2019 Regulations Texoma Striped Bass and Hybrid Striped Bass – No Minimum Length – 10 per day per person – Of which two can be 20″ or greater – Culling is not permitted White Bass – No Minimum Length – 25 per day per person Yellow Bass – No Minimum Length – No daily limit Denison Striped Bass and Hybrid Striped Bass – No Minimum Length – 5 per day per person – Culling is not permitted White Bass – 10″ Minimum Length – 25 per day per person Yellow Bass – No Minimum Length – No daily limit Question 2: Suggested Fishing Gear Answer: Varies based on water fl...
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Cheese Cloth and Bread as Bait

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Received a question about how we used cheese cloth when fishing with bread as bait. Below is a brief summary of what how we do this: Form a bread ball with the bread, Then, place it in the middle of a 4″ x 4″ piece of cheese cloth, Next, take two opposing corners of the cheese cloth, pull them together and thread them on to a Circle Hook. Do the same with the remaining corners of the cheese cloth. With all four corners threaded on to the Circle Cook, twist the bread ball covered with cheese cloth around to tighten the cloth. Finally, pass the hook once through the bread ball, not in the middle but more on the side. This will keep it from twisting off. That’s it… Good luck!
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DIY Dual BFS and Micro Fly Rod | Pond Fishing for Bluegill

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First trip using the DIY Dual BFS and Micro Fly Rod as a micro flyrod, fishing for Bluegill at a local pond. After a slow start was able to catch a few fish using a Near Deere. Used a strike indicator at first, and then removed it once I noticed the fish were chasing the fishing fly. The Echo Ion 2/3wt fly reel with 2wt WF fly line worked well. Able to cast for distance as needed and maintain control. Do have to wait on the backcast as the rod has a slow action. Also, had to use the left hand to increase line speed much like I do with other micro fly rods. Overall, liking the DIY Dual BFS and Micro Fly Rod. Plan to keep the Kastking Zephyr BFS Reel and the Echo Ion 2/3wt in my fishing jacket for these local ponds. Can switch from BFS to Micro Fly Fishing and back again in short order! PS: Slowed the video at several points to demo how I watch the line to set the hook when not using a strike indicator.
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Fly Casting with a Three Foot Fly Rod and no Reel... Hand Hold Revisited? #orvis #practicaster #demo

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This video answers the mail – a YouTube Viewer requested we show the hand hold we used in the video One Rod, No Reel. The intent of the One Rod, No Reel was to show quality fly line was more important than the fly reel, and the suggestion was to focus more on a quality fly line, followed by the fly rod, and then the fly reel for most fishing situations. In One Rod, No Reel, we used a premium but old 5wt WF Fly line that we have since retired… keeping about 8 yards of the forward portion of the fly line, attaching it to a short section of dacron backing, and a rubber band. We then attached the rubber band to the rod handle, and then demonstrated casting without a fly reel as well as catching a trout or two at a local pond. To answer the mail, we removed the 4wt fly reel that was zip tied to an Orvis Practicaster, and used the heavy “rope like” practice line that came with it to show the hand hold used. And since, we still had the fly line used in the One Rod, No Reel vi...
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What is the Best Setup for a Beginner.... #flyfishing

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We received a question from a YouTube Viewer asking, “What is the best setup for a beginner who wants to get started in fly fishing?” Expanding on the question, we learned they would be fishing for freshwater fish like Bluegill and Largemouth Bass as well as saltwater fish like Redfish and Speckled Trout. Subsequently… Fishing both freshwater and saltwater threw us a curve. At first thought, we leaned toward two rod/reel combos – one for freshwater and one for saltwater. But, then we put our brainstorming hat on and came up with one rod/reel combo that would work for both situations. When we came up with our one rod/reel combo we biased the outcome with our personal preference in fly rods. That is, we like fast action fly rods that we overweight (also over-line) one line size… not sure why but it seems to work for us! (see more on over-lining a fly rod) Additionally, since it was tough to describe in generic terms a rod and a reel, we provided the actual ro...
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General Observations for Locating Fish in a River

Great info from one fisherman… Lloyd5: General Observations for Locating Fish in a River I've been fishing the same stretch of the Brazos for many years. Here are some observations on where to find different species in the river. These are not hard and fast rules, but fairly general in nature, yet they hold true an awful lot of the time. Bluegills are typically close to the bank, within about 6' of the edge. Bluegills love cover, so a good place to hunt for them is where there are tree branches in the water, or tree roots. I've seen a lot of bass tearing up the water right at the edge, going for the Bluegills, they are under constant attack, probably why they like cover so much. The further you get away from the bank the larger the Bluegill is likely to be. I've caught them in the middle of the deep zones, but not all that often unless the deep zone doesn't extend to the bank. Typically the further from the bank the larger the Bluegill will be. Bass generally stay i...
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