Dry Flies or Wet Flies

by Rob R.
(Wichita Falls, TX )

Since starting this Tenkara journey I have caught many fish carp, bass, sunfish, bluegill and of course many trout. In regards to the flies, I have caught fish using dry flies but I have caught many more fish using wet flies, in particular nymphs. One of the things I quickly noticed in Minnesota was I would spot fish surface feeding and there were obvious insect hatches occurring at the time. I had a variety of flies in various sizes so I was trying to match the size of fly to the hatch. Nothing was happening. I got fed up with that approach. I switched to a bead head nymph and cast to the surface feeding trout and guess what? Started catching fish. The two most successful flies I used were Ishigaki Kebari and the bead head nymph. What does this mean? It means I don't worry about whatever is hatching. I won't waste my time watching for the hatch, searching the flies and retrying. Now I just keep the fly in the water. Seems to catch more fish.

“The bitterness of poor quality remains long after the sweetness of low price is forgotten” - Benjamin Franklin

"Be sure in casting, that your fly fall first into the water, for if the line fall first, it scares or frightens the fish..." -
Col. Robert Venables 1662

As age slows my pace, I will become more like the heron.

We've all had situations where seriously chewed up flies kept catching fish after fish after fish. It is no sin to tie flies that come off the vise looking seriously chewed up.