The sport of fly fishing has in the past been all about catching trout. Using fly fishing techniques, today it is now possible to catch just about any freshwater or salt-water fish. Fly fishing for bass has become hugely popular worldwide, mainly because of the fighting qualities of bass. Bass on the whole put up a tougher fight than trout – the exception being the big steelhead trout species. Bass have quite a flat body shape – this increases the drag when you try to pull them through the water using your fly rod, which also makes them a tougher fight. There are differences between bass and trout fly fishing, but on the whole, the techniques used are mostly the same.

Smallmouth Bass Fly Fishing Technique

Smallmouth bass are found in rivers and streams. With fishing rivers and streams, quite often there are trees and bush lining the river or stream, and therefore not enough room behind you to make a full overhead cast. Therefore learning to roll cast is recommended. Take a look at the following fly fishing casting techniques introduction for more information on roll casting. Alternatively, you can wade far enough into the river or stream to give you enough room for an overhead cast.

When fly fishing rivers and streams its also important to know how to mend the line. As rivers have faster and slower currents, the fly line may overtake the fly, or the fly may overtake the line, thus disturbing the natural drift of the fly, and possibly spooking the bass. Mending is the technique whereby a section of the fly line is lifted and moved in order to re-align it with the drift of the fly. Smallmouth bass mostly sit and wait for prey in the small pools in the river which are formed by submerged rocks, trees, or other objects. Target these pools when casting for smallmouth bass. Streamers that look like small baitfish or look like crayfish are quite effective for smallmouth bass fly fishing.

Largemouth Bass Fly Fishing Technique

Largemouth bass are found mostly in ponds and lakes. Largemouth bass flies commonly used are normally pretty big. Deer hair flies are commonly used, and poppers are also quite popular. Terrestrial flies (flies which resemble land based insects that land on the water by accident) are also quite effective. When casting dry flies for largemouth bass, its a good idea to land your fly near to weeds, rocks, lilies or other underwater objects where largemouth bass love to hide when stalking prey. After the dry fly hits the water, just let it float for a few minutes – then make the dry fly twitch, before retrieving the fly slowly. Often the bass will strike the fly as it hits the water.

Bass Fly Fishing Equipment

You can use the same equipment for bass fly fishing that you would use for trout fly fishing. Normally a 6 to 9 weight fly rod can be used for bass fly fishing, with a matching fly line weight. It’s not necessary to have an expensive rod and reel for bass fly fishing, and a good fly rod for someone starting out in the sport of bass fly fishing is the value-for-money St Croix Triumph Fly Fishing Rod. You can use the same double-tapered line used for trout fly fishing, but its recommended that you use a weight-forward line for bass fly fishing. Although you can catch bass with normal trout flies, you will have more success with bass specific flies.

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