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Time for Change
by Ken Abrames

One of the things about striped bass that makes them so interesting to many of us is their capacity to be quite selective at times. The right fly is not always the one you hope they are taking. We all have favorite flies and with good reason. They work for us and they are dependable. We have used them over and over again in many situations, and they have a track record that can not be denied. Some of us have so much faith in a certain fly that we will cast it over and over again to the same school of fish until our arms are numb and shaking. It doesn't make much sense when you stop and think about it, but that doesn't stop us in the moment. All we need for the inspiration to keep on casting is for a fish to follow or roll within a few feet of that favorite fly and we will cast and cast hoping for a connection to a miracle. Sometimes it happens.

Miracles are nice and I like them, but I often lack the faith necessary to hang in there long enough to witness their occurrence. I have another method. It doesn't always work but it does often enough for me to hope to find that miracle by looking for it in a different direction. I just change flies. It takes a little work, a little down time from all that casting, but it is often worth it. It is hard for some fishermen to take off a fly that they trust. It may be similar to betraying an old and trusted friend for them, or it may be that they are just too lazy to re-tie a knot or perhaps too timid to embark into unknown and unexplored fly territory. If you find yourself in this situation of casting over and over again into a school of fish that will not take your fly perhaps you should try something a little different: stop casting.

Casting the wrong fly further and further out is a highly overrated methodology in saltwater fly-fishing. Although it is often written about and talked about as the go-to solution to catching fish, it does not work any better than not casting at all. In fact it may prevent you from paying attention to what the fish are feeding on. Put your rod down, close your eyes, shake your head, take a deep breath, cut that fly off and take a long, relaxed look around and watch the fish. Break the casting trance.

It feels good to cast a long line. It feels even better to catch fish. That is pretty simple, but many people prefer to focus on their casting rather than shifting their focus to learn about the fish. There is a big difference in the results of these different approaches. The length of the cast you make is often not as important as the length of the fly that is tied on the end of your leader.

The right fly to use is often the same fly that is not working but tied in a different length. Stripers are often very selective to the size of the baitfish they are feeding on. This is one of the oldest truisms I have ever heard about striped bass and with good reason. Fly pattern is important but the pattern can be tied in many different sizes. When you hear or read that the fish are taking Purple Zebras size 1/0's like crazy it doesn't necessarily mean anything. It could be that the length of the fly in inches is what is important, not the size of the hook. The difference in results can be startling between two different length flies of the same pattern. Many fly fishermen have lots of different patterns in their fly boxes but only two or three sizes in inches overall. They try different flies when they are up against selective fish but do not realize that the length size is often much more important than either the pattern or the retrieve.

The solution is easy. Match the size of the fly to the size of the baitfish. If the fish are being very difficult, go a little bit smaller as the first alternate. Spin fishermen are faced with the same dilemma when they find the bass are on different sized bait than their lures imitate. The most experienced ones use different sized flies as droppers and have found this solution to be the best overall method to use on difficult fish. Spin fishermen can outcast any fly fishermen and even so do not depend on distance but rather on matching the size of their offerings to conform to the size of the bait that the fish prefer. It makes sense and that is why they do it. The use of droppers is a traditional fly fishing technique much older than tight loops and high line speed or chumming for that matter. Spin fishermen have adopted this fly fishing method because is deadly. It comes from wet fly fishing and has been practiced with the fly rod for centuries.

Some younger casting gurus feel their positions as expert casters, i.e., fly-fishermen, threatened by fishing with droppers because they can foul with tight loops and high line speed. This is a hurdle they will have to overcome. Casting serves fishing; it has to be adapted to the method of presentation the angler chooses to use, not be exclusive to it. Fishing with droppers opens the door to older, more traditional forms of fly-casting that have been discarded of late as being old-fashioned and ineffectual. Perhaps these methods are old-fashioned, but they are proven fish catchers and can help put fish on the end of your line when nothing else will. Overall, there is no more effective way to fish with a fly rod in salt water for selective stripers than with the intelligent use of droppers. It's not a modern fly casting solution; it is an old-fashioned fly fishing solution. There is a gigantic difference.

The logic behind droppers is quite simple. Offer the fish a selection of flies in different sizes or different patterns. Let the fish tell you what they prefer. And they do! It is enlightening. If you do not want to fish with more than one fly, then don't. It just takes a lot more time through trial and error to find out what they prefer. Time is precious when you are fishing. There is only so much of it on a tide or when the fish are active. Fishing with three droppers increases your chances of success by 300 percent on every cast. Once you have found out what they prefer you can always remove the flies that are not working and fish with the single fly that is. The dropper method will allow you to find that 'right fly', quicker.

Open up your loops to keep from fouling your flies and slow down your casting. Use heavier lines to get the same foot pounds of torque at slower speeds. The casting rhythm is that of a Waltz instead of break dancing.

Time for change.