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Angling Publications - Index

Angling Publications - Fly Fish America - September 2007 Issue - Index

Once upon a time
a buddy-who was not then a fly fisherman,
but who soon saw the light-and
I were chucking spinnerbaits along the
edge of a big bay near my old home in
the Mississippi River Delta. At the back
of a broad pocket in the grass, a redfish
suddenly made a rowdy pass at a minnow,
then began moving slowly along
the shoreline with its back exposed.
"I think I'll catch that one on a fly,?
I muttered. Then after stowing the
casting rod, I took up my 8-weight
outfit, which was already strung up and
armed with a popper in its ever-present
combo-case. I then stripped out 50 feet
or so of line and while doing so noticed
that the red had changed course and
was swimming toward the boat. At
around 40 feet I dropped the popper a
little short of the oncoming fish, gave
it a couple of soft bloops, and the red
surged ahead and crashed it like an alligator
eating an egret!
A short while after I had released the
fish, my buddy-who had been silent
for some time-softly stated, "Man,
that was fine art!?
Well, I don't know about that, though
compliments are always appreciated.
Truth is, poppers are simply excellent
flies for redfish And if you have some
previously-acquired negative conditioning
about that because of what some
philistines have long proclaimed to be
the fish's "inferior mouth,? I suggest
you try to lose it ASAP. They do quite
nicely when feeding on top, thank you
very much.
I am certain that well over half of the
800-odd reds I've caught on fly fell to
poppers. The first red I caught on fly
in Louisiana waters ate one in size 4
that I was speculating for largemouth
bass. Poppers also contributed to the
best fly-fishing butt-kicking I ever put
on these fish-23 in one morning! No
matter whether one is sight fishing or
blind casting, poppers work.
And the strikes they generate are
guaranteed to add some fine entertainment
to your day on the water. To enjoy
that entertainment to the max, though,
there are some parameters that should
be met for the best use of this fly. First
of all, poppers should only be used in
water less than three feet or so deep, or
when the fish are feeding near the surface
of deeper water.
Generally speaking, as the water's
depth decreases or its clarity increases,
the size of the popper should decrease.
For instance, when prospecting oysters
or other forms of benthic structure in
2- to 3-foot depths, I prefer a size 1/0
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