Have you had the experience of struggling to find a fly that would take fish, even when you know the fish are there?  If you are like me, it happens.  There are no cut and dried answers- no absolute killer flies that work all the time.  The conditions on each river are different and each day is different.  The water level- the moon- the weather-  bright day- dark day- the number of factors that impact fishing conditions is endless.  Finding the right fly at any given time can be a challenging process.  

 

In early August, I was fishing the Rapid River in Maine, and the fishing was tough.  I was constantly changing flies and changing presentations in an effort to get some action.  Late morning, I finally put on a cream colored Usual dry fly and on the first cast hooked up with a nice salmon.  It would be easy to assume that I finally found the "right fly" but, I had not.  Over the next ten minutes, I had fish rise to the Usual but at the last minute would veer off.  I had action but, other than that initial fish, no strikes.  As I thought about what was happening, I realized that the fish were looking for something that was "caddis-like" but, the dry Usual was not what they wanted.  I changed to an emerger- the West Branch Emerger- and immediately started to catch fish.  The lesson??? Observe...  Watch how fish take and watch what happens when they don't.  Then try to understand why they are responding to your fly the way they do and make the adjustments.  The result will be a much more successful day.

  

Interested in exploring the Rapid River or other rivers in Maine?  If you are going to explore this area, email me to order flies or for information about the area.