By Jeff Durniak
Famous Georgia sportsman O’Neill Williams said the best turkey hunter he ever knew was the late Roscoe Reams, who said “patience kills turkeys.” Roscoe’s lesson applies well to fly flingers on September’s skinny waters. Stop. Don’t pop! Have patience.
Let me explain. Our aggressive springtime approach of pop-retrieve-pop is fine at that time when predators chase food. But in September, that retrieve will scare the heck out of summer survivors hiding from herons in low, clear flows. Instead of popping, try some of our Unicoi Outfitters tips: plop, drift, and twitch, and maybe even dance a bit.
Let’s start with the plop. Cast your popper or foam bug just upstream of a likely lair. That could be bankside shade for river bass or an undercut bank for a Rockies cutthroat. Let it land loudly, via a plop or a splat, just like the real bugs do. Then leave it alone. If you just wait, the plop and radiating surface rings often are enough to call them up. But if you pop, you’ll often spook these nervous inspectors and just see a surface bulge from their tail-wag as they dive back toward cover. So, fish the plop first and resist the pop.
Next is the drift. I know you’re really itching to pop, but refrain. Let your popper or hopper drift along naturally. Wait 10 or 20 seconds and just let it ride. If you have a good pair of sunglasses, you might even spot that fat smallie or shoalie with its nose bumping your bug’s butt, as both drift downstream together. It’s sizing up your offering and trying to figure out if it’s real. Don’t spook it with a pop!
Okay, by now you’ve lost all patience and are about to lose your mind, so we’re going let you do something. Twitch the bug. Give a slight twitch of the rod tip and shake the bug without moving it more than an inch or so. I saw a great article recently in a national magazine where the smallmouth guide advises his clients to “bend the knees” of their rubber-legged popper. That’s how subtle of a movement he’s looking for. The same soft twitch goes for your stimulator or caddis on headwater trout pools. After the twitch, go back to the long drift, and don’t take your eyes off that bug! They’re known to disappear.
The one exception happens on summer trout waters. Rig up a fluffy yellow stimulator and add a 2-foot dropper fly to it. Then dance the dry in pools and runs. The deep dropper will anchor your rig and let the top fly dance on the surface instead of tangling above you in the trees. That dancing bug can wake up some plump summer trout.
Give these “patience” techniques of plop, drift, and twitch a try this fall. Maybe even dance a bit if you’d like. Stop by either one of our stores if you need a hand learning the subtle ways of September. Thanks for the lesson, Roscoe!
You can find Jeff Durniak at Unicoi Outfitters. Stop in or call the Helen shop at (706-878-3083) or our Clarkesville store on the square (706-754-0203) if we can help you further. After all, we are pretty darn good trouting caddies!