I spent my childhood years in Ontario, back in the 1960s and was led to believe that walleye were called pickerel. It wasn’t until I was 30 and had moved to New Brunswick that I caught my first pickerel and learned they are not even the same species. What was that all about?

Pickerel also go by “federation pickerel” and in southeastern U.S. they are nicknamed “southern pike”.

Caught My First Chain Pickerel on The Fly

I feel lucky having hooked my first chain pickerel on the flyrod. Because it was a happy accident. A friend and I were actually fishing for brook trout on the fly.

Fishing A Flooded Forest on The Fly Rod

It seems like a very long time ago I had been visiting a flyfishing friend. Wayne was going to show me a little spot he wants to keep quiet about. He told me we would land some large brook trout on the fly.

When we arrived I could hardly believe that he expected me to actually use a fly fishing rod in there. The place was a stand of trees that had been flooded a couple of years before after busy beavers had blocked the flow of water and flooded a large patch of woods.

Wayne told me there were 16″ brookies living there. I didn’t call him a liar nevertheless I’d been considering it. However I became a believer soon after he landed the first 16″ brookie.

Fishing in trees was a brand new experience. I’d fished rivers and lakes for brookies using my fly rod, had even learned to deal with trees behind me but not a forest all about me.

I spent most of my time avoiding trees but did get some brookies. As usual when it comes time to leave I always have to get a few more casts. The second I lifted the fly off the surface for my final cast a pencil like 10 inch fish came flying out of the water and grabbed that dry fly.

I couldn’t imagine how intense that tiny fish was. That is the day I discovered the difference between a walleye and a pickerel.

Today I fish pickerel any chance I can. My personal best continues to grow from that first 10″ chain pickerel to 25 inches.

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I’ve caught a variety of fish in my time but have to say that I have had the most fun over the years brook trout fishing. The brook trout, also known as speckle trout, have been entertaining me for more than 40 years.  So I would say I’m quite fortunate to have so many brooks, stream and beaver ponds close to where I live in New Brunswick Canada.

Brook trout are located pretty much anywhere the water is clear, cold and running which covers almost all the waters where I live. I don’t think there are many places here in Canada we don’t have brook trout. Of course Brookies don’t stop at the U.S. border as they all have dual citizenships.

The rainbow, brown and lake trout are great fun as well but where I live it’s only at certain times and places these species are available however the brookie is available from opening day right through closing day of fishing season.

Trout Fishing Tip #1

Trout Fishing Using Live Worms

From opening day during trout season you can catch brook trout on worms day after day. It’s a food source that’s not natural to the trout but they sure love em. They like them so much it surprises me that there are any trout left.

I like to rig things easy and fast so depending on where I am fishing I will use a worm, a hook and a little sinker to keep it closer to the bottom. How simple is that.

When I take kids fishing for trout, and the water is deep enough, like when we fish the local trout ponds I bring along bobbers so that we can set them for the depth we want to fish. It helps to keep the kids from snagging the bottom so much and they don’t need to pay so much attention to the fishing.

It’s important to show kids a good time when fishing or they may not have fun and never get hooked on the sport, so take those bobbers along.

Trout Fishing Tip #2

Trout Fishing Using Artificial Baits

I like using live worms when fishing brook trout but I also keep some artificial worms for those times I didn’t get live worms or run out of them which happens a lot. One product I like is from Berkley.

Berkley Gulp Alive Maggots $ 5.99

NEW Berkley® Gulp!® Alive!™ is the next generation in Gulp!® technology. Now your favorite baits come floating in the “Magic Gravy” in a sealable jar, enabling you to recharge your baits by putting them back into the jar for the next use. The new Gulp!® Alive!™ baits absorb 20% more Gulp!® scent and attractant which, you guessed it, makes them at least 20% MORE EFFECTIVE than the 1st generation baits. They also have a 34% better swimming action than original Gulp!®. WOW! More attractant, better action, BETTER RESULTS than ever before! At Berkley®, our passion is that you CATCH MORE FISH! Get yourself some Gulp!® Alive!™ and go have some major fun! Click to Buy

I like to fish trout using artificial baits as well. On those days they seem a little shy to strike I might tip them with a worm or some other product I purchase like: Berkley Trout Bait.

Berkley Power Bait Trout Bait Twist $ 3.59

Bright, attractive colors swirled together with a sprinkling of dazzling silver fleck — resembling the scales of bait fish that trout love.

Environmentally friendly biodegradable composition. Click to Buy

Mepps and Red Devil lures are two other lures that I always keep in my tackle box. I also keep them in multiple sizes as that can make quite a difference day to day and depending on the water I fish.

Acme Wob-L-Rite $ 3.29
A time-tested favorite of fish and fishermen alike. Wob-L-Rites cast far and true, run deep, and have a darting, side-to-side action that resembles a baitfish in frantic flight. Especially effective for casting on windy days, fishing in swift water, or when you want to go deep where the big ones wait.

SIZE	DESCRIPTION	TYPE OF FISH
1/4 oz.	2-6 lb. test – medium-light spinning, spincasting & trolling	Ideal for pickerel, trout, smallmouth & largemouth bass.
1/2 oz.	8-12 lb. test – medium spinning, spincasting, baitcasting & trolling	Ideal for steelhead, salmon, trout & bass.

Click to Buy

Trout Fishing Tip #3

Trout Fishing on The Fly

I love fly fishing for trout. It’s one of my favourite methods for fishing trout, well really any fish, is using my fly rod and artificial flies. Some of these flies are so tiny that I am amazed every single time I hook into a brook trout with them. Others are bigger and some are ones I actually use for fly fishing Atlantic salmon, Smallmouth bass and Chain pickerel.

Some of the places I take my fly rod look like I’d never be able to use it so, unless it’s fly fishing water only I tend to take my spinning rod as well, for those sections of the river that are too crowded with Alders and other trees.

Brook Trout Flies I Use

I like tying my own trout flies for those days on the water and I never go with anything complicated so even if you never tied an artificial fly you would be able to put one of these together.

Most often, almost 100% of the time I use dry flies. It’s just so much fun watching them take it from the surface of the water, but every once in a while I will use a wet fly, a streamer or even a nymph to get below the surface if they aren’t taking anything from the surface.

My personal favourite dry flies for trout, wet and streamer trout flies:

Dry Flies – Hair Wing Dry Flies – size 8-18

• Gray Wulff
• White Wulff
• Irrisistible

Dry Flies – Fan Wing – size 10-20

• Adams
• Royal Coachman Fanwing
• Dark Hendrickson

Other Trout Dry Flies I Use

• Misquito size 10-20
• Brown Bivisible sizes 10-20
• Brown Hackle Peacock sizes 12-20

Wet Flies

• Black and Grizzly Weighted Wooly Worm – size 2-10
• Coachman Lead Wing Wet Fly sizes 12 -18
• March Brown English Wet Fly sizes 10-14

Streamers For Brook Trout

• Mickey Finn – size – 6-10
• White Maribou Streamer sizes 10-14
• Black Woolly Bugger – size – 6-10

Tying Trout Flies

I have never bought many flies because I like to tie my own flies for trout fishing. I have purchased specific flies so that I could see exactly how to tie them. Fly tying is a great hobby and when it comes to catching fish I get much more enjoyment knowing I tied the flies I am catching fish with.

Fish With Our Children’s Future in Mind

Brook trout fishing, whether on your spinning rod or fly rod is a great hobby but always think conservation for our children and their children. Practice CPR – Catch, Photograph and Release.

Note there is nothing wrong with eating a few trout. I love to keep a few for dinner in the early spring when the water is still ice cold here. They taste great but for the rest of the year I always release them unless I hurt them during the fight and know they won’t survive.

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Turning into a proficient fly fisher begins with learning the way you use a fly fishing rod to throw an artificial fly. Once you’ve accomplished that task an entirely new angling experience opens up to you.

Learning the fundamentals of fly casting only requires 10 or 15 minutes but gives back years and years of fly fishing fun.

I consider myself privileged mainly because my sister’s husband Joe, who had been fly fishing for quite some time before I arrived on the scene, took the time to show me the right way to cast a fly.

That’s 30 years ago and I still get pretty excited whenever I go for a day on the water with my fly rod. There is something special about casting a new fly on the lake and seeing a salmon take your fly.

The Joy of Fly Fishing

Should you be anything like me you’ll be pleased you took those few minutes learning the way to cast a fly. The only time I take my fishing gear from my vehicle is during the off fishing season as I hate missing a fishing opportunity so my fly rod and gear never leave the truck during fishing season.

And now lets start on those five tips for the fly fishing beginner…

Use Your Backyard To Practice Casting The Fly

Don’t wait until you’re at the water’s edge to start practising your fly casting technique. The time I spend fly fishing I must be paying attention to the things around me instead of being irritated attempting to figure out the cast.

I started in the backyard. The first step would be to ensure there were no obstacles behind me that would impede my cast when first learning. I started by making sure I had approximately thirty ft with no obstacles right behind me.

Next, I tied on a fly. Note that I snapped off the hook point to prevent hooking things during practice sessions, things like a tree.

Joe showed me that putting a magazine between my elbow and ribs would make for a better cast and it worked great. In addition Joe showed me that moving the rod within 10 o’clock and 1 o’clock positions during the cast would make it easier and that worked better too.

The Armchair Fly Fisher

I don’t know where I learned about this technique for practicing fly casting but it worked well. I used the end section of my fly rod, attached a 3 foot section of yarn then seated myself in my living room where I practiced holding my arm at my side going from the 10 and 1 o’clock position.

Practice getting the technique down before ever worrying about accuracy or distance. You will be surprised how easy it become to get distance and accuracy once you perfect the stance and arm movement.

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I love catching big fish, but then again don’t we all. But, using a light action rod and reel setup and I don’t mind catching smaller fish. Heck I fish brook trout about 8 to 13 inches long using my light action fly rod or spinning rod.

Smallmouth bass are no different. I love catching the big ones explode on my baits but the little guys of about 16 inches, are great fun on light action gear as well. It’s so cool to be able to watch them dart around your float tube or canoe so fast it’s unbelievable.

My son Steve caught the little guy in the picture below with just a little yellow head jigg and a plastic grub. He was catching them all day long and never changed his bait, other than to replace the grub once it was munched up too much to stay on the jigg.

Steve With His First Bass From His Float Tube

Keep Your Secret Spots Secret

The little spot I took my son is full of smallmouth up to about 15 or 16 inches. I like going here when fishing conditions elsewhere suck. I can usually fish and catch and release dozens of these little smallies all day long.

I have friends that never release fish and friends who practice catch and release like I do and for this spot I only ever take my catch and release friends. I certainly wouldn’t give up this location to any of my catch em and eat friends, I have lots of other places to take them.

Tricked And Treated To A Happy Surprise

The first time at this place was when a friend I worked with took me. He really didn’t tell me anything about it as we were fishing somewhere else and it just got too windy for our float tubes.

It was funny because he only showed me one small pond first and trust me I wasn’t overly impressed as it was so small I could almost cast to any point without moving my feet.

I did see a beaver and her hut and hooked into a little bass about 8 inches long. After fishing for a few minutes I noticed my friend was not to be seen. I figured he was taking a leak behind a tree but after a few minutes I called his name and then followed his voice.

As I came up over the ridge behind the little pond I was fishing he was snickering away with a 15 inch bass dangling from his fishing rod. He was standing on the edge of a pond that was, at first glance, about 3 or 4 times as large as the first pond. What a funny guy, eh?

We fished there for a long time and cast after cast after cast we were getting strikes, almost every cast was a bass on.

Then he started walking and in just a few minutes came to a channel that led to yet another section of water and then another. We fished all day and I still didn’t get to see all the water there. It wasn’t until the next time we came that I got to see the entire body of water.

By this time I was impressed.

So, the second time we brought our float tubes and that’s when I got to see all the water that was seldom seen by anyone on foot.

Being Prepared With Little Tackle

I can easily carry all the tackle I use for these ponds in just one little tackle box, small enough to fit in my fly fishing vest. Just a few small baits, crankbaits, tubes, top water, jiggs and grubs.

For fly fishing for these bass I use all small top water dry flies and my favourite are brown, anything brown.

When I am not fly fishing for these little smallmouth’s I prefer to use a small jigg and a pumpkin coloured grub like the BearPaw Fat Bear Grub. It has been the setup that has landed me the most fish here, other than the fly rod of course.

BearPaws Fat Bear Grub $ 3.69
The Grub (12 per bag) is a very powerful bait in the world of bass fishing, or any type of fishing for that matter. The grubs outstanding natural action makes it one of the best baits in the water. Fish are attracted to grubs under all fishing conditions making it a sure bait throughout all seasons. The 3″ Bear Claw Grub is exceptional within it’s own right. This grub has a soft texture for a lifelike feel and action along with a special blend of seasonings and scents, just like all our other Bearpaws baits.

All Terrain Tackle Jim Moynagh Rock Jig – Undressed $ 2.49
We build the Rock Jig on a heavy, black-nickel, Mustad UltraPoint hook.

3/8oz – 1/2oz : 2 per pack

3/4oz – 1oz : 1 per pack Click to Buy

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Casting is very important in fly fishing. It is the foundation of the sport thus it should be done correctly to achieve the desired results. Below are a few things about casting that one should keep in mind when going fly fishing for the first time.

It all starts out with the grip. The proper casting grip is one which has the thumb on top with the rod. This helps the fisher apply a greater force when casting.

• Prior to casting, any slack on the line ought to be removed. This would enable for a smooth forward and backward cast.
• The line should fly towards the direction where the person points the rod during the cast.
• The size around the loop depends on how the rod tip is moved when casting.

The distance of a typical cast is generally several meters away from the caster. Long distance casts are achieved by tons of practice. The newbie may not get it right on his/her first few tries at casting. However , with the appropriate guidance from a a lot more experienced companion and a lot of time dedicated to practice, the correct way of casting can be achieved.

Ideally, 15-30 minutes spent on practising per day can help enhance the beginner’s technique. As a word of warning, practising casting can be a dangerous activity. That’s why beginners are advised to accomplish their practice away from the water and away from a great deal of people .

Fields are ideal spots to complete this as there is really a large room to accommodate errors that may prove dangerous in otherwise constricted areas.

One of the best ways for fly fishing novices and experienced fly fishermen to improve their technique is through fly fishing books. There is a gigantic selection of books available online which teach great fly fishing technique along with other skills such as those found within fly tying books.

When I started fly fishing more than 30 years ago the sport of fly fishing seemed to be all about catching salmon and trout.

Today the list of fish to fly fish for has become almost endless, whether it’s casting those artificial flies for fresh water fly fishing or saltwater.

Now fly fishing for smallmouth and largemuth bass has become extremely popular all over the world. I’m sure it has nothing to do with the quality of the fight a bass gives you.

I have fought bass on the fly that fought harder than salmon double their size. Bass just think they are bigger than they are. It’s a great sport and releasing them back into their home makes for better fishing in the future, so our kids will thank us.

I think because the bass body is more flat on the sides than round they have a lot of drag in the water and really hold their own.

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. Another option is wading deep into the stream or river which would provide you with sufficient room for overhead casting.

When fly fishing rivers and streams its also important to know how to mend the line. The different speeds of the various currents within a river or stream may push the fly line ahead of the fly, or may push the fly ahead of the line. A bass may detect this unnatural drift of the line, and may be scared away. The process of lifting and moving a part of the line to re-align it with the drift of the fly is called mending. 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. With smallmouth bass fly fishing, using streamers that look like crayfish or small baitfish often produce good results.

Largemouth Bass Fly Fishing Technique

Largemouth bass are found mostly in ponds and lakes. Flies used for largemouth bass fly fishing tend to be quite large. Poppers are commonly used, and deer hair flies are extremely 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. Let the dry fly float on top of the water for a few minutes after casting. Make the fly twitch on the water, then slowly retrieve the line. 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. With bass fly fishing a 6 to 9 weight fly fishing rod is normally used, along with a fly line with a matching 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 fairly priced 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.

Additional flt fishing information, tips, techniques, and fly fishing equipment reviews can be found at the Feedage.com Fly Fishing Elite news feed.

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If you have been following this blog you might remember that the first three times Casey and I went smallmouth bass fishing in Lake Petit you know we had problems with strong winds the first three times out.

Well yesterday we went out with Casey’s new boat. He is already fixing it up so that everything is exactly where it should be so he can concentrate on fishing and not fiddling with the boat.

Of course due to the fact that Casey came and picked me up at my house and after all it’s his boat, so I let him catch the first few bass and even the biggest bass of the day. That’s just the kind of guy I am.

The wind has been so strong over the past week or so that even though the wind was almost gone the water was still pretty stirred up so my polarized sunglasses didn’t help me see more than a foot into the water.

Mother Nature Getting Artistic

The colours in the leaves of so many trees are just starting to change from green to oranges, yellows and reds. They get so vivid and beautiful that it can be hard to concentrate of fishing so I was fumbling around trying to keep my fishing rod in the water, keep it reeling and take a few pictures all at the same time.

It’s really cool how the trees change colours here and there while the rest of the tree stays green a while longer.

We fished the base of the tree but I think the bass were admiring it while we were there and just ignored us, so we had to move on.

Like I said Casey caught the most and the biggest bass while I just tried to keep one on my line long enough to get one in the boat. A few small ones stayed on the line. I think they just felt sorry for me.

I used Casey’s camera to take a couple of pictures and only managed to snap one with my camera but it still looks good.

Casey measured it at 16 inches but it fought like it was 20 inches.

I grabbed Casey’s net and tried my best to knock it off the hook but the hooks got caught up in the net and I accidently landed it for him. Maybe next time.

Seriously though it hit like a freight train as it bolted from the water and then it was doing everything in it’s power to keep from boarding the boat.

Now I am sure that I had a bigger fish but I don’t like to hurt them so I don’t use hooks, which means I don’t always see how big they are but I know they were bigger than Casey’s little 16 incher.

As the afternoon was drawing to a close and the sun was going down we headed up a little creek which Casey had never gone up before because it was so shallow.

Once we started into this little spot it immediately went from just over 2 feet deep to more than 8 feet deep and it went back quite a ways, all the way to Salisbury road.

Casey had a dinner engagement with his wife for about 6pm and the wind was starting to pick up again so we decided to call it a day and headed back out to the main river and home. But just before we were out the sun came out from the clouds and gave us the shot above. A great ending to another great day on the water.

Thanks again Casey.