Salt Water Fly Fishing
Salt
water fly fishing offers some things the same and some things new for those who have already learned the art of freshwater fly fishing. The biggest difference is that the angler is now casting to much larger fish that are living in much bigger water. Eight or nine-weight rods with larger capacity reels are needed to cast to and fight black sea-bass up to five pounds, pink salmon to nine- pounds and coho salmon sometimes over 9 kg (20 lb). The large line capacity is really needed where one might even hook a large chum salmon or chinook salmon, which will test every facet of both equipment and angler talent.
There are fly fishing purists out there who couldn’t even imagine catching any type of fish with anything except an artificial fly. That’s definitely not me, nor is it most anglers who just enjoy trying a little fly fishing on a saltwater trip. Most of us will put a few good sized chinook salmon and some halibut and ling cod into the boat using conventional gear before we ask our guide about fly fishing.
That’s what happened to me. I enjoyed a great morning of fishing and catching at Langara Island in Haida Gwaii. At lunch, I asked the lodge manager about fly fishing and he graciously loaned me his own nine- weight outfit and a handful of flies and sent me south to Bruin Cove. I ran the boat up onto a kelp bed, tied a green and white Clouser fly onto the 15-pound test leader and cast up the passing current letting the fly sink until it was down current and then started jerkily retrieving the line back in. After just a few pulls I got a hit and sank the barbless hook into a nice black sea bass. After twelve similar casts, I had caught and released eight fun fish; six sea bass and two small coho salmon - approximately 2 kg (4-5 lb). The next morning, I retained two chinook salmon in the low twenties caught on conventional gear and then reached for the fly rod. It took me another two hours and a couple hundred casts however, I ended up boating a 4.5 to 5.4 kg (10 -12lb) coho salmon caught on a fly. I really enjoyed fighting them on the much lighter gear. I was hooked on saltwater fly fishing. Since that first experience, I bought a quality eight-weight fly outfit. But, don’t get me wrong. I’m still not a purist. The saltwater resort trips are expensive and my family loves to eat fish. I still let the guides put me on to fish for my freezer and only then do I reach for the fly outfit. I’ve been skunked many times while casting flies but I’ve also extended my overall enjoyment of fishing by packing the fly outfit with me.
HERE’S A FEW THINGS
I’ve learned along the way that might help you. Fly casting to salmon always means that your fly should imitate herring, anchovies and sometimes, needlefish. In freshwater, it’s necessary to match the hatch of insects and in saltwater, it’s necessary to match the size and depth of the baitfish the salmon are feeding on. I now carry about 100 flies with me; everything from small Clousers to giant polar bear hair flies and all of them in a huge variety of colours. Presentation tactics vary greatly from place to place. At Rivers Inlet I’ve done well casting small herring imitations using my dry line, right in or very near to kelp beds. At Tasu, Haida Gwaii, I accidentally discovered that allowing my #6 sinking line all the way out and letting it sink straight beneath the boat, then mending it back up with long fast pulls eventually took several dozen beautiful coho salmon. The salmon seemed to get excited by a baitfish imitation that looked like it was trying to escape. Off Tofino, the ticket for numerous hookups was a two-inch Clouser fly worked 2.5 to 3 metres (8-10-ft) down. Remember that you’re fishing in very corrosive saltwater. Rinse all parts of your flies and your fly outfits with fresh water immediately after every outing.
Fishing is always fun, but adding some fly fishing to your saltwater trip might just completely blow your mind.