We’re seeing more of the same up on East Lake, with good fishing to be had for those who are willing to adjust tactics and target fish in deeper water with subsurface flies. The most productive way to get into fish has been fishing deep below an indicator with Callibaetis nymphs and Chironomids. It is important to get flies near the bottom, and since we’ve been having our best days when focusing on water that is 15-20 feet deep, make sure to have slip indicators and material to put together the long leaders that make it possible to target fish in deep water. This is a good time of year to get creative with fly selection. For those who tie their own flies, making minor adjustments to patterns that were productive earlier in the summer can be a good way to get heavily pressured fish to eat. 5X fluoro is standard these days, with 6X being advantageous around picky fish.
All of this talk about nymphing deep doesn’t mean that there is no possibility to fish dries, but conditions have to be right for fish to even consider taking an artificial fly over the natural Callibaetis hatch that has stayed strong as the fishing has gotten tougher. Fish will be less weary in low light conditions, and on the right day a Callibaetis spinner fall will provide decent dry fly fishing in the mornings. If the hatch happens to extend into the evening, fishing emerger and dun patterns may be more productive than during mid-day hatch.
Suggested Dries: Tilt Wing Callibaetis #14-16, Almost Dun Callibaetis #14-16, Hi Vis Callibaetis #14-16, Thorax Callibaetis #14-16, Parachute Callibaetis #14-16, CDC Black Ant #16, Flying Black Ant #16
Suggested Nymphs: Olive or Black Zebra Midge #16-18, Olive Juju Chironomid #14-18, Black Chironocone #14-18, Black Ice Cream Cone #14-18, Bird’s Nest or Black Depth Charge #16-18, Dark Assassin #16-18, Parallel Assassin #14-16, Bird’s Nest Hare’s Ear #14-16