Delta 10-07

[Hairstacker]

Fly fished the Delta for a few hours this morning out of the inflatable kayak. Arrived just before the outgoing tide hit bottom, so took my time stringing up a new 7 wt. rod I bought at Kiene's that I was fishing for the first time. The weather was very pleasant with hardly a breeze, but it just didn’t seem like a topwater striper day today, so I decided to fish topwater for largemouth bass instead. Thus, I tied on one of my size 2 deer hair green/yellow frog divers and started working the edges of the weedlines bordering shallow flats like this:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/10-07-07Delta6.jpg

I was perhaps a little too relaxed in the inflatable, as it wasn't long at all before a topwater explosion startled me and caused me to pull the fly away from a good fish. :shock: :oops: I resolved to pay a little more attention and it wasn’t long afterward that I got a solid take after a couple of strips and I was able to break in my new rod properly on this guy that was just shy of 15”:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/10-07-07Delta1.jpg

He put up a great fight and I thought he was bigger, probably because this new rod is just a tad softer than the rod I normally use. This, of course, just made the catching all the more fun. :D One thing I really appreciated about this slightly softer feel was that I was making smoother, more gentle presentations than I normally do with the other rod. As it stands, I am very happy with my purchase. :D

As it turned out, it was a good day and I enjoyed fairly consistent topwater action throughout the session, with most of the fish once again in the 14” – 16” range with a few smaller ones thrown in as well. They all came on the edges of weedlines bordering shallow flats. I employed a constant, medium-speed retrieve, where I let the bug dive and then, the moment it surfaced, I made it dive again, and so on. Here’s a few more pictures of some of the fish I caught today:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/10-07-07Delta2.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/10-07-07Delta3.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v484/Sachlil/10-07-07Delta5.jpg


I left the frog diver tied on for the entire time until I got back to the car and, I must say, I have developed solid confidence in this pattern -- based on this trip and the last few, it has earned a permanent place in my bug box. Also, the Delta once again showed me why this is my favorite time of the year to be on it. :D

[jaybird]

Mike

You are the delta bass king!!! Those are some really nice fish. I'm glad your frog pattern is so effective. It makes me want to take up tying deerhair bugs....maybe :D There is a great feeling about christening a new rod with a good day. I really like slightly softer rods myself. I would say a medium fast action is what I like.

Thanks for the report and fine pics!!

Jay

[Hairstacker]

Thanks Jay, I really appreciate your comments. :D

Of course, all credit for "my" diver properly goes to Larry Dahlberg -- he did us all a huge favor when he came up with the Dahlberg Diver, which is essentially what my fly is. If Mr. Dahlberg is ever at a function I'm attending, I plan to walk up to him, give him a big handshake, and smile and thank him profusely. :)

[David Lee]

Profitable day on the water there ..... :D

What rod did you get ??

David :)

[Hairstacker]

David, it's a Redington RS3 9' 7 wt. 4-piece. I found out this model was just discontinued and that Kiene's has them for 30% off. So, instead of $199, they're now $139 -- a very good price for a quality rod that comes with a rod sock and tube. Since I had to drive by Sacramento on my way somewhere else anyway, I couldn't resist the urge to pick one up. I'm really glad I did. :D

It does have a slightly slower, smoother action than the 9' 7wt. Winston Ibis I had been using. I guess for my fly-swatting casting style, it seems a little easier for me to make softer presentations. I still really like my Winston, though, as it's also nice to have a more assertive 7 wt. in the arsenal. I will definitely be keeping and fishing both of them. :D

[jaybird]

Of course, all credit for "my" diver properly goes to Larry Dahlberg -- he did us all a huge favor when he came up with the Dahlberg Diver, which is essentially what my fly is. If Mr. Dahlberg is ever at a function I'm attending, I plan to walk up to him, give him a big handshake, and smile and thank him profusely.

Mike

Did you know Larry has a "hunt for big fish" forum? You can talk to him and he is a complete gentleman. I have been picking his brain there for the last couple years. It is not a very active forum and I hope I am not being unethical by mentioning it here??

Jay

[aaron]

http://www.huntforbigfish.com/
Very cool page...be sure to check out his gallery! :shock:

[Hairstacker]

Jay and Aaron, thanks! I will definitely be taking advantage of this opportunity to thank him. :D

[sculpin]

Hey Mike
Great pictures and report. I hope to someday to have the patience and skill to tie up deer hair bugs myself. My catching fish on flies I tied is proof fish are stupid.

Mark

[Scott V]

Question for you Mike,

What do you use for a leader when fishing for LMB on the delta, I have heard some people just tie on some 20 lb. line and use that. What is your preference?

[Hairstacker]

Scott, regarding leaders, I’m almost embarrassed to say, as I suspect I’m in the minority these days. I know a lot of well-respected guys like to use a 6 or 7’ straight piece of 20 lb mono for their bass leaders and for good reasons: you eliminate knots, which decreases the potential number of points-of-failure, and topwater bass are not leader shy. And I’ve seen some of these guys catch some amazing bass that way.

I admit I have yet to try such a leader and have continued (thus far) to use an 8.5’ – 9.0’ leader that is tapered from .023 at the butt to .011 or .010 at the tippet. I like the way it fishes, I haven't had any knot failures thus far, and I do believe bass can be line (as opposed to leader) shy, so I like the little bit of extra length. Nevertheless, I’ll get around to trying a straight piece of mono one of these days. . . it would certainly eliminate time spent futzing with leader construction and tippet-tying when on the water.

[Bluegrass Bill]

Hey Mike,

Very nice report :) . I would like to try and get out on the delta with you one of these days if you would be up for that. I have a hobie quest kayak that should do pretty well out there and I love to fish for both largemouth and stripers. How often do you make it out there and do you primarily fish on the weekends? I can occassionally slip away from work during the week. Let me know what you think.

Bill

[Hairstacker]

Hey Bill! At this point in time, I fish every Sunday morning, as I go to church in the afternoon, I work all week, and Saturday is reserved for my family. I did make special arrangements, though, to make the Kiene's board bugfest out at Lundborg Landing this weekend -- I'll be out there Saturday morning with the inflatable kayak. Are you planning on attending?

[Bluegrass Bill]

Hey Mike,

Boy I sure wish I could be down there for the bugfest this weekend as it sounds like it will be a ball. Unfortunately I have a commitment with the band as we have a gig we are doing Saturday night in West Sac. I am tempted to zip down there to the bugfest for a few hours Sat morning but gig days are pretty busy getting stuff ready and I wouldn't really have much time at all.

Sounds like you have your priorities set very well. God knows a person has to set priorities with all the things going on these days. Right now I have a very busy weekend schedule for most of October but November looks like some opportunities would be there. I will be in touch as November gets closer so we can see about setting up a little delta excursion down there :D .

Thanks Mike, look forward to getting down there on the delta to fish with you :) !

Bill

[k.hanley]

Nice going there Mike. Good looking bass.
Cheers, ken