Pyramid Report 1/4/2019

[BS]

Finally...........................................

Since Thanksgiving...................................... ...

Wife's Birthday.......................................... .........................................done.
Christmas Eve/Day............................................... ...............................done.
New Years Eve/Day............................................... ..............................done.
Christmas lights/decorations put away.............................................. .....done.
Wife has the day off to watch the Grandson.......................................... ..I'm outta' here!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :D

Since Santa didn't leave me a 10 lb'er in my stocking, today was my day to go looking for one.

On the water @ 8:00 a.m. and finished @ 5:00 p.m. at my "favorite southern beach".

Nice mostly overcast day with variable winds from the south and switching to the north giving the water a little bit of chop.

My pal from Sparks was there at dark-o-thirty and had landed 4 by the time I made it into the water.

From 8:00 till 1:30, three of us fishing didn't even get a hit/bump/touch/strike................ugh..............
I switched from a 'cator, spinning rod with spoon, and stripped buggers & beetles too.

At 1:30 I got my first strike with a midge + balanced leech combo.

As the day progressed, the "bite" picked up. Read....................AFTERNOON BITE. :)

So, between 1:30 till about 4:30 I went 1 for 11.
I was getting a little concerned that I was going to go home tonight smelling like a "pole cat". :D
The one fish that I managed to land was a rat.
Them are some pretty bad numbers...............................:mad:

But, my excuse is that the fish were taking my size #10 midge.
Yep, the fishes were on a "Cherry Bomb" pattern today.
A "Cherry Bomb" midge (as explained to me) has a black body, red wire rib (medium sized wire), and an over sized metallic red bead head.

I've often heard that Pyramid fish will take any color........as long as it's RED. ;););)

Not a "great numbers day" fishing, nor a bad day either.
I just didn't get that 10 lb'er that was suppose to be in my Christmas stocking !!!!!! :D:D:D

There you have it again, another Pyramid report.


Bob

[HSano]

If you are losing a lot of fish, you might want to check the sharpness of your hooks. Several years ago on a 3 day trip to Pyramid I lost a good percentage of my hookups. Most were hooked on a Tiemco 2457 size 10. After the trip I went through my fly box checking the sharpness of each hook and sharpened the ones that needed it. I found that the 2457 hooks were not as sharp as I wanted them to be (using the "thumb nail" test). After I sharpened all of my hooks, my percentage of lost fish went down significantly. Now when I tie a fly for Pyramid, the first thing I do before putting it into my vice is check it for sharpness.

[BS]

If you are losing a lot of fish, you might want to check the sharpness of your hooks. Several years ago on a 3 day trip to Pyramid I lost a good percentage of my hookups. Most were hooked on a Tiemco 2457 size 10. After the trip I went through my fly box checking the sharpness of each hook and sharpened the ones that needed it. I found that the 2457 hooks were not as sharp as I wanted them to be (using the "thumb nail" test). After I sharpened all of my hooks, my percentage of lost fish went down significantly. Now when I tie a fly for Pyramid, the first thing I do before putting it into my vice is check it for sharpness.

Hey HSano,

Thanks for the "heads up" on the hook sharpness.
Yep, the TMC 2457's are kings and my go to hooks..........love 'em, love 'em, love 'em.
I just went through my midge box and checked them and the last ones I fished with and they passed my "thumb nail" test.

The issue I had was not being able to "hook up" with the fish.
I was getting strikes, but I wasn't "hooking up".

No, it wasn't slow reflexes or wave action or "Water Babies" toying with me either. :p:p:p

I think my problem of not hooking the fish is/was the size of bead/hook size combo I'm using.
For this "Cherry Bomb" pattern, I use a 1/8" (3.2mm) tungsten bead on a #10 hook and I'm pretty certain that the bead size "closed the gape" enough to keep the flies from hooking into the fishes mouths !!!
I spun up another half dozen today and offset (twisted) the hook about 3/32" and I'll see if that increases my "hook-up ratio".
I really believe it will.

Hummmmm.........Tuesday might be a half day'er..............:cool:


Bob

[Reese]

I'll second the offset hooks. I had a similar problem both at Pyramid and for steelhead. Once I switched to offset hooks or bent my existing flies, my hookups increased dramatically, regardless of fly size. Now anytime I'm targeting larger fish, I'll make sure the hooks are sharp and offset.

[Bill Kiene semi-retired]

The TMC 2457 is the top selling hook in Nor Cal.........

[loose_shoes]

I've often heard that Pyramid fish will take any color........as long as it's RED


Ha. That used to be said for Purple. Purple marabou used to be the big thing at Pyramid.

I still throw it for old times sake. I've been partial to 2-tone black and burnt orange marabou flies lately. Seems to work now and then. I've never had any luck with the beadhead nymphs (Mahalo, etc.) or the tadpoles. I'm probably doing it wrong.

[cyama]

One of the best sites I have seen for fly tying ideas for Pyramid has been Jan Nemec site. http://mimicflyfishing.com It sounds like he has gone to working for the Department of Wildlife. Some cool flies. Tadpoles often work and have been pretty successful with the midnight cowboys. Tippet choice can be the difference if you aren't hooking up and everyone else is. Fluorocarban is best start with 10 lb Seaguar then go lighter. Gamakatsu Octopus hooks are offset super sharp and stronger than a 2457. Daichi hooks are also better for the Pyramid fish...