Favorite Striper fly !!!!!

[David Lee]

Hey gang , what is your favorite fly to throw at American river Stripes ??
Make your vote , then post WHY you like your fly and your favorite colors for the American .
Thanks for taking part in this poll !! David

[LostInTheFog]

Chartreuse (sp?) Half&Half

[David Lee]

Thanks , LITF .... 20 views and at last a post !!! I did put the Half and half on the poll , but it only will post 10 choices so I cut it .
Intresting choice .... Chartruse/White H/H's are getting quite popular in the salt .
Thanks for joining in , David

[MSP]

A 16" squawfish :lol:

[Hairstacker]

Well, I've never fished the American for stripers but I'll vote for what I WOULD use, how's that? A chartreuse/white Clouser with pearl Flashabou and silver Krystal Flash mixed in.

[k.hanley]

1. Andy's Striper Caviar
2. Flashtail Clouser (#2 and #1/0)
3. Sea Habit Bucktail (rainbow #2/0)
4. Crawdad (basic bunny streamer)
Cheers, Ken
PS: David you really should have a crawdad in your river striper selection. Every DFG personnel I've encountered conducting striper studies indicated crawdads as the number one item collected in the stomach contents. Ask Andy... the last time we were on the river... he asked a DFG guy what they found, and sure enough Andy was told crawdads.

[David Lee]

I'd have to go with the 'Clone (red/white , gray , or black) . I've seen Stripe eat it over other flies too many times . Other "sleepers" are #6 olive Zonkers and 2 inch long Whitlock Sheep minnows ..... David

[Darian]

Hi guys,..... I'm voting for the Clouser Deep Minnow but with a qualification.... The color is Chartreuse/Yellow on a 60 degree offset jig hook. I've caught all of my stripers in the American on this fly. Plan on using Rainbow Trout colored flies this spring when the stocking of the river takes place. 8) 8)

Having said that, it's hard to go against any of the flies that Ken Hanley mentions. Never even thought about a crawdad fly but have seen a lot of Crawdads and bait guys catching Stripers on Soft Shell Crawdads..... 8) 8)

Question for Ken.... In obtaining info about stomach contents of stripers was there any mention of Lamprey :?: :?: If so, was the amount minimal or significant :?:

[Hairstacker]

Oh, there Darian goes again with the lampreys, ha. :lol: Course, I won't be laughing when Darian gets a 40 lb striper to eat one of his soon-to-be-announced killer lamprey patterns. 8)

[David Lee]

Darian will get the 40 lber. on a #6 olive bugger , I'll wager .... I hear they are all the rage :P . David

[SullyTM]

I've never flied for stripers on the American or any other body of water. You just can't take me anywhere! I'm going to tie a couple of surface "Gurglers" (came across the pattern this week) to have at the ready. Thank you.

[LostInTheFog]

Chartruse/White H/H's are getting quite popular in the salt ...

Actually... I haven't tried them in the salt. From Auburn, the "salt" is about a 3 hour drive. I HAVE tried them in the Delta, and in the rivers.

I should also add that they are only first by a whisker (or a calf hair) over the Clouser, in either chartreuse, olive, or gray. I've caught more fish on the H&H, but bigger fish on the Clouser. Hard to go wrong with either pattern.

All this may change this year however: at the San Rafael show, I attended Ken Hanley's River Striper program, and came away with lots more ideas, so ask again after the season.

For all who haven't seen Kens program, it is quite excellent. I was delighted with the info he provided, but appalled at some of the slides he showed. for anybody who knows the local rivers and was paying attention, he sure showed a lot of "X marks the spot" shots.

[David Lee]

Lost in the fog - Chartruse/White H&Hs ARE getting to be quite popular in the salt . Just an observation unrelated to this thread on my part . Sorry if it sounded funny .

Most people I run into on the river after Stripe have a Clouser-type fly tyed on .... David

[k.hanley]

Say Hey Foggy,
I'm fascinated by your response...
"I was delighted with the info he provided, but appalled at some of the slides he showed. for anybody who knows the local rivers and was paying attention, he sure showed a lot of "X marks the spot" shots"

It was an educational show. "Information" is key to education. If you were paying close attention I never provided a name for any specific location (other than stating it was shot on the American and the techniques applied to our valley rivers). I never said upper or lower river. I never named a pool or run. I guess what I'm trying to point out is that the folks who knew the "X spots" certainly knew the territory in some of the slides, and the folks who didn't know the "X spots" still don't... BUT everyone does have an idea of what to look for and how to approach the game.

Please don't take my post as a challenge. Just an onservation. Heck if you show an environmental shot anytime, anywhere, it falls into the category of someone's "X spot." If not yours... it's someone else's to be sure. At any rate, I hope to have been respectful of the fishery and the environment. I truly believe education is the key to good stewardship. Thanks for attending the show and participating.
With respect, Ken

[David Lee]

Ken - you better not be showin' off MY spots -
Thet are MINE - mine-mine-mine-mine - :twisted: :twisted: :twisted:

When the fish come in , they are stupid . They get pecked away at ... over , and over , and after a while , they wise up . Certain runs always have Stripers in them , but after 500 or so casts (mostly w/ Clousers :P ) , they won't bite . I'll beat a run to froth for a few hours ... then send my wife down w/ a mask . Guess what's down there ?
THAT'S RIGHT ! Big piggy Stripers , just sittin' there lookin' around .
If Stripe is active , hungry , and hunting , you have a chance .

Or try something different . David

[LostInTheFog]

Ken:

Please don't take my post as anything approaching criticism! I was delighted with your talk. It affirmed techniques and strategies my buddy and I worked out for ourselves last year, and provided new ideas for us to explore this season. I can't wait to get to it!

However, throughout the talk, I did find myself wincing at just about every second or third slide you showed because they were of spots that I not only recognized, but had caught fish in... in exactly the water where you were telling us the fish should be! Your information was right on point, but it was kind of like finding one's private bass pond written up in the Fish Sniffer. However (again) I don't own the river, and as you said "good information is good stewardship", so thank you for the ALL the info.

Finally, on Saturday in San Rafael, after the seminar you were trying to get back in the auditorium, and as you went by, a fellow shook your hand and remarked that there were too many "pictures of X's" in your talk. I hope you remember the smile on my face, and the laugh I shared with you as we parted. My buddy and I do what you do to avoid the crowds on the American, and I hope someday you and I can share that laugh again with stripers busting bait all around us.

Dan

[k.hanley]

Dan,
I appreciate the post. You're a good man. I do remember the hand shake (while moving upstream) and the smile. I hope you make it to Kiene's Fair where we can sit down and share more striper adventures.
Cheers, Ken

[Jasonh]

i will alos have to go with the striper caviar. It has certainly accounted for more bigger fish for me on teh american. I mean more fish in the double digit range. Don't know if the fly has much to do with it but i just have a lot of confidance fishing it. Second favorite would have to be a clouser clouser or flashtail clouser with red eyes. Thats my 2 cents worth.

Jason

[Los Rios]

I'll vote for a 2" olive over white clouser as my first choice. My second would be Andy's Striper Caviar. Stripe just loves them flies....

[Darian]

After thinking over the info abouyt crawdad's in stomach surveys posted by Ken Hanley, I decided to put the Lamprey Eel pattern on the back burner for now.... 8) 8)

Now, I'm tying some large size (3/0) Galloups Crawdads. This fly was developed as a streamer for Trout in the Michigan/Minnesota area. It's an easy tie and lends itself to weighting. Rabbit strips are the main materials in this fly. So it has a lot of action in the water.... 8) 8)

Gotta try it in rust brown, olive and black for the American/Delta..... :D :D

[Tony Buzolich]

Hi Darian,
I have to talk out of both sides of my mouth about this one. First off let me say I eat an occassional striper and I've had the pleasure of investigating stomach contents more than once. One thing I've found in the stomach of the fish taken on the American is crawfish shells, and lots of them. So obviously that's a popular food for them.
But realize the American is also home to lots of spawning lampreys, and I'm sure they digest much easier and faster than crawfish.
As a kid I grew up on the American and fished and hunted almost daily from the black railroad trussle to almost Watt Ave. Regularly I'd swim the river and drag my fingers through the sand and collect baby lampreys between 3"-6" long. This was an "A" number one bait in those days of baitfishing. And, besides lots of stripers, I'd also pick up and occassional steelhead when fishing near some of the riffles.

With the clarity of the water on the American I think any fly should have some "naturalness" or realism tied into it. If you're going to be using crawfish or lamprey patterns, try to fish them slow and on the bottom as much as possible. With the more common baitfish or smolt patterns, a traditional strip-strip-pause retrieve works best to imitate a fish's actions.

Geez, I love the American,
TONY

[Darian]

Tony,.... I probably should've said that I was putting development of a pattern on the back burner for now. :roll: I still intend to fish a Lamprey pattern that I bought at the now defunct Bob's Fly Shack 8) . Altho, I haven't had much luck on it, so far.... :( Got any info about colors of small lamprey or how to create the undulating swimming action of these eels :?: :?:

Thanks for the help Tony.... 8) 8)

[Adam Grace]

The clouser minnow is the best all around striper fly.

Produces stripers everywhere and it's easy to tie.

That's all, you can go home now. :D

[Darian]

Hmmmmm,.... The poll indicates a 52% preference for clouser's. Can't really disagree with Adam's very positive statement. :? :? But it does beg a question 8) 8) .

Are all of the fish caught as a result of the Clouser's effectiveness or are all of the fish caught on Clouser's because something else was not used :?: :?: :wink:

I vote that Adam has to undertake a rigorous/meticulous study to confirm his theory (factual( :?: ) statement.... 8) 8) Then produce the results before members of this BB :P :P :P

[LostInTheFog]

The clouser minnow is the best all around striper fly.

Produces stripers everywhere and it's easy to tie.

That's all, you can go home now. :D

:shock:

I'm not going home. I'm going striper fishing!

[Jay Murakoshi]

Boy, do I get to see what fly is number one of Friday. If you know what I mean :wink:

Jay

[David Lee]

Jay -

I'll be out there all day Friday , so stay off of my run :twisted:

The water is still pretty cold , lots of Smolts still there - fish accordingly .

Adam - The best all-'round fly for Stripe is the one on my tippet :twisted: :P :twisted:

Now ..... go study :idea:

David

[David Lee]

By the way , Jay .... Remember those W.K. Sea-habits you tyed for the NCFFB Striper swap ????

Guess what my first Stripe of the year ate ...... :!: :!: :!:

Thanks for the great bug !!

David

[Jay Murakoshi]

David,

Wait until you see the Hollow Fly version of the rainbow trout. Not marked with pens but tied with the different color buck tail. Been testing it in the swimming pool daily, haven't seen anything come after it.
Just wait I know what hole will produce the 50lber. It's all set up

Don't get in the way........FISSSSSSSSSH OOOOOooooNNNNoooo

Jay

[David Lee]

Jay - I wish you much good luck . A 50 ?? I believe it can happen , I don't doubt that there Striped Bass out there WELL over 60 lbs .

I'll have a newbe Striper fisherman out with me (SullyTM) , he'd be over the moon if ya said "Hi" and gave him a peek into your box when you float on by ....

I meant it - avoid 5 miles up and 10 miles down from where I'm BEATIN' on Stripe :P

David

[Tony Buzolich]

Darian,
Stick with it, lampreys work great everywhere. As for color and material, I really like grey bunny strips with a cone head. Use as long a strip as you can find. The cone head really creates a nice swimming action with the bunny pulsing along behind. Purple is another good color. I also tie in two strands of Krystal flash right behind the conehead. Keep the colors subtle. Only a little is plenty. I use this to maybe add just a little attraction.

I've tried tying these larger with tanden hooks sort of like tying a barracuda fly but I loose the wiggle of the bunny tail. Gotta have that wiggle.

A while back in Fly Fishing Saltwater magazine there was a pattern a guy tied for the delta stripers that was almost a foot long. Naturally can't find the issue now.

See you out there,
TONY

[Jay Murakoshi]

David,

we will be equipped with the highest technical radar system and the shallow running torpedo's. You'll probably see us float by hopefully being towed by the 50lber.
I was going to post the "new rainbow" on the site but it's too late the weekend is almost here.

See ya the river or was it "rolling on the river" CCR

Jay

[Darian]

Thanks Tony. The color info was a part thast I've been missing 8) 8) .

Anyone have any experience with a Blanton pattern: Bay Delta Eelette?? Looks good but the only info I've seen on it is from some oldfer articles in magazines. :? :? :?

[David Lee]

Hi Darian , I have a lot of experence with that fly ..... I have thrown it many times and never had a bite . It sure looks good in the water , though . I tye it on an Eagle Claw 254 Seaguard 2/0 with 6 to 10 wide black saddle hackles , mixed pearl/peacock KF , and a grizzly shoulder as wide as a quarter . Big bead-chain eyes complete the fly . Sure sounds cool (and frightening) when it whistles past my head whipped along by 30 feet of T-14 - hope I never screw-up and sink it into my scalp (YEOW !!) .....

That wasn't what you meant , was it ??? :roll: David

[k.hanley]

A new Hollow Fleye color scheme "rainbow trout" pattern???? Excellent. He pard... you rig that baby and I'll start with a smolt or crawdad. Got our bases covered right out of the gate. See ya in couple days.
Cheers, amigo
PS: Look out D.Lee we're heading your way!!!! :lol:

[David Lee]

Ken and Jay - check your Emails and keep it quiet . David

[Darian]

David,.... You have a JOOOooob :!: :shock: Holllleeeee Cats :!: :!: :!: .... Hope it's something you like to do or pays well (or both 8) 8) 8) ).

About the Bay-Delta Eellette :? ,.... You have any theories as to why no bites :?: :?: It does look good 8) . Think maybe Tony's right 8) . Subtle colors and wavy type materials are the way to go. That's the same formula for the Galloup Crawdad..... :D :D

[David Lee]

Darian - the job is in a small cabinet shop .... filthy , dusty , hand-cuttin' labor . I didn't want to tell anyone 'cause I have a subversive , fish-bum/Beer-drinking image to uphold 8) 8) . It's only 'till I pay off a few bills/toys :idea: ...(hope my wife doesn't read this :roll: !).

The fly has a good silloutte , but not the Lamprey action (the Lampreys I've seen , anyways ....) . I think it hasn't been eaten 'cause Stripe hasn't seen it :o !! Maybe Friday I'll get a hungry one to have a look ... Still haven't heard from SullyTM , I hope he makes it here because he's due for fishes :!:

Can you make it out ?? Lemmy know . David