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outdoors
FLOAT & FISH words Scott Faldon images courtesy Scott Faldon and Holly Morgan
Once school starts, a lot of people put their kayaks away. But for those who don’t, there are plenty of great floating and fishing opportunities.
FISHING This time of the year is prime topwater season for fly fishing. Tie on a hopper or popper and you’ll find willing bites from just about everything swimming – from smallmouth in mountain streams to brown trout in tailwaters.
FLOATING
There are several ways to fish hoppers. The first one is to think
Thanks to lower temperatures in September, fewer people,
about how a real grasshopper reacts when it accidentally
and a bit more rain, late summer and early fall floating can be
jumps into the water. They scramble frantically for dry land,
better than summertime trips.
so short constant strips of your fly line are a great way to draw a strike. But that won’t work every time. Sometimes, you’ve
Of course, the first step in planning a trip this time of the
got to dead drift the hopper and make just the subtlest of
year is checking the water levels if you’re wanting to run a
movements with your rod tip to entice a bite.
river. AmericanWhitewater.org and WaterData.usgs.gov have updated information from river gauges around the region.
Vary your retrieve until the fish begin to tell you what will work. And they will tell you. Look for heavily vegetated
Be honest about the kayaking abilities of each individual in
riverbanks with tall grass or overhanging trees. Cast as close
your group. Don’t try to run a Class III stretch if your least-
to the bank as possible and begin your retrieve. Be ready,
experienced boater has trouble with Class II water. Also, be
because topwater strikes can range from explosions to slight
sure to check the gauges the morning of your intended float
sips that suction the fly off the surface. The famous hopper-
trip – especially if a significant rain fell the night before.
dropper combo of a grasshopper fly paired with a nymph or San Juan worm is a classic later summer tandem rig.
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