Saturday, May 16, 2015

Fishing the Evening Mayfly Hatch

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This last week I had plans to get out of town for a day of smallmouth fishing on one of my favorite rivers , but after last weekends results targeting white bass and hybrids I instead switched gears and focused my time off on replicating that success.
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It turned out to be the right decision (one of only a few I make every year) for a change and I was able to have a couple of my best fishing days in a long while. I made three trips back over to the same reservoir I fished last weekend and wasn't dissapointed in my results on any of them. The two evenings were much better than the morning, but when the slowest outing still produces half a dozen hybrids I'm calling that a huge success!
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Surprisingly, the thing that's driving this killer bite is a local mayfly hatch. Every year about this time the shorelines of our local lakes become inundated with large mayflies and everything from crappie to carp take advantage of the situation and show up with the feed bag on. The hybrids and white bass are a little different , only in that I'm pretty sure they're showing up in response to the baitfish that are there to eat the bugs instead of the bugs themselves. Either way, the end result is the same, hungry fish within easy reach of shoreline anglers.On my latest evening trip I landed several crappie, a drum, a walleye, a couple of white bass and close to a dozen hybrids. Just proof of how many different species of fish are taking advantage of this one bug event.
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I'm still itching to get on a stream for smallies but for right now I'm gonna stay a little closer to home and enjoy the incredible fishing that is taking place during this hatch. Here's a few pics to give you an idea of just how good it's been....
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14 comments:

  1. great looking fish! and JOE!!!! :)

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    1. Can't hardly beat catching one of my favorite fish with my best fishing buddy!!

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  2. Those are some nice looking fish! I've got the flies, I just need to find some decent water. Hi Joe!

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    1. It's that time of year Howard...the local lakes and ponds are teeming with hungry fish in the shallows right now just waiting for guys like us to take adavntage of it!

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  3. Replies
    1. Thanks Alan...I got lucky and had a few of those shots turn out rather nicely.

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  4. You be careful Jeff. The kind of fishing you've been experiencing is bound to ruin you for the "regular" days. Another awesome trip!!

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    1. This last week of fishing has definitely spoiled me...I know that it will shut off just as quickly as it started though so I'm enjoying every opportunity I get right now. Those smallies are really calling my name, it's just so hard to break away from great fishing to drive 3 hours for the unknown. You know what they say though...Fortune favors the brave!

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  5. Again, some nice fish. Gotta love it when the bites on!

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    1. Thanks! Nothing like some good Spring action to wake a guy up after a long winter.

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  6. Fantastic pictures, and very inspiring trip report! :) Love those Wipers on the fly!

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  7. I just wish I could figure out how to catch them like this all year long , it's a fleeting bite for me so I take advantage of it when I can. This last cold front and rain that moved in may just spell the end of my wiper fishing (at least with that kind of success!)

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  8. As always amazing pics and fish! Glad you had an amazing outing and loved seeing Joe hangin with ya! Tightlines and look forward to the next adventure!

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  9. As always amazing pics and fish! Glad you had an amazing outing and loved seeing Joe hangin with ya! Tightlines and look forward to the next adventure!

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