Hot Weather Fishing Strategies

New Water
article and images by Bill Byrd (RIP)
All rights reserved.

It was hot! Really hot -- 100°F in the sun. But you'll find me on the water, taking on the heat, for two reasons:

• Fish are in the water.
  
• They are ready to feed.
  

    If you can gear up to take the heat, and use a rational approach to fly fishing, you too can find some strapping gills and active bass even in HOT weather.

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Strategy
    What is your hot weather strategy for fly fishing? Do you have one?

    Some anglers just switch to trout. Other cool water fish swim in small rivers and streams, too - Smallmouths, Redeye bass, Suwanee bass, and other smallmouth-like species. You'll find green sunfish, bluegills, yellow perch, redbreast sunfish, redear sunfish in many small running, cool waters, too. 
    Georgia’s Chattahoochie is one example; it flows with cool water and wading in that low temp water in Summer is refreshing! There are tree covered, fish filled streams all over the South to fish this time of year.

    But lets suppose you DON'T have trout infested waters nearby. Perhaps you don't know squat about trout or other river fish, and wouldn't know what to do to catch them. Maybe your travel time is limited, what with jobs, and family, and so on. 
    Or maybe you're like me - you just don't like to waste your fishing time DRIVING all over the countryside to find the so-called, “perfect spot.“

    Another option, in that case, is to properly prepare yourself and get out on your local still waters, despite the heat.


    I recently fished a lake located in a nearby wildlife preserve/recreation area. It was my first time there, and I decided to fish from my float tube. Later, I went back with my boat for trip two. My fishing strategy followed the same basic steps on both trips –

1. Rig up,
   
2. Probe the water column,
   
3. Catch fish (the good part),
   
4. Quickly release the fish unharmed,
   
5. Document all the activity.
   
   

FLOAT TUBES: PRO’S AND CON’S
Pro’s

1. Float tubes allow more intimate fishing
   
2. You better connect with the body of water and so are a better angler
   
3. They are less obtrusive than a boat, unless you’re a total klutz.
   
4. They embody the idea of “stealth“ fishing.
   
5. They require nothing but a fishing license – no gas, no taxes, etc.
   

Con’s

1. They’re slow; you can't cover much water
   
2. You can't stay air dry; you‘re at least partially in the water itself
   
3. They require some specialized gear (fins, waders, pumps, patch kits, etc.)
   
4. You can't carry much extra “stuff“
   
5. They aren't snake proof.
   

    All of that aside, being in the tube again brought back old memories. One Georgia resort known for big bluegills, shellcrackers, and redbreast sunfish came to mind.
    I hoped this water would provide the same kind of big gill action, but much closer to home.

Timing Sometimes Sucks
    My first fishing day there got off to an inauspicious start.
I arrived later than my target time, which I hate. But I made it onto  the water by 12:30 PM.
    The astutue reader will spot this as a way of saying I missed the cooler morning hours.

July weather conditions this day were:
HOT – 90+°F.
The skies were partly cloudy, with a light breeze stirring the water. Out on the water, under the sun, it was gonna be intense.

    The unknown lake lay out before me with only a slight ripple breaking its surface. The mixed woods along the shore created a moving patchwork pattern on the water. It had been a while since I’d been in a float tube. Old, creaky muscles were about to be reunited with my desire to catch fish.

    Duck-style, I waddled backwards into the water, spun my tube around and sat down. Away I went, kicking toward the far shore. 200 feet away.

    What drew me there?
    It looked FISHY, that’s all. Yes, I have a system I follow, but you gotta start somewhere, and sometimes it comes down to that.

It Begins
    Finally I arrived at the  other side, to find low overhanging bushes and small trees shading the water. I could just feel the fish in the area. Based on observation, I figured the water dropped from about a foot at the bank to 7 or 8 feet right under my tube. If I was a fish, this is where I would want to be.
    I tied on one of my favorite size 12 weighted streamers and began to probe the water, from right at the bank on down to six or seven feet. I slowly worked this "fishy" water, moving to the west for 20 minutes - without encountering a single fish.

    I changed up as I entered a a small shallow cove along the shore. On my second retrieve from a spot near an inundated bush, I felt a smack on the line, raised my rod and was slammed by a really strong fish. My sweet little 2wt. arc'ed back on itself and the fight was on.
    The fish circled widely with great power, and I figured it was a big 'gill. When I finally got it to my tube, I had a fat 10“ bluegill that weighed a full pound.

"He hasnt seen many hooks,“ I said aloud. “Not a bad start."

    I continued to probe the area, discovering 5 foot deep water that sloped up to 2 feet at the rear of the cove. I carefully probed back in there and caught three more fish like the first. One was even bigger, probably 12“ long with a 17“ inch girth. It was a monster and my guess is it weighed at about 1.5 pounds. It reminded me of the tremendous "copperheads" that I have caught on the St. Johns River in Florida.

The image above is the small inlet being discussed, fronted by a shallow flat with normal contour. By looking at the graphics drawn in, we can see what we must do to access subsurface fish in this shallow water. 

Working More Of The Site
    I left the small cove and kicked my way back up toward the shallow flat at the West end of the lake, casting right up to the shoreline bushes, trees, and objects. I let my streamer settle, then began following the downward sloping contour with short strips to deeper water. I found that more giant gills were holding 8 feet from the shore, in about four to five feet of water. 
This was now my, "pattern."
    When these fish picked up my fly, it was a normal take. They didn't jerk the rod out of my hands, but you knew they had grabbed what they thought was fleeing prey. 
    Once detected, I lift the rod against the take and it quickly bends under the power of their hasty departure. This is why I keep my hook points sharp – little force is required to get a hook set.
    The big gills would end up at my float tube, circling, until they could finally be pried from the water. Some were so big I cradled them with my hand -- there was no palming them.

Think In Multiple Dimensions
    your aim is to visualize what you are doing in a two or three dimensional way. This way you can probe water much more effectively for suspended fish, and fish holding near the bottom of the lake.
    Following is the basic method for good subsurface fly fishing in warm stillwaters. 
    You might want to write them down:

1. Select the best flies to fish,
   
2. Use a long leader/tippet to help sink your fly,
   
3. Carefully probe new water for contour and depth,
   
4. Fish structure and cover.
   

Structure/Cover
    When we say structure or cover in this context, we mean the obvious places everyone recognizes, such as LOW wooden docks with algae growing on them. In high sun periods, in most cases you'll find bluegills or mixed sunfishes assembled under these docks in the shade. There is security there, and the food chain is fully growing on and around these structures.
However, literally any spot with a log, a piece of brush, and old tire, a hidey place under an overhanging tree or bush, any shade, and so on will attract fish.
    I sometimes find big bluegills and bass suspending under big algae heads floating on the lake's surface. Even a shallow channel that gets them deeper into the darker waters will hold fish. You should probe all of these features for feeding fish. In streams, wood is fine, and fish will hide in grasses, plus under individual rocks and ledges.

Surface, Then Below
    In some fisheries (and maybe most), small insects on the surface are a major forage during the midday period. Where this is the case, you're tipped off by aggressive surface feeding on size 8 to 14 foam spiders. However, this is not a sure thing; it is often the exception.
    This is why I go prepared with size 10-14 suspending nymph imitations. These get hammered as often by the fish just below the surface. Am I telling you to toss out your poppers and foam spiders? No.
But, if they don't do much - be ready with an alternative.

    In this particular fishery. the pea-colored water and the heat had me probing the depths with size 12, and then size 10 streamers. I like a larger profile and dark colors to contrast in these stained conditions. It paid off, too.

The Mental Game
    Remember, you have to probe the water to find out what the fish will take. If you get no response, switch off and try something else.
    At this point, it is popular for people to say something like, "You have to give the fish what they want"... which is one of the more useless phrases in fishing that I know of. I think they say it to sound helpful, or knowledgeable, but mostly it seems they use it because they don't really know what else to say. Regardless, it is not much help, especially to newcomers or the less astute angler.
    What I say is..."keep probing the entire water column, from top to bottom, using surface flies, nymphs, and streamers appropriate to each level, until you hit on what they will take. Then, pay attention."
    That has some meat to it, and explains the process in two sentences. Oh, and make sure you have enough of whatever flies are working. You may need them!

    
    Once you establish a bite pattern, stick with it until conditions shift - and they will. As long as you understand the process of keeping your flies in front of the fish WHEREVER THEY ARE in the water, you'll catch plenty of fish.

Putting It All Together
    On both days fishing this new-to-me water, I learned about the lake's basic contour, bottom structure and lakeside cover. 
    I caught big gills, I found water to depths of 15 feet, wood strewn shallows, pea gravel bottoms, and lots of overhanging trees and bushes for cool cover on hot summer days.

    I make mental notes of where I find fish - and where I don’t – which I then write down later. I take pictures to prompt my memory.     I write about my adventures and discoveries. 
    In this way, I learn what it took to catch those fish. 
    This makes me a more efficient angler and helps me get onto fish sooner each time I fish the same lake. 
,
    In two trips I caught and released fifty seven -- eight, nine, and ten inch bluegills. The largest was over 11 inches and about one and a half pounds. I also caught and released 3 bass.

    After many trips approaching new water in theis methodical way, in all seasons you will begin to learn how to decode a lake's patterns. 

- You will eliminate water that typically doesn't hold fish, and concentrate on fish holding water. 
- You will learn the most productive flies and presentations and enjoy knowing that you can catch and release plenty of fish, most anywhere. 

    If you have read my articles on fishing the water column, or my other articles in which I describe probing water -- it may sound boring. And if you only want to see the surface splash of takes on poppers, it can be, But, if you want to effectively and efficiently catch fish, these are things you should heed.
    Put in the time on the water getting to know the dynamics of the system, and you can do this.

    Hot summer conditions are gonna come. You can’t stop the seasons. But, you can see it as your opportunity to be THE fly fisher on the water catching and releasing fish. 
    And while your sweating, chugging water and cursing the gnats around your head, keep this happy thought in mind:
 
It isn't Winter with freezing temps, ice everywhere and no fishing.

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Bill Byrd was a retired guide and author in GA. He started fly fishing in 1968 and started freelancing as a fly fishing writer in 1995.  He had articles in Warmwater Fly Fishing, Saltwater Fly Fishing, Fly Fish America, Bassmaster Magazine, and other publications. And while he got paid for these things, his main goal was helping you be a better angler.

Sadly, this fine  man passed away in 2021, and we lost a great brother that day. Through personal correspondence, Bill gave me exclusive rights to edit and share his articles, an honor I hold dear. I hope you like them.
However, the web archive of his articles from byrdultrafly.com is still available.
You can find a link to them, below, and I highly recommend you download any of the articles that interest you....
https://web.archive.org/web/20210210233327/http://www.byrdultrafly.com/

I hope you enjoyed this and learned something from it. I get nothing from this other than the satisfaction of a job well done, so if you enjoyed it, a like and share is appreciated.
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Tight Lines,
David Hutton

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