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Lateral view of a Male Baetis (Baetidae) (Blue-Winged Olive) Mayfly Dun from Mystery Creek #43 in New York
Blue-winged Olives
Baetis

Tiny Baetis mayflies are perhaps the most commonly encountered and imitated by anglers on all American trout streams due to their great abundance, widespread distribution, and trout-friendly emergence habits.

27" brown trout, my largest ever. It was the sub-dominant fish in its pool. After this, I hooked the bigger one, but I couldn't land it.
Troutnut is a project started in 2003 by salmonid ecologist Jason "Troutnut" Neuswanger to help anglers and fly tyers unabashedly embrace the entomological side of the sport. Learn more about Troutnut or support the project for an enhanced experience here.

Flyguide1
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East Tn

Posts: 15
Flyguide1 on Aug 22, 2018August 22nd, 2018, 3:09 pm EDT
Who favors one or the other and why?
Troutnut
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Administrator
Bellevue, WA

Posts: 2758
Troutnut on Sep 2, 2018September 2nd, 2018, 4:17 am EDT
Raft, because I have one.
Jason Neuswanger, Ph.D.
Troutnut and salmonid ecologist
Wbranch
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York & Starlight PA

Posts: 2635
Wbranch on Sep 3, 2018September 3rd, 2018, 8:20 am EDT
Drift boat because I have one and the sheer comfort of being able to negotiate virtually any river or stream I fish in the East or West. I can comfortably take myself and a close friend floating for miles at a time casting to rising trout or just chatting and relaxing as we steer the craft.
Catskill fly fisher for fifty-five years.
Jmd123
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Oscoda, MI

Posts: 2474
Jmd123 on Sep 3, 2018September 3rd, 2018, 8:52 am EDT
Kayak - because I have one! You can get a kayak into waters you cannot get almost any other boat (except a nice light raft perhaps). But, then again, I primarily use my kayak for lake and pond fishing, as the rivers I fish are wadeable (i.e., not very big, compared to the waters Matt is plying). With a good anchor, though, no reason you can't fish a river from a kayak. It's usually a one-man proposition, but of course there are two-person kayaks if you want to give someone the "guided trip" experience.

Jonathon
No matter how big the one you just caught is, there's always a bigger one out there somewhere...
Partsman
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bancroft michigan

Posts: 321
Partsman on Sep 11, 2018September 11th, 2018, 11:18 am EDT
My barber recently bought a raft and really likes it, he also has a drift boat, but the raft is taking the fore front. He floats the Shiawassee river for smallmouth, but im thinking some streams up north would be pretty cool.
Wbranch
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York & Starlight PA

Posts: 2635
Wbranch on Sep 14, 2018September 14th, 2018, 12:36 am EDT
Rafts are very useful on fast rivers with many exposed rocks and boulders. Fiberglass drift boats don't do well when trying to negotiate boulder strewn very fast rivers. Good rafts with thick chamber walls tend to bounce of big rocks. Fiberglass or aluminum drift boats just impact the rock with less than pleasant results. You could actually crack the fiberglass if the water was fast enough and the rock sharp enough. At a minimum you gouge the Gel coat all along the chines and sides of the boat.
Catskill fly fisher for fifty-five years.
CaseyP
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Arlington, VA/ Mercersburg, PA

Posts: 653
CaseyP on Sep 14, 2018September 14th, 2018, 6:53 am EDT
mine is a purely selfish opinion: drift boats have more comfortable standing space than rafts.
whoever designed the brace for the fly caster on a raft forgot that feet need to be in front of the knees for balance when casting and playing a fish. the brace is usually secured right at the edge of a wooden deck piece. it should be a little way towards the middle.
unless my feet are positioned on the canvas floor in front of the wood decking, my body is forced to lean hard on the brace with my feet behind me. this is very tiring and hard on the back.
to be perfectly honest, my favorite place when fishing from a boat or raft is in the back seat where i can do most of my casting sitting down, but Best Fishing Buddy discovered my secret and now makes me take my turn up front.
"You can observe a lot by watching." Yogi Berra

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