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3. Fly fishing etiquette

Maybe this is a question for the beginners area, but...I'm mostly self taught with the help of some YouTube videos. I'm fairly new to this style of fishing, but I've been fishing my entire life. I'm an old fashioned country hick from Iowa. Some of my best days as a youth were spent with my Zebco and can of corn or with some worms. One of my best days with a fly rod was up on a small mountain stream that rarely gets fished and nothing was working. I eventually kicked over a cow pattie and saw some worms. I put on a small hook and a worm and my first cast I had a fish. I caught and released so many trout it was amazing. My question is...does using worms break some type of fly fishing etiquette? The purpose is to catch fish and if they are biting on worms does that take away style points? Are there purist out there that would frown upon using a good old fashioned hook and worm on a fly rod and reel? I ask this on this forum because there is all this discussion about bugs, terrestrials, and the like and we devote so much time to figure out what trout go for which is great and I'm very interested in these topics but when I throw a worm in it just seems to work. Will someone let me know if I'm breaking the "rules" by using worms.

Hi Red_green_h-

Re: My question is...does using worms break some type of fly fishing etiquette?

Fly fishing involves using a tied artificial imitation, as opposed to using live bait. So when one uses live bait, even if it is cast with a fly rod, it is not fly fishing.

Yeah, Taxon got it right.

If you tried to fly cast with a live worm, it would go flying off the hook before it even reaches the water. It's only fly fishing if you're using an artificial fly. However, if the artificial "fly" is made of a little strip of rubber or chenille in the shape and color of a worm, then it's still fly fishing.

That doesn't mean it's wrong to worm dunk, but it's generally not as challenging as fly fishing and therefore doesn't earn as many style points.

Also, trout are biting on worms most of the time, but that doesn't mean worms are the main things trout eat in the stream. Far from it. As far as I know, only once have I ever caught a trout that was actually stuffed full of earthworms. They just aren't drifting loose in the water all that often, but a worm is such a tempting morsel that a trout will rarely pass one up unless it's extremely keyed in on a particular abundant insect at that moment.

Got it, well I went out this last weekend and got skunked. I resisted the urge to throw a worm on. I was trying to identify the right insect but was unsuccessful. They were rising all over the place even right next to my fly I just couldn't find the right one. I got a nibble or 2 from darker colored nymphs but still nothing. My buddy out of frustration threw a hopper pattern on even though there were none visible and caught 4 fish one right after the other. I don't know. I was perplexed to say the least.

Go to your local flyshop and get some info on hatches in your area, typically this time of year terrestials are common, hence your partner doing well with that pattern. You can also find hatch charts online, there very helpful. I know nothing about N.M., but im sure if you do some searching you can find some helpful info. Don't give up, that's part of the fun of flyfishing, being more in tune with your environment.

Mike

Thanks Mike, I did do that right before I left and I got a dozen flies that they helped me pick out. Where I go there is a fishing report that gets updated weekly. Just wasn't my day. Which is fine. Did some 4 wheeling and just getting out is worth it even if I don't catch anything. Catching fish is just an added bonus! I won't give up, just makes me want to go back up there asap.

"My buddy out of frustration threw a hopper pattern on even though there were none visible and caught 4 fish one right after the other. I don't know. I was perplexed to say the least."

Hoppers are DEADLY at this time of the year, whether you actually see any or not! Dead drifted or twitched, depending on your situation - I twitch them on lakes and ponds and do more dead-drifting on streams, though I will twitch them too. Also - try an all-black hopper with grey wings, you have a cricket and they are just as deadly at this time of the season.

Tight lines and better luck next time out!

Jonathon