Home Forums Fishing Flyfishing Miramichi trip!

I'm getting tired of looking at for sale stuff in the fly fishing forum all these days, so here's a flyfishing post!

I was given an 8 weight Sage rod last year that was used on the Miramichi. My friend used to tie flys for a fellow that fished all over the World. He passed away and left my friend a whole bunch of stuff. He gave me a rod. Now, he has an opportunity to stay at a lodge and has asked me to come along. As of today, I am going the first week of September. I've got 10 months to gather information on what to expect and what I need. My buddy has some of the flys he inherited that he plans to fish. He wants me to tie a classic salmon fly and get it wet there and put it in a frame. I suppose that's a thing flyfishermen do. I'd like to catch a salmon! Well if anyone has some info, advice... I've got 10 months.

Dude!! Thats pretty cool!!

I don't know salmon from shinola...I just thought I'd stop by and say "good on'ya" for your upcoming trip...

In September, I'll be chasing Brookies....

Ingwe

We were all supposed to go to Marathon Keys this past December, but it fell through because my friend couldn't get the time off, and we were out of luck. I'm hoping this stays together. September is a long way off.

Call me silly but I'd rather fish for Brookies than Atlantics. As a matter of fact I consider shooting a brace of grouse and catching a couple Brookies in the same day a great day!

Rob P: Never done Atlantic salmon, but dream of doing it some day. I've caught a ton of summer steelhead though, and no longer will go out of my way to catch a trout. I actually get pissed if an 18 inch trout hooks up while I'm steelheading. I still do trout, but only when it's convenient.

Good luck on tying the classic flys. Ninety percent of the effort will be securing the materials.

Hope it comes together. Fishing is important enough that when I write it in the schedule, it will happen whether the buddies can go or not.

If you can do that here, plus get a deer of some kind on the same day..we would call that a " Montana McNabb "

Ingwe

Rob,

I guided for atlantics for a number of years. Find a copy of Gary Anderson's "Atlantic Salmon: Fact and Fantasy-- probably one of the best all-iclusive books out there that won't cost an arm and a leg. Be prepared for the west coast greased line techniques. Yes, flies can be too big, always have patterns that go down to size six, and maybe even eight. Often times an atlantic will show himslef (flash) at a fly. That's all he'll do. See that twice, put on a fly a size or two smaller.

Don't go spending an arm and a leg on special leaders. Normal tapered leaders, of nine to twleve feet that are rated to eight pounds, OK, six pounds maybe, is all you'll need. Good rod, a reel with a VERY good drag, a good distance of fresh backing and a quality floating line, and a slow sink tip and you're kitted up.

Have fun.
djd

Oh man, I envy you. The BIG M! Haven't fished there in 30 years but dream of going back. Contact WW Doak in Doaktown New Brunswick. The Miramichi is their home water. I order most of my fly tying stuff from them, great source of salmon stuff.

www.wwdoak.com is your portal to Atlantic Salmon heaven.

And then if you bedded down the little lady, you'd have a Royal Montana McNabb!!!

I cannot make her stop trying for her own McNabb long enough!!!


Her she is after Brookies in Sept...



Ingwe

Bubba, you are truly blessed.......

Thanks man!


Here she is fishing in October a couple years back...



And here she is on the day she GOT a McNabb!!!!!!




Ingwe

Oh God!!!! My eyes, my eyes!!!! I'm going blind. Please tell me that spinning reel was just a prop.

Yep...its a prop...

So far as you know...........










Hey, nobody's perfect...


At least we didnt use it with a casting bubble and a fly!!!


Or a Wo... God NO! I can't even print it....let alone SAY it....


Ingwe

I don't know what the meaning of life is, but until I find out, catching fish out of mountain streams and good looking women will do.

Fred...throw in a good dog to go with you, and cold beer waiting at the truck.....

And you're livin' as "large" as any man has a right to....

Ingwe

Boy, I heard a story that the salmon don't eat when they come up the river. You've got to make them angry to strike. A guy tells me a fly called a black bear, red butt or a black bear, green butt is the fly. You cast out a sinking line and tuck the rod under your arm and strip like crazy in hopes of irritating a salmon into hitting. I find that an odd way to fish. I wonder if that's what the other folks here do.

That is just one of several methods. You can dead drift a dry fly or skitter it. You can fish a streamer such as the Mickey Finn in a variety of classic styles. Another very effective trick is to use a riffle hitch on a wet fly, often a simple hair wing. One of my favourites is the Hoot Smith Special, a simple hair wing consisting of a Black Bear wing and hot pink floss for a body. Some variations also have a soft black hackle tied in beard style. Want some flash? Add a rib of pink Krystal Flash.
The Black Bear_______Butt series are great too.

Rob,

treoutfly is absolutely spot on about the riffle hitch. It truly can work wonders. The black bear series are good, tried and true flies. I like the undertaker as well.

The salmon do not "eat" when they come up river, but rtaher strike out due to either their brain remembering something from their juvvie life, or out of aggression or curiousity.

You can do that strip like mad thing, but if the river has a good current, then the riffle hitch or the greased line is, IMHO, the way to go. On the surface, buck bugs and bombers, flies that throw a big wake, can be deadly. Green machines as well.

Another good choice, esp to riffle with are the various Rat series. Classic stuff such as featherwing streamers also work well on the Miramichi. There is a series of featherwing streamers esp for that region IIRC.

Aah, reading up, I saw the New Brunswick regs that you can't fish the river without a guide. Even private water? Say it isn't so!

That true of Atlantic Salmon waters most everywhere in Eastern Canada. Newfoundland used to and I believe still does allow unguided non residents to fish for Atlantics if you are within a specified distance of a road/bridge. Nova Scotia also may allow unguided nonresident Salmon fishers. The remainder of them have guided fishing requirements as much from old school tradition as anything, esp on the privately owned waters. Of course, as a member of the club you likely don't require a guide but would use one as they are "family" to you. It is a very deep, longstanding tradition which has been enshrined in law, very upscale.

Rob: One need not worry about the "do not eat thing," as that is typical to all salmon and steelhead once they enter spawning rivers. Takes, may be due to space invasion, which I think is the response to hardware and plugs, an innate or instinctive reaction to rising or passing flies, or just the chase response to an escaping morsel.

The strip like mad thing, from my past readings, is used mostly on fish holding in dead water pools. I've not seen that used on our western steelhead. Another stunt to wake up stupified pool fish is to "stone the pool" to get them moving and alert.

I've not done Atlantics, but the fishing is about identical to our western summer steelhead according to a deceased friend that spent several years in Maine. One's usually in flowing water with structure or bottom features that let fish hold in a near uniform current with little effort. One seldom finds them in deep boiling pools without a consistent direction or flow.

We cast almost straight across the stream, mend the line belly upstream a couple times to keep the downstream bow out of the line and let the fly/s sink, and then try to get our lines as straight as possible with more mends as they approach 45 degress. At that point, the flys start rising and tracking across the current. The rest is just standing and watching as the cast swings across and straight down stream. Most takes happen between the 45 degree point and the down stream hang. Ocassionally a fish will grab just as a fly hits the water, but it's rare.

Our western steelhead statistics suggest 9 hours of fishing per fish landed. Those truly in the know though can get into fish every 20 to 30 minutes. There are certain locales that are established lies. One can fish 1/2 mile of river, and there may be a 40 yard section in the middle, with no particular character, that will consistently produce fish every morning and evening.

Our party has pounded about 25 miles of one river here in Oregon over about 30 seasons, and can typically tell one within 5 to 6 feet of where he should expect a take. With that knowledge, one begins to skip hundreds of yards of non productive water, and concentrate solely on the hot spots. Extremely efficient.

With some experience, one can get a feel for a variety of obvious holding waters, but again, there are spots with no character, that will always hold fish too. Those are the locales only experienced guides will know about. On crowded streams, it's a race to get to obvious known water in the morning and evening. The more subtle spots or difficult to wade areas can be had with no competition at all.

Rising or cloudy water can generate a total turn off for flies. Hardware folks though can still piss them off and get strikes in those conditions. That being, a short 1 or 2 day trip, can be a hit or miss deal if condtions go off. Our group typically does 7 to 12 day floats. With a window that wide, we may have 2 or 3 zero days, and 7 or 8 killer days. We have had trips though where an extremely cloudy tributary can trash the river for an entire week. In those instances, we entertain ourselves with hiking, photography, watching wildlife, arranging scorpion fights, and rustling up rattle snakes etc.

With a guide or some experienced company, one can get into fish in short order. When I moved to Oregon, I put in about 14 full days of fishing over two seasons for steelhead, and never had a single bite. The wife and I each did a day with a guide, and scoring fish instantly became a cinch.

If you or your friend are not intimately familiar with Atlantic salmon fishing, one will learn volumes and most likely be rewarded by employing a WELL referenced guide. This is one of those deals where a well schooled 5% are responsible for 90% of the season's catch.

Again, good luck and hope it comes together. Sorry for the length here. 1Minute