By Mark Taylor
It’s no secret that most Trout Unlimited members are fly anglers, many of them avid.
It’s also no secret that many fly anglers also use other methods sometimes. I’m one of them. I started fishing with conventional gear, and I still use it pretty frequently—even for trout.
Winter into early spring is one of my favorite seasons to target bigger trout—primarily browns—in a couple of the tailwaters near my home in Western Virginia.
It’s a ton of fun to throw big streamers for these predators. If you’re a decent caster, it’s easier to put a streamer in a tight spot than to hit that spot with a lure cast on spinning gear. I also think well designed streamers generally have more tantalizing movement than most lures.
So, why is it that when I’m on a float targeting big browns from February through April, I always have a spinning rod with me?
One, if I’m in my two-man Outcast Ambush raft and at the oars, there’s a chance the angler in the front of the boat is not an experienced streamer angler, not a good caster, or both. Now, you can’t get better without practice, but that can still lead to a long, frustrating day. Even a beginner will probably move at least a few fish with spinning gear so it can be my afternoon bailout option.
In a three-person craft like a drift boat or raft, it can sometimes be a circus to have two folks casting flies—one in the front, one in the back—especially if it’s windy or, again, if one or both casters are, shall we say, learning. Putting a spinning rod in the back seat angler’s hands can reduce the chance of a streamer hook in someone’s face.
Spinners, jigs and deep-diving crankbaits can be effective for big browns. But, with one exception, my go-to in the winter and early spring is a minnow-shaped hard bait. They’re pretty easy to fish and effective.
Yes, these lures carry treble hooks. I always
Continue reading at tu.org
