Big streamers

[5wtGuy]

I have a question for everybody and I want to preface it by saying I am not asking for spots but rather advice on streams. I have been fly fishing since I was 12 but have always fished very small flies. 16-24 on average and don't keep anything bigger than 12 on me. However this upcoming year I have decided I want to dedicate as much of the year as possible to throwing big streamers for big trout. I have been tying a bunch of Kelly galloups flies and similar in preparation. My question is my main creek is Yellow Breeches. Is it worth it to spend days throwing articulated streamers there? Does anyone here do it with any success? Or am I better off focusing on Little Juniata or Penns which are both 2 and a half hour drives for me. I guess what I am getting at is does Yellow Breeches have enough big browns (18+ inches) to justify targeting them?

 

[moon1284]

If you want it's worth a shot. Conditions are huge unless you're doing it at night. I have only fished the breeches 10 or so times.

I dont know that you need to go super big but size 2 or 4 on long think 6x shank hooks isn't out of the question. For flies like you're talking about I'd use at least a 7 and most likely an 8 weight.

 

[5wtGuy]

If you want it's worth a shot. Conditions are huge unless you're doing it at night. I have only fished the breeches 10 or so times.

I dont know that you need to go super big but size 2 or 4 on long think 6x shank hooks isn't out of the question. For flies like you're talking about I'd use at least a 7 and most likely an 8 weight.

I have a 9 foot 7 weight that I use for steelhead that I plan on using and yes most of the streamers I have been tying are around size 2. My favorite so far is the articulated full pint with a 2 and a size 4. I just didn't know if anyone had any luck throwing 3 inch streamers on the breeches

 

[JeffK]

Haven't fished the Breeches but have good luck with 5" + streamers in Spring Ck. Fish tight to the bank when water is muddy and you may be shocked by the by what chases your streamer. Even the follows can be exciting. For night fishing, notice any shallows where plenty of minnows congregate and come by at night. However, familiarize yourself with the area in daylight because at night things look different.

BTW, I don't think 3" long streamers are that large. It is claimed that trout can eat things 1/3 their length. A friend fished 5"+ articulated streamers most streams and claimed the fish would either be scared away or make a grab for a big meal, but the ones he wanted to catch weren't the scared ones.

 

[5wtGuy]

Haven't fished the Breeches but have good luck with 5" + streamers in Spring Ck. Fish tight to the bank when water is muddy and you may be shocked by the by what chases your streamer. Even the follows can be exciting. For night fishing, notice any shallows where plenty of minnows congregate and come by at night. However, familiarize yourself with the area in daylight because at night things look different.

BTW, I don't think 3" long streamers are that large. It is claimed that trout can eat things 1/3 their length. A friend fished 5"+ articulated streamers most streams and claimed the fish would either be scared away or make a grab for a big meal, but the ones he wanted to catch weren't the scared ones.

I guess big is different for everyone. In the past the biggest streamer I ever threw was on a size 12 3xl hook so jumping to articulated streamers is big for me.

 

[lycoflyfisher]

You would be doing yourself a disservice by only fishing big streamers on yellow breeches, penns and little J. Large browns are dispersed all over in hundreds of streams. Conditions are probably more important to catching them than what particular articulated pattern you use. If there are wild browns, never underestimate a stream unless you have fished it after a thunderstorm with minnows or a streamer.

 

[krayfish2]

Anywhere from Allenberry to the mouth, 3.5" - 6" streamer. You may not catch a ton but you will be surprised what you see chasing.

I wouldn't limit it to big name streams either. If there's a slim chance it holds trout or a lie looks deep and safe, hit it. Marginal streams might fish best from October to April. Spring creeks or tailwaters might be better March - July but low light or stained conditions.

 

[Fly-Swatter]

As others have said, lower visibility conditions such as night, heavy cloud cover, and turbid water significantly increase your odds of success by making the trout feel less concerned about predation. Low visibility also give the trout less to visibly react to.

Cray hinted at this: A fringe benefit of this method is locating large fish for future pursuits.

Also, as Kelly says often, trout may not eat large streamers as much as attack out of aggression. So, the size of the "meal" you present and how you present it, relative to the size of the trout that see, it changes with this perspective.

FWIW, the bigger streamer I've had the recent success with is Sculpzilla. I have not fished it in Cumberland limestoners, but I think that's a prime area for this fly.

Here in NEPA, a #4 or #6 3xl or 4 xl bugger or slumpbuster are my big streamers of choice. These aren't big by articulated steamer standards, though.

 

[PennKev]

Here in NEPA, a #4 or #6 3xl or 4 xl bugger or slumpbuster are my big streamers of choice. These aren't big by articulated steamer standards, though.

Agreed. Such flies should be the bread and butter of streamer fisherman. You need a bigger fly than what most anglers fish, but the giant articulated stuff is overkill. If it's longer than your index finger it's too big. Also, you are going to lose a lot of flies if you fish them aggressively, it takes a few only a few minutes to replace a slumpbuster or bugger variation, and with minimal special materials.

Also, the way you fish the fly is usually much more important than the pattern. You can't just toss the fly out there and let it swing wherever like a newbie would fish a bugger. Galloup does a good job covering this in his books.

However, I think the most important part of streamer fishing, particularly here in PA, is figuring out how you are going to cover a lot of water and then going and doing it. You have to be content with making a few casts in a juicy looking spot, striking out, then moving to the next spot. This requires a large effort. It requires a lot of walking or spot hopping or a boat. You cannot make fish hit a streamer, you have to find the fish that want to play the game. Focusing on prime conditions turns things in your favor, but you still need to find the fish that are willing to play, and for truly large fish, that means a handful of opportunities even under ideal conditions. If you aren't OK with with losing more than you win, or are the type of person who can't leave a good looking spot, streamer fishing in PA ain't for you. At least not serious streamer fishing. In that case stick with small buggers and enjoy catching 10"ers while hoping to luck into a bigger fish.

 

[krayfish2]

Streamer honks, take 90 minutes to watch this. Pretty enlightening.

 

[afishinado]

One thing I'll say about tying and fishing streamers for trout is tying a hook at the rear of your streamer helps 100% with hookups. While I agree articulated flies are not necessary for trout, but it's a good way to tie in reverse with the shank in front and the hook in at the rear of the fly. Tying in a stinger hook is another way to accomplish this.

Here's a clever way to tie >

Gamechanger with rear hook >

 

[krayfish2]

You'll also need this 🤣😁

 

[Tabasco-Joe]

I've had success on stockies with 4" - 5" streamers.
It's not just the wiley old wild brown that might fall for a larger streamer.

I live 40 miles from the nearest accessible wild trout stream but 4 miles from a stocked stream.
So I go out in spring evenings for a short while to try out some patterns.

 

[JeffK]

The one dilemma with some of those massive streamers is as my one friend says, they cast like a dead squirrel. One reason not to go as big as possible.

 

[afishinado]

The one dilemma with some of those massive streamers is as my one friend says, they cast like a dead squirrel. One reason not to go as big as possible.

Wet dishrag!!...

If you tie or even buy, try casting the streamer pattern with the rod and line you plan to fish before you tie or buy too many. I've made that mistake more than a few times.

 

[troutbert]

Regular medium-sized streamers are attractive to big trout and are easier to cast than streamers the size of a muskrat.

 

[krayfish2]

Regular medium-sized streamers are attractive to big trout and are easier to cast than streamers the size of a muskrat.

But......are they really? 😂

Floated 6 miles of a 6.8 mile trip. Guy in the front was tossing buggers, sparkle minnows, clousers and small butt monkey. after hours of casting, we had one 12" follow it to the boat.

As we got near the end of the trip and I could see the takeout ramp, I had him give me his line. Tied on a 5.5" to 6" D&D. He asked me why I was putting a dead squirrel on the line and I told him we've come up empty so we're going for the home run swing. The worst we could do is leave fishless. First cast, first strip.... pounded by a brown in the 24"-25" range. The fish did not get stuck on the hook though. It might have been the most violent and vicious streamer take I've ever witnessed. 100 yards later, another giant fish flashed at it and one more chase buy a decent fish before we reach the boat ramp.

While they may not be a dream to cast, they sure do have their place and get reactions from the biggest of the big fish in that pool. I have caught some rather large trout out of spring creeks on very small sculpin patterns over the years but you get a much different reaction from these large obnoxious streamers. I hate fishing them or streamer fishing in general but it is effective.

 

[Dave_W]

I've had stream trout strike muskie flies that are 10" in length.

A 5" streamer is large for trout but will draw strikes as many on this thread have described. Personally, I prefer very large streamers when fishing bigger streams that transition into bass and muskie creeks. Lower Yellow Breeches would be in this category (minus muskies, although they do occasionally turn up there).

For smaller streams where I'm targeting trout, I prefer streamers in the 2-3" range, and often smaller. You get diminishing returns with hook-up percentage on trout when fishing larger streamers. A hook at the rear really helps (see Afish's post above).

 

[Balt Co Wanderer]

I spent all fall throwing 3” streamers for trout on streams that aren’t exactly known for producing large fish. I pulled a few 16+ fish and it didn’t seem to stop some of the smaller guys from getting themselves caught either. This little guy took a sculpzilla that was like 1/3 of his body size super readily.

 

[afishinado]

No doubt big streamers catch big trout, but you're in for a miserable day if you choose to fish K-fish's "Muppet Babies" on a 9foot 5weight.

If you decide to go really big, match the fly size with the rod and fish a 7wt (or even a stout 6 or an 8wt if you don't have a 7). That way you will able to cast comfortably for accuracy and distance and have fun rather than frustration fishing. As they say, choose the right tool for the job.

The above is true for any type fishing. Many guys try to fish musky flies on a 8wt and have a miserable time. LOL, I fish for muskies quite a bit and finally relented and now fish an 11wt for them. I actually now have fun fishing for them and cast with more accuracy and distance plus I no longer have to ice my shoulder down after a day on the water....

Edit: Just read this article. Good info about rod choices >

Pro Tip: Choosing the Right Fly Rod for Your Quarry is Vital to the Health of the Fishery - Orvis News

Written by: Kip Vieth, Wildwood Float Trips Make sure you've got a fly rod with enough backbone to get the job done.Photo courtesy Wildwood Float Trips I have been at this game a long time, and the most common question I get asked is, “What size rod should I bring up for our trip?” I guide 99%...

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