Fishing Tips
By Brian Chan
Courtesy Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC
B.C. is blessed with an abundance of freshwater fishing resources, including about 15,000 lakes. Many of these water bodies support wild stocks of trout and char. As well, the Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC annually stocks approximately 1,000 lakes. This all means that there are ample lakes from which anglers can choose – from easy-to-access urban, to hike-in fisheries – scattered throughout all regions of the province.
Despite a history of being shrouded in mystery and difficult to master, fly-fishing is one technique that continues to grow in popularity. In reality, fly-fishing is no different from any other fishing technique: it is just another way to present imitations of food sources to fish that you hope are hungry.
The most challenging part of fly-fishing is learning how to cast. Fortunately, there are many teaching resources available to help you master the basic casting stroke. One of your best options is your local fly-and-tackle store, where you can get advice on a fly rod, fly lines, and reels to start out with, along with casting lessons or tips.
Being successful in lake fishing requires understanding what the fish are feeding on, and then presenting your flies, lures, or bait at the depth where the fish are feeding. With fly-fishing, use a floating fly line to present flies to fish that are feeding on or close to the water’s surface. You’ll also need a variety of sinking fly lines to fish every depth all the way to the bottom of the lake.
Floating lines lie on the surface of the water and are the line of choice to present imitations of insects, or other food sources of trout or char, that sit on the surface or are suspended in the surface film. Floating lines are also effective in presenting sub-surface flies that imitate insect larvae, nymphs, or pupae which are present high in the water column, or in water less than about four metres (12 feet) in depth. Just adjust the length of the leader to allow the fly to sink deeper into the water.
Sinking fly lines are made in different sinking densities so that each particular line will sink at a certain rate, measured in inches per second. Sinking fly lines are categorized by their sink rate: type 1 lines sink at one inch/second, type 3 lines sink at three inches/second, up to type 8, the fastest lines, which approach sink rates of eight inches/second. Use sink rates to determine how long it will take for your fly line to take your fly imitation down to the depth you want to fish. For example, if we were anchored in 15 feet of water and fishing with a type 3 sinking fly line it would take that line 60 seconds to reach the bottom. The calculation is as follows: a type 3 line sinks at 3 inches/second or 180 inches/minute or 15 ft/minute sink rate. However, if using a type 6 sinking fly line with twice the sink rate, it would take 30 seconds to reach the bottom in 15 feet of water.
It is best to have the following three sinking lines in your tackle bag: type 1, type 3, and type 6. These lines, plus a floating line, will cover any fishing situation encountered in a typical lake containing rainbow or brook trout.
Learning when to use each of these lines is based on understanding where the fish and their food sources live in the lake. This is another side of the lake fishing puzzle. To a new angler, a lake looks like a big black hole with no clues as to where to fish. In reality, lakes can easily be broken down into basic habitat types or depth zones that relate to where the fish live. Basically, the majority of prime habitat of trout and char is found in water less than 10 metres (30 feet) in depth, with much of the fishes’ feeding taking place in water less than five metres (15 feet) in depth. That is because the major food sources of trout and char – important invertebrates like freshwater shrimp, chironomids, mayflies, damselflies, dragonflies, caddisflies, and leeches – all thrive where green aquatic plants grow. Photosynthesis or energy from the sun must be able to reach the bottom, in the rich shallower zones of the lake, for this green plant life to flourish.
Learning how to fish lakes, and in particular, to fly-fish lakes, is an enjoyable lifelong journey. Fortunately, there are many learning resources available to the beginning fly fisher in the form of books, videos, and courses that will help shorten the learning curve. While it may seem a daunting task to learn the nuances of stillwater fly-fishing, the reward will be a lifetime of fishing success.