Finally caught a decent one of the fly. First fish over half a pound since I picked up a fly rod. Man what a blast!

Very nice! Sounds like you’re hooked

That’s a ton of fun right there!

Nice fish and nicely done. Good job.

Nice bass.

Quite a bit of difference between a fly rod and a baitcaster when fighting a fish.

I fish local ponds so most fish are on the smaller side, but every once in a while I hook up with a larger one and it's a lot of fun.

What weight of line/rod was it on? Not sure if anyone can enlighten me on how to catch a big bass with a little fly? When most people spinning for them are using lures the size of your fist? Also on the fly I tend to catch more snags than fish when bass are hiding under Lilly pads and in weeds?

Actually in neighborhood ponds I think downsizing the lure is the way to go. I’ve caught a ton of keeper size bass on little flies that would fit inside the edges of a penny.

Wow cool how do you target them, I find neighborhood ponds are featureless so no clue where they would be hiding out.

Especially in ponds I'm fishing dragon fly nymphs, leeches, and streamers. Mostly size 6 to 2/0. That's 1.5 to 4 inches long. Size 6 or size 8 bass rod. Check out "bass on the fly" facebook page for a really comprehensive guide. You can keep a fly in the bite zone for a much longer period. Since most people are fishing gear, flies are seldom seen. Several different ways to rig a fly weedless. Easy to tie them so hook swims up. There are many fly fishing clubs that have outings once Covid loosens its grip; most offer free instruction on casting, fly tying, and you can connect with experienced fishers. "bass on the fly" has many articles/threads on starter outfits and what size rod to buy. Don't forget bluegills and crappie and wipers as easy alternatives if the bass are not on. https://www.facebook.com/groups/bassonthefly/ and see the fly fishing section of this site.

Thanks for the tips, I might have some size 6 hooks that I can tie something on. I can also bust out the size 8 rod, however will need to catch something a little bigger than a bluegill on it

I am new to fly fishing and was just trying out a TFO NXT 8wt combo I just got with a #6 red/white clouser minnow. It has the line/leader that came on it, but I don't know the exact line details.
I was making casts parallel to a solid rock wall and was fishing it veerryyyy slowly, trying to mimic the action of a jerkbait. Short quick strips followed by long pauses. With the colder temps we've had, I figured fish would hold close to the rock wall since it has a large sidewalk directly above it that would hold some heat. She picked it up during one of the long pauses. I probably just set it down right in front of her nose and she sucked it up. Here is a picture of the wall.



I am new to fly fishing and started out with a 5wt throwing the really small dry flies and poppers to stay on top of all the vegetation. I have only caught really small bass and panfish on it though. I got the 8wt to throw large poppers and streamers,but the #6 clouser minnows are the only thing I have even remotely big enough to throw on it right now. I have been shopping around for bigger bass flies and noticed some of them come with hooks facing up instead of down, which would help reduce hanging up in the heavy stuff. I also saw some that have downward facing hooks with weedguards.

I always look for that one piece of cover, no matter how small it may seem, whether it is one lone branch or small patches of vegetation near the bank, and start there. I think bass will hold close to whatever is available. I can't remember where I saw it, but I read something saying even if a small branch is only wide enough to block the sun from a fish's eye, they will use it. It is just their instinct to find something that gives them security.

Nothing better... except a Steelhead or a Silver or a Redfish. Bass do rock on a fly rod. Tons of fun, great job!!