Commenting on the post about being too busy to fish, I finally have some time, and I have been greeted with 14 days of cloudy, windy days, even at dawn and dusk. I mean strong gusts that make fly fishing difficult.

What would you do, sit it out or give it a shot?

Bill

Two words: small water.

Today and tomorrow are the last of my use it or lose it vacation time that I have to burn before June 1st. Like you, I've found nothing but windy days. For the last few evenings, I've been hitting some private stock tanks I have access to and they've been on fire.

I nailed a nice 19" LMB last night in water so choppy that I couldn't even see my 2/0 Upside Down Frog. A good fish like that will almost make you forget about fighting the wind.

I really want to be on the lake in my boat, but that small water fishing is really good right now.

It's warm enough to wet wade, which means I only have to fight the wind, not the wind, the boat, and the trolling motor.

Find a community pond, or even the shallow end of a lake and give it a try. It beats watching the trees whip around like one of those attention getters at a used car lot and wishing you were fishing.

two words

Sinking Line (and not a sinking tip)

weirdest spring I can remember; its almost summer and the wind is 20 knots at daybreak; my easter lilies just now bloomed-p-

Wind and fly fishing aren't the best of possible mixes. That being said, if you can find a creek with a deep cut channel it might be a way to get down out of the wind roaring overhead.

I know where a bunch of these are located, but can't fish there in 20mph+ wind-p-

Pearow,

If you will give me the address, I will check it out in a hurricane.

bill

I have to agree with Txredraider...small water.

I haven't taken my yak out in awhile because of this wind. Took it to the coast the weekend before last and it sat in the back of the truck the whole time! Wind was just too much to paddle!

I have been hitting the neighborhood ponds though. I just find a nice spot with the wind blowing to my back. Then I just do a roll cast to get the fly out. I have been actually doing really well with the hand sized bluegills and small bass. But I have actually grown to enjoy the wind and pond fishing. Yesterday I was able to sit on a bench about 10 yards from the water's edge and just do one handed roll cast out to about 20 feet. First time I sat there and drank a beer while I was fly fishing...at the same time!!!

Yep. Small water, tight loops, and streamlined flies (as opposed to my favorite big hairy frog flies).

I live in Abilene. If I didn't fish in the wind, I'd NEVER fish.

You learn how to adapt to the wind and to even use the wind to help, actually. You learn where to position yourself in relation to the wind direction in order to make a cast. Being in a boat of some kind helps, as you can move around a little more freely.

The one thing that just doesn't work well is when the wind is blowing in from your casting arm side (from the right for a right-handed caster). That will blow your line and your hook back into your body. Not fun. But you can cast "back-handed" if you have to. Holding the rod in your right hand, just make your cast across your body so that everything is happening on your left side. It takes a little practice, but it works very well.

The easiest wind is when it's coming in from your left side so that it blows your line away from your body, and you're not casting directly against the wind.

Casting into the wind is tough, but if you keep your line low to the water during your cast by casting more sidearm, and if you keep your loops really tight going forward then it works well.

Casting with the wind makes it tough to get a good backcast. If you don't get a good backcast, then it's hard to cast well going forward. But you can use the wind to help. Just make a really high backcast up into the wind, and then guide the line forward to your target as you let the wind blow it forward for you. Pretty easy really.

Casting in the wind isn't that much harder. It's just different.

I use the wind to my advantage. High winds mean current in a lake and that concentrates baitfish. 15 to 25 mph winds mean I will be fishing windward and cross-wind points at dawn and dusk for Whites, Hybrids and Striper. Casting cross-wind with your rod downwind helps, but there are many techniques to deal with casting in higher winds. On the plus side, presentation is much less of an issue in choppy water conditions.

2 words. Go Fishing!!!
I fished Lake Austin this weekend in 25-30 mph winds and caught lots of fish!!! If it's not thundering and lightening go fishing!!!