The Northern California Fly Fishing Board

Joey and I fished Fuller Lake on Thursday. We got off to a late start and did not arrive till around 12:30. It was a beautiful day with snow still present from the last storm. We trolled around the lake looking for fish since this was our first trip to the lake. There were some bank fisherman, couple guys in a pram and one tuber leaving as we arrived. The water temps were 46.5-47.5 degrees and according to my depth finder the majority of the lake was 18-20ft. Once the sun left the water it became cold real quick and with a slow bite it was even colder.

We fished with intermediate lines with moderate success and switched to sink tips when we decided to add more layers for the cold. Joey was trolling his entire line when he hooked a couple fish. He had a Skunk thing going for the last couple trips and he was pretty excited to get the monkey off his back. We both ended up landing a couple nice browns each and it was nice to land some CA browns.

Couple questions? What does a Sheep Creek imitate? Never seen one before but tied up a few for this trip. What type of line do you use to get deep while Stillwater fishing?

Tight Lines,

Jet

I was lucky enough to get to meet George Biggs, the originator of the Sheep Creek Special way back when. When I talked to him about the fly he said he considered it to be just a general attractor pattern especially good in lakes with Dragonfly, Caddis, and other nymphs. He mainly tied it with the original colors and fished it in a variety of ways (well, that's a surprise). I remember him saying that he felt it was most important to tie it in various sizes and lengths to match the nymphs where he was fishing. He didn't consider color to be a factor because of his contention that the fly was an attractor pattern.

I normally use an intermediate line to fish lakes. If I'm just trolling along with a weighted fly I have snagged bottom in water 8-12 feet deep. If I want to get really deep I go to a full sinking line, depending on how deep I want to get, using either a type 3 or a type 6. Shorter line is better when fishing really deep if you can do it.

will get you down pretty deep. I too usually use a floating or intermediate line for stillwaters.

Paul

Jet,

I've tried different sinking lines and systems for lakes from intermediate lines to full sinking lines and everything in-between (5', 10', 15' & 30' sink tips) and currently use a older Teeney 130 gr integrated head (24' sinking section) to get down as deep as I need and/or a WF5I Rio AuqaLux intermediate line (with a clear tip). I like the Rio over the last one (Cortland "Camo" intermediate) because it seems to pick up from the water and shoot better than the Cortland.

Regardig the Sheep Creek Special, I fished with a fellow a few years ago who tied that fly in sizes specific to Bonefish, Tarpon, & Permit. He was on a quest to catch a Grand Slam on that fly. Last time I spoke to him, he had caught each of those fish on a Sheep Creek. I guess it doesn't matter what the fish or water is for some patterns if they look like something the fish wants to eat.

Give my regards to Joey.

Paul

Sheesh Carpy! 27' of lead core is heavier than the chain I use to anchor my tube.

Stretch