What to throw? Where to fish?

[Angelo C Mastrando Jr.]

I've only fly fished 4 times since June (Few days ago was the last time) and everytime was a fail. I know now what I was throwing in the spring and early summer isn't working now. I've try fishing with poppers and some terrestrails at first light caught a few decent Gill's near weed pads but nothing much is really happening. And at dusk only thing bitting are the gnats and the mosquito's. My spider pattern's that were a must in the spring has dropped can't even get a hit in deeper water with them. What are they feeding on? From the Heat front we had a while ago temps hitting triple digits now with a temps barely in the 80's, weather is really something else this year. What to throw and where to fish? I also tryed mini woolly buggers, nymphs, woolly worms. If anything probaly must wait for the fall to kick in.

[shooter]

  hi Angelo i know what you mean,down here in Louisiana this time of year the fish go deep after the full moon rush,i use the low and slow approach.

  take a bb shot make sure you use a small bb shot ,put it  about 18" above your fly and fish it slow it will hold the fly at a even depth and you can move the weight  up an down the the leader until you find the sweet spot.

  

GATORS MAKE GOOD BOOTS

[Angelo C Mastrando Jr.]

Thanks for your advice, I never try BB Shots before have looked at them but don't know what size is recommended, what size your tippet is or what not. 

[Joe Angelucci]

Angelo

Try going a bit smaller in the 18 -20  range on the nymphs. You need to get down a bit deeper. Use either B or  #10 shot. Both are available on line. Small works best. 

If you don't mind going something a bit different with your fly rod, try some some short nymphing. Use some two pound test and dap the nymph the length of you rod. Try and keep your presentation as vertical as possible with no drag. You'll get bits, just not monster gills.

[David, aka, "McScruff"]

If you're sticking with the fly rod, use a stinking line and leader. The fish haven't gone anywhere, just deeper.
There are a lot more food choices in summer and alot of it is wholly underwater. Fish fry, crustaceans, invertebrates, aquatic insect larvae....all of these are on the summer menu. You probably ought to be using flies that mimic these.
Sooooo where are they? Deep structure and cover, mostly. Water temp, low light and oxygen levels
are what they want. Usually we're poking for 10-30 ft deep, with cover, not far from a shallower flat. Try finding these things.