FNF

[MagikSmallie]

Well the Float-N-Fly has been around for a while now and I know there's alot of you that really love it on here. I'm going to give a try this winter and see what happens. but where I'm just trying it out I don't wanna get to financially committed to it just yet. So what are the bare essentials I'll need to start F-N-F fishing?...fairly cheaply...also any methods and/or techniques would help alot as I've never done it or seen it done before...thanks.

[mhall]

Oh Woodrow, where for art thou Woodrow........................................... .....?

[elnutsmalljaws]

Oh Woodrow, where for art thou Woodrow........................................... .....?

I am here Mark, just had not been on the site since about 7am this morning.

Float N Fly - My FAVORITE way of fishing. If you click on "Articles" from the main Fishin.com page, then index of all article and find the one that I wrote in 2008 will hopefully help you in getting started. There is also a winter fishin.com get together held out of Horse Creek on Dec 18-20, with a meeting taking place Friday Dec 18th at 6pm CST, where several techniques of winter fishing will be talked about. I will be giving the FNF part and Steve Headrick, The Smallmouth Guru, will be giving the rest. There will be door prizes including 2 FNF rods. You can find all the details on the post pegged at the top of this main Ky Fishing Discussion Board.

Economically speaking: CMIDD is right in that warm clothes is a necessity because with 20-40 degree air temps and water temps below 50, plus the sleet, snow and rain, it gets very cold so warm clothes and a GOOD RAIN SUIT are essential.

FNF fishing speaking: If I was starting over with what I know today, 10' Lexus Silstar FNF rod cost about $50, Okuna spinning reel w/wide spool $80 or any other spinning reel with a good drag will work but I really like my Okuna reel, Fish Dope $3, #4 3-way swivels $2, 1 spool 8lb Fireline $14, 1 spool of XPS 6lb Flourocarbon $15, 5 duck feather Red/Chart, Blue/Chart, Purple/Chart jigs any combination, a couple of the following craft hair jigs White/Pink/Blue for high blue skies and smoke gray/black for overcast days. All the jigs 1/16 oz and will cost you a couple of bucks a piece. FNF bobbers, special bobbers with the weight in the center, $5 for 2. All of this will cost you less than $200 and will last you a couple of years of fishing. The fireline is your mainline and you won't have to replace it but every couple of years depending on how much fishing you do. All I do is cut about 6-8 feet off every so often. You can tell when for the line will change from Black to Grey color and get a bit frayed the last 8-10 feet due to all the casting and pulling thru the rod eyes. The Flourocarbon is only used for your 10-15 foot leader so one spool will last a good couple of years, make sure you keep it in a cool dark place thru the summer for next year. The 3-ways and fish dope goes a long long way. Really the only consumable of the technique is the jigs. I know that when I land 4 and 5 pounders, there are times the fish will absolutely destroy them so I keep plenty of my favorite colors on hand. I have been on the water where they would only hit one particular color, this happened to be a solid pink jig and I only had 2 of them but when they destroyed them, that was all the bites I got that day. Learned that day if I am going to spend all the money to go, then what is another $40 worth of jigs in my box going to do. Hope this helps, the article helps and you are welcome to come to the get together and meet about 20 or so other Idiotic Dedicated Winter Time Fishermen if you like.

I fish Duck Feather Chartreuse with Red, Blue or Purple 90% of the time from December thru February. I know there are many that don't tie on this type until the water is much cooler but I know that I have had a LOT of success with these colors from Day 1 of the season to the last day of the season. If you look in my box you will know exactly what my favorites are because I have about 40 of each of these 3 colors, then I will switch to White/Pink/Blue craft hair on high blue sky days after the sun comes above the mountains, and at times craft hair smoke color on cloudy days again after the sun comes above the mountains. NEVER made a cast before 11am with any other color than my top 3 colors, Duck Feather Chartr with Red, Blue or Purple. Red was the color of choice in 2005, 2006, Blue was hot in 2007, and Purple was my go to color all of last year. I use strictly Punisher Lures jigs and you can find them as well as everything at Punisherlures.com or the One Stop in Celina TN. If you stop in, talk to Steve Headrick, Owner, tell him Elwood sent you and he will happily get you set up. You don't have to mention my name and he will still set you up for one heck of a nice guy.

[CMIDD]

FNF rod, should be able to get one from BPS for $40 or so, a good spinning reel, you probably already have one. I spool mine with braid then use a 4-6lb flouro leader. Some 3 way swivels, a bobber, and some flys. Spend your money on warm clothes!!

[know1]

FNF rod, should be able to get one from BPS for $40 or so, a good spinning reel, you probably already have one. I spool mine with braid then use a 4-6lb flouro leader. Some 3 way swivels, a bobber, and some flys. Spend your money on warm clothes!!

I'll echo the sentiment about clothes. I keep upgrading my winter outdoor wardrobe, but that actual fishing equipment is relatively cheap.

The BPS rods are about $40. If you have another spinning reel, you can just use that. Buy some good fluorocarbon line for leaders and some Fireline or Braid. You can pick up the bobbers, swivels and flies for a couple bucks apiece.

[MagikSmallie]

Awesome Guys thanks.. I flirted with gettin into FNF last year but never committed ...this year I'm doin it though. I've got a great rainsuit and cold weather gear. I've got an extra shimano stradic 1000 layin around. so all I need is the rod/line/terminal tackle.......now....the important part!....what kind of structure and water depths do you like to hit...I know the water needs to be below something like 52 degrees... but what are some technical aspects after i get the gear lined up....

[MagikSmallie]

BTW...a Special Thanks to elnuts...your sharing of your extensive knowledge is greatly appreciated...you don't have to share it but I know I speak for alot of us on here that we really appreciate it alot...I hope you get to feelin better buddy!

[elnutsmalljaws]

Awesome Guys thanks.. I flirted with gettin into FNF last year but never committed ...this year I'm doin it though. I've got a great rainsuit and cold weather gear. I've got an extra shimano stradic 1000 layin around. so all I need is the rod/line/terminal tackle.......now....the important part!....what kind of structure and water depths do you like to hit...I know the water needs to be below something like 52 degrees... but what are some technical aspects after i get the gear lined up....

I start pretty much every trip at 10-11 feet leader and catch most of my fish in less than 20 feet deep water depth. One thing to take into account is the fish are very dormant as are the shad, less is better. The fish will be feeding looking up most of the time this time of year so it is better to be a foot too shallow than a foot too deep on your leader. Read the article as to my thoughts on depth and presentation, which are more important than color of jig. I really don't think that the fish can make out the difference between Duck Feather Chartr and Red, Blue or Purple. It is all about confidence and the more confident you fish the bait the better it is. I will fish different types of structure and banks. I have 10-12 of my favorite spots that encompasses grass beds that sit in 10-20 feet of water (depending and the lake levels is depending on which ones I target to see which are holding fish), there is black shale banks and points, do nothing looking banks but that have some underwater cuts or trees on them, bluffs, humps/ledges and chunk rock banks. I will run these favorite spots early on day 1 of the trip trying to get a pattern or depth that the fish are holding. After running them, I will think back as to what produced then I have another 100 spots that are 5 miles of Holly Creek, where I put in most of the time, and will run the spots per the pattern that I have established. These fish will not move a lot in the winter just to save energy. If you can find shad on your depth finder then you can bet there will be some fish within the vacinity. I have heard from guides that say they idle around and run around looking for shad on their graphs before starting to fish. I can honestly say that I have NEVER done that in my life. I believe that big fish hang around in big fish spots and I continue to run the spots that I have and continue to have success, so I see no reason to change. I have been in the boat with Steve Headrick several times and know enough about the lake that spots he has shown me or told me about and I have caught fish from, I will pattern that spot to another on the lake and fish it as well. Most times I will catch fish there as well. If fish are on black shale points then run to every black shale point you can see and fish it, if they are 12 feet deep just above the grass beds then run that pattern. It takes time and Dale Hollow looks pretty much the same and every point or island looks like it will hold fish. Takes a lot of time and effort in learning the lake. I know it took me several years to get the maps together of my spots and I have the confidence in them that I will catch fish off them for many years to come. Big fish will stay in the same spots all the time. Even if one moves out, I think it replenishes with another. I also think Big Fish are homebodies and don't move very far. If they can get a place to ambush prey, grass, rock, flat next to deep water then they will be there most of their lives. Sort of like humans, we run around as young people moving from place to place then the older we get we settle down into our "retirement home". Again this is just my opinion but I can tell you that pretty much I have my favorite spots and they continue to give up 4+ pound fish and I don't see me changing until I stop catching Quality fish. I would rather catch 1 - 5 pounder than 25 - 12 inchers, again just me. I even have spots that are called my skunk killers. Guaranteed spots to get the skunk out of the boat but it will not be a good quality fish. Whenever I need a fish, I will hit one of these few spots knowing the bobber will go under and most likely she will be an "under" instead of an "over". I fish for "over's" 99% of the time. Spend time on the water with a good map, I prefer the Atlantic Mapping System map. A lot more detailed than any other map. Look for big flats next to deep water, points that have deep water on one side, transition areas with some sharp water changes in depths, while on the water look at transition areas from pea gravel to black shale with a depth change close by, chunk rock banks will hold Spotted Bass even if no smallmouth, etc. One last bit of advice, of the 40+ fish that I have landed over 5lbs, only 2 of these fish were caught after 11am. Maybe it is the spots that I fish but I think it is more due to the sunlight getting above the mountains by then. I play the sun ALL DAY LONG. If I have a choice in a shaded bank and sunny bank to fish then I ALWAYS pick the shaded bank. The BEST FNF bite is the first 2 hours of daylight. When I say this, I am making cast on spot #1 when I can't even see the bobber as the sun is coming up. If I am launching and I see the sun coming up then I AM LATE. Some people think that a half hour or hour does not make a difference but I can't tell you how important the bite is the first 2 hours of daylight. In reality, I could fish from sunup to 11am then take it to the cabin and sleep and put back in and fish from 2-dark. By playing the sun early and late, you have plenty of banks to fish the first 4 and last 2 hours of daylight. I plan on fishing deeper with jigs the hours in between in hopes of adding to my arsenal this winter for just like I love the FNF, there are more guys down there that do as well and better than me with just a jig fishing deeper and I plan on learning this as well. Hope this helped, Elnut

[GeoFisher]

I will add a couple too.......

* There are days where the FNF will work ALL day......not many, but they do exist. On those days, throw it......but when the bite shuts down.......put it away.

* If you're good with a jig, use it. I think last year, I caught more fish on a jig than the fly. BUT last year was kinda funky for me.....LOTS of quality fnf and jig fish from November thru probably the first of January, and the NADA, nothing.....very few fish the 2-3 trips in Jan and Feb.

* I know LOTS of guys still fishing the fnf in March, but I put the gear up the first of march, and head to KY.......That BIG MOMMA march bite at KY RULES.

* Finally, if you've never done the winter fishing thing.....BE CAREFUL....you can never stress this enough. Going in the water, or having an issue on the water can be DEADLY, and understand the limits of you and your boat......

* HAVE FUN........and don't get discouraged......the first 8 times down there, before I actually had met people winter fishing, I pretty much stunk up the boat. I can count on 1 had the fish I caught the first 5 trips..........SKUNK, SKUNK, SKUNK, 2, 3.......and the next 3 were not much better......The next 10 though........WOW......

Later,

Geo

[elnutsmalljaws]

To sort of expand on what Geo said, a PERFECT FNF day is overcast, cloudy, never see the sun, very slight chop on the water - but not too much chop to make the bobber bounce too much therefore working the jig too much because you always have to remember you are imitating a very cold very sluggish small baitfish that could be on the verge of death. Last year was the toughest year for the FNF that I have seen since I started fishing it in 2004. Mainly due to the fact that the lake level was the third lowest EVER since the lake was built which made the water temps extremely low very fast. Usually temps are in the low 50's and upper 40's all thru December and don't reach the low 40's until Feb. Last year temps were in the mid 40's by late December and low 40's by mid January. The jig bite was more consistent I think due to the fact the lake was being pulled down so much due to the drought and the lack of water coming out of Cumberland that the Obey river, which feeds out of the Dale Hollow Dam was feeding the Cumberland river to keep it wet down thru Nashville and then over to Barkley Lake. The fish went deep, 30 feet deep, and it is hard to call a fish up to a 15 foot leader from that far away, they just don't move that much. That being said I caught better quality on average fish but not nearly the numbers. A typical day in my boat in the winter is 10-15 fish with 4-6 fish over 4lb each. Last year it was more like 8-10 fish per day but I was still getting the good 4 fish a day over 4lb or so, better average weight per fish but not as many. I was also having to find new spots to fish since the water was so low. My typical spots were sitting in 5 foot of water instead of 15 as normal. All I did was fish the same areas that I normally did but moved down the bank or out from the bank looking for the "usual" water depth that I thought fish should be in. I found a lot of stumps that I never knew existed and have them marked to make sure that I fish this year. Right now the lake is at a usual level and with all the rain they will keep spilling Cumberland so as to not effect Dale Hollow this winter. Hopefully we will have an average fall rainfall and this will hold true. Sure be glad when the dam is repaired at Cumberland because it effects Laurel and Dale Hollow the most. They are either spilling Cumberland or barely sending water thru and this is either backing up Laurel and Dale or drawing them down to compensate.

[know1]

I will add a couple too.......

* If you're good with a jig, use it. I think last year, I caught more fish on a jig than the fly. BUT last year was kinda funky for me.....LOTS of quality fnf and jig fish from November thru probably the first of January, and the NADA, nothing.....very few fish the 2-3 trips in Jan and Feb.

I'm glad to see other people say this. I'm not the expert you all are, but I've fished it quite a bit the last two winters, and both years I did much worse after mid-January. My best trips the last two years have been in December and right around the first of the year.

I don't really know how to use a jig, so I just throw the FNF all day. I will say that even though the bite seems better the first two hours of daylight (although I can hardly get my relatives out of bed to get there that early), I have caught my biggest fish later in the day.

That's just been my experience.

[elnutsmalljaws]

I'm glad to see other people say this. I'm not the expert you all are, but I've fished it quite a bit the last two winters, and both years I did much worse after mid-January. My best trips the last two years have been in December and right around the first of the year.

I don't really know how to use a jig, so I just throw the FNF all day. I will say that even though the bite seems better the first two hours of daylight (although I can hardly get my relatives out of bed to get there that early), I have caught my biggest fish later in the day.

That's just been my experience.

Again, just my opinion but the bite does slow way down in Mid January just because the water temps are dropping even lower and reach the mid to lower 40's by then. When the temps are this low, the Yellow Hoss Fly (Asprin Head Jig) bite turns on for me. The absolute ugliest bait ever invented is the Yellow Hoss Fly but I have caught many fish on it and even so much that I will be giving some of these in the door prize bags at the get together. Great bait for COLD water, don't ask me what it is supposed to imitate but if not for Steve Headrick I never would have believed this bait could catch anything. We were in his boat one day and pulled just off my favorite spot on the lake and there is a grass bed at the end of the area that I fish. We had caught a couple of fish on the fly and I had one of these Yellow Hoss Fly's tied on. He told me to cast it towards the grass bed. FIRST CAST, IF I AM LIEING I AM DIEING, and I set the hook on a 5-14 Smallie. My little 6 1/2 foot spinning rod with 6lb Flourocarbon had a wonderful time in fighting this fish. NO JOKE, FIRST CAST. I took 3sons out the next day and caught 3 on it. Fish it just like a jig on the bottom and these fish will hammer it. The same day with Headrick and we are fishing a ledge with stumps in about 20 feet of water. He is throwing the Yellow Hoss Fly, gets hung up on one of the stumps, has the boat over top of it working his rod and it pops free, his rod breaks loose, then re-loads just as quick for a 3 1/2 pounder hammered it just as it busted free from the stump. My only guess is the fish was looking at the hung jig the whole time, it un-hangs and BOOM. Like I said one UGLY bait but it catches fish and I have several in my box all are 1/4 oz Yellow in Color. Punisher Lures makes Brown, Green, White and other colors of the same jig but I only use the Yellow color.