Dirty Worm (Micro Worming)
Spoiler Alert: The contents of this post contain non-traditional fly fishing techniques. Purist read at your own risk.
What is micro worming? Well, I call it dirty fly fishing- but fly fishing none the less. It’s simple, high-stick-dead-drift a Texas rigged soft plastic worm on a bone fish hook… and voilá! You are micro worming.
Purist argument- it’s not fly fishing. Not a dry fly. You didn’t tie it. Dirty dirty dirty.
Rebuttal: If you don’t tie your own flies already- you have no room to talk. Just my opinion. So, purists may have a point there in the fly. For non purists, it’s just another underwater pattern. However, the technique, high-stick-dead-drifting is a fly fishing technique; and the delivery system is still a fly rod and fly line.
So, what’s not fly fishing about?
Maybe you can call it more fly catching? All I know is this technique is deadly on Small Mouth Bass and Guadalupe Bass.
If the guy who taught me this wants credit for this technique- admit your guilt in the comments below. I’ll reference, cite, and hyperlink below for the annals of history to credit your infamy fame. If you want to deny the genius of the dirty worm and hide in shame- I’ll never admit your name rhymes with ‘Dave’.
Promise.
See you on the high ground,
AirborneAngler
UPDATED: I found this dirty little secret here.
D-Day plus 107 (D+107)
Well it’s about time isn’t it? No I was not lost out on patrol- but I was on patrol fly fishing the heck out of my float tube. Only until yesterday- I had nothing to report.
I’ve been out handfuls of times since the last Texas Hill Country Mixed-Bag battle tracking update flutter kicking my float tube up and down the river. In short I will cover the near-misses.
There was a 10″ fresh water drum I was excited about on the Colorado River I caught a few weeks back.
The excitement was short lived when I checked to see that 14″ was the minimum. But the biggest near miss was my cell phone; a $500.00 fail. Out on the Guadalupe River just above Canyon Lake I met up with an old Airborne buddy to chase- well anything with fins. That excitement was also short lived when I dropped my Otterbox encased phone into 11′ of water. Repeated dives did not even recover the body. Although we grabbed randomly and several rocks near the same shape and size.
Lastly, I’d show you a picture of a near miss trout, but the Guadalupe hasn’t been kind to me and I don’t have one of those either. 3 skunk attempts tells me she does not like me. So why, with all this failure am I posting you ask?
Because I win.
I mean that I’ve won a moral victory anyway- the contest isn’t over yet but I’m riding high back in second! Judges will likely have to confirm that it is Guadalupe Bass, but man was this one a beaut. Dave and I spent 13 hours on the water and this unconfirmed Guadalupe Bass was caught roughly within the first half hour. That’s all the points the Guad would cough up for me that day. But even if it gets reassigned to a smallie- it’s only worth more points.
Winning.
See you on the high ground,
AirborneAngler
***Update*** As it turns out my Guadie is in fact judged to be a Smallmouth Bass. ***That is all***
Shakespeare Shall Sustain Thee
PFC is not just a rank in the Army of Private First Class. It should also be an acronym for every angler. That acronym being, Pre Fishing Checklist- Pro Tip, write that down.
This past weekend I made a trip down to the Llano River over in Castell, Teaxs. It’s a beautiful stretch of the Llano river marked by stretches of rocky veins networking through the water. The clear water and the deep scattered pools are well known for holding the precious Texas Guadalupe Bass. A Guad was exactly what I was looking for too. I needed one for the Mixed Bag tourney.
Listen anglers, I’m going to make an admission I may have mentioned before. Brace yourself because it goes against our mantra of the early bird gets the worm. Or, er, the early angler gets the fish. Whatever- but I hate mornings. I am not the get up at o’dark thirty type and my sergeants have always hated me for that. When I did get up an hour late I loaded up as fast as I could and hauled on over to the Llano river.
What I baffled me more than the Rooster hanging out in front of the General Store was that I forgot my reel. My options?
a) go back home and call it a loss,
b) go home and get my reel for a 5hr round trip, or
c) purchase the Shakespeare 3pc set at the General Store for fifty bones.
Begrudgingly I opted for option C.
I’m accustom to my Ross reel and Rio line. But- while not pretty, the reel (which is just a line holder anyways) served its purpose. While I was not impressed with the “fly line” that came with the set- it too served its purpose.
So when in a pinch and in too long of a pickle… Shakespeare will sustain you. Or you cam conduct PFCs. You didn’t actually think I’d be quoting old Bill did you?
See you on the high ground,
AirborneAngler
The AirborneAngler 