Advice for fly fishing for bass

[BSTORMIN4]

I would like to get my float tube out this weekend and fly rod. I want to catch some winter bass. I have been fly fishing for only 3 yrs. now and have yet to fish for bass intentionally. Does anyone know of a good fly to use this time of the year and good place to go? Is the snake high? Thanks for the advice. Brad[cool]
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[windriver]

This is just my opinion, but I would look for the water to be at least 46 degrees. I know you can catch them colder than that, but I don't have the patience. As the water temp nears 50 the smallmouth fishing will speed up. I don't know where your from but up hear in Eastern Idaho the river usually doesn't get warm enough until the first of May. This year things are different around hear and everything is warmer in the valley so It could be earlier.

Windriver
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[hooknhunter]

I've played around with a number of flies over the years. I haven't found anything better than a plain old wooly bugger for Bass. That's my 2 cents.

[flygoddess]

[quote hooknhunter]I've played around with a number of flies over the years. I haven't found anything better than a plain old wooly bugger for Bass. That's my 2 cents.[/quote]


YUP! There are others but Buggers are a great place to start. Try smaller ones like #12 and #14.
Another easy fly to tie would be a Gurgler. A stubby bugger with a foam back. Nice thing about them is you can pop them. Caught a bunch of bass on them.
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[BSTORMIN4]

Thank you for the advice. I am down in the Treasure Valley Boise area.
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[BSTORMIN4]

I know exactly what you are talking about guys thank you. I am sure I have quite a few WB's is there a certain color that works better then others?
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[flygoddess]

Trial and error. For me Black and Purple, but also Brown.
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[Oskolkoff]

any where on the snake is a good place to try here in western idaho also lake lowell i know small top water popper flys work good at lowell once it warms a bit the snake was up about 6 to 8 feet this past weekend but still very fishable i would watch the flows at for swan any thing above 8000 is going to hard to fish idaho power is showing 50 degrees for water temp at strike so bass are starting to play
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[StacyR]

The wooly bugger was designed as a smallmouth fly. It will pretty much catch anything that swims. Use Arctic fox or rabbit for the tail instead of marabou. The action is just as good, and the hair is a lot more durable so the fly will last longer.

I've been catching bass on black or dark brown buggers with no hackle tied on a size 4 jig dragged slowly near the bottom. I think it resembles a leech or small minnow.

I've also been doing well with a simple craw pattern. Stiff hair (I use black bear, but bucktail would probably work too) and a couple of pieces of krystal flash for the antenna. The body is chenille, with zonker strips cut to about 1" for the claws and eight rubber legs.
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[Belasko]

Not sure for this time of year but mid summer a clousers with chartreuse works well below swan falls on the snake.
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[gstott]

Everyone has had really good advice for you which I agree with 100%. One other good fly to try is something like a Zonker or Bunny Leech. That rabbit hair undulates with the slightest movement. Bass love it. Once it warms up, poppers, divers and gurglers are about as much fun as you can have. They're especially good at dawn and dusk.
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[hooknhunter]

[quote BSTORMIN4]I know exactly what you are talking about guys thank you. I am sure I have quite a few WB's is there a certain color that works better then others?[/quote]

I have a pattern I'll share with you that has been an awesome fly for me. I could probably go on for several paragraphs about this fly, but I'll be brief.

I call it a "Skunk-bugger", partly because when it gets wet it looks a bit like an inverted skunk to me, and partly because if I think I'm going to get skunked I can almost always resurrect a lousy day with this fly. It works great for both trout and bass.

This fly started out in this format:
1. Black thread on a 3x long size 4 (or 6, I prefer 4) hook.
2. Tail is black marabou with 4-6 strands of pearl flashabou.
3. Body is dark olive with a badger dle hackle palmered over it.

Later on, I switched out the badger hackle with an emu feather. I think this works better, but doesn't look as pretty in the fly box (who cares about that?).

I haven't tried it, but I believe it would also work very well with a grizzly SH on it in place of either the badger or emu. Sorry, but I don't have any pictures. Bass seem to really like this fly as do the Hybrids at Henry's.

If you give it a try I hope it works as well for you as it has for me. It has become my favorite bugger color variation.