For us here in
the Northeast, Fall is False Albacore time -- it’s what I call
a magical time. Many of us fly rodders have experienced the
thrill of catching this Little Tuna and many of us agree that, pound
for pound, there is no other species that can strip 150yd of backing
in less than 30 seconds.
When I first started
fishing for False Albacore I have to admit that it was frustration
and nothing else. It took several fishless days before I was able
to hook up with one of them and, when it did happen, it was
by luck. At that point I realized that it was time to do some homework.
False Albacore
is an offshore fish and they feed on offshore baitfish such as Anchovy,
Sardine, Butterfish and so on, baitfish that reach a pretty good size.
So, why don’t they take flies that exceed 2” in length
when we fish for them inshore?
My answer is very
simple. False Albacore will come close to shore, not because they
have nothing to eat offshore, but because they know that they will
find tons of Bay Anchovy (Rainy Fish). They must love them.
That’s why every fall, like a Swiss watch, they show up. They
will concentrate on them and nothing else. I believe this is the reason
why we need to use very small size flies.
I had been told
that I wasn’t catching False Albacore because they have big
eyes and can see your leader. Nonsense. Since I figured it
out, I have caught False Albacore on a fly attached to a 20lb single
stranded wire. Yes indeed, False Albacore have big eyes; but that
doesn’t mean you can’t catch them because they can see
your leader. Think for a minute. If fish could understand the significance
of a leader or a hook, we would never be able to catch any,
not even on bait. Fish always look for positive signs, which is the
baitfish they are feeding on.
Many of us have
experimented successfully with small flies to represent our Bay Anchovy
(Rainy Fish), and most of them have been done with epoxy. It took
me a lot of trial and error before I came out with the Bay Anchovy
using the EP Fibers. I paid a lot of attention to the Bay Anchovy
and tried to see them as the False Albacore do. Bay Anchovy is a very
translucent baitfish so I needed to have a fly that could give an
illusion of it.
These are my favorite
colors that will cover any situation:
Bay Anchovy
Grey, Tan, Lt. Olive and Chartreuse
Length:
2.5”
EP Fibers: Grey, Tan, Sage, and Chartreuse
Flashabou: Silver
EP Sparkle: Pearl, Silver
Plastic Eyes: 4.5mm White
Thread: Clear Mon .004
Glues: Zap-Ca, Hard As Nails, Goop
We in the Northeast
feel very lucky to have this wonderful Little Tuna paying us a visit
every fall, and we are very lucky that they are not a good fish for
human consumption.
Remember, always
carry a comb and a scissor in your bag. Depending on the situation
you may need to shorten the fly and if you don’t have that scissor
with you, believe me, you are out of luck.
Good fishing to
you.
Flex
Popper
