Water Notes: Allen Sperry on Lake Wales

Living in Lake Wales I have plenty of lakes to choose from and have fished all within 20 miles of the house usually wading or from a boat chasing my favorite fish, the mighty bluegill.

About six years ago my wife and I bought a camp on lake Pierce which is super convenient as it's only 15 miles from the house, anyway I have a boat slip which also makes it easy, just put the gear in and good to go. Of course I'm the only one fly chunking and get looked at like I have a third eye and questions like "you fly fish" so I'm kinda known as fly fishing guy. 

In the past I've always had great luck with a yellow popper or foam spider. I fish in mainly 2-3 feet of water so top water is usually productive. time of year did not matter as long as the water warmed a bit so cold days I would just go out a little later after the sun did it's magic raising the water temperature some, it wouldn't take much just a couple degrees would get the gills to rise. Love the top water bite and BAM when old copper head busts em. 

Beginning of last spring was a different story, I couldn't buy a bite, I tried different colors, different sizes ( usually use #10 ) went to a mini popper, spiders, beetles I caught a few but not the numbers I was used to. I did have luck with a small woolly bugger but I longed for the top water bite.

Heck, I could hear the gills slurp in the past just mocking me. I once again looked through my fly boxes of anything that could possibly work I already tried everything I had three times twice, then I saw it, the old Perrine box that once belonged to my grandfather, has to be something small in there and there is was a tiny Adams I figured, why not, luckily I had 5x tippet and added to my 6'6" echo River glass and let er rip , it didn't take long before the gills began busting that Adams with a vengeance, I was feeling a might proud of myself, I figured it out , but of course the fly started to waterlog and of course I had no flotant, do I would try to squeeze it and dry it the best I could between casts even with these restraints I finally caused a good mess.

Now I'm on to something. I need to get to my fly shop pronto and get me some Gink and more Adams, I'm thinking the parachute so I could maybe see where the durn thing is landing.

Now I've got me a "fly guy", Allen Wyatt at Andy Thornall in Winter Haven, and if you’re like me, not an expert, you need a "fly guy".

I've been relying on Allen since I began fly fishing and bought my first good outfit from him. I told him of my whole ordeal and I needed more flies and flotant. He thought for a second and said, as he was still thinking, a hippie stomper, there small and foam, look buggy and no flotant needed. I said do you have yellow, and I better grab some 5x tippet.

That weekend tied one of those rascals to the 3wt and would get it as close to the pads as I could, just 20-30 foot casts and BAM , they were hitting it like a freight train.

I was back and catching, I used the hippie stomper as my go to fly through spring, summer and fall and now as the water has cooled, if I'm shallow enough in the heat of the day I'll still get strike's. 

It'll probably change next season and I'll start all over again but ain't that fishing!