Bass Fly Fishing in Muddy Water

This spring has had its share of high off color water, just about everywhere across the country. While that is very good news in general for the habitat of fish, and bodes well for fishing late into the summer, it also can present some challenges. In a recent trip to a favorite largemouth bass reservoir the previous day's hard rain had left conditions far from ideal. But there was still some fish caught, some big fish caught, and some things learned.



The water was most muddied at the source of the reservoir, the inflowing creek was high and rushing, and pouring in water that looked like chocolate milk. Usually the creek runs fairly clear and visibility of the reservoir is at least four feet, this is normally a nice fishing spot but not today. By contrast the area by the dam was still relatively clear. If visibility is difficult to judge you can lower a bright fly down.



If finding a clear spot in your water proves impossible, stick to heavily protected areas or places around structures. Bass like all fish seek protection from unusual or threatening conditions. The benefit of the muddy water is you can get closer to your targeted areas.



And remember dark colored flies show up against the sky's background when going surface fishing, loud pops when casting help bass locate by noise when visibility is bad. Under bright conditions try going slightly sub-surface in shallow areas, try bright colored flies, the sun's rays will intensify their effectiveness, and sparkly materials enhance this effect even more.



If after all these suggestion , fishing still proves unfruitful take heart in knowing that high water and run off in the long run keep your fishery healthy and alive. Try keeping notes of how long murky conditions last. Each reservoir behaves differently and go from cloudy to clear at their own unique pace. Getting to know the specific behavior of your particular fishing ground can be knowledge that combined with the above techniques will keep you on the fish no matter the conditions.