^Tn^Z^Ei*] - Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission

A
*W enjoyable fishing arid for best
• 6 sults, the line should be dressed be-
.°re every trip in order to keep it
gating throughout the day's fishing.
Ae reel can be either single action or
'Somatic.
^mong the favored artificial lures
j* e: rubber spiders or nymphs: cork-
°°died bugs, spinner-and-fly combina-
°^s, small bucktails with tiny pork
J%>s streamers, wet and dry flies,
Ball spoons, popper spooks, small
*ss bug spooks and small wilder dilg
Knows.
fact that the bluegill can be
?*en in so many ways makes it a
l^orite of the common fisherman.
• hile some game-fish require expenso
e tackle and arduous preparations,
J? 6 prolific bluegill will delight the
^ftisiest angler by making a bobber
50 crazy.
.yunce for ounce, the battling blue-
E* is the most concentrated package
I *Un in the entire fish family—if you
Pe to take the word of that majority
fishermen who consistently bring
0l *ie bluegills instead of alibis.
i tielgrammites are amongst the best of
t Ss bait and while not generally used for
IPt have been the downfall of many an
"brownie."
Ip good catfish bait is made by peeling
g hard shell from the tail of the crab and
^g it with the white meat exposed.
j ^ small amount of glycerine added to
bait for carp will make it more at-
J^tive as it adds a sweet taste.
N5*y Eichner of Quakertown and a nice rain-
?s]7 trout from the Little Lehigh River. The
Hs Was caught July 17, '48 and weighed 3y2
' and was over 20 Inches long.
PtEM BERr-1949
THE FLY ROD FOR BASS
There are few forms of sport fishing
in which the angler has a wider
variety of lures from which to choose
than fly-casting for black bass. The
list includes scores of patterns in wetfly
and dry-fly designs, cork and hairbodied
bugs and minnows, streamers,
light pork-rined spinners and small
spinner combinations used either with
or without flies.
In lake fishing the action must be
imparted to the lure by the angler,
and usually this is done by raising the
rod tip and stripping in the amount of
line which conveniently can be recast
in one shoot.
The floating lures, such as bass bugs
and feather minnows, seem particularly
effective on many Eastern
waters. These lures are cast and retrieved
either with a slow, steady motion
or with short jerks, with pauses
of varying duration between the movements.
Some anglers cast their lures
and permit them to remain motionless
on the surface of the water for as
much as five to ten seconds or even
longer.
In stream fishing for black bass the
floating bug type of lure is handled
much the same as a trout dry fly—
that is, it is cast upstream or diagonally
upstream and floated down with the
current over or near the supposed
haunt of the fish.
The beginner at fly casting for black
bass might select a rod nine or nine
and one-half feet in length weighing
from about five and one-half to six
or seven ounces. If the heavier lures
are to be used the rod should have
plenty of backbone, for the constant
casting of heavy lures eventually will
put a set in almost any rod, and a
light, flexible rod will go to pieces in
short order.
Reel and line should match the rod,
the same as in trout fly casting, except
that this writer prefers a reel large
enough to carry ten or twenty yards
of filler line under the casting line.
It doesn't happen often, but once in
awhile you may hook a really big bass
which may make a long run.
Six-foot, heavy, single gut leaders
usually are used for wet-fly fishing,
while the special "bass bug leader,"
four and one-half feet in length and
tied with a large loop on one end so
lures may be changed easily, is preferred
by many anglers for use with
bugs, feather minnows and spinners.
When it comes to lures, the angler
may indulge his own fancies. My list
BY DON STILLMAN
includes wet flies on hooks, sizes No. 1
and No. 2. Patterns, Parmachenee
Belle, Lord Baltimore, Yellow Sally,
White Miller, Silver Doctor and Black
Gnat.
Bass bugs—With cork and hair
bodies.
Feather minnows—White and red,
white and green and yellow.
Streamers—All white, white blue
and silver, and Parmachenee Belle.
A few nickel and copper spinners,
sizes No. 1 and No. 2, and a few No. 1
ringed flies.
A bamboo rod should be waxed with a
good grade floor or auto wax regularly to
protect the varnish which protects the rod
itself.
Oil your casting reel at least once each
hour of fishing with a good grade of very
light oil and you will save the reel and
your arm, don't forget the level-wind shaft.
A bucktail worked back and forth in
short jerks will sometimes produce when
other methods fail, don't hurry, it may take
as long as several minutes at the same spot
to get your fish excited enough to strike.
When fast on to a good one don't rush him,
a fish that is held quiet for the first minute
or so will be landed much quicker than one
that is badly scared and excited, excitement
on either end of the line is in the fish's favor.
Use a black surface plug at night for that
old small mouth, move it slow and be sure it
makes the proper commotion.
R. Clair Van Dyke, popular sportsman of
Adams County, and the excellent large brown
trout which he caught in the Conewaga Creek
near Arendtsville. The fish weighed 4% lbs. and
measured 25J4" long. Adams County fishermen
have hailed it as the largest trout caught In
their county.