I'm planning on taking a fly rod to the BW this year for the first time. I've been on several BW trips and fished a little here and there, but never with a fly rod.
I'm excited to try it - I hear it can be addicting! I've got 2 "newbie" questions:
First, is a 6 weight, 9 foot fast action rod going to be a decent choice? I know a 7 or 8 wt would throw bigger flies, but I'm hoping a 6 would be a good "all around" rod for everything from smallmouth, to largemouth or even crappies.
Second, how do I "fish" a typical BW lake with a fly rod? Head to weedy or rocky areas with some surface flies? I'm just wondering what areas of the lake to start on and how to attack these areas....may be a dumb question, but I'm a first timer!
Thanks for the help!

Hi Eyepaddle,

Last year was my first trip to Quetico, so I'm little short on experience. Anyway, a #6 rod will be more than enough for smallies. I fished almost exclusively on the surface (sliders, divers and poppers) and most productive areas were close to boulders, not very shallow. Whenever I fished shallower places with vegetation all I got was smaller pikes.

I usually fish an 8 wt rod mostly because I throw some larger flies for Pike. However, the 8wt worked just fine for smallies. I was fishing a size 1 popping bug and had no problem casting it. I fished this particular fly by casting it out and letting it sit (for the most part). I would either twitch it or move it a foot and let it sit for 15-20 seconds. Most of the fish I caught sipped the fly under; I share that tidbit because if you are not watching your fly you might miss it. And when the fish hit in this manner you would swear it's a small bream or panfish. One morning I caught on smallie near the bushes that was two ounces short of five pounds ..... my best yet on a flyrod.

I would not hesitate to bring a 6 wt fast action rod. As long as it has enough punch to throw out whatever fly you are using you should be ok. I also used regular tippet (3x) and did get bit off by Pike a couple of times.

Good luck ........ and tight lines.

1) your choice of rods will get the job done. I take a 4 piece 9 foot #7 weight rod. I like to throw bass bugs and streamers.

2) weedy areas with streamers for Pike, rocky areas with poppers for the Bass.

Look at the bottom of the main forum page and there is a fly fishing forum you can join. Good luck.

I made a fly fishing video last year. It might answer some of your questions. A 6 is light for throwing big top water flies but will work. If the bass are on the shoreline you should be able to catch some. If you don’t find them try another shoreline or another lake. If that does not work troll a crank bait and catch some walleye. If you find them it is the best. Good luck and don’t give up because it might take some time to get it figured out.


Wilderness Smallmouth

Outstanding video John, thanks a lot.

If you have the option, go up a line size (7wt line on your 6wt). It helps to fully load the rod and throw the larger flies. Foam sliders and poppers instead of dear hair will stay lighter. I like rabbit strip streamers, but they get heavy after wetting out. Casting seated from a canoe is challenging. If you can find a location above or below rapids with enough room to back cast, that can be a nice change from seated in the canoe and can be good with streamers. Consider a leader if you are in a pike area and want to keep those streamers.

I have been taking my fly rod with me for the past 15 years. I use an 8/9 weight with some type of braided line about 2 ft tied onto the end of my leader (have never found that it affected the bite and don't lose many flies) and floating WF fly line. Have sink tip line but get hung up too much so really never use it. My favorite fly is the near enough crawdad. Fish it relatively slow with short quick strips. Wind is a key factor and at times impossible to fish from canoe. I like to island hop when wanting catch smallies on the fly rod. Park the canoe and just walk the island casting toward rocks that are submerged or even better pulling over drop offs. Amazing what you can see when 2 to 3 feet above the water looking down. Have fun.

Arkansas -

I also like to get out and walk the shoreline. If I see something fishable and walkable I get out and spend about 10 minutes on it. I move slow and see if I can spot anything lurking in the water. It is the best chance to get a good fish picture as well. My dog likes the break also but I have to keep her from spooking the fish before I get to them.

What is the deal with the braided line? Is that for pike protection? I use knottable wire leader. Works well but kinks up sometimes.

Yes, just to protect against the pike. They are fun to catch on a fly rod but can put a hurt on your fly box. I find the braided line a little easier to tie on to leader but do take the wire along also.

I took a 5 weight the last two years. The bass are a blast on it, I was probably fortunate not to have hooked a pike. Overall, I lost fewer flies than I thought I would.

Better plan on fishing early in the day before the wind comes up. I'm far from an expert casting, and casting with a stiff breeze really challenges me.

So does everyone use a tippet tied to the fly line, then a leader, and then possibly a metal or braided section before the hook? What length tippet and leader do y'all use?

I buy a 7.5 foot, 16 pound tapered striped bass leader and add a 2’ piece of Rio knottable wire tippet. The wire tippet is a hassle to tie knots in but will save your fly from a pike. If you don’t mind losing a few flies skip the wire tippet and use a 9 foot leader. 16 pound is okay. It won’t spook fish and will turnover big flies.

This is what I do: fly line - leader - tippet (one foot, 12 lbs for smallies); or fly line - leader - shock tippet (7 inches, 20 lbs knotable pike wire).
Braided line (multifilament) is a poor choice as leader, tippet or schock tippet material. It is limp, so it doesn't transfer the casting energy efficiently, and has low abrasion resistency.Braided line can be used (with the due caution) as backing in a fly reel.

I think a 6 weight is too light. If you are a beginner, you are probably not a strong caster. Sitting in a canoe, casting to awkward angles, wind, etc. all play against distance. Accuracy is much less important than distance in BWCA/Quetico.

If pike are around, wire is necessary. Trying to bulk up on mono/fluoro leader precludes using smaller flies with smaller hookeyes. The best wire I have found is Surflon Micro Supreme 13-lb. It is much smaller in diameter than heavy mono and knots easily.

If you have the option, take two reels/spools. One with floating line and one with heavy sink tip. 10-lb, 9-ft bass leader to the Surflon tippet for the floating line and a short leader to Surflon tippet fo sink-tip line.

You should mention when you plan to go because the fishing varies considerably with the seasons.