

It's a great time of year to fish throughout all daylight hours - lots of action, not too hot, not too cold, not too grassy, willing surface feeders, and the big browns haven't yet faded into the nocturnal routine. Take your pick of how to target and what to target.
On a recent float I saw other drift boats doing everything from nymphing to dries and streamers to wet flies. Everyone was catching fish. What didn't I see? No one was reaching into the depths.
Sometimes I get fixated on looking for big browns along structure (okay, a LOT of the time). And to me, the best way to reach them is to jig. On this float I was drifting with a friend who I hadn't fished with before. Gabe was perfectly happy to focus on jigging and see what it is I do when in that mode. And honestly, I get a kick out of doing stuff that no one else is doing. Spinning gear may be taboo on fisheries dominated by the fly fishing industry, but to me the techniques, skill, and even the equipment itself can be just as artful. And I sure don't mind the bonus of being about the only boat to reach fish along the bottom of 20-foot holes....