Nj trout bite??

[Mattyice572]

Hey guys, the this fall season i have finally got a fly fishing set up. I have never been fly fishing and wanted to get into it so i splurged and got myself a water works lamson guru reel, a temple forks outfitters rod and a spool of rio line and handful of flies the guy at a local shop recommended. I watched probably 10+ hours of videos on how to properly fly fish and armed with all that i still got stuck in plenty of shrubbery on my first outing, but thats normal for me anyway even with my spinning rod as i fish heavily wooded areas. That bring said i had a great time and somewhat got the hang of it after fishing a few hours and i cant wait to get back out there and give it another go. I saw plenty of trout in the water but nothing i was using seemed to peak an interest from them. Everything i threw was size 16, 18, and 20 hooks. A few different sinking types and a few different floating types and the guy at the shop said if nothing is working heres a magic lure and handed me a red rubbery worm. Anyway ill keep trying my luck but the question i have is can someone tell me a few floating and sinking types i should be fishing with for NJ trout at this time of year? And if so, does the same list apply for spring? Not sure if the guy at the fly shop was giving me gold or just the crap no one else wanted. Thanks for the input!

[ryc72]

For the winter most of your flies should be sub surface so you’re talking nymphs.  Stick with beadhead and non beadhead pheasant tail nymphs sizes 14-18.  You’ll catch trout with those flies anywhere in the world.  Start there and then branch out. 

[Mattyice572]

1 hour ago, ryc72 said:

For the winter most of your flies should be sub surface so you’re talking nymphs.  Stick with beadhead and non beadhead pheasant tail nymphs sizes 14-18.  You’ll catch trout with those flies anywhere in the world.  Start there and then branch out. 

Thanks ill grab some and try my luck this week! 

[Mike Oliver]

Above post and then it’s field crafts. Getting your nymph to the Trout without scaring them and at the taking depth. It will take a little time. 
To kick off it is easier to swing a couple of flies down stream and across. But fish will see you easier.

Fishing nymphs upstream takes more skill as you have to gather line as the current brings it back to you.

If you can fish your nymphs slowly down and across also known as swinging by dent of using mends it’s still a good presentation.

No magic flies. Not being a snob but the wormy fly is just not relevant to fly fishing .

Presentation and depth control way more relevant than killer flies.

 

Mikey

[SB59]

6 hours ago, Mattyice572 said:

Hey guys, the this fall season i have finally got a fly fishing set up. I have never been fly fishing and wanted to get into it so i splurged and got myself a water works lamson guru reel, a temple forks outfitters rod and a spool of rio line and handful of flies the guy at a local shop recommended. I watched probably 10+ hours of videos on how to properly fly fish and armed with all that i still got stuck in plenty of shrubbery on my first outing, but thats normal for me anyway even with my spinning rod as i fish heavily wooded areas. That bring said i had a great time and somewhat got the hang of it after fishing a few hours and i cant wait to get back out there and give it another go. I saw plenty of trout in the water but nothing i was using seemed to peak an interest from them. Everything i threw was size 16, 18, and 20 hooks. A few different sinking types and a few different floating types and the guy at the shop said if nothing is working heres a magic lure and handed me a red rubbery worm. Anyway ill keep trying my luck but the question i have is can someone tell me a few floating and sinking types i should be fishing with for NJ trout at this time of year? And if so, does the same list apply for spring? Not sure if the guy at the fly shop was giving me gold or just the crap no one else wanted. Thanks for the input!

How long & what weight rod? If your this new you don't want to fool with dry flies yet, esp for winter unless dry dropper rig. Watch vids on nymphing espec. under an indicator since you're a newby. All streams in NJ are running low & slow so stick with 18, 20 & 22's Hopefully he sold you some wd40's, rs2's, soft hackles, + the pheasant tails & hairs ears  no bead are no fail Jersey flys but you gotta learn how to use em.  I prefer to use shot instead of beads in winter so less fouling gets on fly. As a beginner you will learn the streams & how to cast + catch swinging woolly buggers size 10 or 12 much easier. Once you get the hang of that learn to use the smallest indicater that will float aver you fly without sinking. If you're seeing trout & looking at their head first back away swing from a distance or better circle around & fish from slightly below. When you start catching with those 2 methods you can move up to dry dropper rigs or high sticking. 

And wade slowly. Most of the weekend warriors I see run around chasing & casting at fish like they're snagging salmon or flushing pheasants.

Edited November 22, 2020 by SB59

[chuckbucktail]

I second the downstream swing vote. Keep it simple, keep it stealthy. Its hard to fish a #10 olive wooly bugger wrong. You’ll start to pick up what a good drift/swing feels like and a high sticked bugger can be deadly.
 

Just get in the game and don’t over think the pattern. Like Mike said, its mostly about presentation. 

Fishing the Ken Lockwood gorge on a Ken Lockwood bucktail is kinda fun. 

 

Edited November 22, 2020 by chuckbucktail

[Hook I]

Not really sure in NJ you live , but there are a few good fly shops North NJ that will help you out Shannon's in Califon , Streams of Dreams Upper Saddle River . Some times You Tube has too many variations to one subject , you know guys are promoting business & products , stick to the basics ,learn to cast  learn to read the water , lean what's going one under the water , and never tell your wife how much things cost   

Edited November 23, 2020 by Hook I

[East Coaster]

A few suggestions:

 

1.  Water is getting colder, meaning trout will be less active.  Fish on sunny days, during most comfortable time of the day (mid afternoon).

2.  Since the fish will be less active, and since there is not going to be much insect activity, the trout will hang out in slower water next to faster moving water, so they expend less effort and still have the food coming to them.  It sounds like you've found fish, so that's good, but keep in mind they aren't going to move much to feed.

3.  As others have stated, sub-surface flies (nymphs and streamers) are the way to go.  If you're trying to imitate what naturals are in the water, keep in mind that any mayfly nymphs will be tiny at this point in the year, but stonefly nymphs will be larger (some stonefly nymphs take 2 years to mature, so the ones that will hatch next season are already decent-sized).  Larger is better at this time of year - the trout will want something that's worth moving for, and that they're likely to see around.  Use nymphs that imitate stoneflies (Kaufman's stones, Prince nymphs, zug bugs, dark hare's ears) or even dead-drift a size 14 black wooly bugger.  In a larger river, you can try streamers, but again, the trout aren't going to be in a chasing mood (unless there are spawning browns or brookies in the stream, in which case they might strike a moving streamer out of aggression).

 

Good luck!