Fly fishing for sunnies is a step back in time

People typically equate fly fishing with stream trout and, indeed, fly fishing is the traditional way to catch rainbows, brown trout and brookies. But bluegills and pumpkinseeds will take a fly as readily as any trout.

I discovered long ago that stream trout opportunities in central Minnesota are not plentiful. So I learned the sport by wading on nearby lakes and catching sunfish and largemouth bass. Now a run-of-the-mill bluegill coming out of cabbage weeds to gulp a fly may not seem as romantic as a brilliantly colored brook trout in a mountain lake, but my pulse races at the strike and fight of a runty sunfish. When a bass smashes the fly it's pure heaven.

Most of my panfish flyrodding was done on a lake down the road from where I grew up. Last weekend I decided that a cruise down memory lane to the same lake was a good idea. It had been 35 years since I fly fished on this lake. My brothers and I were shocked to find new houses crammed side-by-side on the shore. Huge power boats raced everywhere. This was not the quiet fly fishing hole of my memory.

The fish didn't seem to mind the changes, however. Within a few casts we had sunfish hitting our flies, just like in the old days. We used balsa-bodied poppers and grasshopper imitations. After a few strikes regular dry flies get terribly matted and waterlogged. Balsa lures continue to float even after many hits.

The sunfish weren't big, but we caught enough to put a meal together. Occasionally a small bass smacked the poppers and gave a better struggle. We even added as crappie to the stringer. Then, as the sun settled below the tree tops, my fly disappeared in a serious swirl. The fish bent my rod in a huge arc as it raced back and forth. This was no sunnie! It was bass that pushed 2 pounds. On cue it leaped into the air just as I reached for its jaw. Water splashed and we laughed with joy.

It was a good trip. We caught fish and enjoyed the evening on a lovely little lake. But what was most appealing was the simplicity of it all. No fancy boat or electronics, no laborious drive to a far away lake, just some fly rods and some cooperative fish. Just like it was so many years ago.