Most of us got our start as anglers by watching a bobber and waiting for a bluegill, crappie, or perch to pull it under. When that happened, the fight was on, and we were hooked as surely as the fish. As we got a little older and more experienced, some of us “outgrew” floats and set them aside in favor of more sophisticated bait rigs or artificial lures.
In Tennessee, a group of dedicated smallmouth bass anglers never outgrew floats. Instead, they refined one of fishing’s most basic rigs and turned it into a bass-catching system that’s unbeatable when waters chill below 50°F. They call it the “float and fly,” and it catches all species of bass, as well as some other gamefish.
Boiled down to its essence, the float-and-fly technique is simply a way to suspend a jig—the “fly”—beneath a float, to catch lethargic bass unwilling to chase faster-moving baits. Beyond the basics, however, are various new refinements that will put more bass in your boat this coldwater season.
Two anglers who have sweated the details of float-and-fly fishing and have come up with ways to improve anyone’s catch are Stephen Headrick and Bob Coan. Headrick is locally known as the “Smallmouth Guru” and owns Punisher Jigs, a manufacturer of float-and-fly jigs and accessories. Coan is one of the technique’s foremost innovators and a consummate fishing technician. These two friends and fellow Dale Hollow Lake (KY-TN) guides could offer a Master’s course on the float and fly.
Why It Works
There comes a time on many waters when bass feed on free-roaming baitfish that struggle to stay alive in the cold water. Typically, that occurs when water temperatures drop to 50°F or less and can last until temperatures rise again in the Prespawn Period. During this period, few conventional techniques can achieve the depth and speed control needed to draw strikes.
“Casting a small jig or bladebait may tempt a few fish, but these lures fall too quickly to stay in the strike zone for very long,” says Headrick. “Crankbaits—even suspending models—look unnatural as they move through the often ultraclear water. They don’t trigger reaction strikes from bass in cold water the way they might when it’s warm.”
“You need a lure that can be kept at the right depth for an extended period of time and which has the subdued action that best mimics baitfish in cold water,” Coan adds. “The right lure is a small hair or duck-feather jig, and the float and fly is the method that makes it work.”
The Jig Is Up
The business end of Headrick’s and Coan’s float-and-fly rig is a small craft hair or duck feather jig weighing between 1/8 and 1/32 ounce. The modacrylic and acrylic fibers in Headrick’s craft hair give an angler a seemingly unlimited number of color choices to match water and baitfish conditions.
“I usually try to match whatever baitfish are available,” Headrick says, “but there are two colors that I tie into almost all of my jigs—pink and chartreuse. Try chartreuse when the water’s a little dingy or the weather’s cloudy and pink in clear water on sunny days.”
