How to fly fish for bass is a good point as bass is one of the most common freshwater fish in all of North America.

But expert anglers don’t fish bass just because it appears in almost every water body.

Fishing for bass is an exciting, exhilarating fishing experience because bass are so much fun to catch.

Whether you run into smallmouth or largemouth bass, these fish are aggressive, opportunistic, and will eat almost anything. However, they will not give up without a fight.

Because of these characteristics, learning how to fly fish for bass is a great way to get into the fly fishing sport. And to do that, you need to learn the basics of bass fly fishing.

With that in mind, we have listed out all the prerequisites you need to make a decent bass fly fishing trip and enjoy every bit of time you are out on the water.

Bass Fly Fishing Gear List: Best Bass Fly Setup

The fly fishing gear list for bass is very similar to the trout fishing setup. The significant difference is the kind of flies you use and the weight of the gear. The essentials you need for learning how to fly fish for bass are inexpensive and include:

• An appropriate rod setup
• Fishing nets
• Any other clothing gear you might need for deep water

Fly Fishing Rod

Get an 8-9 weight rod for larger bass or other species of fish in a similar size range and a 6-7 weight rod for smaller bass.

Fly Fishing Reel

There is no shortage of fishing reel options. Get a durable reel that matches the rod you intend to use for bass fly fishing. Bonus points if you get a matching rod and reel combo.

Fishing Line

You will generally use bigger flies for bass fishing than trout fishing, especially for largemouth bass. Go with a weight-forward tapered fishing line and a tapered leader for best results.

Fishing Net

You will generally need a lightweight and durable fishing net when fly fishing for bass.

Clothing

If you intend to go into deeper waters, you will need wading boots and chest waders.

Natural Bass Habitats: Where Can You Find Bass?

You now have a list of all the gear you need to fly fish. So where do you fish for bass?

You cangenerally divide bass into either largemouth or smallmouth bass based on the extension of their mouths.

As the name suggests, a largemouth bass’ mouth extends beyond its eye, and a smallmouth bass’ mouth is more petite, ending in a position perpendicular to the middle of its eye.

Fly Fishing for Largemouth Bass

Largemouth bass are typically attracted to lures under the surface and at the water’s surface, and they love hiding behind cover.

You can find them in areas of the water that are weedier and warmer. This includes darker sections of a river where the water moves very slowly with lots of weed beds, lily pads, and branches.

In the summer, bass are very active in deep water, and during the fall, they move upwards to the shallow topside to feed heavily in preparation for winter.

Fly Fishing for Smallmouth Bass

Smallmouth bass love taking cover near rocky points. You can find them in very shallow, cool water that moves fast or flows from a stream during the summer.

In the fall, they can be found both in shallow and deeper water near rocky points like ledges and banks. Basically, you can always catch bass if you know where to look.

Bass Food Source: What Fly Do You Use for Bass?

Landing bass with a fly depends on how accurately you imitate what the bass is already eating, the time of the year, and your casting location.

The best way to know what bass are already eating is to wait and observe at a suspected spot — the movement of their food sources like minnows or the bass itself will give you all the information.

Some people argue that bass will eat almost any bait, and they are not wrong. However, it would be best to stick to what bass normally eat or the flies you see in their natural habitat to increase your chances of landing a catch.

This includes crayfish, minnows, leeches, insects, and tadpoles for smallmouth bass. A largemouth bass’ diet includes streamers, frogs, small mice, leeches, small fish, shiners, and suckers.

Have a good combination of these flies in your fly box for the best results. You can alsoadd handmade and artificial lures like woolly buggers because a hungry bass will eat almost anything attractive and realistic.

Best Bass Fly Fishing Technique

To catch bass on a fly, you need an excellent technique to avoid changing flies repeatedly. Nine times out of ten, how you cast and retrieve determines whether you land a catch or not.

Your casts should not be longer than 30 feet, and you should always cast to structures that will most likely hold bass.

All you need is an excellent retrieve to land a good catch once you’ve made your cast. Give your artificial fly action with fast and slow retrieves, wait, observe, and change retrieves if nothing happens.

For best results, keep your rod tip low, either slightly below the surface or at the surface, and strip your fly line at different speeds to master a good slow retrieve. When forage and weed are abundant, use a weed guard to even things out.

You Can Always Catch Bass on a Fly

Following these recommendations will always ensure you catch bass on a fly.

You don’t need any fancy equipment, nor do you need to go through a steep learning curve. After reading this short guide, almost anyone can learn how to fly fish for bass.

You just need to know which gear to use, where to look for bass, and the best techniques and flies to lure bass directly to the catch.

Have fun catching some of the most aggressive and exciting fish in North America!