CFM: I think you may have jumped to an erroneous conclusion

[QUOTE]Originally posted by cowlitzfisherman:
Are we now seeing a special breed of fly fishers who are becoming snaggers? Or are we seeing snaggers who are becoming fly fishers?

I do not pretend to be 100% certain why the rule change went in but I do know some history on this river. A few years ago some really top-notch steelheaders began fishing with fly line and a large Corkie as a strike indicator. They use bar bell eye flies or jigs beneath their indicator/floats. The effect was deadly. Some of the local fly guys were offended by what they thought was unethical and perhaps illegal. The WFD was called and they spend at least one day observing the guys using the weighted fly strike indicator combination. They concluded that what the guys were doing was 100% legal, since the regs did not prohibit weighted flies and the guys were using dry fly lines, fly rods and fly reels.

While I do not want to get my exercise by jumping to conclusions, I suspect this is what caused the rule change. As far as weighted flies working well for snagging, I must disagree. I have done my share of flossing Alaska sockeye and the best rig is a weighted fly line with an unweighted fly. That rig will still be legal, as I understand the new rules. Several years ago STS ran an article eon the best flossing rig an in that they recommended a small Corkie to keep the fly floating just above the bottom. The article caused uproar. Don’t look for any future articles on the subject.