MO BETTA

For years I have been after a fly the represents the "flash" of a minnow. That is, the light that is reflected of the belly when a fish is injured, darts away from predators, or rapidly strikes it's prey. What do we as nymph fishers look for to set the hook? Of course, it's the flash of the belly that we see, that tells us our fly has been taken! Unlike most fish or minnow patterns, where only the top of the minnow is represented; my minnow HAS the belly and is tied with a material that is flashy. It is the most dominate part of the fly. Since I mainly fish Eastern Slope lakes, I always use a bb size split shot about a foot in front of the fly. Depending on what column the fish are in. I will fish it with an indicator for feeders near the top ( this works best for Crappies) or use this method for dead drifting the MO Betta up river. If the fish are below 10–12 ft (in a lake) I remove the indicator and use the count–down method (cast, count to a certain number, then retrieve) If in a river I cast down and across then strip with many pauses, to present a struggling minnow trying to get up stream. This is all done with a floating fly line. If in a belly boat I love to use a slow sinking camo–line, and use a 9ft leader with no weight, and troll with a occasional jerk of the rod. This Spring the Mo Betta preformed very well on trout at Lon Hagler Loveland catching fish up to 18" This fall I caught dozens of trout stripping the minnow up–stream at the inlet at Pinewood (above Carter in Loveland). All summer it has produced Crappies up to 14" in the area's lakes. As for trout, this minnow does better in the Spring and Fall then the Summer months. This is a great pattern where fish have seen the standard fare. It is the closes thing that truly matches the forage fish. As long as it it retrieved like a minnow, and at a speed that matches the temperature of the water it is very successful.