IA Born Report post Posted July 31, 2017 A couple of weeks ago, we flew back to Iowa to finally bury my mom's ashes in the same plot as my dad in the Veteran's Section of our hometown cemetery. Being buried with my dad was mom's final wish and it took some time and paperwork to make it happen. Almost every time we'd go back to visit, we'd take off fishing some of the farm ponds I grew up fishing and mom loved that I exposed my wife and kids to what I grew up with. We decided to carry on that tradition one more time and met up with my cousin who has access to more and better ponds than I do now. Catching a bass on topwater with my fly rod has been a bucket item list for a while, so I researched bass fishing using a 5-wt, bought some good bass bugs and 2x and 3x leaders and we flew back to Iowa. Everybody caught bass that night and everyone had fun, despite the high humidity. This pond is set up with a small dock and a paddleboat, which the kids absolutely love. I'm now addicted to fly rod bassin' and am researching the right 7 wt set up! In all, I caught six or seven bass from about half-pound to 3+ pounds. I lost three fish that were easily 4-pounders, including one right at my feet as I was bending over to pick it up. Watching it swim off with my fly was heartbreaking! After losing that popper, I switched to a frog pattern and it was even more fun. On two occasions, I hooked two fish and let my kids experience the fight and they both enjoyed catching bass on the fly. 12 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AZ RANGER Report post Posted July 31, 2017 That looks great! I grew up fishing farm ponds in Oklahoma. I definitely miss that. I don't miss the fire ants and humidity though. Thanks for sharing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
tjhunt2 Report post Posted July 31, 2017 Nothing like catching a bass on a fly rod. Nice that you keep the kids involved in the outdoors. TJ Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
MULEPACKHUNTER Report post Posted July 31, 2017 Cool deal, that's how I started out fly fishing. I fished bass for several years on the fly about 25 years back and only caught my first trout on the fly this year. Good times and nice work getting mom home. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
AzDiamondHeat Report post Posted July 31, 2017 Love me some pond bass. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
bigorange Report post Posted July 31, 2017 Topwater pond bass are awesome. Never fished for them with fly rod though...only bluegill. Very cool. Thanks for sharing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
TonyC Report post Posted August 2, 2017 beautiful pictures! I bet that was a great time out with the family. It certainly makes the trip worth it when you catch good looking bass like that. congrats Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
