The Blob

Cheech - March, 2019

Igot my first taste of blob fishing about 15 years ago when Curtis and I were fishing a local stillwater out of our 13' tin can of a boat (that almost killed us that day), and we were fishing next to Ryan Barnes who had been pretty active in the competition angling scene. He had been catching several fish that day, and after we rescued out tin can from a private shoreline, I found out that he had been fishing a fly that was apparently called a "blob." It would be about 12 or 13 years until I'd really look further into that fly, and the techniques that were involved in fishing it, but it's become a staple in my stillwater boxes, especially for waters with stocked Rainbow Trout. Now, I'm not necessarily talking about the 8" silver finless bullets that make their way into our waters, but there is something about blob flies that a Rainbow Trout can't handle, especially if they were born in a hatchery, regardless of how old or big they are. There really isn't much to the technique of tying this fly, but we still get lots of questions about how to tie them (so we made a video). More important, in my opinion. is how to fish them. I fish them most on a midge tip line, 15 to 18 foot leader, and a three fly rig (flies are about 5 to 6 feet apart). On a blob rig, I like the blob as the top of middle dropper, and something heavier on the point to ensure that my presentation is tight and somewhat vertical. The fish will either lock on to it and eat it, or see it from distance to come check it out, only to eat a different fly. Either way, it's helping me catch more fish! As with many of these crazy bright flies like the blob, FAB, and boobies, there are many different techniques you can use to fish them, and they are a must in your fly arsenal!