Keys Bonefish

[Rooster]

Honestly - what are the most popular flies for Keys bones? I see all kings of "fly du jour" articles, but is it really the fly or the presentation that really matters?

[DaveSage]

Good question Rooster.

The Key's bonefish are some of the most "fished to" bonefish in the world. I would bet that flies are pretty important down there. When I was in Honduras, I tied a bunch of classic bonefish patterns, wondering which ones would work. Guess what - they all worked. As long as the presentation was decent, the fish took the fly. Keys bonefishing must be more of a science. I would bet that keys guides really take a lot of variables into consideration and probably put a lot of thought into fly choice. Any keys bonefishermen out there???

[DaveSage]

On the other hand, I'm not a big fly or lure changer. That is, I find a few lures that I have confidence in and fish them hard. If the fish aren't hitting, I'm more likely to change retreive speed, style, depth, or location prior to changing my fly. Or I just wait until the fish start to hit. It's a real dilemma. ARe the fish there and just not interested in your fly, or are they just not there?

[walter young]

I'd be inclined to go with Dave's approach.
In left kreh's salt water fly book he says that a bonefish will eat anything that will fit in it's mouth that doesn't scare him. If in the keys they get scared at anything, I would tend to go with something that looks as exactly like what they see every day.