Redemption for the “Failure Fish”

The lowly fallfish has been disappointing trout anglers for many years. Picture by Jim Leedon/Hatch Journal

Though there have been massive modifications over the past 20 years in how fly fishers view “trash fish,” there are nonetheless loads of species for whom we really feel little romance. In Hatch Magazine, Steven Sautner asks why we really feel this manner:

Amongst anglers, fallfish virtually universally disappoint. Their greatest offense is rising like trout and tricking you into casting for them. Any similarity ends with the hookset. After a languid head shake, adopted by an anemic run that will pull inches, not yards, off your reel, they yield to your awaiting hand with little fanfare. Twist the fly free, and so they typically gurgle at you earlier than the discharge. In a number of many years of fishing the Delaware, I’ve by no means heard anybody excitedly exclaim: “Oh wow! A fallfish!” This can be why a pal calls them failure-fish.

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