S7, Ep 74: Beyond the Popper: Subsurface Strategies with Brendan Ruch

EPISODE SUMMARY

Guest: Brendan Ruch - Pennsylvania Fishing Guide at Ruch Angling (Pennsylvania)

In this episode: Pennsylvania guide Brendan Ruch shares low-water summer tactics and streamer strategies for challenging conditions. Topics include popper presentation techniques, slack movement methods and subsurface fly selection for Pennsylvania waters.

Key fishing techniques covered: • Slack movement popper techniques • Matt Miles' rod tip manipulation method • Single nut job streamer presentations • Mini sex dungeon retrieval strategies • Size 2 Ahrex hook applications

Location focus: Pennsylvania rivers and streams

Target species: Smallmouth bass (implied from popper discussion and streamer tactics)

Equipment discussed: MFC flies (mini sex dungeon, mini boogeyman), size 2 Ahrex hooks, short shank hooks, medium lead eyes, poppers, cicada patterns

Key questions answered: • How to create subtle popper movement without aggressive popping • What streamer patterns work best in low clear water • How to fish streamers during summer conditions

Best for: Intermediate/advanced anglers interested in Pennsylvania summer fishing tactics, popper presentation techniques and streamer fishing strategies

Marvin Cash
00:00:00.240 - 00:00:12.040
Hey, folks, it's Marvin Cash, the host of the Articulate Fly. We're back with another Ruch Report with the man himself, Brendan Ruch.

Brendan, how are you doing?

Brendan Ruch
00:00:12.040 - 00:00:13.520
Good, Marvin. Feels great to be back.

Marvin Cash
00:00:13.840 - 00:00:17.120
Yeah. And you're. You're getting ready to join corporate America tomorrow, right?

Brendan Ruch
00:00:18.160 - 00:00:24.400
Yeah, yeah. Big, big first day at a gig I'm excited about, so. That's good. It's all good stuff.

Marvin Cash
00:00:24.640 - 00:00:30.560
Yeah, well, you got to tell us more than that. Like, people are gonna be scared to death. They're gonna think you're off the water and you're selling insurance.

You gotta tell them you're staying in the industry.

Brendan Ruch
00:00:31.200 - 00:00:35.740
Y. I'm staying in the. The fishing sphere, not fly fishing, though.

Marvin Cash
00:00:35.900 - 00:00:42.860
Oh, there you go. All right, well, I won't press you anymore, but you said you've. You've been out recently. What are you seeing on the water in pa?

Brendan Ruch
00:00:45.100 - 00:01:31.800
So I haven't been out the last few days, but the few weeks prior to that. And if, you know, flows and temperatures tell me anything, it's been very clear, low, and the fish have been super sippy.

Um, so, like, a lot of cool, real slow eats. I had some people who moved the popper a lot, and I just. I had to show them how to not pop it.

When they did that, fish were still responding pretty well to, like, a cicada shimmy on the surface. Um, but they definitely seem to prefer just, like, splat, drift, sip scenario. Um, but, yeah, I mean, fishing's been good.

You're just kind of, you know, limited to specific areas. If you're in a hard boat, so you're seeing the other people who are limited to those areas, it's a little, you know, a little busier when it's low.

Marvin Cash
00:01:32.360 - 00:01:39.880
Yeah, got it.

And so, you know, for folks that don't want to get smacked in the head by their God for popping their bug, you want to tell them how they can wiggle it without popping it.

Brendan Ruch
00:01:42.280 - 00:02:21.450
Yeah, actually, I saw Matt Miles do this probably, like, five years ago, but he came up and he was just kind of, like, raising his rod tip and dropping it. Raising it, dropping it, but, like, you know, within a couple inches. So the fly was getting slack movement. Slack movement. And then you get like a.

Kind of like a injured bug, but, like, you know, jittering on the surface or skittering, I should say. But yeah. So you just, like, create more than one wake at the same time. So fish seem to respond to that well.

But in general, I would say more pausing, less moving is gonna outfish the movement. All Day.

Marvin Cash
00:02:21.690 - 00:02:26.970
Yeah. Cause Matt's technique is really just enough to just really kind of to get the legs to flex. And that's about it. Right?

Brendan Ruch
00:02:29.130 - 00:02:43.290
No, there, there's like, there's some weight pushing off, especially like if you have a, like a flat face or a cupped face popper. But still not, I'm not seeing fish respond to like full, full blown globes with the popper.

Marvin Cash
00:02:43.930 - 00:02:53.670
Gotcha. And you missed out. You didn't get any rain out of the, out of the hurricane. So I guess it's gonna stay low and clear for a while.

Cause I think it's gonna be in the mid Atlantic for the next week to 10 days.

Brendan Ruch
00:02:54.310 - 00:02:59.750
Yeah, there's a chance of some, some rain midweek next week, but usually that never comes.

Marvin Cash
00:03:00.230 - 00:03:09.030
Yeah. Well, there you go.

Well, I got a question for you from Samurai Flies and he wanted to get your thoughts on besides poppers and cross, what are you fishing subsurface this summer?

Brendan Ruch
00:03:10.390 - 00:03:47.130
So the single nut job is a given. Tying that like on a Short Shank, size 2ARX hook, the size 2 minnow with a couple shanks off the back of that.

But a real player for me is either like a mini sex dungeon or mini boogeyman. And I let the good people at MFC tie those for me. So I just buy them and they, they fish really well.

Fishermen like olive, which seems to be on the lighter side of olive, and the Tan. The Bard Bard tan mini sex dungeon from MFC fishes really, really well where I'm at.

Marvin Cash
00:03:47.660 - 00:03:50.620
Gotcha. And any kind of size and weight combos you want to share with folks.

Brendan Ruch
00:03:52.220 - 00:04:03.340
I would say they're both at 3 inches or just under and they have. I would, I think medium lead eyes. Could be smalls, but probably medium.

Marvin Cash
00:04:03.900 - 00:04:30.690
Gotcha. And you know folks, we love questions on the roof report. You can email me or DM me on social media, whatever is easiest for you.

And if we use your question, I will send you some articulate flash swag that will actually include some butcher shop stickers. And we were drawing for some cool stuff from Brennan at the end of the season. But Brendan, you got any announcements about guide availability?

You know, maybe cough up some more goods on the new fishing day job and you know, let your adoring fans know where they can find you on Tuesday nights at 8:35ish.

Brendan Ruch
00:04:32.530 - 00:04:34.530
Yeah, that was too many questions for me at one time.

Marvin Cash
00:04:34.530 - 00:04:42.370
All right, but I'll break it down for you. So are you fishing anymore? How can folks get in touch and get on the boat? Question number one.

Brendan Ruch
00:04:43.250 - 00:04:57.170
Yeah, so yeah, just Reach out. I'll still be able to get out on the water. So reach out. And I have.

I have some availability left throughout September and October and maybe even a stray musky day here and there.

Marvin Cash
00:04:57.890 - 00:05:05.890
Yeah. And then the next question was, I was just going to give you some crap for not coughing up the goods on the.

The day job and fishing and give you one last opportunity to share any more details with folks.

Brendan Ruch
00:05:06.690 - 00:05:10.750
I'll keep that between us and Instagram for now.

Marvin Cash
00:05:11.310 - 00:05:17.550
Gotcha. And you've also got. You said you got a new website you might want to let folks know about any other kind of cool stuff like that.

Brendan Ruch
00:05:18.750 - 00:05:34.430
Yeah, so there's a very nice young man named Trevor that built a site, so it's Rouge angling. Com and so check that out. I'm also on Instagram at Brendan Roche and on Facebook at Brendan Roush and Roosh Angling as well.

Marvin Cash
00:05:34.730 - 00:05:38.970
Gotcha. And if folks wanted to find you at 8:35 ish on a Tuesday, where should they go?

Brendan Ruch
00:05:40.010 - 00:05:57.210
Yeah, so go to logjam fishing company Instagram. And yeah, I, I have been missing some here and there, but Dave's rocking every week, 8:35ish Eastern Time. And yeah, it's usually a good time.

People tying flies and talking crap.

Marvin Cash
00:05:58.010 - 00:06:04.710
There you go. Well, folks, as I say, you owe it to yourself to get out there and catch a few. Tight lines, everybody. Tight lines, Brendan.

Brendan Ruch
00:06:05.190 - 00:06:05.990
Take care, everyone.