Shad –What the Fly-fisherman should know

When a river is full of running Shad, it is a straightforward proposition to connect with a few. Experience tells us however that rarely do we find ourselves in just the right place at just the right time.

So what happens when there are only a few fish in the river and it is a bright sunny day? Then, the challenge of hooking up is not so simple.






My old “knowledge is power” approach may be boring but the more you know about what might be going on the better your chances become.


The official name for the American Shad, Alosa Sapidissima, does not really give us many clues to help catch them. The “Alosa” simply tells us that it is a Shad and the “Sapidissima”, which in Latin means “most delicious”, tells us that it is tasty.

Shad live in the ocean for two to three years before returning to fresh water to spawn. In the ocean they feed upon Plankton, small crustaceans and occasionally, small fish. Occasionally probably means –when they can catch them. They are not feeding when they return to the river for spawning.

They spawn in open water with no specific bottom requirements so do not have to travel very far up the river or its tributaries.

Commonly what the angler sees when the Shad are in a river is a small group of fish sweeping by and then a splashing and swirling followed by a large wake as the group reorganizes and darts away again. What you are really seeing is a group of males chasing a larger female. She will eventually release her eggs, which the males will fertilize as the eggs drift down through the water column. A female will do this two or three times during the run and are capable of laying an astonishing number of eggs.


Shad in our cool Eastern Rivers usually survive spawning and can return to spawn again. That is a pretty good argument for catch and release. A better one is a thing I read somewhere that indicated around eighty percent of the Shad in the St. John River spawn more than once.

Here is another interesting thing from the same article. It mentioned that all of the Shad from the Eastern Canadian and American rivers spend some of their time in the Bay of Fundy.

Here is the important stuff for the fly fisherman.

Shad begin their run when the water temperature in the river reaches 12c, (about 54f). Spawning begins when the temperature rises above that. The spawning run stops when the water gets warmer than 20c (68f).

In Nova Scotia the run is usually in full swing by mid-May, by mid-June there is active spawning but things are starting to quiet down, and by mid-July it is usually too warm and the run ends.

The best times to spot fish are early morning and evening. Overcast days are generally good with fish showing throughout the day. After supper is the conventional best time to head out for a bit of Shad fishing. The worst time, usually, is between 10 AM and 5PM on a sunny day.

This is true because most of the actual spawning takes place in open water at night. As darkness approaches, the fish start to become active and continue this heightened activity until full daylight the next day.



Remember though, just because the fish are not as obvious on a sunny day does not mean they are not there, not moving around the river, or any less willing to take a fly.

Your skill at reading the water can put you over some takers no matter how bright the day and even though everyone says it is a bad time for fishing Shad. Just refer them to Dobson’s Law. It says, “People who are fishing tend to catch more fish than people who are not.”




The way I figure it is that because they are not feeding, daytime Shad are likely looking for security from predators. Speaking as a predator, I look for them during the day in places they will feel secure, primarily deep sections with structure to shelter them from the current.

Fly Fishing for Shad –Reading the Water

As in any fly-fishing, reading the water is critical to deciding how to approach the task of presenting your fly. In Shad fishing with a fly rod it is no less important. The well-known spots are usually crowded. Shad fishing is after all a very exciting and often social event. We fly fishermen need a little more elbowroom though so tend to disperse along the stream.




When the Shad are running in the spots I fish, they swarm up the stream in little schools of ten or twenty fish. These groups dart upstream a ways then swirl around and head back down stream seemingly randomly until suddenly they are gone. Within minutes another group or maybe the same one, passes and does the same upstream move degenerating into swirling chaos before reforming into a somewhat orderly school and heading away upstream again. What we are seeing is a group of males pursuing a larger female.

On a good day, there is almost always at least one group of fish in sight, usually several.


Knowing the fish are there is half the battle but it is what they are doing when you cannot necessarily see them that is important. These fish are here to spawn. While in fresh water they are not feeding so must conserve as much energy as they can to be ready when the moment comes to be the winner in the contest to reproduce.



They way I translate this into a fishing strategy is this:

Unless actually chasing a female or in the case of the female, unless actually being chased by the males. Shad are going to seek the path of least resistance in their upstream journey. They will rest when and where possible. If you hang a fly in front of them for long enough they will bite it, just to get the darned thing out of their face if for no other reason. I know that last bit sounds kind of dumb but hey, at least I have a plan.

To my thinking, there are a few points of interception a fly angler should concentrate on. The first is the deep slow water close to the mouth of the river the Shad are running up.
Every Shad in the river has to pass this area.

To fish this just cast almost straight across, let the fly sink and strip back with a rhythmic, longish pull. Do not be afraid to pause and let the fly sink between strips. Also every now and then fish directly downstream a few inches out from the bank.

Farther up stream, I look for a few types of water. My favourite is a stretch of shallow riffles immediately above a deeper, broadening of the stream. The little pods of fish come racing upstream, hit the shallows, mill around a few moments then fall back to the deeper section, seemingly to rest and recharge before committing to another dash upstream.

Here, I position myself upstream and work the fly down and across the lip of the deep section, extending about six-inches on each cast to cover it thoroughly. Work the fly a little with a bobbing or lifting motion.

The next type of water I look for, especially on a bright day, is a long stretch of deep water with lots of conflicting currents. I figure this is a trade off for the fish. The dark depths give them security so they are inclined stay there but they will not continuously fight the current so will rest wherever it is blocked or slower.

Also, think of the way a Seagull will glide along in the draft of a ferryboat without flapping its wings. He has found a sweet spot of upwelling air and only needs minor adjustments to stay there for hours. I think fish do the same thing in a current. They look for the sweet spots where the lift of the water hitting a bank or boulder will let them rest with little energy expended.

I fish it so the fly does the same thing the water does. It tumbles along the bottom then rises up in front of them – in theory anyway.

One more spot I will always fish on a bright day is anywhere there is a noticeable shadow such as a bridge will cast or even a tree or brush along the banks.

Many times, I have watched fish mill around in the shadow of a bridge, unwilling to venture back out into the bright sunlight but not particularly comfortable in the water they are holding in either.


I first discovered this fishing with my brother Warren on the Nictaux. (I think it was the Nictaux River. He will doubtless remember.) The water was too fast and shallow to be promising but I saw the telltale swirls and tips of fins so cast downstream to the edge of the bridge’s shadow. The strike was instantaneous. As long as I was content to cast along the slowly moving shadow’s edge there was a fish there willing to take.

I will not go through every turn and vagary of a river but offer these as examples of the sorts of places to look for and things to think about when on the river fly fishing for Shad.

Remember; the very best time to fish them is just at dusk but the very best time to go fishing is whenever you can. That means the fishing is not always going to be easy.

The truth is that I learn something new about Shad fishing every time I am out. Some of it completely contradicts what I would have sworn was true before leaving home so take this stuff with a grain of salt and let me know if you figure out something that will help me catch a few too.

Fishing May 7th

I made it out last night after work for a bit of Shad fishing.

I was having no luck at all until a fellow named Phil ambled down the stream and stopped to chat. He mentioned that he had tried several different coloured flies and when he changed to green started hitting a few fish.

Needless to say, I immediately changed to a green fly. You can see the results in the pictures.

All told, pretty slow until sometime between almost dark and should have left fifteen minutes ago. A few fish landed, two fish hooked and lost plus a lot of bumps and strikes with no hook-ups.

It was interesting watching Phil fish on down the river. He worked the fly more than I am inclined to but out fished me so I will pay a lot more thought and attention to that. He also fished a stretch of water I had walked right by with some success. Lesson learned.

The Stripers are Running

Here is a note and a picture from my friend Jason.

He says:

"Hey Hey,

The stripers are running in the Stewiacke. I was proud of this guy and thought I'd send it along.

JK "

Good one Jason!

Shad Fishing on the Fly - The Basics

The whole idea of fly-fishing for Shad on purpose is relatively new in comparison to the other more traditional fly fishing targets of trout and salmon.

In reviewing, what I know about it for various articles I have written in the past year I realized that the ideas and techniques I was using were derivatives of other styles of fishing, mainly slightly adapted salmon fishing techniques, with a few personal twists added as I gained experience.

In its simplest form, here is how to catch a Shad with a fly rod.

Use a sink-tip line and a short, stout leader of about four to six feet. Tie on a brightly coloured, weighted fly in the number ten to twelve range and cast it three quarters down stream and across. An upstream mend just as it lands will help to sink the fly.

Let the cast straighten out below you. Do not retrieve it right away. Let the fly dangle there for between ten and twenty seconds. Work it just enough to keep from snagging then slowly lift your rod tip to raise the fly up from the bottom. If no strike, do the whole thing over again. Expect a strike, ranging from subtle to jarring, anywhere along the drift but most often a few seconds into the dangle or just as you begin the lift.

If you do this so that your fly is covering a pocket or deep spot in the river where the Shad momentarily rest on their way upstream, you will get one sooner or later.

This is a nice straight forward approach, easy to master and adaptable to your particular reading of the water and what it tells you about where the fish are going to hold up temporarily.

The one gear related observation I will make is that you need a good, free-running, reel with lots of backing just as you would for salmon fishing.

No Bull, these fish fight with tremendous strength. If you are not into your backing a few times on a day’s Shad fishing, the big ones are not in yet and you should already be planning a return trip.

Having reviewed the basics, next time I will try to explain a bit about reading the water to figure out where you have the best chance of connecting.