Pacific Angler Course: Contemporary Chironomid Tactics

Chironomids can account for 2/3 of a trout’s diet in BC lakes and on many days, it is all they will eat.  If you want to catch the biggest fish and the most fish, you need to know how to effectively fish chironomids.  Your instructor, Jason Tonelli, has been fishing BC interior lakes since he was 5 years old, and in recent years he has been extremely devoted to chironomid fishing.  We finally convinced him to share some of his very productive techniques and insights using today’s contemporary rods, fly lines, tippet materials, fly designs and electronics.  Here is what he will cover during the course. 

• Life cycle of chironomids and their importance to trout and anglers.
• Boat selection, setup, rod holders, anchors, oars, electric motors.
• Rod, reel, fly line, leader and tippet selection.
• Floating line indicator setups, floating line “naked” setup, sinking line “dangle” setup, and when to use them.
• Understanding and utilizing todays electronics (sonar and GPS) including High CHIRP and Forward-Facing Sonar (Live Scope Plus, Active Target 2, Mega Live 2) with recommendations.
• The steps to properly assess a lake and subsequent boat positioning and fishing techniques.
• Contemporary fly design and fly choice (dark flies, bright flies, dark beads, white beads, etc).
• Chironomid fishing seasons and elevation.
• Course booklet.
• 10% off all in store purchases on course night.

Cost: $100+GST

Dates: March 19 or April 15

Time: 6:30 – 9:30pm (At the store) 

*Note: When paying for your course online. Remember to uncheck the Route Shipping Protection box under the subtotal in your cart.