Most fly-rod anglers give up after the bluegill bite fades away with the morning shadows, but the fish have merely gone deeper and may have moved to lily pads and other structure away from the bank. The trick to catching them is switching from a floating popper to a wet fly.
This Tail-End Charlie is tied by Bob Smithwick and is rigged with a strike indicator on the leader. A strike indicator is nothing more than a tiny bobber.
The fly sinks slowly and often incites a strike before it reaches its maximum depth below the strike indicator. The strike indicator stops the fly’s falling, the action of the legs attracts strikes. Anglers must have the patience to allow the fly to do its job. Waiting until the fly settles and counting the seconds before a strike occurs is a good way to build confidence when the fishing is “all wet.”
