The Sweet Home Alabama Fly: A Unique Twist on the Alabama Rig for Fly Fishing.

It was only a matter of time before a fly angler brought the Alabama Rig of conventional bass fishing into the world of fly fishing.

The Alabama Rig is a popular system or "lure" that mimics a small school of baitfish swimming together. Bass feed heavily on schooling baitfish, and the Alabama Rig was invented to take advantage of this behavior.

The Basic Rule of Fly Fishing - Match the Hatch

Dagur Árni Guðmundsson, a fly fishing angler and guide on the central coast of California, developed a fly inspired by the Alabama Rig to adhere to a fundamental principle of fly fishing: Match the hatch. He calls the fly the Sweet Home Alabama.

A Fly Born From Observation and Time on the Water

According to Dagur, "The main forage in the bass lakes around me is shad, mostly threadfin shad, which are around 0.5 inches to 3 inches in size." He explains, "I needed a fly that would imitate the threadfin shad but have the drawing power of a larger fly. Something that would capture the attention of big bass while still imitating smaller forage. I've often observed bass and stripers busting on schools of bait. A single baitfish is often not enough to grab their attention when they're focused on the schooled-up bait. So, I'm essentially matching the hatch."

A fly angler holding a big bass he caught on the Sweet Home Alabama fly. — Big Bass love their threadfin shad. | photo provided by Dagur

Easy to Cast

Today’s fly rods, especially those built for throwing streamers, are more than capable of casting the Sweet Home Alabama. It is pretty common to fish streamers that are reaching 6 inches in length, built with feathers and fur. By comparison, the Sweet Home Alabama is light in weight.

Dagur ties both a 6-inch version and a 12-inch version of the Sweet Home Alabama. He uses a 4-weight and a 6-weight rod for the smaller pattern and fishes the 12-inch rig on an 8-10 weight rod. I was able to throw the 6-inch version on a 7-weight rod 60 feet with a crosswind. That is more than enough distance for most fly fishing situations.

Another Rule of Fly Fishing: Explore and Experiment

How to fish this rig is limited only by one's imagination. Cast it into a ball of bait, throw it across and down stream and let it swing, tie it to a sinking line and explore the depths. Get on the water and work it as if it's a small ball of bait.

What Fish Should you Target with this Fly?

Any fish that feed on small baitfish is worth a try. Dagur has listed 22 species of fish caught on the Sweet Home Alabama. I've used it to catch largemouth and smallmouth bass, and striped bass. This summer, I’ll be using it in Alaska for the extra-large rainbow trout that feed on salmon smolt heading out of the river.

It’s a clever, innovative design that has "fishy" written all over it. KB