Rockfish on a Dry Fly!
- BMO
- 9 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Catching a Rockfish on a dry fly is one for the ages!
Rockfish on a dry fly!
My friends and I were on our annual fly fishing trip to Pacific City with guide Rob Perkins of Connect Outfitters. Rob is one of the few guides who exclusively fly fishes for rockfish, lingcod, salmon, and even tuna out of Pacific City, Oregon. He offers a fun and unique experience that I would highly recommend if you love to fly fish and are looking for something new, exciting, and different.
Connect Outfitters
We had pretty much the same group as last year as we headed out over a soft surf to the fishing grounds. As Rob positioned the boat, we made our first pass and...bang All four of us were hooked up at the same time! As we were landing our fish, Rob spotted a group of rockfish feeding on the surface. He asked if anyone wanted to try for them on top. I was the only one who volunteered, so he stowed my sinking tip 8 weight and handed me an 8 weight rigged with an orange popper.
We made several passes through the school. While my buddies were steadily stacking up their limits with sinking flies, the rockfish kept refusing my orange popper. The suspense kept building as they fed all around my fly but showed zero interest in it. With the excitement level maxed out, Rob switched the orange popper for a blue & green colored bug on the next pass.
Here is the video of a rockfish taking the dry fly !
As we drifted through the school, I managed to land the fly right in the middle of a group of actively feeding fish. A couple of gurgles and wham! A big rockfish crushed my fly! It was a glorious moment. The whole boat erupted in cheers, laughs, and pure excitement.
To catch a rockfish on a dry fly is definitely a special experience. As I landed the fish, I felt incredibly thankful to be part of something so cool.
A huge thanks to Rob for getting us so close to the fish that I could actually cast to them, and for putting together such a great trip. It was truly another amazing day in the incredible Pacific Northwest.
Thanks for reading.
Bill
© 2026 Bill Matthews Outdoors
