Floating smelt flies are specialized high-buoyancy baitfish imitations designed to ride on or directly in the water's surface film. A floating fly line is standard. It lets you control the drift, mend easily, and fish the fly at or near the surface like a dry fly, or suspend it with precision. They are most effectively used in tailwaters, below dams, or in lake coves where schools of smelt become stunned, disoriented, or are pushed to the surface.