NOTES ON THE FLY

Build upon your recent success!

It's funny that fly fishermen often do not recognize the habits or behavior of fish.

Our minds seem to work in such a way that sometimes it limits our ability to catch more than one fish.

We believe, I think, that once we catch a fish in a certain spot, or using a certain technique, that we must then move on to something else.

It could be the feeling that there was only one fish in that area so it's time to move on.

But my experience suggests that the chances are far greater that you'll catch another fish using exactly the same technique and fishing in exactly the same spot that yielded the previous fish than if you move on to something else.

Learn to repeat the technique of previous success exactly.

This rule seems so simple, yet it is so often ignored.

When you hook a trout, remember as many details as possible about the successful cast, the drift, the action you imparted to the fly, where you felt the “take,” etc.

Chances are very good that another fish is holding in the same or a close spot and will strike just like the one you’re now releasing.

Why move to a new spot or try a different fly until the same successful technique fails to be similarly productive?

Isn’t the idea to fool a trout, then another and another?

A second implication here is that the imitation you are fishing appears as it did when you caught the last fish.

Who wants a fly that falls apart after one strike?

Some fly patterns are more delicate and fragile than others, but the quality of the fishing experience is greatly diminished if the angler’s time is spent fishing through fly boxes and fumbling with knots rather than actually doing battle with a lively trout!

Durability, as much as the fly pattern and materials will allow, is a fundamental characteristic of a well-tied fly as we have so often stated, not just a bonus that some flies offer as a result of their tough materials.

Along with durability, consistency of pattern materials, colors and size is also important.

A dozen size 16 Light Cahills should look identical and variations from one fly to the next should be nearly imperceptible.

Sure, we all like variation and tend to shun "sameness;" but in fly fishing, you have to remember that fish tend to follows habits or natural instincts which don't waver and change like the actions and ideas of humans.

Fish don't think and reason. They don't look for variation - they want predictability and sameness.

Let the consistency of Mother Nature give you an advantage in your fishing!

Tight lines,
Steve
www.flyfishingindex.com

Make your artificial “look the part!”

We’ve been discussing tips and suggestions that every aspiring fly fisherman would do well to memorize as these principles of successful fly fishing can spell the difference between success and no action whatsoever.

This first tip was to always “fish over fish.” Sounds easy enough, right?

Here’s another hint on successful fly fishing:

Make the fly look and “feel” like the natural.

This advice goes without saying yet many fishermen don’t take the time to learn even the slightest bit of entomology (insect biology).

You aren’t required to know the Latin names and all the body parts of the local “bugs;” however, you should be observant and do a little study of the most common underwater insects of the area you’re fishing.

Learn about insect life cycles and recognize that, like in most pursuits, knowledge is advantageous and preparation is usually time well spent.

Properly tied flies will elicit trout strikes more often and of a more “committed” fashion than those tied poorly.

Be assured that trout notice differences in size, proportion, color and texture.

They don’t cognitively “reason” that a fly is a fake because it’s the wrong shape or color, or because it has this sharp metal hook protruding from its butt.

Fish instinct or natural response to a poor imitation is that the fly is rejected as something too unlike the real thing.

Believe it or not, texture is also important because it can either add to or detract from the imitation’s appearance of being something alive as are most trout targets.

Proper texture can also mean the fish rejects your fly more slowly, giving you an extra second to set the hook.

Impart to the fly its proper behavior.

Just as critical to success as shape, color, and size is the artificial’s behavior.

Delicate mayflies do not charge upstream in heavy current leaving a three foot wake behind!

They do not slap themselves down on the surface causing concentric waves like a chucked rock might. Yet who among us is not guilty of such tactics on occasion, intentional or not?

Most insects either flow with the current, swim short distances with or across current, rise slowly to the surface during a hatch, or crawl on fixed surfaces (like rocks, logs or underwater plants.)

Baitfish typically swim in a short darting fashion, sculpins hang right on the bottom, and swimming leeches undulate and slither.

Fly fishing would be so much easier if all that was needed was the proper imitation.

Study the trout foods found in the water you’re fishing. Observe them firsthand or at least read about the observations of others.

Imparting the proper and natural actions (or lack thereof) to your fly is of prime importance.

Ditto for having the fly at the appropriate depth for the type of pattern fished.

The materials used and the method of constructing the fly will greatly add to or detract from the flies’ apparent behavior on or in the water. The best fly tiers understand how their methods and materials add to the quality of the deception of their fake and truly lifeless creation and it’s apparent behavior.

There are many excellent books and magazine articles about insect behavior that will arm the fly fisherman with the knowledge needed to fish any fly pattern successfully. If all else fails, or if in doubt, follow this rule of thumb: let the fly float or swim naturally with the current. This technique can draw a response from trout at any time because insects and minnows at times float along with the current and are not always in a swimming or crawling motion.

Tight lines,
Steve
www.flyfishingindex.com

What is "selectivity" and how important is it in fly fishing?

Sometimes referred to as the fly fisherman's curse, the term "selectivity" refers to the idea that fish become "picky" or very selective about what foods they will go after.

In the case of the fly fisherman, this notion translates into the difficult task of finding exactly the right size, color and pattern of fly to use in a particular situation.

Often, when fly fishing success is slow or non-existent, the reason given is that the fish are too selective and the fly imitation being fished is not close enough a match to the real thing to elicit a response.

Such a condition can torment fly fishers to no end! In fact, some refer to hyper selective trout as the “fly fisherman’s curse.”

It seems that some trout are focused on eating only one particular thing at a time. If your fly and its action don’t mimic that aquatic insect closely enough, you’ll see no action.

Not having the right fly pattern, or the proper size, or the “magic” color is not the only concern, however. Often, selective fish will not take even the closest imitation if the way it drifts or floats is different from the real thing.

At times trout especially will have nothing to do with a fly that is the least bit offensive to its senses.

Hooking and releasing trout like this is difficult and challenging but one of the most satisfying aspects of fly fishing once the puzzle is solved.

Angling for selective trout is no different than pursuing any other trout, except that it sometimes requires more observation, patience, experimentation, and concentration than usual.

All trout, regardless of their degree of selectivity at the moment, are best hunted by those who understand certain principles or rules of fly fishing.

Here are some tips or suggestions that every aspiring fly fisherman would do well to memorize as these principles of successful fly fishing can spell the difference between success and no action whatsoever. Whether you “tie or buy” your flies, keep these gems always in mind as they are all critical to the sport.

Get the fly within the sight and reach of the fish.

If trout are hugging the bottom of a fast moving stream, chances are you will be skunked if you fish a high floating dry fly.

Likewise, casting to center stream when all the trout are hiding out close to the banks will result in few, if any, fish taken.

I know this idea seems very elementary, but you’d be surprised at the number of times you’ll find yourself fishing in the wrong spot or at the wrong depth.

I like to say you have to “fish over fish.”

Closely related to this first rule, but slightly different, is the idea that one can have the best dressed flies in the world, but if they’re not placed within striking distance of the fish, the fisherman will catch just as many trout on the flies in his vest pocket!

I won’t say much about putting the fly before the fish because there are many, many great books, magazines and videos with this subject at the forefront.

It seems almost too elementary to mention - yet you must be fishing over fish to be successful!

How often do we all claim that a particular fly isn’t working or that the fish just aren’t hungry, when in fact our lack of success is the result of working fishless water?

Most lakes, especially, prove to be maybe 90% devoid of fish. Just as in streams, rivers and brooks, trout hang out in similar types of places and if your fly isn’t there, you won’t catch fish.

Fishing over fish does not guarantee success, but if you don’t do it you will most certainly guarantee failure.

(More to follow)

Tight lines,
Steve
www.flyfishingindex.com

Trout fly origins suggest mostly wet fly patterns.

Something that I have always found intriguing is the fact that the very early fly patterns discussed in print (beginning in the 1600's) were dressed mostly as wet flies.

Yet many of them were made to imitate insects that were found to float on the surface or hover slightly over the water, i.e. typical dry flies.

Sub-aquatic entomology was probably not a strong suite of early fly fishers.

I can imagine fly tiers of those early periods having difficulty making truly "dry" flies.

Hooks were very heavy in comparison to today’s standards, leaders of hair and "gut" soaked up water very quickly, and generally the hackles and body materials available were nothing like those at the disposal of fly tiers today.

Genetic hackle and synthetic poly dubbing and wing material make for a much lighter and less water absorbing fly today than would have ever been possible centuries ago.

Trout fly patterns and the equipment used to deliver them to the fish are what separate fly fishers from other types of anglers.

Often the non-flyfisher looks upon our fraternity (sorry ladies - or sorority, as the case may be) as an elitist pod of snobs who think of themselves as a cut above those who drown worms or heave metal blades in pursuit of a fish.

This misconception may have been born in certain eastern regions of this county and abroad where exclusive fishing clubs and angling societies were all but closed to those without means.

But today, for the most part at least, anyone can purchase the basic fly fishing equipment, head to a favorite public water, and consider himself a fly fisherman (although most of us would be quick to agree that a "fisherman" is one who fishes, not necessarily one who catches fish.)

If you spend much time in a good fly shop or browsing through the pages of one of the many fly fishing catalogs available freely, you will notice that there are not many wet flies listed that can be purchased today.

Why is this so?

My guess is that wet flies are basically imitations of sub-aquatic insects and have been replaced by the more realistic nymph patterns that all of us use.

Oh sure there are still some fly fishermen that use wet fly patterns regularly (and do very well with them, I might add) but in my experience tying and selling flies over the past 35 years or so, I can tell you that the old wet fly patterns are no where near as popular today as they were back in the mid 1900's.

In some ways I hate to see the traditional wet fly patterns fade away - they are so rich in tradition and history . . .

And yet, if there is a substitute that catches fish with much greater frequency, why not use it? That, to me, is the modern day nymph pattern!

Tight lines,
Steve
www.flyfishingindex.com

Some characteristics of premium trout flies compared to others.

Proper size and proportion of its parts.

Poorly tied flies rarely float or swim properly because their proportion is incorrect.

Typical problems include tails too short, wings too long, hackle too long for the hook size, head too large, body overdressed and crowding of materials at the hook’s eye.

The interesting thing is, a properly proportioned and sized fly is just as easy to tie as the poorly outfitted fly.

Recognizing the difference becomes almost second nature once you observe and understand general insect and baitfish shapes and sizes.


Impressionistic colors and textures of materials.

Nature is awesome!

It’s colors and textures are infinite, especially in bright sunlight.

Today’s tying materials are far superior to those of yesteryear in many respects.

Our choices for hackle, wings, body material, legs and wing cases are so much more vast than they were just a few years ago.

Material and design durability.

Quality trout flies, without exception, are tied as durably as possible given the materials used in the pattern.

Some materials are rather fine and delicate and tend to not withstand repeated abuse well.

In such cases, the tier can make judicious use of cements, waxes and fine wire to reinforce bodies, the thorax, or wing cases of such flies.

The tier also has the choice of using materials in the fly construction which stand up to repeatedly rough treatments so that the fly will continue to serve it’s purpose after many fish or tough snags.

No fly should come apart while casting, which most of us have experienced at one time or another.


Proper construction technique.

There is a logical construction technique to every fly pattern.

When that technique, or even individual steps, are violated, the integrity of the fly is compromised.

Most flies are tied beginning at the rear and moving forward.

I have seen flies (even those for sale) that were obviously tied with their steps out of order which means that thread was showing over the top of a finished step, a dead give-away to poor quality.

Exposed thread breaks or cuts easily and will prove to be the undoing of a fly.

Another problem arises when a hackle is attached improperly.

The way a hackle fans out from the hook shank is largely a function of how it was secured to the hook and what kind of a base it was wrapped over.

Hackle should be neat, compact and tight.

High quality dry flies are generally tied today with genetic, stiff, and long rooster hackle whose stem is pliable and thin.

Imported Indian rooster necks, once about the only choice for dry flies, are today shunned by tier’s seeking the ultimate in domestic engineered hackles.

Proper construction also includes using the right amount of materials.

Mayfly bodies, for example, are generally quite slender and sleek on the natural insect.

Yet some flies that are sold have humongous fat heavily dubbed bodies.

Experienced tier’s are always concerned with conserving fly weight and silhouette in most patterns, especially in dry flies.

Poor quality flies often are overdressed, i.e. they exhibit too much material for the hook size.

Think about these characteristics of premium trout flies the next time you shop for your artificials.

Tight lines,
Steve
www.flyfishingindex.com

What do trout "think about" when they're hungry?

I believe very strongly that no one will ever be sure why a particular fish takes a fly until he learns to actually communicate with the trout!

You may surmise that the trout was hungry, protecting its territory from an intruder, or maybe the fish was just curious.

It really doesn’t matter why a fish takes your fly, does it?

You’re on the water to enjoy catching the fish regardless of the trout’s “reason” for putting your fly in its mouth.

My feeling is this . . . trout don’t "think" like humans because they don’t have the capacity to reason; they are wild creatures that respond instinctively to some kind of stimulus.

If they could reason or think like we do, they would never mistake an artificial trout fly for the real thing.

After all, how many natural insects or baitfish drop out of the sky, appear to have a steel eye protruding from their brains, are led around behind a nylon tow rope, and have a large and ominous sharp steel hook anchored to their behind?

Trout don’t "think" like humans and they don’t feed like humans (with the possible exception of gulping and slurping teenage boys ages 13 to 17.)

Trout are opportunists and will generally feed when their instincts tell them that it is safe and sensible (worth the effort) to go after a particular morsel.

Humans aren’t concerned that the hamburger in front of them will recognize that it’s about to be eaten and make a mad dash for cover!

Likewise, there’s no moving current at our table which threatens to carry off our dinner if we don’t grab it right now!

Trout take up feeding positions, generally referred to as feeding “lies,” from which they can inspect and quickly capture moving objects that they instinctively ingest.

To conserve energy and be somewhat protected from danger, a trout will usually lie in wait for it’s food where there is cover, a slower current, and a good vantage point from which to inspect food morsels as they appear.

Typical feeding lies might include the slower water next to a midstream boulder, under a sunken log or undercut bank, deep in a hole where the current overhead is much more swift, or hidden in the shadow of an overhanging tree limb.

Trout often remain near motionless in this lie until they methodically move toward their quarry, inspect the food, then accept it or reject it and retreat back to the lie.

It is upon this inspection that the premium quality flies “earn their keep” so to speak.

Flies that don’t look or behave like the naturals that trout are accustomed to seeing are immediately rejected.

High quality flies that give the impression of living organisms, ones that the trout sees every day, are much more likely to pass the inspection.

Forever, it seems, there has been a debate as to whether a trout takes a fly because it looks right, or, from the opposing school, that the fly is taken because there is nothing wrong with it.

Which do you believe?

Another reason to consider premium flies is the fact that they are tied with durability and ruggedness in mind.

Do you want a fly that’s good for one fish, or would you prefer to be catching other trout rather than changing flies?

Think about the characteristics that quality trout flies exhibit that set them apart from all others. There are some real important differences.

Tight lines,
Steve
www.flyfishingindex.com

Early flies from "The Treatise of Fishing with an Angle"

The year was 1496 and the place was England.

The Book of St. Albans contained a section entitled "The Treatise of Fishing with an Angle" which listed a dozen fly patterns.

The fifteenth century flies were no doubt quite different than those tied today.

The author, Dame Berners, listed the materials that went into the fly patterns, but we have no drawings of the actual flies themselves so we can only guess what they may have looked like.

The dozen flies detailed in the "Treatise", sometimes referred to as "The Twelve," were an interesting group.

With names like the Yellow Fly, the Ruddy Fly, Tandy Fly, the Black Leaper, and Drake Fly, this group probably represents some of the basic patterns of the day, for one would assume if there were twelve flies described in text there were surely others that weren’t.

Here is the original description of one of the twelve, the Shell Fly:

"the body of grene wull & lappyd abowte wyth the herle of the pecoks tayle: wynges of the basarde."

Can you guess the translation from Olde English? [The body of green wool and wrapped about with the herl of a peacock’s tail: wings of the buzzard].

The next trout fly milestone of which I am aware surfaced nearly two hundred years later with the publication of Izaak Walton’s The Compleat Angler.

The 1676 edition of this classic (although the first edition was published in 1653) contained a section inked by Charles Cotton which described how to "angle" for trout and grayling in clear water streams.

Sixty-five fly patterns and how to tie them were discussed in some detail and no doubt some of these early fly recipes provide the basis, at least, for what I would consider traditional trout fly patterns.

Cotton is widely acknowledged as the father of modern fly fishing.

My purpose in mentioning these early flies and their origins is simply to give the present day fly angler some appreciation for the age of our sport, the crude but important beginnings that one might wish to study further, and to acknowledge the pioneers of fly fishing that passed on their knowledge and experience to us, most likely realizing little or no financial compensation for their efforts.

Other great writers, fly tiers and fly fishermen too numerous to mention, each had their impact upon the course and direction of trout fly history.

Men such as James Chetham, Richard and Charles Bowlker, George Scotcher, William Carroll, Alfred Ronalds, W. C. Stewart, Charles Kingsley, Frederick Halford, Theodore Gordon, and George E.M. Skues provide an interesting study into the evolution of the fly, its design, and use.

Tight lines,
Steve
www.flyfishingindex.com

Early fly fishing references.

No one really knows the exact origin of fly fishing but we can safely surmise that man has been scheming to fool trout with some type of culinary imitation for centuries.

Unlike so many of our present day recreational pursuits, fly fishing’s origin dates back many many centuries ago.

Of course the Holy Bible mentions angling and fishing, but not specifically fly fishing.

Claudius Aelianus, in De Animalium Natura, described "a Macedonian way of catching fish" from the river Astracus where "fish with spotted skins feed on a fly that hovers over the river."

What was that third century AD Macedonian imitation?

"They fasten red wool round a hook, and fit on to the wool two feathers which grew under a cock’s wattles, and which in color are like wax." (From Mary Orvis Marbury’s 1892 publication Favorite Flies and Their Histories.)

Red wool and two hackles? I suppose it could work; after all, the trout at that time weren’t used to seeing anything but the real thing!

Another significant milestone in trout fly history was recorded a millennium later, just a few years after Columbus and company discovered the New World.

The year was 1496, to be exact, and the place was England.

The Book of St. Albans contained a section entitled "The Treatise of Fishing with an Angle" which listed a dozen fly patterns.

The fifteenth century flies were no doubt quite different than those tied today.

The author, Dame Berners, listed the materials that went into the fly patterns, but we have no drawings of the actual flies themselves so we can only guess what they may have looked like.

We do know that the early flies were tied on very crude hooks without eyes.

Twisted strands of horse mane were lashed to the hook shank (as the "eye") with the fly dressing materials added over the top of this uneven base.

In those early days, and for many years thereafter, no vise was employed; all flies were wrapped in hand.

I have witnessed flies tied without the use of a stationary vise and to me it was quite an amazing feat, but I don’t recommend that approach given the advancements made in the fly tying industry.

Try to tie a size 20 dry fly without a vise . . . it will give you a headache and an appreciation for that little invention!

Tight lines,
Steve
www.flyfishingindex.com