Tiny nymphs and peccary klinks...

With a report on this season last trip still to write, here is more fly tying, an activity that will fill the long, dark Winter evenings ahead.
I got a good deal this Summer on a couple of packs of Partridge K1A Vince Marinaro midge hooks. These are true small fly hooks, designed specifically for this application with an off-set bend to aid success. At this scale, I at least have limited options but the biot-bodied nymphs below is a cynch to tie and makes for a real pretty fly. A little micro Krystal flash for a tail adds all important flash at this scale. This is a #26, as small as I dare go (the eyes are still recovering...)


I have only very recently discovered peccary, via Peter Smith at Niche Products. This course, barred bristle makes amazing, segmented bodies and is very strong to make for confident tying. A new addition is the minimal trailing shuck to serve as an a additional trigger. Another Niche product.


What self-respecting trout would refuse this fly? I'll have to wait to at least 1st March 09 to find out, but my money is on this being a killer...


For more information about Niche products range of fly tying materials please visit www.nicheflytying.com and feel free to contact Peter Smith by telephone or email (details on his site) for first class advice and service. He is very particular about the materials offered, so be assured of the very best quality available and advice based on over 35 years fly tying experience.

Final fishing report of the season to follow, Fade To Black...

Getting it out there: Pt 1

An earlier post described time spent in S. France earlier this year, with Marc Fauvet AKA dude on the stream. I really like this guy, he's warm, witty, intelligent and I count him as a friend. He's also a deadly caster and fly fisher, so there's always lot's to learn from him. Marc has written the following post, the first of two pieces where he introduces his insights and shares valuable wisdom for success on small water.

We'll post Pt 2 at some point in the future, until then enjoy his writing and check-out http://flycastingfrance.blogspot.com/ to view Marc's blog.

Oh, and don't be put off by the pink text, trout like pink and that's what matters...

Getting it out there...

Part 1- the approach

Probably the biggest reason that holds back many anglers from fishing these little streams is the lack of 'normal' casting space. Basically, what we have are obstacles all around us in one way or another, and if we want to present our fly correctly without getting it tangled or stuck into something at every cast, it will be a matter of adapting and using the available space that we do have.

Here, I'll try to point out a few casting techniques on getting the fly out there to the fish but also suggestions on small waters equipment and approach tactics that might help bring back the fun factor in these situations.

If you are used to fishing in wide-open spaces the first thing to do is to adopt a different mental approach and analysis to each situation. Fish in these streams rarely move around much and prefer to keep to areas that funnel food towards them and where they also feel safe.
This means we have a lot of time to decide on the best possible strategy to use in that particular situation.

In these situations the first decision I take is to decide exactly where I think a good presentation will be possible from without being noticed by the fish. The actual cast needed will be decided once the actual fishing position is reached as the perspectives from where I first saw the fish and the one where the cast will be made may differ greatly. This is where having a good repertoire of casts comes handy.

Will I be able to cast without lining the fish ?
Do I need to cast over the shoulder or deliver on the back-cast ?
There's a rock between me and the fish. can i throw a curve mend around it ?
There's different currents going on. Can I deal with this without inducing unwanted drag ?

Those are just a few of the many possibilities that will come up in a day's fishing. I find that they come up at each cast. I also find that that's what makes this kind of fishing so much fun, challenging and rewarding.

Stealth in all its forms are very important in this close proximity activity.

Camouflaged clothing is ideal. this is a stalk after all. outside of looking cool and being fashionably attractive... , camo clothing breaks up the human silhouette and enable to blend in with the environing foliage. Fishes are always on the look-out for predators and even if we put them back after having caught them, they don't know this and consider us as deadly predators. we do need to move but the fish's perception of our movements will not be as apparent compared to a
'block' of solid color. even if that block is of a subdued color. look into a wooded
area and squint. you'll notice that there are no solid geometric blocks of one single color.
Another great advantage to camo clothing is that it enables you to eat chocolate like a pig with no-one being the wiser !

Rod flash is a big no-no and all of my rods have had a fine steel wool treatment. No need to dig in, just a thorough sanding of the top layer of varnish makes a big difference and does not affect its performance, durability or warranty coverage in any way. watch an angler who hasn't done this from far away. all you'll see is big streaks of flashing light. Fish don't like this at all and it's one of the best ways to put them down.
As a side line, my Sage TCRs that had a shiny dried blood color now look like sanded wood. Pretty cool.

Some people believe that the flyline's color is equally important and should also be subdued. I don't, as I believe that the line should never be visible to the fish in the first place, whether its in the air or on the water. I find it more important to know exactly where it is and what it is doing at all moments by being able to see it.
A 'natural' or darker colored line will blend in better with its surroundings in the air but will appear as a dark silhouette on the water's surface when seen from below and inversely for a lighter, more visible (to us) line. you chose.

We do need to move to be able to fish but those movements need to be as subtle and as slow as possible. as noted earlier, this kind of fishing should be considered a stalk. Vibrations that reach the fish emanate from walking on the bank or in the water. studded soles can make scratching sounds underwater. hitting or making stones roll around while wading will have the same effect. talking loudly to a friend can be heard under water. rushing through the water causes ripples that
propagate throughout the surface. As Roy Christie points out, an angler moving upstream should be going slow enough so that the ripples that are created don't push up against the current. That's pretty slow, specially in calm waters.
It's always good to remember that senses under water are the same as the senses above water. Specially when one considers that the fish are in their own environment and that most animal's senses are stronger than ours.

Theses notions will of course apply to all water systems but the confined nature of tiny streams oblige us to be even more aware of all elements involved.

Next time I'll talk about specific equipment such as leaders, lines, rods and of course casting in these little streams.

Marc Fauvet

Leaky waders

I'm a hip wader kind of guy, part due to limited budget, and part because they are cheap and do the job. Sure, there is the odd occasion when I could do with an extra 6" of wading depth, but it never gets in the way of a good days fishing. I've been looking at chest waders recently - and I'm not convinced breathables would work out well on the brushy, thorny streams I hang out on. Neoprene may offer greater resilience, but may prove impractical during the warmer months. And as I said, budgets are always limited, so best to make do with what I have.

And what I have is a two year old pair of green, rubber hip waders. They offer good protection when dragging myself through brambles, at least around the legs, they're not too warm in the summer, or too cold during the winter as long as appropriate socks are worn. They also offer good hand warming properties when required, by sliding your hands inside the thigh cuff.

All sounds pretty good, then. But for the leaky right foot...

The right foot has leaked for as long as I can remember, and I don't think I'm imagining it but, the leak is getting worse. So here's the thing. I know the right foot leaks, and I'm aware at the beginning of each fishing trip that it will end with a wet right foot. And yet, it has never got in the way of the fishing, in fact, whilst "in the act" I am largely oblivious to the slow and relentless ingress of water, even during the cooler Autumn months.

Thing is, this leak is not going to miraculously cure itself, and despite numerous attempts, I have yet to identify the source of the leak. So, what to do? I may have to bite the bullet, and get some new waders, but this isn't a priority with only days remaining of the season.

This situation is at status - marginal dilemma; I probably shouldn't wait until this becomes status - crisis although I have no idea what constitutes a wader crisis.

Rest assured, I'll keep you posted.

One-cent emerger

For a blog that claims to cover all aspects of ultra-light fly fishing, there has been a bias towards flies and fly tying recently. The explanation is simple, I have spent more time tying flies than fishing them this season. High hopes for a dryer September have not materialised as yet, with regular, heavy rainfall and even a few sleet showers.

The climate is changing, with increasingly unpredictable and at times, violent force. We can expect the future to be colder and wetter here in Northern Ireland, the environmental, economic, and social consequences of which remain uncertain.

I don't mind fishing in apalling weather, but safety is an issue on these spate rivers. And there is always good reading to be done in front of an open fire with a dram. More about reading on a future post.

It is always difficult to communicate the size of small flies through a medium like this. Just how small is small? And when does small become tiny? I don't know if this helps any, but I mounted a recent tie on a 1 cent coin, to provide some perspective. And so the one-cent emerger was christened...

This tiny black gnat is tied on a Partridge "Vince Marinaro" midge hook, #24
It's as small as I dare go at present, and makes good use of the last 2 inches or so of the Whiting 100's saddle feathers. It is a simple, if fiddly tie on account of it's size. Catch in half a dozen black hackle fibres to form a tail, form a body with 14/0 black thread, catch in the hackle and make 4 neat turns progressing towards the eye, whip finish!



I have yet to fish the half dozen I have prepared, but imagine it might prove useful in late evening, fished at close range when clouds of the naturals swarm just above the water's surface, and small trout snatch at the unforunates who, on account of their small size, fly too close and become trapped in the surface film.

I just need a warm, late summer evening, following a dry spell to put theory in to practice...

A bigger fly...

A common theme in the flies I tie is a segmented body. The neatest way to achieve this is the use of biot, the inner filaments on goose and turkey quills. Goose biots are easy to source, but they tend to be short and a little brittle. They are easier to work with if soaked in water for 10mins before use. In terms of handling, a small hackle plier makes life easier.

Turkey biots are longer and wider, so ideal for larger patterns. I've only just received a pack (from Cookshill Fly Tying), so experimentation is at an early stage. More to follow...

Hook: Partridge Klinkhammer #16 (other curved shank patterns work well too)
Thread: Uni 6/0 in claret
Body: Natural turkey biot, tied with "notch" facing in, nut brown artist's ink added to colour fringe.
Wing-post: TMC Dry Aero Wing
Throax: Peacock glister dubbing
Hackle: Grizzly from #2 Metz saddle

The thread is taken just beyond the start of the body and a couple of mm's added before the wing-post starts. This adds all-important triggers to the design.

Well dressed

There is very little point starting out tying flies with quality materials. A good vice and tools, certainly. But those first few attempts may well be disastrous and it would be a shame to waste expensive materials in the process. It's worth investing in decent thread, the tension applied during tying is key to success.

Among the most expensive of materials is good quality hackle, especially if tying dries. But quality here, once the basic skills are aquired is imperative.

I started out tying with a #2 Metz neck, which has small but short and webby feathers and is now used for tying wets. Then a #2 Metz cape was added ideally for #16 - #22 dries. The feather quality is OK but most of the hackles are in the #10 - #14 range. I managed about 35 hackles of a suitable size, so not a good return on £19.

In the absence of a big budget, I have just picked up a Whiting "100's" pack. This is just that, individual saddle feathers, graded and selected in a specific size, #18 in this case. Wow, what a difference good quality materials make! The feathers have dense, stiff, pristine barbs with consistent length throughout the feather. This quality immediately elevates the fly, particularly smaller patterns.


Hook: TMC200R
Thread: 8/0 black
Body: Natural goose biot
Wing: TMA Areo Dry Wing fl. pink
Thorax: Sperfine poly dub, black
Hackle: see above, black

No going back, I'll report on how they fish as soon as water levels return to "status - fishable"...

CDC Sedge

During a recent morning on the burn with Roy Christie and his partner Julie, I was shown the myriad fauna that live in this tiny water. While my standard biot-bodied parachutes and emerger patterns are proven fish takers, it was fascinating to observe the broader range of patterns I could be fishing with the potential for equal, maybe greater success.

There are numerous approaches to tying sedge (caddis) patterns. Deer hair is great in #10 - #14 sizes, but less so when you go small - too much bulk. A good approach seems to be CDC feathers. The pattern shown below has yet to be fished, heavy rain for a week has left waters high and coloured. But I am hopeful this should take a few trout on the burn when conditions improve.

Hook: Kamasan B100 #16
Thread: Brown 8/0
Body: 3 pheasant tail fibres
Rib: Brown thread
Wing: 2 brown, 1 white & 1 pink CDC feathers
Antennae: Pheasant tail fibres


The pink and white feathers top-side are more for visibility on the water, with the brown providing a more natural underside.

And here's the inspiration, the shrimp will follow shortly...