Big-N-Little

FALL FLIES RIGHT ON

Buggers Big

midges appear

.......

.. As the fishing season in Yellowstone National Park draws to an end, (just two weeks left,) we note that the Madison River runners from Hebgen Lake are taking Woolly Buggers with enthusiasm. Black and dark purple continue to be the favorite colors this Fall.

.. One slight variation is appearing in the boxes of the headhunters = yellow bodies. These are holding their own with the solid colors in the catching. Both the solid colors and the two-tone jobs can be adorned with just a very small bit of flash in the tail. Mylar, tinsel, and even silver wire is being used with success.
.. The big fish on the Lamar River and The Yellowstone River are eating the same offerings this year and the catching of substantial numbers of good sized fish is a topic of conversation in our pubs during this late season.
.. The clouds of Baetis may still arrive, however, the bright sunny days has kept the Caddis imitations on the water.
.. Happily the Midges are out in force. These are the staple trout munchies from now through the winter. There seems to be fewer elbows on the water in all the familiar places. Rises are going wanting and the fish are feeding with gay and unmolested abandon. More power to 'em.
.. A happy note accompanies this post: the Gibbon River road and bridge project is about done and traffic is proceeding along the new superhighway apace and unimpeded. Minimal local delays may continue until the end of the season, but the trip across the park is far less painful right now.

-------

.

Late Summer Flies

JUST BEFORE HOPPER MADNESS

------

.. As August and the terrestrial season approaches we're going to give it one last go with the less clumpy flies. Flies that even look like flies.
.. We've poked a few local favorites into a mini-box and we're headed to the Gallatin River to exercise the more tastefully constructed flies available to us.
.. The big, ugly, atrocious, effective creations of foam, plastic, and other synthetic extravagances will have to wait until next weekend, (or beyond.)

.. For now we're using some stuff that would be recognizable as flies to even the most effete among us.
.. These are neighborhood flies and most are variations on classic or well known patterns.

-------

.. We've never been sharp enough to pick the "correct" pattern for the hatch. We've never been skilled enough to to deliver a perfect cast to the perfect spot for the perfect drift with that correct pattern. And our eyes just can't see a fly that's less than a quarter inch long in a thick foam line moving at over 10 mph.
.. So, flailing away, we use a Zelon Royal Coachman. Usually it's a size 8 - 14. It bobs merrily along it's way flying a white wing and floating as high as a cork, (well, nearly!)
.. It takes fish when the pros are spending precious minutes trying to get their tippet through the eye of very dinky hooks.
.. The only non-Zelon parts are the peacock herl, gold Mylar rib, and furnace, (or badger hackle.) The damn thing is nearly indestructible. We like it very much.
.. Underneath the water's surface, right now, it's hard to beat a woven Antron and hare's ear rubber legs fly
.. We've seen a dozen names for this fly, (tied a dozen different ways.) The neighbors introduced it to us as the Woven Sally.
.. It works as a Yellow Sally Nymph. Or Stonefly nymph, or any other sort of big wiggly nymph in streams with heavily-cobbled beds. The sizes we use are 8 - 12.
.. Should you not care to fiddle with a simple woven body there is another nymph that will serve just as well. The Yellowstone Sally is always in reach and available to us.
.. It ties quickly and seems to attract quite a lot of trout. It works well on the lakes as well. Sizes we find most useful are 6-8, & 14.
.. For 40 years, or so, we've carried a Sierra Bright Dot.
.. The classic pattern is reminiscent of an anorexic Royal Coachman. The original pattern is less visible to us now than the chartreuse variant.
.. Sizes from 4 to 18 are in our box but we usually gravitate toward sizes 12 - 16.
.. This little darling, on a long, fine tippet, with a 10' rod can be used for dapping along the edge of the stream where the dark and deep undercut banks hold shy but hungry fish.
.. The generous amount of hackle allows the wind to skitter the fly delicately into position. Many of the largest fish on the Gallatin River are introverts and need a dancing morsel to entice them to the surface. This one does the trick very nicely.

-------

.. When we suffer the slings and arrows from the neighbors for being just too idiosyncratic in our fly selection we tie on a Fuzzy Adams that was introduced to us as the Silver Adams.
.. It's nothing special to look at, but the Zelon body twinkles nicely and gets the hecklers off of our back for a short period of time. It catches fish too.
.. Tied in traditional sizes this fly has always seemed to mimic the current hatch, (even caddis.) By using appropriate sizes for the bug on the water this fly can masquerade as any of several different mayflies as well as mosquitoes.
.. If the neighbors refuse to allow us to stick with the Silver Adams when the mosquitoes are sucking the life from us all, we then use the Quill Bodied Mosquito or a Quill Bodied Adams.
.. This version can be used as a searching fly in the larger sizes and when a hatch can be identified on the Gallatin River the right size will suffice to poke a few trout in the nose.
.. We often start our prospecting with one of these in a size 10. During mid day on the Gallatin River the body contrasts nicely with the slightly greenish cast of the river.
.. It's a fly we can see. It's a fly that is often refused in a spectacular fashion. We like that.

-------

.. As the days heat up and sun gets lower in the sky we find ourselves fishing the shadows of morning and evening with the Simple Silver.
.. This heavy streamer casts like a lead turd but swims nicely on long swings through the sinuous bends of the Gallatin River.
.. Given the right shadows, deep undercut banks, and a 7 foot leader this fly will wake up both the fish and fisher.
.. The heavy hook, tinsel and twist body, and sparse dressing allow the fly to get down quickly. The silver hackle wing, red throat, and peacock topping catch whatever color light is available. The wood duck tail is a perfect target for trout in dim light, (so we've been told.)
.. Our concession to the currently proliferating population of land dwellers is a CDC Ant and, perhaps surprising to some, a large Griffith's Gnat.
.. The CDC Ant is a straightforward pattern with CDC substituted for the traditional wing. We use sizes in the 10 - 14 range and apply no flotant. We fish the ant near the bank and dry it often. Ants are prolific right now and we certainly ain't going to pass up the opportunity to use them.
.. The Griffith's Gnat, (tied very tightly with dark hackle,) can be greased and massaged to the point that it makes a more than passable beetle, (or something,) imitation.
.. It's a fine small dry in sizes 16 - 20, and an excellent "terrestrial" in sizes 6 - 12.
.. Of course we have 'real' beetles: green ones, black ones, hair ones, foam ones, cork ones, and most of the others.
.. Over the last few years we've taken a liking to forming these little gnats into the beetles that our imagination tells us that the fish will take. Sometimes we're right.
.. The hoppers are visible. They are beginning to get their wings. Soon we will all be driven to "HOPPER MADNESS." It will become a genuine madhouse if the predicted blight arrives in Yellowstone National Park.
.. But for the next few days we will exercise flies that look like flies, (mostly.) We will usher in the terrestrial season with one last flurry of floaters and sinkers that seem to be copacetic. We will succumb to the pressure of the neighbors and "fish the way we ought to." But not for too much longer.

-------

Summer Box - 2010

(Please click on images for high resolution views)

-------

.. Here's our annual report on the summer fly box. It looks very similar to last year's box, but we've continued with our growing fondness for the Shop Vac.
.. Sizes have become in some instances larger, and in other instances, smaller.
.. The Prince Nymphs are absolutely gigantic, (6 & 8,) and working wonders in all waters.
.. The stimulators have also grown in size, (6 to 10,) while the Elk Hair Caddis have both grown and shrunk, (6 to 16.)
.. The bead head nymphs are now outnumbering the unweighted variety about 6 to 1.

-------

.. The itty-bitty Bead Head Caddis, (14 &16,) is doing a number on even the most educated fish on the Madison River and the Gallatin River.
.. The eensy-weensey Shop Vacs, (16 in particular,) are pure death from above on the gullible Brookies of the Upper Gibbon River and the cold water Firehole River.
.. Old favorites continue to be very productive and haven't been relegated to the museum yet.
.. Feather Dusters, (original and yellow in sizes 10 to 14,) are still the go-to fly for soft riffles and dark shallow undercut banks.
.. Jacklin's Rock Worm and the Madison Mauler, have a reserved place in the box as well. These flies are particularly useful in the seams and long slicks at the heads of pools as well as the long tail-outs on the few dark spots on Fan Creek and Duck Creek.
.. The Irresistible Bumble Bee is both decorative in the fly box and a surprisingly effective fly on big water like the Madison River below the lakes.
.. For some idiosyncratic reason we always have a few Goddard Caddis in the box.
.. They don't seem to perform any better or worse than the elk or deer hair variety, but they appeal to us and we use them quite often.
.. The Madame X is useful as a caddis imitation and also, with it's broad wing, doubles as a spruce moth or white miller caddis. We choose to use these in sizes bigger than the bugs on the water. They take their fair share of fish.

-------

.. If you bought the box and flies, fished them judiciously, and lost only a few - the full compliment would set you back about $250.00. These flies will work all summer and need only be augmented on a whimsical basis: Hoppers, Beetles, Ants, Damselflies, Dragonflies, and Kerploppers.
.. Should you choose to tie up a mess of each fly you'll certainly have at least $1,000.00 invested before you buy the box to put them in. About as much fun as you can have cheaply in this day and age.

-------

.

The Neighbor's Nymphs

TATTERED, TORN & RUSTY

Just The Way Fish Like 'Em

-------

.. Jacklin's Rock Worm. We've highlighted this one before. See our original post HERE.
.. Visit Jacklin's website to see the video HERE.

-------

.. The flies below have no "official names." They are tied during fits of creativity after turning over rocks, watching the aquarium, deep reflection and discussion at the pub, or having a dream that soaks the shorts. All are proven fish-getters. All are used flies that the owners grudgingly parted with after being plied with appropriate liquid inducements.
.. No warranty is implied or given. They may prove to be a bust if you tie and fish them. The patterns are not quite standardized, but can be replicated by most fishers with common materials. There is nothing exotic about the little darlings.
.. The photos are not meant to obscure. They just came out that way. Sorry 'bout that. Click on images for larger view.

-------

.. JERRY'S NORMAL: just another nymph with a brass bead head. The body is shredded mylar twisted with peacock herl, and ribbed with black thread. The thorax is dubbed hare's ear. The legs are partridge. The wing case is pheasant tail. The only unusual part is the orange goose biots used for the tail. Sizes are usually in 12 - 14 range but can be bigger or smaller.
.. JOHN'S STILLBORN: a very big, (for hook size,) bead head in front of a prickly body. The body is a mixture of hare's ear, antron, and muskrat. It is ribbed with Mylar tinsel and uses bits of badger fur for the tail. Sizes are usually in the 14 - 16 range.
.. CAL'S FUZZY: a quick and dirty stream side creation that has lasted for several decades. Red thread with a hare's ear body is wrapped with French tinsel. The legs are coarse pheasant tail fibers, most of which are cut short. The tail is fibers from a furnace hackle. Big ugly heads are the norm, and no bead heads are used. Sizes are usually in the 14 - 18 range but are often larger.
.. JOHN'S ESCAPEE: a tightly dubbed and wrapped two-tone body of pink wool and hare's ear - followed by steel blue antron all over-wrapped with sanded copper wire. The legs are butt-fluff from either badger or furnace hackle, and the tail is badger fur. Heads are giant wads of thread, heavily lacquered with a spit shine. Sizes range from 8 to 16.
.. DEBBY'S DELIGHT: a good sized bug with all kinds of internal action. The body is red wool, purple antron, purple Mylar, and blue hare's ear. Shredded in Deb's coffee grinder and tightly dubbed and wrapped. Tubular rubber legs are covered with pheasant neck feathers and are followed by a tungsten bead head. Again, the dyed goose biots make their appearance as a tail in the neighborhood. Sizes can be as large as a 4 or 6, and may be as small as 10.
.. MADISON MAULER: a neighborhood collaborative effort. Just a bit of plug-ugliness that works.
.. Time was when we complained about tying on small flies, then about not being able to hold them, and now about not being able to pick them up - or even see them.
.. Kind folks in the neighborhood put a bunch of these on bits of tippet for us. We can still tie a knot.
.. The 'body' is big , fat, flat, green, tying thread that is heavily waxed and wrapped on the hook. It's some sort of mysterious space-age synthetic, (Kevlar?)
.. The abdomen/thorax/legs portion is dubbed antron of three colors: yellow, followed by deep purple, (a single twist of peacock-eye herl is often used,) followed by lime green. Artistic license is granted in the tying. It is a football shape with legs that is the target. Heads vary and run toward the messy.
.. Hooks are small. Sizes range from 14 through 22. They all work very well. Pick your hook style. There is currently a bizarre argument about up eye vs. down eye. We're just not savvy enough to even participate.

-------

.

Spring Nymphs

NUTTY FOR NYMPHS

Get Out The Spring Nymph Box

fish 'em low and slow

-------

.. The flies shown here are designed to work well in a variety of conditions and in that sense are "generalized flies."
.. There are some that could be considered 'imitative,' however most will fall into the 'attractor' class - that's O.K. with us. Gott'a attract a fish to catch it.
.. Most of what look like dry flies or surface attractors are just that. In the Spring these can be mauled and messed up and fished in the film . . . works good.

--------------
THE FLIES

.. Montana Duster: We use piles of these all season long and start the Spring nymphing with it. This pattern, and the original Feather Duster are staples in our Spring assortment. The yellow color is most popular. However, about this time each year the pink makes an appearance - probably taken for an egg - who knows? Sizes: 6 - 18.
.. Yellowstone Coachman: The occasional day in early Spring that allows a good hatch is an unanticipated joy. The fish are seldom very selective, (well - sort'a,) and this fly works wonders. Sizes: 10 - 18.

.. The Yellowstone Cinch: This is our other choice for early Spring dry fly days. It is a local adaptation that floats like a cork, and can be quickly tied at home or on the water. Size is the key to this and other early season flies in Yellowstone. Later the fish become much more selective. Sizes: 10 - 18.
.. Yellowstone Spruce Fly: This fly was developed by some neighbors that use a bubble on a spinning or casting rig for Fall fishing. It is an exceptional fly when cast with a fly rod in the spring. It's a bit gaudy for many of our purists, but with a nice slow presentation in the cold waters of the early Spring it looks like a big sack of groceries to hungry trout. Sizes: 4 - 12.
.. Yellowstone Morning Glory: This is an all season fly that we like to keep handy for fishing in the film, or slightly submerged in the Spring. It is a traditional 'early morning' fly for those that find the right foggy morning after the rare early Spring hatch. In the Summer it's a useful attractor. There are many flies similar to this local variant and most will do - we use this one. Sizes: 10 - 16.
.. Yellowstone Winter Grub: This looks like nothing other than something to sample - or some such. We fish this all Winter and carry it into the Spring. It's a heavy fly, though it casts well, and is useful for 'dredging' those big fish that you know are there. It's apparently an old fly from the Salmon & Challis area in Idaho. We usually have this in a variety of sizes for the desperation moments. Sizes: 4 - 10.
.. Woolly Worm: Spit the words out of your mouth if you must - it's a great Spring fly in Yellowstone Country. Sometimes we use small ones on the surface when the snow flies are out. Black or yellow seem to be the colors of choice, we've got more yellow ones. Sizes: 10 - 18.
.. Yellowstone Badger: This prickly little devil is one that serves a multitude of purposes. Float it, sink it, splash it, strip it, or just dap it - it is a winner. This fly is similar to the other nymphs that are popular around here - the Pheasant Tail, and the Hare's Ear. We use them all, but keep coming back to this one. Sizes: 12 - 18.
.. Stiff Hackle Nymph: This variant of the soft hackle variety is not a favorite among many folks in the fly fishing community. It does work well and it is used by some of our 'more mature' neighbors. We've used it since the 80's and found it to be a useful resource - but we tend to forget it too. This is an all season fly that we just put in the fly box because we have them. Sizes 12 -18.
.. Deer Hair Caddis: This little fly we borrowed from Jason Neuswanger over at The Trout Nut. We fished it all last year along with the local versions and it was a standout performer. It's a dark fly that is consistent with some of our early Caddis hatches and we like it very much. Sizes: 10 - 18.
.. The Quick -N-Easy is one of those flies that makes many a fly fisher cringe. It is gaudy, flashy, big, and effective. It is famous for its spectacular refusals, and that's it's purpose. Tie it on early and then fish the fly that the fish are taking. This will show you that there are really fish in the water, and it may even catch one or two. Sizes: 8 - 14.
.. Hellifiknow: This pattern is reminiscent of the Black Nose Dace and Micky Finn patterns. It is useful when the water is murky and you need to get a bit of twinkle down deep. It's a Spring staple and often a 'what if ?' kind of fly for prospecting. Sizes 4 - 12.
.. Scarlet Ibis: We've carried this fly since the early 60's. Back then they came on a card and you got four for a dollar. They were imported from Japan and attracted the novice and expert alike. A bit of color never hurts the old fly boxes. This traditional wet fly is one that we fish for fun. It may be taken for an egg, a flying saucer, a cowboy's bandanna, or "who knows what?" - but it takes a few fish every year. Sizes: 8 - 14.

---------------

.. Here's a note about the Shop Vac. It's proven its worth in subsurface fishing over the last few seasons. Tied a bit larger than the traditional sizes it is a fine upper fly in a tandem rig and can be seen on a slow shallow swing.
.. We have an irrational fondness for the local Feather Dusters, (Original, Montana, Egg,) yet we always have a few Shop Vacs as well.
.. For year-round success this pattern ranks very high. Most people use the bead head variety. Contrarians that we are, we stick with the fluff sans bead.
.. The recipe lets you know why we're fond of these by the dozen.
Recipe. Hook: size 12 - 18, Thread: black, Body: pheasant tail fiber, Rib: medium, (or fine,) copper wire, Wing: gold or white Zelon, (cul de canard works fine.)
Instructions. Move thread to the rear of the hook, attach pheasant tail fibers and the wire, return thread and fibers to head, counter wrap the wire rib to the eye, tie off, attach zelon, (or cul de canard,) on top of the hook shank, whip finish a large clunky head.
.. These can be greased up real heavy and floated if you choose. The smaller sizes float very well.

-------