Glasses were lost below Rt 9 (probably by the Pipe) yesterday. Black plastic frame, round lens with a croakie. If found email me and I'll "middle man" the return! - Ken
The soft hackle fly has been my "go to" style of fly and style of fly fishing since Sylvester Nemes sent me over the falls with his book The Soft-Hackled Fly over 40 years ago. That style of fly fishing, along with the Dry Fly, are the true essence of fly fishing - long unfolding casts that deliver a seemingly weightless offering that mimics the emerging insect and fools a trout! It's certainly not the "chuck and duck" of a weighted bomb/fly. That method is certainly effective, as is bait fishing, BUT it's not the level of fly fishing that I enjoy. I will throw some weight as conditions dictate but will look for every excuse not to.
The soft hackled fly may be the best imitation of a living insect that has ever been created - long flowing hackles that suggest movement and life. I've always used partridge to capture this effect but now am moving over to the possibilities of starling and the spider style of tying. First, starling is perfect for those smaller flies of #16 and under and secondly,the spider style (no thorax and the hackle wrapped a step back along the hook) just has that traditional appeal that I like. So do the trout!! One style that has crossed my vise is the tying of a thread body, then winding on a soft hackle and then finishing with a pronounced "head" on the fly. (nymphs are thicker in the front and slimmer in the back). Size and profile matter most in fly tying, color comes in third.
Thank you Gary Cranson for showing me the Black Spider. As the English would say, "It's a killing pattern".
Photo by Thomas Ames Jr.
The insect is the reliable Isonychia Bicolor AKA Leadwing Coachman, a common season long Mayfly on New England trout streams and the possible reason for our inability to even get a rise from the free roaming browns on the Ware River. I captured on of these guys as it rode down the surface of the current which is highly unusual because it usually (almost always) emerges on rocks along the surface instead of moving up the water column. Thomas Ames says that a large dry fly (size 12) with a dark brown body and slate colored wings is hardly refused. I had nothing but lighter colored flies in that large size. I still think that color is not that important but..... Maybe that is why our only action was on black spiders!!
And The Swift
In over 25 years of fishing below route 9 I can easily state that this year has had the fewest anglers that I have EVER seen down there. Maybe that's because this year has had the fewest TROUT that I've ever seen down there! That seems to be the opinion of most regulars that ply the Pipe and the Tree Pool and hundreds of years of experience and observation can't be all wrong. Now, is this all bad? I think not. First, it wiped out the "putting green" scene and forced some anglers to fish other spots or better yet, other rivers. The other rivers, especially the Millers, Ware and the WB of the Westfield have been great and the DFW should be recognized for this. Second, Cady Lane has been steady in it's supply of native brook trout with a few bows thrown in for good measure.
Now, reliable sources say that we will have plenty of fish for the regulation change on July 1. Some fish is good but not too many or the crowd seen will be back in full force.
Go Fish and hope for rain!
Ken
14 comments:
Another option for the black spider is using peacock herl for the body.
Johnson,
Good point. Working up some with black hares ear also.
Ken
Hi Ken, all is good on the local rivers and streams. I live in the Berkshire and got out on one of my local haunts and did ok this past weekend. Caught a few and lost a few. I haven't been out to any other rivers such as the WB of the Westfield or the Deerfield yet this year because of different reasons, but get out once or twice a week to my old trusty. I was actually weighing out my thoughts on taking a trip to the headwaters of the Connecticut river in Pittsburg NH, and remembered your insight on Western/Central during your television appearance on N.E. fishing, saying "we have everything here. And you know your right!
Hey while I'm thinking of you and your television appearance, that green caddis emerger that you use, have you ever posted the recipe for it before? It looked like a simple fly, but just curious on what it is and how its done/made?
Tight lines..........Phil
Phil,
I'm drawing an F'N blank on that fly. Was it on the show?
Ken
Yeah, they quickly showed and spoke about it. Anyway if you end up recalling it, could shed some light on that emerger? I think it looked like a olive colored and buggy looking thing?
Oh yeah!! That's a soft hackle with an olive hares ear body and starling hackle. That's it!
Ken
is the swift the only river they stock around july 4th?
Spent a couple of evenings this week on the Millers below the road bridge in South Royalston and down to beyond the trestle in the catch and release area. Both occasions saw very little insect action beyond tiny stuff. With no hatch to match, I tried a modest sized stimulator in yellow and added a black soft hackle dropper. That combo was successful in bagging a few brown trout, as well as two larger chub and some smaller stuff. And the "big one" I hooked into had me hoping but he eventually found a sharp rock to dive under and that was that. Considering there were no fish seen rising until it was dark I was a happy camper. Saw just one other fly fisherman over the two evenings. The wading isn't easy but I do like that stretch of river.
That black spider is such a tiny piece of nothing that it is hard to believe it can catch anything, but it does the job. The stimulator is great for evenings. A nice big bushy fly that is easy to see and brings serious strikes. The only down side is fishing two flies results in more tangles. Sometimes that is just too annoying.
Peter
I have been collecting varous bird skins as I see them available. As of late-I am quite partial to Blue Grouse...it winds nicely, the eathers are a little easier to wind because the stem doesnt tend to get thick halfway down the feather and the barbs seem a tiny bit less matted to each other if you know what I mean-kind of like starling but much bigger and the coloration is akin to Hungarian Partrige. There are lots of game birds and water fowl that don't make the Wapsi or Hareline catalog because they aren't in giant supply or demand but its worth it to scour some of the cool fly shops left in America...Blue Ribbon Flies has an eclectic and variable supply of these types of skins...but I have seen and picked them up everywhere and anywhere...sharptail grouse, golden plover, woodcock, dusky grouse, chukkar and gambels quail....and more
BobT,
When I was writing this post I was thinking that you would comment. I had some chukkars but had to toss them when I moved 10 years ago. Wish I still had them!
Peter,
That "tiny piece of nothing" (black spider) has been my top producer this past month. Thank Gary Cranson for that piece of wisdom. I fish the stimulator as a late afternoon fly on the EB. Deadly in the riffles and then as shadows fall I go to the appropriate comparadun.
bigmster127,
YES, and that's it until October.
Ken
I love the Stimmie...its definitely my #1 prospecting dry and a great pattern for both stones and hoppers and the small ones do nicely as a caddis-yellow is my color of choice 90% of the time. It seems to pull fish up when not much else will. I have used it in the Westfield C&R in summer since I can remember...summer fishing there can seem dead but the Stimmie has the ability to lure trout that you had no idea were there. I am in the middle of a batch of #6 Orange Stimulators for my trip to southwest Montana coming in a few weeks. Salmon flys should be going at that time and the big Stimmie is my favorite pattern for that hatch!
Just completed 3 mornings on the MB, about 2 to 3 hours each day total 5 fish, all but 1 fooled with soft hackles. Thursday air temp 54 water temp 50 which was close for all 3 days and no other anglers. You are all welcome about the black spider it worked well for me too. Ken, can,t wait to get to Cady Lane after July 1!!
Gary,I worked a client on the middle branch where a nice bow was taken. Mid day and hot after that It slowed down.
Ken
Ken, I pray for rain too. Work schedule and opportunities to fish lead me to the Swift instead of free stones which I wanted to explore this season when I had the chance. Now it appears the flow on free stones is getting low already in my part of western Mass. We need rain in a big way.
Casted to a nice one rising for an hour and a half yesterday which rose every minute or so amongst leaf chips flowing through. Leaf debris caused by gypsy moths eating the oak trees up.
I never did figure out what that trout was eating and never got it to hit. Despite many flies tried, I think it was something on those leaf chips coming down.
Regards, Sam
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