Spring Fishing Tips

March is the time to use smaller flies such as 10’s, 12’s, 14’s etc.. fished deep and slow are best.  A floating line and long leader or intermediate line would be ideal with a dead-slow, almost stopped figure of eight retrieve. 

April is the time to begin using buzzers of all sorts, colours and combinations.  From now on and throughout the Summer they can be deadly.  Alder larvae will be particularly active as they leave their burrows and migrate towards the bank where they pupate.  Likewise Caddis larvae and Corixa (lesser water boatman) will also be found in the margins.  All other water life will be coming more active too, such as the fresh water shrimp, buzzers and midges.

May is often dry and hatches of buzzers and midges become increasingly heavy as the month progresses.  Spend some time observing the rises as this should indicate where and how the trout are feeding.  An upthrust of water usually indicates that chironomid pupae are being intercepted.  If the rise is a leisurely head and tail view means that the trout are taking pupae just under the surface film as the pupae are hatching or emerging.  This means that your flies should be just under the surface or the top couple of inches.  Towards the end of May, buzzer hatches are at their peak.  Some Hawthorn fly may still be about and swarms of black gnats will be forming dancing columns over the water.  

Flexi Floss Bloodworm

The Bloodworm is an imitation of the larval stage of the Chironomid Midge or Buzzer.  Bloodworm spend the majority of their time living in a silty tube in the bottom silt.  When disturbed, they move their bodies from side to side.  Best fished either on a floating line and long leader or sinking/intermediate line near the bottom, using a slow figure of eight retrieve.  

Black Woolly Bugger

This is a lure used for both rivers and still waters.  It is best fished sunken, either weighted on a floating, intermediate or unweighted on a sinking line.  Use with a steady figure of eight retrieve.  For that extra bit of action, try pinching a small lead shot 6” from the hook.

Coral and Orange Blob

This fly is a fritz mini lure and works superbly when fished very fast.  Try it at about 4ft deep.  The pattern can also be tied in a mass of colours from dark to very bright.  The darker coloured fritz’s are usually fished more slowly than the lighter coloured ones.  Also, try the modern equivalent “plastic bob” that looks like a legless tadpole in orange or green.

The Haemoglobin Buzzer

Generally fished deep and close to the bottom, always useful to have a few in your box.  There are many variants of the Buzzer, fishing with one on a bright sunny day can be effective.  The fly can be fished like many buzzers on either an intermediate or floating line using a very slow figure of eight retrieve.  Takes can be about 2-4ft deep fished close to weed beds in shallow water.

Cats Whisker Fritz

An all round lure, suitable for floating, intermediate or sinking line at various rates of retrieve and it will still catch.  It works superbly even when fished very slowly or even on the drop.  Available in various colours and combinations from orange to black combo’s.  One tied with a couple of strands of fluorescent straggle in the tail can be deadly.

Zonker

The Zonker can be used as a general purpose lure, but is most effective when tied in natural, grey or white and used in the fry season.  The wing is highly mobile which makes this fly so effective when fry are around.  It can be fished static on a long leader using a floating line or on a sinking line and retrieved at various rates of retrieve.  Try it tied in white with a few strands of fluorescent straggle tied in – it can be deadly.

Alder Fly or Buzzer

Usually starting to emerge in April, use them as soon as you start to see the adults in the air; at anytime during daylight hours.  Anything that has the same general colour, profile and size will do and fish them as you would any other nymph.  When fishing deep, use a gold headed variant or nymph pattern.

Cul de Cunard (CDC)

The CDC feather has wonderful floating capabilities, one of its best uses is in the CDC Buzzer.  A deadly pattern wherever buzzers are hatching.  Used on a floating line, the fly is cast out and then either wait for the trout to take the fly, cover a rise with the fly or pull the CDC under the surface of the water and allow it to re-surface with the buoyancy of the CDC feathers.  The latter method can have dramatic catching effects.

Shipman’s Buzzer

A simple scruffy looking fly, the scruffier the better.  Just perfect for tricky surface feeders locked onto hatching buzzers.  Try fishing on the surface or up to 2” below.

Black Pennell

This is a great fly for trout.  Fish it on a floating line. By being tied small, it represents a small midge.  Also, tied with a plain silver body, without the body hackle, and fished about 3ft deep on a slow retrieve, it can be very deadly.

Matchstick Buzzer

This is a simple awesome fly for still waters.  A very basic buzzer pattern that gets its name from looking like a match with a slim body and rounded head.  There are many colour variations for this fly, the most common are black or red body and heads in fluorescent green or orange, red, pink or yellow.  Wide gape hooks patterns in larger sizes are usually favoured and believed to aid hook ups. The rib can be wound in tight or wide turns and it is worthwhile to keep a few different rib variations in your box.

Olive Klink Hammer

Traditionally, the Large Dark Olive is very much the fly for early April, until the Grannom appear, the first hatch of the year to send the trout into a frenzy.  However, if you like to kill two birds with one stone and cover every base, give this fly a try.

The Bibio

This fly is also known as the Hawthorn or Heather Fly.  Fished with a twitching action or pulled just under the water’s surface to imitate the fly, it’s a good fly to pull through waves on a windy day.  Fished on a floating line with a long leader.

Emerging or Suspended Buzzer

A deadly pattern wherever dark buzzers are hatching.  Use on a floating line, the fly is cast out and then either wait for the trout to take the fly or cover a rise with the fly.  This is as effective as a CDC buzzer and is far cheaper.  Can be tied with various colours of foam and fur including red, amber, olive, black or green seal fur.  The Plastizote (foam) Buzzer has lovely floating capabilities and one of its best uses is for an emerger buzzer.

Black Gnat

This fly can be deadly April to September.  A generic name for a variety of small flat winged terrestrials that hatch in abundance.  Trout will feed avidly when they get the taste for them.  An ideal fly to use when the real insects or anything small and black is on the water.  If the fish are refusing the fly and still showing interest in it, trim the under hackle to enable the fly to sit lower in or on the water.  Alternatively, sometimes dispense the flotant to use a bit of spittle to drown your gnat in the surface film.

Viva

A really good all round lure.  The black and green, black and yellow or black and red colouring makes it an ideal fly for the early season.  Fish it on a floating, intermediate or sinking line at various rates of retrieve and it will still catch.  At this time of year, a black and green fished on a sinking line or near the bottom with a slow retrieve can be deadly.

Hawthorn Fly

The Hawthorn flies begin to appear in May.  Use a floating line, either as a static fly or with a slow twitch on retrieve.  It is useful having a variety of Hawthorn patterns with you as different patterns will be preferred during the day.  On some days, only an exact match of the Hawthorn’s size and appearance will work.  

Diawl Bach (Little Devil)

The Diawl Bach should be used when buzzers are on the water.  It can be fished on any line, from floating to fast sinker and at almost any depth.  It can be fished up and “on the hang” on a fast sinker or fished slowly on a floating line.  At this time of year, would recommend a dead slow retrieve.

Summer Fishing Tips

In June, Chironomids are still the trout’s staple diet, with Olives and Black Gnats giving variety.  Buzzers, especially ginger or red will be on the increase.  Before long the trout will switch to feeding on caenis duns, then followed by adult sedges.  By mid-June they will be feeding on Damsel Fly Nymphs as they start to leave the water. Their colours vary from drab brown or brown olive to olive or bright green and are usually 20mm long.

In July the water temperature is likely to be the highest and that makes the trout lethargic.  The best fishing is likely to be early mornings and late evenings, however, peak feeding times are 1pm and 5pm.  Use a floating line with any black lure and a long fast retrieve.  Sedges begin to appear in July so fish with an imitation and leave it on the surface.  If that doesn’t work, give it an occasional twitch.  On bright difficult days, observe the water with a pair of polaroid glasses.

In August, although there are sedge about, it is the smaller and pale coloured flies that work best.  Look for areas of shadow and deeper water close in with marginal weed where the fry seek shelter from attack.  Such locations around first light are where better quality fish come up to feed.  Search the margins with small fry or nymph flies and let the fly drift with any ripple.  Don’t be afraid to fish a couple of inches below the surface, let the wind do the work for you.  Fishing during the heat of the day should be done by stalking and not fishing as a stationary angler.  At Midday, try fishing with a reddish or brown coloured dry fly, again keep on the move, dropping into any likely fish holding spots. 

Alder Fly or Buzzer

Use this fly when you see the adults in the air, at any time during daylight hours.  Anything that has the same general colour, profile and size will do and fish them as you would any other nymph.  When fishing deep, use a gold headed variant or nymph pattern.

Cul de Cunard (CDC)

The CDC feather has wonderful floating capabilities, one of its best uses is in the CDC Buzzer.  A deadly pattern wherever buzzers are hatching.  Used on a floating line, the fly is cast out and then either wait for the trout to take the fly, cover a rise with the fly or pull the CDC under the surface of the water and allow it to re-surface with the buoyancy of the CDC feathers.  The latter method can have dramatic catching effects.

Black and Peacock Dry Fly

The black and green peacock dry fly is an ideal early season dry fly.  It has the black and green combination that makes flies like the Viva and Montana so popular.  The hackle is clipped underneath the hook which allows the fly to sit much deeper in the water when compared to a full hackled fly.

Emerging or Suspended Buzzer

A deadly pattern wherever dark buzzers are hatching.  Use on a floating line, the fly is cast out and then either wait for the trout to take the fly or cover a rise with the fly.  This is as effective as a CDC buzzer and is far cheaper.  Can be tied with various colours of foam and fur including red, amber, olive, black or green seal fur.  The Plastizote (foam) Buzzer has lovely floating capabilities and one of its best uses is for an emerger buzzer.

Orange Fritz – May to July

The Orange Blob is a mini lure and works superbly when fished very fast, ideal when trout are taking Daphnia during May to July.  The pattern can also be tied in a mass of colours from dark to very bright.  The darker coloured fritz’s are usually fished slower than the lighter coloured ones.  Also, try the modern equivalent “plastic bob” that looks like a legless tadpole in orange or green.  

Damsel Fly

A most popular lake and reservoir lure in the UK and Europe.  The Damsel Fly Nymph comes into its own in the Summer months when main feeding occurs.  Try the edges of weed beds for trout patrolling close in for this food.  In Summer months, when the mass migration of Damsel Fly Nymphs occurs, use a floating line and long leader with a slow figure of eight retrieve or a series of short twitches.  The rest of the year can produce using an intermediate or sinking line with a varied rate of retrieve.

Black Gnat

This fly can be deadly throughout Summer and into Autumn.  A generic name for a variety of small flat winged terrestrials that hatch in abundance.  Trout will feed avidly when they get the taste for them.  An ideal fly to use when the real insects or anything small and black is on the water.  If the fish are refusing the fly and still showing interest in it, trim the under hackle to enable the fly to sit lower in or on the water.  Alternatively, sometimes dispense the flotant to use a bit of spittle to drown your gnat in the surface film.

Pheasant Tail Nymph

Use this fly when small buzzers and nymphs are on the water.  Fish the fly on a floating line with long leader using a slow figure of eight retrieve.  

The Haemoglobin Buzzer

Generally fished deep and close to the bottom, always useful to have a few in your box.  There are many variants of the Buzzer, fishing with one on a bright sunny day can be effective.  The fly can be fished like many buzzers on either an intermediate or floating line using a very slow figure of eight retrieve.  Takes can be about 2-4ft deep fished close to weed beds in shallow water.

Black Pennell

This is a great fly for trout.  Fish it on a floating line. By being tied small, it represents a small midge.  Also, tied with a plain silver body, without the body hackle, and fished about 3ft deep on a slow retrieve, it can be very deadly.

Orange Wickhams Spider

The Wickhams Spider is also known as the Wingless Wickhams and is a favourite fly.  Generally the best time for this fly is Spring to late Summer.  Different coloured head hackles can be very effective including white, grizzle, yellow and hot orange.  It can be deadly when nothing else is taking, especially in coloured or murky water.  The fly can be fished on an intermediate line on its own or part of a team of 2-3 flies.  Anything from a slow figure of eight retrieve to a fast or even a roly-poly pull can be used.

Hawthorn Fly

Use a floating line, either as a static fly or with a slow twitch on retrieve.  It is useful having a variety of Hawthorn patterns with you as different patterns will be preferred during the day.  On some days, only an exact match of the Hawthorn’s size and appearance will work.  

Cats Whisker Fritz

An all round lure, suitable for floating, intermediate or sinking line at various rates of retrieve and it will still catch.  It works superbly even when fished very slowly or even on the drop.  Available in various colours and combinations from orange to black combo’s.  One tied with a couple of strands of fluorescent straggle in the tail can be deadly.

Dawson’s Olive

A very popular still water lure best used when trout start feeding on Damsel Fly Nymphs.  Try fishing close in on the banks where trout feed.  Use a floating line and long leader with a slow figure of eight retrieve.  It can be tied with different coloured Marabou for the tail.  Small differences in the design of the lure can prove very effective.

Shipman’s Buzzer

A simple scruffy looking fly, the scruffier the better.  Just perfect for tricky surface feeders locked onto hatching buzzers.  Try fishing on the surface or up to 2” below.

The Muddler

Use this fly when small buzzers and nymphs are on the water.  Fish the fly on a floating line with long leader using a slow figure of eight retrieve.  It can be used singularly or as a team of different sized PT nymphs.  

Adam’s Dry Fly

The Adams is one of the best all round dry flies.  Tie the body with mole fur but any form of blue/grey dubbing can be used.  Ensure that the proportion of the body and tail are correct, as are the hackles with the hook gape.  The fly can be fished static or on a varied retrieve using a floating line.  You should have lots of success fishing this fly on lakes using an intermediate line and stripping the fly very quickly under the water.  Takes from Rainbow Trout using this method can be very aggressive.

Montana Nymph

A good all round nymph/lure in the popular green and black colour combination.  Worth trying in both weighted (gold head) and non-weighted varieties.  The Montana works well in many different conditions.  Best fished on a floating line, long leader and retrieved slowly.  The chenille thorax can be varied in colour, orange and yellow are colours that fish well.  We recommend only using hook sizes #14 or #16.

Daddy – Detached Body

Best fished Aug-Sep using a floating line and either left static or twitched over the surface.  Can be even deadlier when large waves are on the water and the fly being ripped through the waves.  Takes are fast and furious.  

Autumn Fishing Tips

September is the month when bigger fish begin to move in towards the banks.  Throughout the Autumn and Winter months, being out before sunrise becomes less important, but no later than first light.

Shrimp, Fly, Scud or Czech

Fish it deep and close to the bank where the trout are hunting for food.  Shrimps, especially during the Winter, are one of the staples in the trout diet.  The fish will go to great lengths to find shrimp.  The bright pink and orange patterns are easier to track, but try other colours too.

Black Gnat

This fly can be deadly throughout Summer and into Autumn.  A generic name for a variety of small flat winged terrestrials that hatch in abundance.  Trout will feed avidly when they get the taste for them.  An ideal fly to use when the real insects or anything small and black is on the water.  If the fish are refusing the fly and still showing interest in it, trim the under hackle to enable the fly to sit lower in or on the water.  Alternatively, sometimes dispense the flotant to use a bit of spittle to drown your gnat in the surface film.

Pheasant Tail Nymph

Use this fly when small buzzers and nymphs are on the water.  Fish the fly on a floating line with long leader using a slow figure of eight retrieve.  

The Muddler

Use this fly when small buzzers and nymphs are on the water.  Fish the fly on a floating line with long leader using a slow figure of eight retrieve.  It can be used singularly or as a team of different sized PT nymphs.  

Adam’s Dry Fly

The Adams is one of the best all round dry flies.  Tie the body with mole fur but any form of blue/grey dubbing can be used.  Ensure that the proportion of the body and tail are correct, as are the hackles with the hook gape.  The fly can be fished static or on a varied retrieve using a floating line.  You should have lots of success fishing this fly on lakes using an intermediate line and stripping the fly very quickly under the water.  Takes from Rainbow Trout using this method can be very aggressive.

Black Pennell

This is a great fly for trout.  Fish it on a floating line. By being tied small, it represents a small midge.  Also, tied with a plain silver body, without the body hackle, and fished about 3ft deep on a slow retrieve, it can be very deadly.

Cats Whisker Fritz

An all round lure, suitable for floating, intermediate or sinking line at various rates of retrieve and it will still catch.  It works superbly even when fished very slowly or even on the drop.  Available in various colours and combinations from orange to black combo’s.  One tied with a couple of strands of fluorescent straggle in the tail can be deadly.

Montana Nymph

A good all round nymph/lure in the popular green and black colour combination.  Worth trying in both weighted (gold head) and non-weighted varieties.  The Montana works well in many different conditions.  Best fished on a floating line, long leader and retrieved slowly.  The chenille thorax can be varied in colour, orange and yellow are colours that fish well.  We recommend only using hook sizes #14 or #16.

Mini Cats Whisker

An all round lure, suitable for floating, intermediate or sinking line at various rates of retrieve and it will still catch.  Works superbly even when fished very slowly or even on the drop.  You must have one of these in your box.  Don’t let the size deceive you, it’s very effective.

The Bibio

This fly is also known as the Hawthorn or Heather Fly.  Fished with a twitching action or pulled just under the water’s surface to imitate the fly, it’s a good fly to pull through waves on a windy day.  Fished on a floating line with a long leader.

Baby Doll

The Baby Doll is used to imitate a small fish.  It works as a standard lure and can be fished at almost any depth with different rates of retrieve.  An ideal lure in the fry season around October and November time.  Colours that appear to work well in addition to white are fluorescent green, fluorescent green and black, peach and white.  Wool is the best material for the body, however, Antron can be used as a substitute.

Cormorant

This is an all-round lure, fished on a floating, intermediate or sinking line at various rates of retrieve and it will still catch.  It can be fished using many methods, under a bung, on a sinking line or using the washing line method.  It can be used as a lure or nymph, from a retrieve that is static to one that is very fast.  At Nine Oaks, a variant tied with gold holographic tinsel instead of Marabou tips can be a really deadly fly over the Winter months.

The Black and Gold Buzzer

There are many variants of the buzzer and for a bright sunny day this is a good one.  Fished near the top or submerged using a very slow, almost stationary, figure of eight retrieve, fish it near to reed beds.

Mini Cats Whisker

An all round lure, suitable for floating, intermediate or sinking line at various rates of retrieve and it will still catch.  Works superbly even when fished very slowly or even on the drop.  You must have one of these in your box.  Don’t let the size deceive you, it’s very effective.

Zonker

In January, the trout are often looking for fry and a Zonker, of some description, is one to have in your box.  The Zonker can be used as a general purpose lure, but is most effective when tied in natural, grey or white and used in the fry season.  The wing is highly mobile which makes this fly so effective when fry are around.  It can be fished static on a long leader using a floating line or on a sinking line and retrieved at various rates of retrieve.  Try it tied in white with a few strands of fluorescent straggle tied in – it can be deadly.

Montana Nymph

A good all-round nymph/lure in the popular green and black colour combination.  Worth trying in both weighted (gold head) and non-weighted varieties.  The Montana works well in many different conditions.  Best fished on a floating line, long leader and retrieved slowly.  The chenille thorax can be varied in colour; orange and yellow are other colours that fish well.

Hot Head Diawl Bach (Little Devil)

An excellent fly and one of the most successful all-year round nymphs.  The Diawl Bach is still worth a try in January and should be used when buzzers are on the water. It can be fished on any line, from floating to fast sinker and at almost any depth.

Shrimp, Fly, Scud or Czech

Fish it deep and close to the bank where the trout are hunting for food.  Shrimps, especially during the Winter, are one of the staples in the trout diet.  The fish will go to great lengths to find shrimp.  The bright pink and orange patterns are easier to track, but try other colours too.

Ice Buzzer

Like many buzzers, this fly can be fished either on an intermediate or floating line, long leader and using a very slow figure of eight retrieve.  Expect a take at 2-4 feet below the surface, when fished close to weed beds in shallow water.  In Winter, this fly can excel when trout are still taking buzzers as part of their diet.

Dawson’s Olive

Fish it close in on the banks where trout are picking up nymphs.  An excellent fly during the Winter months using a floating line and long leader with a slow figure of eight retrieve, or an intermediate or sinking line with a varied rate of retrieve.  Can be tied with Straggle Fritz, Chenille Body and Olive Ostrich Herl thorax.

Buzzer

There are many variants of the Buzzer.  The most popular colours are black and olive, however, red, orange and even white are worth having in your box.  Fishing with one on a bright sunny day can be effective.  This fly can be fished either on an intermediate or floating line using a very slow figure of eight retrieve.  Takes can be about 2-4ft deep fished close to weed beds in shallow water.  In Winter, this type of fly can be excellent when trout are still taking buzzers as part of their diet.

The Bibio

This fly is also known as the Hawthorn or Heather Fly.  Fished with a twitching action or pulled just under the waters surface to imitate the fly, it’s a good fly to pull through waves on a windy day.  Fished on a floating line with a long leader.

Black and Green Fritz

Fish with a floating line and long leader at various rates of retrieve.  The pattern can also be tied with a mass of colours from dark to very bright.  The darker colours are usually fished slower than the lighter coloured ones.  This is an outstanding fly during the cold Winter months and is a preferred lure at this time.   

Apps Bloodworm

An excellent fly during the colder months.  The Bloodworm is an imitation of the larval stage of the Chironomid Midge or Buzzer.  Bloodworms spend the majority of their time living in a silty tube in the bottom silt.  When disturbed, they move their bodies from side to side.  Best fished either on a floating line and long leader or sinking/intermediate line near the bottom, using a slow figure of eight retrieve.  This fly is great in red or claret, however, try olive, white, pink and yellow.  The colour change helps when the fish switch off red bloodworms at times and need something else to entice them.

Coral and Orange Blob

This fly is a fritz mini lure and works superbly when fished very fast.  Try it at about 4ft deep.  The pattern can also be tied in a mass of colours from dark to very bright.  The darker coloured fritz’s are usually fished more slowly than the lighter coloured ones.  Also, try the modern equivalent “plastic bob” that looks like a legless tadpole in orange or green.

The Yellow Dancer

A very popular still water and reservoir lure in the UK and Europe.  The lure regularly takes brown, blue and rainbow trout in many months of the year.  A red head and a bead attached as part of a marabou tail gives good attraction.  The original pattern uses either a gold or chain bead for added weight at the head.

Black Pennell

This is a great fly for trout.  Fish it on a floating line. By being tied small, it represents a small midge.  Also, tied with a plain silver body, without the body hackle, and fished about 3ft deep on a slow retrieve, it can be very deadly.

Cormorant

This is an all-round lure, fished on a floating, intermediate or sinking line at various rates of retrieve and it will still catch.  It can be fished using many methods, under a bung, on a sinking line or using the washing line method.  It can be used as a lure or nymph, from a retrieve that is static to one that is very fast.  At Nine Oaks, a variant tied with gold holographic tinsel instead of Marabou tips can be a really deadly fly over the Winter months.

Pheasant Tail Nymph

Use this fly when small buzzers and nymphs are on the water.  Fish the fly on a floating line with long leader using a slow figure of eight retrieve.  

The Muddler

Use this fly when small buzzers and nymphs are on the water.  Fish the fly on a floating line with long leader using a slow figure of eight retrieve.  It can be used singularly or as a team of different sized PT nymphs.  

Viva

A really good all round lure.  The black and green, black and yellow or black and red colouring makes it an ideal fly for the early season.  Fish it on a floating, intermediate or sinking line at various rates of retrieve and it will still catch.  At this time of year, a black and green fished on a sinking line or near the bottom with a slow retrieve can be deadly.