The Northern California Fly Fishing Board

This thread discusses the Content article: November Fly of the Month

I've just updated the home page to add the November Fly of the Month. This month's pattern was inspired by a customer that swears by this pattern for fishing Northern California Rivers for steelhead. The final picture in the article tells why!

Enjoy.

Can't wait to try this one out!

And that's some great looking steel!


Buzz

Nice Fly.

About 25 years ago a good friend and I spent a couple of years perfecting a pattern for coastal steelhead estuaries. After many years of trial and error, we began this quest with great hope. It turned out to be time well spent.

I now only use that fly, 100% of the time steelhead fishing. Perhaps because I have so much confidence in the fly I catch fish with it. Or maybe the fish just gotta have it. Tides, weather, flows, turbidity just don't seem to matter with this fly.

I only tie mine in a size 8.

And it is almost identical to the "Fly of the Month" other than if you replaced the purple with brown.

Seems we are on to something here.

R.B. wrote:
I now only use that fly, 100% of the time steelhead fishing.

100%? No exceptions? Even if you're not catching fish?

-- T.

Nice pattern, but I had read this is for summer. Does it work well in winter also?

That fish was caught in the last two weeks! Is that still Summer?

As we get into the colder weather months, nymphing will take more fish. But swinging still is effective....plus some live for the grab!

TD in ID wrote:
R.B. wrote:
I now only use that fly, 100% of the time steelhead fishing.

100%? No exceptions? Even if you're not catching fish?

-- T.

Good point Tom. When I am not catching fish I just go home

Seriously though, I have found that "belief" in the fly and the fishing method you are using is one of the keys to success in steelhead fishing. As an engineer, I simply view it as removing a variable. I know it works, so I stick with it. Yes, even avoiding all the dark fly dark day, bright fly...

But more important than the science of this, its simply that I TOTALLY believe in this fly and the way I fish it (quarter down drift and hang in the current, or 4in strips as it quarters down). Just sort of a mojo thing.

I also believe this would work for any fly and any method, AS LONG AS YOU ABSOLUTELY BELIEVED you were going to catch fish.

I have to say there have been times I have been embarassed with my catch rate to others.

Of course recently trout fishing has been the inverse - maybe its all these different techniques I keep switching to, or back to, like BOBICATING!!!

My favorite Steelhead Fly---
A great producer in the Skeena system also.

Interesting. That's confidence!

I could never do that -- too much of a "tinker". Part of that is how quickly I can become bored, and part of it is just the tyer in me trying to do something just a little different. Engineering is way beyond this :cowboy !

-- T.