Brook Trout

[Tim Shovel 0]

So catching a brook trout is sort of a mission of mine for this summer, but i haven't got a clue what to use? In terms of flies that is. Especially this time of year, with the weather so hot. Any feed back or tips would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

[Stevester 0]

Any common trout patterns are fine. Check around and see what the schedule of hatches are in the area you are going to be fishing. By this time of year most of the bigger hatches are done so trico's (really small mayflies), midges (also small) are likely in many trout streams. Terrestrials like ants, crickets (my favorite), bees, beetles or grasshoppers are all useful this time of year. Don't overlook simple soft hackles, herl nymphs and fur nymphs.

 

Steve

[Dave G. 0]

Depends where you are fishing and what the local hatches are as to specific hatch matching.. Up in the north woods, caddis hatch all summer for instance. The big Stone Flies show up. And there are always nymphs on the bottom. You also don't mention if this is moving water or still water, makes a difference.

 

Catch trout anywhere flies ( aka generic): as mentioned already, a number of soft hackles. I wouldn't go brookie fishing without a number of Muddlers with me. Any local streamer pattern. Brook Trout like bucktails, they also can, or tend to, like flies or streamers with a red tag on them. The Muddler is my favorite "go to fly" for Brook Trout. I tie them in a couple of different sizes with a couple of different variations in the pattern. But down around size 10 or 12, you can grease them up and float them in a caddis hatch, they can pass for a hopper, fish them deep to imitate sculpin. Mid stream for bait fish etc. I just about never fail to get a Brook trout on a Muddler of one variation or another. A favorite streamer is the Micky Finn, with you guessed it, a red tag. Marabou streamers can be good. Simple ones at that, in fact the simpler the better. But up North if I could only take one it would be a Grey Ghost Marabou. Course that doesn't say anything for your area or even where I live ( Cape Cod). The fish here think absolutely nothing of the Grey Ghost. But a Woolly Bugger in olive or black and peacock herl ? Wham ! I think it was mentioned that brook trout like herl ( above in stevester's post). peacock herl can make a fish turn on it seems, it can make a pattern generic. I hooked a huge one in Maine on a peacock herl and grizzly Wooly Bugger in May on sinking line. It was one of those times where you go from the tying vise to the river and you just feel like you're going to get something above average.. Sure enough.

 

Also, Brook trout aren't overly fussy as a rule.

[JoeBillingsley 0]

Also, Brook trout aren't overly fussy as a rule.

 

That's why I love them. My favorite is the Western Blue Dun, sometimes with a bead head but most times without. The brookies don't seem to care.

 

http://www.fishingwithflies.com/WesternBlueDun.html

 

Joe

[Tim Shovel 0]

Sorry Dave, there will be running water, Nottawasaga tributaries most likely.

 

Also, up here where I live, their are precious few brook trout left, and those who know where to catch them are tight lipped. Brook trout hot spots seem to be family secrets i'm afraid

 

Thanks everyone, I'll try tying up a few muddlers,some dries and other forage imitations, i was reading online last night that brook trout have been observed taking mice off the surface, so that might be worth a try as well.

[epzamora 0]

Whenever I've fished streams here in California with brook trout, i've had a tough time NOT catching them. Very opportunistic in my mountain streams, they'll grab for anything, even ridiculously too big in my eye. I rarely give it a thought, tie on an EHC, and away i go.

 

eric

fresno, ca.

[mikechell 0]

Whenever I've fished streams here in California with brook trout, i've had a tough time NOT catching them. Very opportunistic in my mountain streams, they'll grab for anything, even ridiculously too big in my eye. I rarely give it a thought, tie on an EHC, and away i go.

 

eric

fresno, ca.

Hey, Eric!

How's the fishing this summer? Is the drought ruining those streams and trout runs?

I will be there for 3 weeks and am hoping to do some fishing on the weekends.

[wschmitt3 0]

In my mind if your fishing brookies in the summer top water is the way to go, you can catch them any way you fish in the headwaters of the freestones here in Vermont but dry flies are so much fun. I like to get out in the late afternoon like around four and fish until dark. I will often, starting about this time of summer fish something like a cricket or hopper pattern, If I happen to stir up a bunch of caddis in the brush I will toss on a cdc caddis or something like that. Simulators in yellow, brown or olive in the smaller sizes like 14 are good also. I will typically slowly go up in size as the summer goes on because the crickets and hoppers get bigger as the summer goes on. A dropper is always a good idea but can complicate speedy release on hot days and increase handling and as a result mortality so I typically dont use a dropper, it is often the smack of the hopper on the water that brings them up any how.