Jump to content
Fly Tying
mrjim

Soft hackle flies

Recommended Posts

I have never seen anything in the water the size and very similar in resemblence to a soft hackle. Why do they work so well? What is the best way you have found to fish them - and what insect movements does your presentation imitate? What colors are best and why?

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Hey Mrjim,

 

There are some small mountain streams about 15 miles from home that get very little fishing pressure. The fish are small and you have to make it down some steep cliffs to get at the good water. The best flies I have found to catch these fish are soft-hackles. Thank goodness I don’t have to worry about losing time consuming fly’s to the rocks. You mention that soft hackles are large, but I tye them down to size 20. I really like partridge for the hackle and in the current they look like little insect legs. I think the fly overall resembles numerous types of insects that have become dislodged and are tumbling at the mercy of the current. Often, locally, the current is fast and fly’s tyed-in-the-round, such as soft-hackles, look appetizing to fish from any direction, looking up, down or from the side. I fish them with a floating line, 9-12’ leader, 3’ fine tippet and a very small split-shot about 18” above the fly, and a strike indicator about 2-3 times the depth of the water. I like yellow or olive for the body sometimes using floss, a pinch of buggy dubbing for the thorax and a partridge feather wound around for the soft-hackle. Definitely a go-to fly pattern for moving water. BTW... Partridge comes dyed in various colors and lighter feathers can be made any color with permanent markers.

 

Graham

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Thanks Graham.

 

I used size 14 or 16 in Taneycomo. River was 100 yards wide and 4' deep at the deepest on the shoal - it was 400 yards long. I had used soft hackles only a few times before - with limited success...but last fall (late Oct) it seemed to be what they wanted even though the only hatches I saw were midges. I probably averaged 8 fish an hour with another 8 hits or breakoffs - maybe not spectacular but still a definite pattern - it wasn't a fluke. They hit in 6" of water with the fly ripped across the top of the water, in 4' dead drifted, and all the way inbetween just held in the current or slowly stripped back. The best color was orange with mallard hackle. Were they just keying in on one triggering property of the fly each time? Didn't seem like there were any insects close to having that size, color, and those movements.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

QUOTE (mrjim @ Jan 6 2005, 10:07 PM)
I have never seen anything in the water the size and very similar in resemblence to a soft hackle.

mrjim-

 

Actually, soft hackle flies closely resemble Caddis pupa with trailing antennae and legs. As such, they are often effective fished on the rise. As with a caddis pupa (natural), trout will often grab a soft hackle (imitation) as it approaches the surface.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

They also resemble swimming mayfly nymphs. Baetis nymphs in particular are very good swimmers. Try them before a hatch starts up, or even during a hatch.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Guest

I agree with all the above posts. I believe wets just present themselves like an easy meal. Something that hovers above a hungry trout is just too hard to resist rolleyes.gif

 

Like MrJim mentioned, they will key in on a certain feature. Be it the color, size and hackle proportions. I have gone through a dozen different patterns and finally found the one they want. Using a double fly set up will speed that up. Some of mine are tied with a small tungston bead and the unweighted one is trailered behind it. The flash of the bead does help on some days. Don't hesitate to use a long leader (10-12') on the bigger rivers

 

Gotta love wets! headbang.gif

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Do you all fish the softhackle flies weighted? blink.gif

I fish them unweighted, I fish with them down and across.

 

My favourite colour of the body is yellow, then orange and bright green. cool.gif

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

When I'm fishing wet flys, which I consider a soft hackle, I use a sinking tip line or maybe a small split shot. I realy don't fish with split shot unless I have to.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

I really enjoy tying soft hackles. I'm starting to use copper wire for the body on some of them. It adds a bit of weight, flash and an appearance of segmentation. One of the best soft hackles for around the Little Red is the Red Ass. Easy to tie and easy to fish. The way I like to fish them is to grease the leader down to a few inches above the fly and fish it in the film.

 

 

Mike

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...

×
×
  • Create New...