On the Swift, really, smaller is better. At least if midges are the fly of choice. Believe it or not, I caught 90% of my Swift trout without using fly smaller than size 24, but just last year I began experimenting with 28-32 sized flies. And I wish I had done it earlier, because I
Category: Midges
Special Hooks for Midges
It was a great pleasure to meet Joe C. at the Y Pool. He’s an accomplished angler. A great tip he shared was about using “big eye” midge hooks. Putting on a size 30 midge emerger is a total pain, and it requires thin tippet. But, if you’re fishing for the big ‘bows at the
Small Flies for the Swift River
With the Upper Swift now fully stocked, I tonight tied some midge mergers in sizes #28 to #32. I love the WD-40 fly and think it’s a killer fly for the Swift. After a lot of frustration, I feel I’m now starting to get a hang for making them. I use tweezers to
A Killer Fly for the Swift River
Tailwater trout are finicky, given the abundance of food. Tailwater trout in catch and release areas, I suspect, are even more choosy. That’s why the WD-40 fly has been fun to fish, particularly in the Swift River C&R area. It has fooled the wily rainbows there. Tied in a small size, like #28 to #32,