subject: The Secret No One Wants to Tell You About Trout Fishing Flies [print this page] The Secret No One Wants to Tell You About Trout Fishing Flies
Trout fishing flies vary in color, size and shape. You may see or hear a ton of advertisements on how well one artificial fly might work over another. They may even give you a lifetime guarantee. Others will tell you that their flies are so good that a fish cannot resist it. Then there are the old timers who would not touch an artificial fly if their life dependent on it. Yet, no matter what kind of fly you use, if you don't understand the behavior of a trout, you will have a very hard time trying to catch anything.
I remember when I was a boy learning this lesson the hard way. I watched my father catching fish, but I was catching nothing. We were using the same flies and same poles, but I was using a different cast and not paying attention where my fly was landing.
It is important to carry with you a number of flies. Make sure they are different shades in color, size and shape. I am going to explain why in a few minutes. Another thing you may want to notice is how easy it is for you to cast with your flies.
Now that I gave you quick introduction to fishing flies, let's talk about why all that was important. Trout are interesting fish. They have great close up vision and are also smart. They can tell the difference between a meal and something that is just floating around the water. This is even truer when fishing deeper water.
A trout will only eat what is right in front of them and rarely do they eat anything that just happens to pop-up in front of their face. Different shades of color, shapes and sizes also attract their attention. If you using just one kind of fly, you may be out of luck for the day if the trout are only biting on one kind of color or size of fly. The closer the fly represents the food they are looking for, the easier it will be to catch them.
Casting a fly correctly is extremely important. A trout will rarely go for a cast which plops the fly right above their head or right in front of them. Instead you want to cast upstream and allow the fly to float down the stream toward the trout.
Deeper water is a trout's best defense. The deeper the water, the better they can see. Sinking your fly slowly is more effective than sinking it fast. Simulating the motion a fly would sink is important. This is important if you are fishing for larger more mature trout. The larger trout often frequent the deeper waters.
As you can see, the fly really does you no good if you do not understand a trout's behavior and physical abilities. No matter how good an artificial fly is made out to be or how fresh your fly, without using proper techniques and knowledge you will return home with no catch for the day.
