Top water

[stephenl]

I was up there last week. I kept getting strikes on my yarn indicator. Just for shits and giggles, I replaced it with a foam spider, a betts brim getter.

I got a hard hit that I missed followed by another. I set the hook and in a flash it was over. The hook broke. I hadn't noticed it was rusty.

So who here has caught trout on a similar bug? I know hoppers are good in the summer. So what about poppers or other brim bugs?

[darrelln09]

Some people (but not me) have had success with a Pat’s Rubber Legs. Your Bream Getter looks similar to that only it floats on top. I had some really hard strikes on a Chaos Hopper over Memorial Day weekend. That’s just a foam slab with a poly yarn underwing and rubber legs. I tied another pattern called a Hippie Stomper for this purpose (attractor dry fly for an indicator) but I haven’t fished it yet.

[dainw]

Jun 5, 2018 14:21:59 GMT -6 stephenl said:

I was up there last week. I kept getting strikes on my yarn indicator. Just for shits and giggles, I replaced it with a foam spider, a betts brim getter.

I got a hard hit that I missed followed by another. I set the hook and in a flash it was over. The hook broke. I hadn't noticed it was rusty.

So who here has caught trout on a similar bug? I know hoppers are good in the summer. So what about poppers or other brim bugs?

I mean hatchery raised trout are used to eating dog food pellets, so for the first couple weeks that they’re in the river, the sound of just about anything hitting the water is going to be like dinner bells ringing, indicators, dry flies, poppers whatever. Plus a spider is something a trout could conceivably eat if it landed on the water. Not surprised this got hit.

[FlyAndStream]

Introducing the Pellet fly. I was given a few of these years ago, still have em, never been able to bring myself to use them.

[mirvc17]

I use "bobbers" and consider myself a "fly" fisherman (and still sleep at night), but dammit I won't use Pellet flies.... you don't need em for fresh stockers anyway.

[FlyAndStream]

I just think it’s funny someone actually reduced the idea down to what it is – arguably a version of matching the hatch for trout fresh from the hatchery.

But, I guess the irony goes the other way too, people trying to catch fresh stockers with tiny highly specialized insect patterns – when the trout just wants a stinking pellet.

Trout are both smart and fairly stupid. I like to think the pretty ones are smart, this is probably why I catch mostly ugly ones, ha!

[hankinsfly]

But why do we get hung up on the reverse psychology? Fly fishing for trout is about matching your fly to what the trout eats. Fresh stockers eat protein pellets! We like to think of our fly fishing as a morally superior endeavor, but when it comes to fly fishing for trout in OKLAHOMA... come on. Don’t get me wrong guys, I’m hesitant to fish flies like these also- eggs, San Juan worms, never fished no mop worm fly. Tell myself also I’m making it fair, giving the trout a head start and chance to win by (not) fishing egg patterns. Oklahoma trout. This ain’t no Montana spring creek. Toss them eggs! Have fun and catch some fish! I guess it’s all about perspective. When I get way up on my fly high horse, I start fishing for Ozark plateau smallies. Don’t get me started. Think I’ll go tie a dozen or two Y2K bugs. 🙂

[stephenl]

Well I guess trout will eat anything that looks good to them, just like bass will eat anything that fits in it's mouth. Maybe I'll start putting hooks in my indicators.

[stephenl]

When I go to the fish hatchery in Athens during the winter or Tyler State Park in the winter where there is trout stocked. I've learned the best way to catch them on a fly rod. Is to fish salmon egg. And I know it's not actually food but synthetic. I know it must be the shape in the color of it. And I know there are egg patterns made out of fuzzy stuff. So I took a hard plastic round bead like you use for Crappie rigging. Slipped that over a hook with a little bit of tensile wrapped around its Shank. And I basically have a hard plastic salmon egg. And I have caught trout on it. I use it regularly on the Mountain Fork. I usually Trail it behind a larger fly.

[FlyAndStream]

Shoot, stephenl , you ain't lying. You're talking to a Pacific Northwesterner who knows – without a doubt – the best way to hook a steelhead, is by bouncing a bead along the bottom; even though we'd all like to, ideally, hook one on a size 8 skater. Rainbow trout aren't far from this genetical gene pool – even hatchery ones.

[stephenl]

The bead is transparent, so when it's sunny and the water is clear the bead really glows.

[frreed]

I used to go down to Athens fairly often. So many people were fishing with corn, I tied a blob of crystal chenille on a small hook with a xs bead. Cast it out, let it sink, catch a trout. Just matchin' the hatch.

[golferjeff]

Triple nymph rig - beaded hook, mop fly, brown foam (cough cough) moss fly. That'll catch some fish!

Tie that rig in Colorado and you may get run off the water.... tie it in Oklahoma/Arkansas and you are matching the hatch.

I am committing to tight line nymphing and dry droppers on the Conejos in 4 weeks. If they have enough water for fish to swim in.......

[lipripper1983]

Interesting you had that experience. Last weekend I had two trout literally swallow my indicator before spitting it back out. One of those I accidently hooked in the lip and got him in. Go figure lol.

[stephenl]

Indicator fly.

[troutbum54]

You might be able to tie a fly with some New Zealand wool as like a post or something for those situations

[jonbo]

...or just go hopper/dropper.

[turfdawg]

When they like bright I actually have some orange stimii’s with a orange ball on the front that I bought from Orvis. Have actually caught several before the floods in the late evening when they started hitting indicators

[coldwaterfly]

I'd go with the Hopper/Dropper scenario. A go to rig for me in the summer time. 

Stocked fish or not, all trout deserve respect in my book. As a fly fishing purist, the spinning rod guys have been and will always be the enemy.