May fly

Being successful in a fly fishing expedition requires a change in mindset. Trout fishing in still waters has a soothing effect on my soul. Spending a day on a calm mountain lake leaves me in a blissful mood and recharges my inner batteries.

Fishing in the river also allows me to relax - it is this activity that I find more stimulating and satisfying. Fishing in the river is a provocative challenge that makes me rise to the occasion.

By Paul Whillock
Photo: David Klausmeyer
Translation: ts

The copyright for Polish translations and publication of texts and photographs from Fly Tyer magazine is owned by MG Angling International.

Six years ago I came face to face with a fly-fishing conundrum. It was during a day-long, small but steady mayfly outing. The trout were feeding very selectively on its subimago (dun), but with the exception of a small brook trout, I caught nothing for the last four hours of the outing. The trout were not accepting all of my traditional offerings. After reviewing the contents of my fly box, I realized after a while that the assortment of realistic nymphs was quite adequate, but I did not have even one truly realistic pattern of mature mayfly. During the long drive home, I reflected on this fishing and the poor result. And I vowed to myself to make new mayflies.

Finding a solution

My primary goal was to make a fly that had the right profile and various elements to stimulate strikes. I always start from scratch when creating a new fly. Instead of wasting time coming up with a recipe, I let the fly itself and possible fishing situations dictate the materials and hook needed. Creating this fly took much longer than I expected, but many hours at the vise and long days of testing on the river resulted in a new realistic imitation of the mayfly. Coincidentally, at the same time we moved to a small town not far from William Shakespeare's hometown, Stratford. I managed to convince my family that the move would be the best way to escape the inconveniences of city life, and assured my wife that the desire to move had nothing to do with the fact that there was a trout stream running through the middle of our new town.

Now living so close to a trout river, I subjected my realistic dry mayflies to extensive evening field tests. During these relaxed sessions, I weeded out minor flaws in many of the patterns I created. Leader thirteen [MGA: in the original is "6X", the equivalent metric measure of 0.127mm] beautifully laid the fly and gave me above-average catches, but still the decor lacked stimuli for taking. While I would like to say that I found the solution by trial and error, the truth is that I found it completely by accident.

The author's P.H. Mayfly is a semirealistic version of the mayfly subimago. Even the most cautious trout will mistake this excellent fly for a real insect. It is a good example of a "realistic fishing fly".

One day, while coating a fly head with varnish, I accidentally dropped a needle (bodkin) on some loose rays from a partridge's neck feather. The rays stuck to the needle and looked like a blackberry. I lifted the needle and looked at the mottled rays. It was easy to see what was missing from my new fly. I quickly made another mayfly with a partridge feather blackberry and raised it so that it was against the bright afternoon sky. The silhouette of the fly turned out to be a hit. Adding the partridge feather blackberry to the fly was quite easy, but I postponed the final evaluation until I received the trout's feedback.

Testing Partridge Hackle Mayfly

The day got up cool, but before noon I could feel the sun slowly warming my back. I pulled the line through the guides and checked the leader knots, then headed toward the River Derwent. This particular stretch flows through a rural area of Derbyshire and there are some exceptionally large trout. I sat on a fallen log for a while and browsed the contents of my fly box. My concentration was suddenly interrupted by the splash of a nice trout upstream. I chose the original version of my Partridge Hackle ( P.H. ) Mayfly and, while the morning dew still hung on the shoreline cobwebs, I began slowly wading upstream, looking for signs of swarming and feeding trout.

As it was easy to predict, one or two mayfly mayflies began to fly out, and the trout were also aware of this. I bent down and grasped in my hands the Ephemera danica mayfly floating nearby - I couldn't get out of admiration for the delicate structure of these small insects. I hoped that my new pattern would be equally attractive to the trout.

Directly in front of me was a short rapids flowing around trees and bushes. It was possible to see signs of trout feeding. I cast my fly a few inches above where I saw the last exit. Barely did the fly sit on the water, and already the trout had picked it up. The 17-inch fish was a good start to the morning's fishing, but it wasn't the end of the action. I fished all day on the same pattern with a final score of 12 brook trout.

P.H. Mayfly has proven its worth over the years. Because of its effectiveness, it has earned a permanent place in my fly box.

Paul Whillock is a regular contributor to Fly Tyer magazine.... Paul lives in England.

Execution by P.H. Mayfly

1.Start with the leading thread near the hook eye, make a short underlay.... Tie a section of Micro Chenille 3 inches long at the end. Twist the chenille counterclockwise seven times. Holding the end of the chenille in your right hand (assuming you are right-handed), grasp the center of the fabric with the thumb and forefinger of your left hand. Fold the material in half, the protruding ends of the chenille should meet at the eyelet. Secure the folded material with three strong rolls of leading thread. Release the chenille - the material should twist in the likeness of a ship's rope.

2.Tie four rays from the pheasant's tail feather on top of the twisted chenille. Rotate the hook in the vise so that the chenille and the pheasant rays are pointing to the right. Hold the end of the chenille and the pheasant rays between your thumb and forefinger - be careful that the pheasant rays are aligned on top of the chenille. With spiral coils of leading thread, wrap the abdomen, attaching the pheasant rays to the top of the chenille. Since you are holding the end of the chenille in your right hand, you will have to pass the leading thread over the torso with your left hand. Wrap the leading thread around only the part of the chenille that will form the complete abdomen. Make three coils to secure the beginning of the abdomen, and then use the spiral wrap of the leading thread to attach the chenille to the hook. Cut off the unnecessary protruding ends of the materials. Turn the hook in the vise to its normal position.

3.Wet the end of a narrow 2 inch long strip of Swiss Straw. Tie this end to the base of the trunk. Cut off any unnecessary protrusions near the back of the hook.

4.Cut out the shape of the wings. (You can use scissors or any of the commercially available wing cutting tools.) Attach the wings about ¼ inch behind the eyelet.

5.Make a blackberry. In this case, the author uses the neck feather of a grizzly rooster and a feather from the back of a partridge. Important: Make sure the partridge feather rays are longer than the grizzly feather rays. While the grizzly's hackle remains rigid and keeps the fly afloat, the partridge's soft rays make small movements on the water. This movement is the key stimulus that provokes the trout to strike.

6.Make one coil each of partridge blackberry behind and in front of the wings. Secure it at the eye of the hook and cut off the remnants. Wind the grizzly's blackberry through the partridge's blackberry so as to avoid pressing down on the partridge's rays. Secure and cut off the unnecessary end of the grizzly feather.

7.Wet the Swiss Straw again. Carefully stretch it on the back of the fly between the wings to form the body of the torso (thorax). Secure and cut off the remaining material. (Looking from above you will see the Swiss Straw stretched between the splayed wings).

8.Finish with a finisher and cut the leading thread. Apply a drop of glue to the coils forming the head. The P.H. Mayfly is a semirealistic imitation of the dun form that you will catch even the most cautious trout with.

The wings at P.H. Mayfly are made from Hareline Dubbin's No-Fray Winging Material and Web Wing. These materials are durable and easy to use.

Brown P.H. Mayfly

• Hook: Kamasan B100, size 12. (You can replace it with another brand of non-plated lightweight hook for making gudgeons or emergers).
• Leading thread: UTC 70, brownish gray (grey borwn)
• Abdomen: Beige (tan) Micro Chenille.
• Tail: Rays from the central tail feather of a pheasant rooster.
• Wings: Mottled beige Web Wing or No-Fry Wing Material
• Feet: Grey partridge feather blackberry and furnace colored rooster neck feather .

Olive P.H. Mayfly

• Hook: Kamasan B100, size 12. (You can replace it with another brand of non-plated, lightweight hook for making gudgeons or emergers).
• Leading thread: UTC 70, brownish gray.
• Abdomen: Olive Micro Chenille.
• Tail: Rays from the tail feather of a pheasant rooster dyed olive green.
• Trunk: Olive Swiss straw or raffia
• Wings: Mottled Web Wing or No-Fry Winging Material in light dun color
• Feet: Gray blackberry partridge feather and light gray rooster neck feather.

Original P.H. Mayfly

• Hook: Kamasan B100, size 12. (This gudgeon-shaped hook is plated in gold. You can replace it with another brand of unplated, lightweight hook for making gudgeons or emergers).
• Leading thread: UTC 70, brownish gray.
• Abdomen: Beige (tan) Micro Chenille.
• Tail: rays from the central tail feather of the pheasant cockerel
• Thorax: Beige (tan) Swiss straw or raffia
• Wings: Mottled Web Wing or No-Fry Winging Material in light dun color
• Legs: brown partridge and rooster neck feather in grizzly dun color.

[Web Wingingl i No-Fry Winging Material should be available from MGA dealers]

Paul, after seeing this article, sent us three images to add beauty to the text. We publish them below...