THE IRIDEUS - JUNE 2020
Three Stillwater Flies By Bob Fabini
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s I’ve gotten older, I don’t wade with the same ferocity I used to. I still wade rivers—I just go swimming more often. I had two unplanned, but refreshing dips last season. Another alternative is to fish stillwaters from solid ground, or from some floating device, although unplanned swims can occur in these circumstances also. For a seasoned river angler, stillwaters can be intimidating or confusing. Fish are no longer delivered food on the conveyer belt of the current. Instead, they cruise hunting for food. This is especially true for trout. Finding fish is more problematic for the angler— holding water doesn’t exist in the same sense. When there is no obvious hatch occurring, one of the fastest ways to find stillwater fish, is to fish actively, covering lots of water. In this article, I will be touching on flies that are good introductory flies for this tactic, whether fishing cold water or warm water lakes. These flies are rarely available commercially, in spite of their utility. They are also good flies for beginning to intermediate tiers, and two of them use peacock herl, in my opinion, a magical material. Stillwaters usually harbor mayflies (callibaetis, for instance), caddis, and midges,
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just like a river. No stoneflies; however. In addition, you will find damsel flies, dragon flies, scuds, and small bait fish. All these items, except scuds, are usually present in every fishable stillwater, and they are all very active. The flies in this article are flies you can fish actively to help you find fish in stillwaters. Each of these flies is really just a basic pattern which one can vary as it suits the angler. One is familiar, the Wooly Bugger. I will be illustrating a peacock-bodied version, which is my favorite. The Carey Special is a Northwestern pattern seldom seen in California. I will show the peacock version, although it can be tied with a wool, dubbed, or chenille body. The third fly, and the first we will discuss is the Grey Nymph. All of these flies can be tied plain or with a bead. On my stillwater flies I usually use brass beads. I most often use tungsten for moving water. I have; however, found that a tungsten-beaded pheasant tail in #16 or #18 is highly productive at Manzanita Lake in mid-summer, especially when fished in a rising manner. The Grey Nymph
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his is a fly I learned about as a beginning fly fisher. It is an incredibly simple
