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Wet flies for Maine
I need to tie some wet flies for a friend who lives in Maine. I'm not sure which rivers he fish. He has requested some wet flies in addition to some dries. I've got the dries finished and I have searched a little online for some direction regarding wet flies. I am not able to tie some of the older traditional patterns (gray ghost etc) because I don't have a lot of the materials. If you know of some patterns that are not too complex that are also productive please give me some ideas. Thank you in advance. I did tie up some #10 PT soft hackles; in smaller sizes they work pretty good where I fish and I figured they may work in Maine as well.
Thanks again
Greg
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One surprisingly popular Maine wet fly is the Maple Syrup. When you look it up you'll see what I mean.
Apparently it's the color that makes a difference. It certainly can't be it's "complex design"
Brook trout like a bit of color and in Maine you're fishing for brookies.
Orange, red, and pink grab their attention
So the Partridge and Orange is a go-to for me, but it's sister the Partridge and Green also works well in a caddis hatch..
There's literally thousands of brook trout ponds in Maine and the hatch that best draws the big fish out is the Hex.
One popular Maine pattern is the Kennebago Muddler.
Basically it's a Hornberg with a muddler head
And speaking of the Hornberg, put that on your list too.
The hex hatch comes around in early July.
One website you should check out is Don Bastain Wet Flies.
Don lives in PA. but often fishes in Maine and he's given me some excellent advise in the past.
His Grey Ghost Woolybugger is a fine substitute for the Carrie Stevens original.
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I have no idea what the Maine fish preference might be, but I'll share a couple of wet flies I've had a lot of success with. For brookies my favorite has been the Parmachene Belle - year in and year out it has been a productive wet. A more recent discovery for me has been the Tenkara wet. A friend put me on to this (sent me a couple) and I was amazed at the results! Here's a method of tying one that I have followed and again, has proved successful. Hope this might be some insight ~
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HOXiwrN6OJg
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I'd throw in some beaded soft hackle hares ears, royal coachmen, alexandria, I'd also recommend the maple syrup tan and brown bodies with yellow tails seems to catch for me.
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Thanks for the replies everyone; I really appreciate your input. I've decided to tie the guides choice hares ear soft hackle along with some orange and partridge.
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You can never go wrong with the Dark Cahill wet! I'll swear by this fly till dying breath..