Weekly Fraser Valley Sport Fishing Column, Aug 31 to Sept 7, 2015


The last twenty years of the 1880?s saw North American anglers brake further from Britain and Europe with the development of a distinct family of trout flies.
Those of us who have tried these fancy flies, in today?s time, have found certain ones, to be frustratingly hard to catch fish with, leaving one to wonder, how these flies ever made notoriety.

During the period from 1880 through 1900 many of the game fish in North America were easy to catch, due to their vast numbers. Completion always makes fish more aggressive and less selective in their feeding behavior. When you have a plethora of available fly tying materials, willing fish, unjaded imaginations, a culture given to folk art, along with a desire to come up with trout flies that are distinctly North American; you have a recipe for anything.

?When we come to fish, most varieties are taken by artificial lures, show that same fondness for bright colors, and red seems more attractive than any other. The majority of artificial flies have red in their composition; for instance the Abbey, Montreal, Royal Coachman, Grizzly King, Professor, Red Hackle, Red Spinner, Howard, Soldier, Scarlet Ibis, and many others too numerous to mention. In fact this color is so attractive to chub ? that anglers often have to use flies dressed in more sober colors, ? The trout and bass that are found in wilder districts, seem to have this fondness for red ?

Black Bass have a great weakness for black and yellow. Professor Mayer?s ?Lord Baltimore? and W Holberton?s ?Lottie? are two instances of this?

A strange fact is the partiality that Main trout seem to show for the ?Jenny Lind? fly, a combination of bright red, yellow and blue ? as unlike any natural fly as one can possibly imagine?? The editor, Forest and Stream magazine, 1889.





The Report

Fishing on our lower mainland lakes is fair to good. For better success try fishing early mornings and late evenings, concentrating on shadowed areas. For wet (sinking) fly fishing try: Chironomid, Wooly Bugger, Doc Spratley, Halfback, Micro Leach, Six Pack, Souboo, Pumpkinhead, Damsel Nymph, American Coachman, or Baggy Shrimp. For dry (floating) fly fishing try: Lady McConnell, Big Ugly, Elk Hair Caddis, Griffith Gnat, Irresistible, or Royal Coachman. For kokanee try: Bloodworm, San Juan Worm, Red Spratley, Red Ibis, Double Trude, or small Red Zonker.

Our local bass and panfish waters are fair to good. For bass try: Foam Frog, Poppers, Chernobyl Ant, Stimulator, Adult Damsel, Adult Dragon, Big Black, Wooly Bugger, Dragon Nymph, Pumpkinhead, Dolly Whacker, Lefty?s Deceiver, or Clouser?s Deep Minnow. For Panfish try Bloodworm, Chironomid, Micro Leach, Pumpkinhead, Popper, Black Gnat, Trico, Mosquito, or Royal Coachman.

Fishing on our interior lakes is fair to good; concentrate on spring fed areas for better success. For wet fly fishing try: Chironomid, Big Black, 52 Buick, Dragon Nymph, Halfback, Butler?s Bug, Doc Spratley, Green Spratley, Pumpkinhead, Green Carey, Damsel Nymph, Dragon Nymph, or Baggy Shrimp. For dry fly fishing try: Tom Thumb, Double Hackled Peacock, Elk hair Caddis, Goddard Caddis, Royal Wulff, or Irresistible.

The Thompson River is fair to good for rainbow. Try: California Blond, Rolled Muddler, Kaufmann Stone, Stimulator, Joe?s Hopper, Tom Thumb, Irresistible, or Elk Hair Caddis.