Читать книгу Fishing Flies - Smalley - Страница 44

Stonefly nymphs live only in the cleanest of rivers and lakes and in many parts of the world of trout fishing they are far less important in the diet of the fish than caddisflies and upwinged flies. However stoneflies are very popular among fly-tyers, partly because of their solid build that makes them good to imitate, partly because some species grow very large. Further, in some North American rivers, there are very large populations of big stonefly species, such as the giant stonefly Pteronarcys californica and the golden stoneflies Acroneuria pacifica and A. californica. So there the pleasure of tying big stonefly nymphs is closely linked with the pleasure of catching trout with them. Across the Atlantic, Europe has some big stoneflies (Perla and Dinocras species) but only in a relatively few rivers are the populations big enough to warrant carrying imitations of their nymphs or adults. It is interesting to note, however, that in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries the large nymphs were collected and fished as bait in some rough British rivers. Not surprisingly most stonefly imitations have their roots in North America. They are worth trying in any cool, clean trout stream.

The first three, fairly simple tyings, are by Polly Rosborough (see here).

DARK STONE

Hook: Nymph, sizes 4–14.

Thread: Tan.

Tails: 4–6 dark brown feather fibres (e.g. pheasant church window feather).

Body: Light cream synthetic fur.

Shellback: Slip from dark mottled turkey tail.

Rib: Tan thread, doubled.

Wing cases: Dark brown feather slip (e.g. pheasant church window dyed dark brown).

Legs: Dark brown feather fibres.

BROWN STONE

Hook: Nymph, sizes 12–16.

Thread: Brown.

Tails: Few fibres brown feather fibres (e.g. dyed partridge).

Body: Medium brown fur or wool.

Shellback: A dark brown quill slip (e.g. dyed goose).

Rib: Brown thread, doubled.

Wing cases: Dark brown quill slip.

Legs: Tips of cock pheasant tail fibres.

YELLOW STONE

Hook: Nymph, sizes 10–14.

Thread: Amber.

Tails: Few fibres mallard dyed yellow-buff or wood duck.

Body: Dull yellow-orange fur or wool.

Shellback: Mallard dyed yellow-buff or wood duck.

Rib: Amber thread, doubled.

Wing cases: Mallard dyed yellow-buff or wood duck.

Legs: Tips of feathers used for wing cases.

MONTANA NYMPH

Hook: Nymph, sizes 2–12.

Thread: Black.

Tails: Black crow quill fibres.

Abdomen: Black chenille.

Thorax: Yellow chenille.

Wing cases: 2 strands of black chenille.

Legs: Soft black hen hackle wound through thorax.

The MONTANA NYMPH is perhaps the best-known artificial stonefly, and catches trout where there are no stoneflies! It is also an excellent catcher of small Atlantic salmon (grilse) in Norway and Scotland. TED TRUEBLOOD’S STONE is very similar, but includes brown instead of black chenille, orange instead of yellow chenille, and has two dark brown goose biots as tails.

Randall Kaufmann devised three great stonefly imitations in which the rib was Swannundaze. This is no longer available, but at the time of writing (2009) the similar Vinyl Rib (US) or Magic Glass (UK) is available. Like Swannundaze, this has a D-shaped cross-section and is ideal for ribbing large nymphs. A natural alternative is to take a dyed goose or swan feather quill and to peel, using a sharp knife or razor blade, a thin section of the outer core. Then trim this to the required width before tying in.

KAUFMANN’S BLACK STONE

Hook: Nymph, sizes 2–12 (Kaufmann recommended 12X long).

Thread: Black.

Tails: 2 black turkey biots.

Abdomen: ½ black Antron, ½ black, purple, claret, red, amber, fiery brown, blue and hot orange angora, well mixed.

Rib: Black Swannundaze (see here).

Thorax: As abdomen.

Legs: 2 pairs black rubber (optional).

Wing cases: Dark turkey, 3 sections coated in Fexament (or other clear flexible glue), tied in with thorax.

Head: As abdomen.

Antennae: 2 black turkey biots.

KAUFMANN’S BROWN STONE

Hook: Nymph, sizes 2–12 (Kaufmann recommended 12X long).

Thread: Tan.

Tails: 2 ginger goose biots.

Abdomen: ½ golden-brown fur, ½ claret, rust, black, blue, ginger and purple angora, well mixed.

Rib: Amber Swannundaze (see here).

Thorax: As abdomen.

Legs: 2 pairs black rubber (optional).

Wing cases: Mottled turkey, 3 sections coated in Fexament (or other clear flexible glue), tied in with thorax.

Head: As abdomen.

Antennae: 2 ginger goose biots.

KAUFMANN’S GOLDEN STONE

Hook: Nymph, sizes 8–14.

Thread: Brown.

Tails: 2 brown turkey biots.

Abdomen: ½ hare’s ear (or the synthetic Haretron), ½ gold, amber, rust, blue and orange angora, well mixed.

Rib: Amber Swannundaze (see here).

Thorax: As abdomen.

Legs: 2 pairs black rubber (optional).

Wing cases: Dark turkey, 3 sections coated in Fexament (or other clear flexible glue), tied in with thorax.

Head: As abdomen.

Antennae: 2 brown turkey biots.

Kauffmann also recommends tying some with a goldhead (see here) behind the eye.

Charles Brooks, author of Nymph Fishing for Larger Trout (1976), devised several excellent, simple-to-tie stonefly nymphs that should be in every nymph-fisher’s fly box. He insisted on a lead wire underbody to take the nymphs deep; otherwise use a goldhead or tungstenhead.

BROOK’S STONEFLY NYMPH

Hook: Nymph (3X), sizes 4–10.

Thread: Black.

Tails: 2 black goose biots.

Body: Black fur dubbing, with slightly fatter thorax.

Hackle: Grizzle, tied in at base of thorax section and palmered forward to head.

BROWN STONEFLY NYMPH

Hook: Nymph (3X), sizes 6–12.

Thread: Brown.

Tails: 2 brown goose biots.

Body: Brown fur dubbing, with slightly fatter thorax.

Hackle: Brown hen hackle, tied in as base of thorax section and palmered forward to head.

OLIVE STONEFLY NYMPH

Hook: Nymph (3X), sizes 10–16.

Thread: Olive.

Tails: 2 olive goose biots.

Body: Olive fur dubbing, with slightly fatter thorax.

Hackle: Olive hen, tied in at base of thorax and palmered forward to head.

LITTLE YELLOW STONEFLY

Hook: Nymph (3X), Sizes 10–14.

Thread: Light brown.

Tails: 2 Yellow-buff goose biots.

Body: Golden-yellow or yellow-brown fur dubbing, with slightly fatter thorax.

Hackle: Ginger hen, tied in at base of thorax and palmered to head.

Someone asked Jack Dennis, author of Western Trout Fly Tying Manual Vol. II (rev. edn, 1995), what was his most successful fly:

I gave some thought to the flies I used in lakes, creeks, and streams and had produced well, under a variety of conditions. One pattern kept flashing through my mind – Bitch Creek Nymph.

BITCH CREEK NYMPH

Hook: Nymph, sizes 4–12.

Thread: Yellow.

Underbody: Lead wire.

Tails: 2 rubber legs.

Abdomen: Yellow chenille.

Shellback: Black chenille.

Rib: Yellow thread.

Thorax: Black chenille.

Legs: Blue dun hen hackle plus a grey ostrich herl palmered through thorax.

Antennae: 2 rubber legs.

The following is probably the best specific imitation of the Pteronarcys nymph, sometimes called the salmon fly, though Al Troth’s tying is very effective.

BLACK UGLY NYMPH

Hook: Nymph, sizes 3–4.

Thread: Black.

Underbody: At least one layer of lead wire wound in touching turns.

Tails: 2 black goose biots.

Abdomen: Black knitting wool.

Rib: Black Swannundaze (see here).

Thorax: Dull orange dubbing.

Wing cases: Black goose quill slip.

Legs: Black hen hackle, palmered though thorax.

TROTH’S TERRIBLE STONEFLY NYMPH

Hook: Nymph, sizes 1–4.

Thread: Dark brown.

Tails: 2 black turkey biots, ½ inch long.

Body: Dark brown chenille, with two layers at the front as a thorax.

Overbody/rib: Mix of black and brown seal’s fur (or substitute), put in a dubbing loop, spun and then wound up body between the turns of chenille. Clip back along the top and bottom.

Legs: Trimmed dark brown hackle stalks.

Antennae: Two black turkey biots, 1 inch long.

Woven bodies are relatively new, and seem to have developed mostly in Eastern Europe (especially Poland) and in Norway (where Torrill Kolbu produced several patterns for her Mustad Collection of flies). Weaving is a special technique, but not too difficult to master. Darrel Martin’s Fly Tying Methods (1987) gives an excellent account, while there are several DVDs and CDs illustrating the technique.

WOVEN-BODIED STONEFLY NYMPHS

Hook: Nymph, sizes 6–12.

Thread: Brown or black.

Tails: 2 goose biots dyed the colour of the fly’s dorsal surface.

Abdomen: Woven, with darker dorsal side, paler ventral surface; e.g. black dorsal, warm brown ventral; dark brown dorsal, tan ventral; orangebrown dorsal, yellow ventral.

Thorax: Fur dubbing, as ventral surface of abdomen.

Wing cases: Goose quill slips, dyed to match dorsal surface of abdomen.

Legs: Grouse for the black version, brown speckled partridge for the brown version, and partridge dyed golden-olive for the orange-brown version.

OLIVE WOVEN-BODIED NYMPH

Hook: Nymph, sizes 14–18.

Thread: Brown.

Tails: Sparse bunch bronze mallard.

Abdomen: Olive and grey-olive silk, woven.

Thorax: Fine olive fur.

Wing cases: Light grey duck quill slip.

Legs: Light furnace or ginger hen hackle.

BROWN WOVEN-BODIED NYMPH

Hook: Nymph, sizes 12–18.

Thread: Orange.

Tails: Sparse bunch bronze mallard.

Abdomen: Black and orange silks, woven.

Thorax: Fine brown fur.

Wing cases: Light grey duck quill slip.

Legs: Light furnace or ginger hen hackle.

SWANNUNDAZE STONEFLY NYMPH

Hook: Curved nymph, sizes 6–12.

Thread: Brown.

Tails: 2 Dyed brown goose biots.

Abdomen: Brown Swannundaze.

Thorax: Brown rabbit fur.

Wing cases: Speckled turkey slip or synthetic.

Eyes: Lead.