Some people think that fly fishing is a relaxing way to spend the day, but fly fishing is a lot more complicated than it looks. There are lots of different types of flies you can use that will attract certain types of fish. You can use a dry fly that will float on the water and look like a bug, or a nymph that starts their life on the bottom of the bed and rise using a wiggling motion towards the surface. It all depends on what you're trying to catch in the current conditions. If you are new to fly fishing, you may want to read some popular beginners guides before you become overwhelmed by the vast quantity of different types of fly fishing files available and under what conditions each of these patterns are used.
Fly Fishing Flies for Trout
The most common type of fish fished for in the fly fishing sport by far are Trout fish, which includes Brown Trout, Rainbow Trout and Tiger Trout among it's popular species. During the off season, Grayling, nicknamed the 'Lady of the Stream' are also popular fish to target, and the great thing is that all of your trout flies are suitable to be fished with Grayling as well.
To make things easy, we have chosen popular flies based upon the fly fishing seasons and conditions you might be facing. For a month-by-month guide of suggestions of fly fishing flies, you can also keep an eye on our Monthly Fish4Flies Top 10 Chart for the latest popular patterns fly fishermen are using on the water right now!
Essential flies to always keep topped up in your flybox
Regardless of the season, these fly fishing flies are the staple diet and essential fly used throughout the year. No fly fishermen would solely fish with these, but would keep them in their arsenal of fly fisting patterns to use when they need to mix things up a little, or fishing with multiple flies on a line at once.
Popular Flies for the Spring Trout Season
Every year in the spring, trout fishing enthusiasts flock to lakes and rivers all over the world to catch their favourite fish. Trout fishing season typically begins it's popularity when the majority of lakes and waters start to open from late March - although there are waters which are open all year round.
During the Spring, the water is still cold from the winter, but the air temperature begins to rise which makes some great conditions for fly hatches and the alertness of the fish.
Here is a brief collection of popular fly fishing flies to be used in the peak fly fishing season:
Popular Flies for the Summer Trout Season
The best fishing for trout is typically in the early morning and evening. There is a very good reason for this; most fly hatches happen at these times when the sun is rising or setting, so naturally there will be a peak of fly activity on the water at these times. It also avoids the direct sun; both direct sunlight and heat can make fish lethargic and reduce oxygen levels in the water (water absorbs less oxygen the hotter it gets!)
Here are some suggestions of fly fishing flies to tackle the hotter summer months:
Popular Flies for the Autumn Trout and Grayling Season
Autumn is the time of year for trout fishing. The streams are full of life and the fish are hungry for a meal to bulk up for the colder winter months ahead. Daddies are popular fly choices in early autumn as hatches become abundant, and when food starts to become scares fish resort to feeding on small fry instead, normally involving an exciting chase! A good morning with a catch of a few fish can be a great start to a day, and can be a nice family activity, with everyone from young to old getting a chance to participate. Whether you want to spend a day trying to catch a big fish or just enjoy the stream you will be sure to have an enjoyable time.
A collection of popular Autumn fly fishing patterns used for the catching both Trout and Grayling are shown below:
Popular Flies for the Winter Trout and Grayling Season
Winter comes with some tough conditions, not only for fly fishermen having to deal with the cold, wet, muddy conditions, but for the fish too. Food scarcity means that trout are on the hunt for meals whenever they have the opportunity, and for us that's a great thing, as it often involves an entertaining chase. The choice of fly fishing fly to use changes dramatically in the winter season, Fry and lures are the main type of fly which bring results, and they are to be fished with fast pulsing action, increasing in intensity once a fish has nibbled. This mimics what happens in nature, the Trout or Grayling will come in and test a nibble on the tail of a fry or snake for example, whose instant reaction would be to dart as quickly as they can out of danger. Once this single is in place, the fish will come around, and depending if they are in a playful mood, may attempt a few more nibbles before coming in for the savage kill.
Below are a great selection of popular Fry and Lure fly fishing patterns to use in the winter months:
Thanks for reading; if you need any suggestions as to which fly fishing flies to use feel free to give us a shout.
The Fish4Flies Team