Choiceislures
THERE’S plenty of water in the rivers just now and if you’ve got an inkling for the king of the river, now’s the time to get out there.
But what pattern/colour of flies and lures to choose?
When it comes to salmon flies, the choice of patterns, shapes and sizes is endless.
But how important is it to fish the “right” colour of fly? Do you choose a fly according to the colour of the water? And what are the most effective colours?
Colour is important but when we start making rules like what colour of fly or lure to fish when and where, salmon have a habit of proving the opposite.
That aside, most salmon fishers accept the theory we should fish a bright fly when the water is coloured and a more sombre pattern when the water is clear.
So, in coloured water, we might choose a yellow and orange with some gold. Later, when the water is clearing – but not yet absolutely clear – or on rivers that are naturally peat-stained such as the Spey, we might tone this down with the addition of some black. For example,
SUPER FLY Willie Gunn’s hair wing is a blend of black, yellow and orange over a gold-ribbed black body. And later still, in clear water we might choose an all-black fly or a black fly with a dash of yellow such as the Tosh or Dee Monkey.
But nothing is written in stone. It is often confusing how gillies’ beliefs about fly choice differ. For example, you could be fishing a beat up north where the ghillie is absolutely determined that a Yellow Ally’s Shrimp is far more effective in clear water than the standard orange version – which is only used when the water is coloured. But a couple of days later you could be fishing another river where the colour of the water is practically identical, and the gillie might tell you the complete opposite. You could be advised on the Findhorn to have a few strands of flash in the tail – while the Tay gillie might suggest snipping those flashy tail strands off !
In recent times the Cascade has become one of our most popular flies. But a few successful salmon anglers won’t fish it unless it has a fluorescent green butt (making it an Aurora Cascade) and jungle cock cheeks of just the right size.
Each river is different; water colour fluctuates, air pressure rises and falls.
We do know that the majority of salmon in the UK are caught with patterns tied with black, yellow and/or orange, but the choice is yours.