Friday, May 23, 2014

Fishing the Hares Ear Soft Hackle

With a lot of boat activity on Smith Lake this Memorial Day weekend I decided to give the tailrace a visit this morning at daylight. I walked down to access four around 6 AM and was met with heavy fog and a fairly fast flow. The generators had been off a couple of hours leaving the rocks quite slippery. It was good I had my wading staff at my side.
The dry action this time of year is limited on the Sipsey even in the early morning and late afternoon, so I started working a fairly fast run with a Prince Nymph size 20 under an indicator. After no interest at all I tied on the Seal Leech with no reaction as well. I did notice as I moved up the tailrace there were some activity subsurface meaning the trout were not taking anything on top but right below the surface. So, noticing that I tied on a size 20 dry PMD. I did get some runs at the fly but no takes. By now it is approaching 9 AM and I am getting some company above and below me. There was more subsurface activity located around a large boulder across from me, so I decided to tie on a size 20 soft hackle Hares Ear. I wanted the fly to float just below the surface as it traveled through a slow run near the boulder.
The end result of a good drift next to the boulder just as the fly passed next to the edge. The take was a simple swirl right below the surface. I missed numerous trout here in this area, mainly because this is something new for me. One learns something every time they wade into the water trout fishing and today was a learning curve for me. Rests assure I will use the soft hackle here again.
 
I'm interested in knowing how you guys would fish a wet fly in slow water or when trout are feeding subsurface?

 
 
 
 
 

 
 


 
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14 comments:

  1. Brk TrtMay 24, 2014 at 6:55 AM

    Nice trout Bill. Soft hackles do produce.

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  2. MarkWMay 24, 2014 at 8:18 AM

    Bill - When I fish wet flies, I try to keep a tight connection to the flies, very little slack. It will help you feel the takes. You can also fish the wet as a trailer off a dry that will serve as an indicator. Good luck with it!

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  3. cofisherMay 24, 2014 at 2:08 PM

    Nice fish Bill! And I'd have to say that in my mind, Mark is spot on. I'm fairly new to soft hackles so I'm still learning as well. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Bill TrussellMay 25, 2014 at 9:30 AM

    Alan
    No one fishes soft hackles on this tailrace, thought I would give it a try. Thanks for the comment

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  5. Bill TrussellMay 25, 2014 at 9:33 AM

    Mark
    Slack line was why I miss a number of trout; I will try the dry as an indicator next time I'm there. I have been watching some videos clips fishing the soft hackle, that has been helpful. Thanks for the comment

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  6. Bill TrussellMay 25, 2014 at 9:37 AM

    Howard
    Fishing the soft hackle for me is learning to fish a wet fly, which will take some getting use to. Thanks for the comment

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  7. Feather ChuckerMay 25, 2014 at 7:11 PM

    Did you try the softhackles I sent you there? They are basically a hares ear softhackle.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Bill TrussellMay 25, 2014 at 7:19 PM

    Kevin
    No I haven't used them yet, because this was a spur of the moment thing with the hackle fly. The flies you gave along with all the other flies that was given to me after the break-in was in another fly box at home. A lot of good they were doing me there. I will give them a try on my next trip to the tailrace. Thanks for the comment

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  9. BlakeMay 25, 2014 at 9:26 PM

    throw those puppies across the current. tight line em, once your line starts to seed that fly up, hold on

    nice trout

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  10. MelMay 25, 2014 at 10:39 PM

    Bill, my experience is to cast at a slight angle casting down stream and let the fly "swing" into the water you want to fish. Often times if the fish are hitting soft hackles they will hit the fly as it completes its swing before retrieval. I am no expert, far from it, just some things I have learned along life's journey.

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  11. Bill TrussellMay 26, 2014 at 9:08 AM

    Mel
    I have been using the swing cast with the Seal Leech beadhead. I will take your advice and use the same method with the hackles. Thanks for the advice

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  12. Bill TrussellMay 26, 2014 at 9:10 AM

    Blake
    I am familiar with the swing cast and have been using it, the reason for the numerous misses the other day was the slick line which I will work on when I go again. Thanks for the advice

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  13. LukeJuly 31, 2014 at 10:46 AM

    I've started fishing a lot more soft-hackle hare's ears lately Bill, and with great success. Great fly choice!

    ReplyDelete
  14. Bill TrussellJuly 31, 2014 at 2:21 PM

    Luke
    I am still learning how to use this fly effectively, but with some practice yields success. Thanks for the comment

    ReplyDelete

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