Fly Patterns

Popular Tasmanian Trout Flies

Wet Flies

Wet flies come to the fore early in the Tasmanian season particularly along flooded edges where trout are found 'tailing' in the extreme shallows. Wets, nymphs and beetles require very little if any extra weight and floating lines are used for most Tasmanian shore fishing, in contrast to New Zealand, for example, where heavy flies and sinking lines are often used. Tasmanian wet fly patterns have mainly developed in response to 'flats style' sight fishing in shallow water.

Robin

Wigram's Robin is the quintessential Tasmanian wet fly, developed by local fly fishing pioneer Dick Wigram and widely popularised by acclaimed Tasmanian fly fishing author David Scholes. The Robin was popular in the 1960s and 1970s and although still used as an early season floodwater fly, particularly on the northern rivers, it has largely been replaced by modern patterns. Nonetheless it is a distinctive and handsome Tasmanian fly. The Robin can be fished blind across bank cavities or cast at the disturbances made by eager trout as they grub for drowned worms, grubs and caterpillars flushed out of newly flooded ground.

Pot Scrubber

Small mayflies are abundant in still and running waters throughout Tasmania, and relatively slimly dubbed and lightly weighted nymphs are bread and butter flies. Wigram's Brown Nymph or 'Pot Scrubber' is perhaps the most famous Tasmanian nymph pattern although most local tiers have adopted their own variations. Imitative nymph patterns are most effective as spring moves towards summer and the natural insects become more active. Natural drifts and slow patient retrieves are the order of the day.

Thong

John Bessell's buoyant nymph pattern uses thong rubber for flotation and again is interesting because of its Tasmanian application, specifically targeting 'tailing' fish in very shallow and weedy water where conventional wets and nymphs sink too fast and tangle in the weeds. Whether it is taken for a floating snail, tadpole or emerging nymph, its buoyant thorax suspends the fly and allows a trap to be set. Again this is a sight-fishing fly and tailing trout are the targets.

Fur Fly

The Rabbit Fur Fly was developed by Tony Sloane in the early 1970s for fishing the flooded tussock margins around the Bronte System. The fur is applied in a unique way - folded and tied in at one point behind the head, with the skin snipped off - standing it apart from other 'Rabbit Fly' patterns and 'Zonker' style flies. The result is a slow sinking fly which expands and breaths in the water, pulsing with life at every twitch, yet when the fish strikes it finds little more than a bare hook. Different colours and types of fur can be used without changing the essential features of the fly. Fur Fly variants also double as 'mudeye' (dragonfly nymph) patterns for warm summer evening fishing.

Wet Beetle

When trout switch their attention to snails, isopods, small amphipods and midge pupae as springtime advances towards summer, they can still be found tailing in the lake margins but become far more difficult and sometimes nigh impossible to catch. Smaller 'hoodwinker' patterns are then used and either retrieved slowly or left to sink inert in front of a feeding fish. The Fiery Brown Beetle pattern shown is one popular example but other colours including black and green also work well. More specific shrimp and scud imitations are tied locally and widely used.

Woolly Bugger

Woolly Bugger patterns and smaller Woolly Worms are popular searching flies in Tasmania, especially when waters are rough and discoloured and the trout are in an aggressive frame of mind. These are conspicuous flies which make plenty of disturbance through the water. They are normally cast out and stripped back fast, forcing the trout to make a quick decision. The fly photographed is the Woolly Bugger Mark II, another John Bessell tie recommended by guide Ken Orr.

Sunset Fly

First tied by Robert Sloane in the early 1970s the Sunset Fly is a widely published and well recognised Tasmanian pattern which is now used extensively interstate and overseas. It was developed as an evening fly for rainbow trout but works just as well on browns. The bright colours are reminiscent of Tasmanian sunset, hence the name. Tied in large sizes this fly can be used into the dark on a floating or sinking line.

Other useful wet flies for Tasmanian conditions include the Mrs Simpson, Yeti, Tom Jones, Fuzzy Wuzzy and Matuka in a range of colours, as well as traditional British wet flies, loch-style flies and buzzer (midge) patterns.

Dry Flies

Popular Tasmanian dry flies are a mix of nondescript all-purpose patterns and imitative flies tied to match local hatches which are dominated by mayflies in the family Leptophlebiidae. Terrestrial insects including beetles, ants and grasshoppers also contribute significantly to dry fly fishing.

Red Tag

Originally tied as a British grayling pattern the Red Tag has been thoroughly adopted as a must have Tasmanian pattern. As a nondescript dry fly the Red Tag has no equal through the summer months when 'polaroiding' the clear lake flats. With an abundance of terrestrial beetles blown in from surrounding bushland, Tasmanian browns are opportunistic surface feeders and the Red Tag combines hackle, peacock herl and bright red tag to make an irresistible fly.

Highland Dun

Popularised by noted Tasmanian fly-tier Noel Jetson, and based on an original pattern by Charles Peck, this palmer hackled and winged fly handsomely represents the mayfly duns which hatch in profusion on the highland lakes on mild midsummer days. Other drab grey and brown dun patterns also fit the bill when the dun hatches are in full swing and the trout are audibly clopping naturals off the surface.

Mayfly Emerger

This is Barry Lodge's version of the emerging mayfly dun. Locals like Barry will tell you that a floating nymph or a dry fly which sits down in the water in the style of an emerger will generally outfish a well hackled dry in a Tasmanian dun hatch. This is particularly so early in the hatch when nymphs are ascending in great numbers and the natural emergers make easy pickings for the trout. Well teased nymphs, treated with floatant, and various low riding parachute hackle flies also score fish when the duns are up.

Black Spinner

With the profusion of small mayflies on Tasmanian lakes and streams, the Black Spinner in various forms is a very dependable dry fly. On calm water, late in the day, a small Black Spinner is often the only acceptable dry. Natural spinners do vary in size and colour and at times it is necessary to 'match the hatch', however, a well tied and well presented Black Spinner will be taken more often than not.

Matcham's Caenid

Caenids are the smallest Tasmanian mayflies, not unlike the 'tricos' of North America. They hatch through the late spring and early summer on most lowland rivers and many silty highland lakes. In the calm of early morning trout become mesmerised by the masses of tiny naturals and rise in a nonstop feast. The fly illustrated is one tied by Laurie Matcham, another Tasmanian fly-tier with an international reputation. All you can do is place the fly dead on track and inches in front of the trout's nose in the hope that yours might be taken amidst countless naturals in its path.

Noel's Nobby

If you intend fishing Tasmania's farmland streams in late summer a few suitable grasshopper flies will certainly come in handy. Noel Jetson's version of the Australian Nobby Hopper is just one pattern which works well when plonked down firmly and allowed to run along under the grassy overhangs. Small stream trout respond to grasshoppers with great gusto in the heat of the day.

Dishington's Deerhair

North-west commercial fly-tier Spencer Dishington has popularised a range of deer-hair bodied, hackled flies that we know locally as Dishington's Deerhairs. The all-black version is a popular evening fly, fished to rising fish as the light fades. A chocolate brown version makes a good daytime fly particularly when duns, spinners or beetles are on the menu. These are robust flies which will take plenty of punishment and still float reliably even after dark.

Other useful dry flies include various beetle, ant, mayfly and caddis patterns tied on in response to what's on the water at a particular time