🥓 Better Bacon Butties 🥓
Your October Fly Fishing Primer
We’ve just moved offices (last weekend), we closed at 17:00 last Friday and we were back up and running again for 08:30 yesterday - nothing dramatic, just one village over, to a slightly bigger place (with some proper heating!), but even a small change of scene somehow makes everything feel fresher.
A different view from the window (better bacon butties from the local shop) and the comforting reminder that sometimes a shift in perspective is all you need.
This move will allow us to bring to life some really exciting (and innovative) ideas we've been mulling over for the last few years - watch this space very soon.
Here's our new place (excuse the temporary bin placement), it's a bit like a TARDIS - much bigger on the inside:
"Sometimes a small shift in perspective is all you need."
The above statement is October fishing in a nutshell. The rivers and stillwaters are the same waters you’ve fished all year - but the season has turned. The light softens, the banks glow with autumn colour, and the fish change their habits to suit the cooler days and colder nights. It’s a month of transition, and if you get it right, one of the most rewarding times of the year.
Moving a business is very much like moving house - really (really) stressful!
The one advantage is that it gives you a chance to sort through all of the accumulated 'stuff' you've kept hold of, saying to yourself, "I'll need that one day".
Having to pack everything into a massive lorry also allows you to uncover things you knew you had - you just didn't know exactly where they were!
Keep an eye out for Thursday's email - I've a really special offer for you on some items which we found as a part of the move and we are going to give away - we've been told they are far too good to go into the bin!
Like our move, October is ALL about subtle change - not a revolution, but just enough to make you notice.
As we are still in the process of unboxing everything, I wanted this week's email to get you ready for what October has in store for us on both RIVERS & STILLWATERS - and it will give the Fly Fairies' brains a good workout - having to remember where each fly is located!
Let's start with flowing water (all you Stillwater enthusiasts can scroll past this section):
October River Fishing
Expect variety ...
One day you’ll have a warm spell with trickles of olives hatching, the next you’ll be knee-deep in coloured water after an autumn spate.
Whichever is the case, we have you covered for flies, here's the low-down on the flies and patterns you will need to see you through your river visits this October:
Daddy Long Legs Are At Their Peak
If there’s one dry fly you shouldn’t be without in October, it’s the Daddy Long Legs. These gangly terrestrials tumble onto the water in numbers through early autumn, and trout rise with surprising confidence to them - even when they’re ignoring everything else.
Drift them across glides and seams, or skitter them across the surface for explosive takes.
The 4 patterns below have been the most successful so far this season, each one is available individually, or in packs of 6 or 12 (at greater discounts):
The Deadly Daddy - Artisan Range
£2.15
The Peacock Daddy - Artisan Range
£2.15
The Black Foam Daddy - Artisan Range
£2.15
The Orange Foam Daddy - Artisan Range
£2.15
*** Go on, fill your boots & help our Fly Faries get used to their new surroundings! ***
Perdigons Rule Below
When fish are feeding subsurface, nothing outshines a Perdigon Nymph in October. Slim, fast-sinking, and designed to cut through variable autumn flows, they get down where the grayling and late-season trout are holding. A silver, copper/orange, or gold-bodied Perdigon will cover you in both clear and coloured water.
The 4 Perdigon patterns below were the most successful patterns in October last season. Each one is available individually, or in packs of 3 or 6 (at even greater discounts):
Nygren's Hot-Spot Pearl Perdigon Jig
£2.25
Nygren's Hot-Spot Metallic Orange Perdigon Jig
£2.25
Nygren's Hot-Spot Metallic Blue Perdigon Jig
£2.25
Nygren's Hot-Spot Gold Perdigon Jig
£2.25
*** Go on, fill your boots & help our Fly Faries get used to their new surroundings! ***
If you order from us regularly, you will have seen our Hatch Cards, which we include with your order.
I've included the October River Hatch Card for your reference below:
October Stillwater Fishing
Stillwaters in October feel like they’ve woken up after the sleepy heat of summer. Cool nights bring trout back into the margins, and falling water temperatures make them more willing to chase.
Give Them Something To Chase
When trout are switched on to fry, a Woolly Bugger or Blue-Flash Damsel is hard to beat. Our versions are really versatile - fish them on a floating line with a twitch along the margins, or on an intermediate for deeper work. Their pulsing hackles and mobile tail scream “alive,” and autumn trout know it.
Black & Olive Woolly Bugger
£1.65
Black Woolly Bugger
£1.65
Blue Flash 'Feeler' Damsel
£1.65
Blue Flash Damsel
£1.65
*** Go on, fill your boots & help our Fly Faries get used to their new surroundings! ***
Because Bloodworms Mean Business
October is prime time for worms of all persuasions. As weed beds begin to die back, trout gorge on bloodworms and aquatic worms dislodged into open water. Our Derwent Worm, with its wiggly profile and natural movement, is devastating fished deep and slow. Use a floating line with a long leader in calmer conditions, or switch to a midge-tip to keep it tracking just above the weed.
On cooler, overcast days, a Derwent Worm can out-fish almost anything else in your box.
*** Go on, fill your boots & help our Fly Faries get used to their new surroundings! ***
If you order from us regularly, you will have seen our Hatch Cards, which we include with your order.
I've included the October Stillwater Hatch Card for your reference below:
We may only have moved a village down the road, but like October itself, it’s reminded us how even small changes bring a new perspective. Whether you’re wading a spate river or walking the margins of a stillwater, this month is full of fresh opportunities.
Tight lines & have fun
P.S. For anyone who would like to visit us, you can now find us at:
Barbless Flies: Unit 3, Bridge Farm Business Centre, Seamer, Scarborough, North Yorkshire YO12 4BX
What3Words: ///defrost.
P.P.S. We'd appreciate a call first, the place is a bit of a tip at the moment!
