Reverse Tied Dry Flies
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I had a thought last year which had been nagging at me for ages - I have loads of ideas, 99% of them are terrible!
The original thought was - 'Is it possible to fish a fly with the hook point completely out of the water?', this, I thought, could be useful when targeting spooky fish. I did a little bit of research and found quite a few flies that fish 'point upwards'.
About a month later - when I was walking the dog - it suddenly struck me that if a fly was tied backwards (i.e. the hackle was at the bend of the hook rather than at the eye) that would elevate the hook point out of the water. Five minutes later I was at the vice and tied a few up just to test them out - I pass the Yorkshire Derwent on the way to the shop.
It was a lovely early spring morning and nothing was rising, but I tied one of my hastily tied reverse contraptions on and cast it out just to see how it sat in the water - to my surprise, a small wild brown took it immediately - "So the work then", I thought (or words to that effect)!
Later that day I did a bit of googling and found a few references to some oddball flies tied in reverse, but nothing more than that - so here are, what we believe to be, the only commercially available flies tied in reverse, our Reverse Tied Dry Selection.
Ok, so why should I use them?
These flies are all tied with the hackle at the bend of the hook. We made sure that the tips of the hackle extend to just below the point of the hook, this means that the hook point should be just out of the water, as shown in the crudest of drawings below:
We've no real evidence that this makes any difference at all, as we'd need to find a talking fish to get that! But from actual use on my local river, they do seem to be successful on the low water and with spooky fish - especially when teamed up with a longer leader.
Grab a selection for yourself and give them a go!
Our Reverse Tied Dry Selection contains 4 distinct patterns (we are supplying 2 of each pattern in 2 sizes, 14 & 18) - for a total of 16 flies in the selection. We are bringing these to you for only £20 - including fast, free delivery.
*** We've only got 30 of these available, so if you would like a set, you will need to be quick! ***
Please Note: Read right to the end of this email for a special email subscriber offer which is available for this weekend only!
Here's a run down of the patterns which are included in the selection:
The Single Badger
Just like a Double Badger, but with a single hackle at the bend. One of the best flies (and many anglers only fly) used in the summer months. Great in warm still conditions on rivers with a low flow, spooky fish and low levels.
TOP TIP: A size 14 well worn out Single Badger can be really effective during a Caenis hatch, it's thought to imitates a clump of Caenis flies which the trout will target.
Reversed Kite
The Reversed Kite's Imperial - The original was designed by Oliver Kite in the 1960s, this fly probably accounts for more fish due to its uncanny resemblance to the Large Dark Olive dun.
Reversed Last Hope Dark
Similar to the Single Badger, this fly is great in warm still conditions on rivers with a low flow, spooky fish and low levels. With a peacock herl body and small white hackle this fly is a great small gnat & caenis imitation
Reversed Last Hope Light
Our Reversed Last Hope Light, this fly is great in warm still conditions on rivers with a low flow, spooky fish and low levels. With a white thread body and small white hackle this fly is a great small caenis imitation.