2wheels1rod

Add these classics to your digital bookshelf

Hi Everyone, Apart from the act of fly fishing itself, what better way to spend a rainy Winters day than to read about it. I have a particular obsession with old fishing books, I often read through sections of books to see how we can relate the information to modern-day fly fishing - it's surprising what you can find! As it is the weekend, and you may have a little more time, we thought that you would appreciate some more reading/research material. We have put together a few links to some classic books which are all free to reproduce and read online (as they are now out of copyright), we hope these will give you a good start in helping you discover the wonderful world of classic fly fishing literature. I'm always keen to learn more, so if you have any books you think I should know about, please feel free to share them with me - just reply to this email. The Fly-Fishers Entomology - Alfred Ronalds (1836) This is the book that started it all for us. A classic, and still relevant today - 150+ years later. Grab a coffee and have a read. North-Country Flies - Thomas EvanPritt (1886) T.E.Pritt described the soft-hackled wet flies in use among northern English anglers of his acquaintance, setting out the methods, fly patterns and techniques drawn from his experience. This account of North Country fishing in the UK found resonance with flyfishers around the world. Pritt had an influence in the works of Edmonds and Lee, Leisenring and Hidy, Sylvester Nemes. Dry-Fly Fishing In Theory and Practice - Frederick Halford (1889) Dry-Fly Fishing in Theory and Practice is Frederick Halford's second and most influential book on dry-fly fishing. It followed Floating Flies and How to Dress Them, these books gave birth to the Halfordian school of dry-fly fishing, especially on English chalk streams. This classic text also played a significant role in the development of dry-fly fishing in the USA. Dry Fly Entomology - Frederick Halford (1897) Another cracker from Fred - it's a brief description of the leading types of natural insects serving as food for trout and grayling which includes 100 of the best patterns of dry flies and the various methods of dressing them.

Charting Your Way To Success - Astute Fly Fishing

Hello All, It may sound odd, but February is one of my favourite months as far as fly fishing goes. It's a month where we say goodbye to the Grayling and wait in anticipation of what the imminent trout season will offer. It's a time to clean, check and update all of your gear, top-up those fly boxes (all bought from us, obviously!). But most of all I love to dream of what the upcoming season will bring; The first spring hatches Those balmy summer evenings by the river; and of course The Mayfly. I'm a firm believer that each river has its own nuances as far as fishing (and the fish contained within it) are concerned, and that the most successful anglers on any given stretch of water are the ones with the most experience of it. Generally in life there are no shortcuts, but there are ways to help your experience along a little quicker. But first, you need a little bit of context ... I fish the River Derwent in North Yorkshire - in fact, I pass it every day on the way to and from Barbless Flies HQ. I try to fish the river twice a week in all weather and river conditions throughout the year. As you might expect, I now know it pretty well. If you have ordered anything from us in the past you will know that we send out 'Hatch Cards' with every order - detailing which flies are hatching and which imitations to use for a specific month. For the whole of the 2020 season (when we were allowed to fish), I decided to use the info on the cards and make notes on which patterns worked (and more importantly, which ones didn't) for each fishing trip I made: It was at the end of the season that I dug out these cards and re-read my notes to see if I could make any sense of 'my fly fishing year' - a few things were apparent from the off: Size: All of the flies I was successful with were much smaller than I had originally thought (i.e. for the Yorkshire Derwent, size 18's were by far the most successful size throughout the year). Patterns: The majority of the patterns I used were more 'impressionistic' than realistic (i.e. my 'top' fly was a size 18 IOBO Humpy - doesn't really imitate anything specifically, but does give a good impression of most hatching insects). This set me thinking ... how can we use the past to influence how we fish in the future? The first thing you need is a good hatch chart (just like the one below - which, for today only, you can download for free) - this will give you an idea of which flies should be hatching, and when they should hatch: To download your Free Hatch Chart Click on the image above.

Bear Share

We hope this email finds you, your family and friends well. We would like to start by thanking you so much for your continued support, it really does bring a smile to our faces when we receive feedback from you. I've no doubt that both we and the entire fly fishing community will face many challenges over the coming weeks and months. It seems we are pretty fortunate in that our business is 100% online, and subject to any movement restrictions or government guidance, we will still be accepting orders (even though fly fishing is probably the last thing on anyone's mind right now) - please be aware that deliveries may take longer at this time. For anyone who is self-isolating, we are really proud to support our friends Oscar & Nell over at Bear Fly Fishing with their Bear Share initiative. If you've not already heard about it, here's the low down: Bear Fly Fishing are offering you a way to stay connected and part of the wider angling community whilst potentially being isolated or practising social distancing. They will connect you with another angler to form a penpal like relationship. They will try and connect you with someone in your area so you can fish together once this mayhem is over. You can exchange tips and tricks, teach each other different fly patterns, share exciting places to fish or provide a friendly ear for others' worries. It could also be a great way for people looking to learn to fish to connect with someone willing to teach them, even if it is virtually. Bear Share is a way to come together to support each other in this time of uncertainty. Allowing us to bring some fishing into our lives even at home and continuing to learn from one another. If Bear Share isn’t for you then please share it with someone who it might benefit, we would love to connect older anglers who can’t get outside right now with a younger angler that they can impart their wisdom to. So if you know anyone then please forward this and let them know. To sign up just follow this link and fill out a simple form.

Casting - Italian Style

For so many of us dry fly fishing represents the pinnacle of the sport. Successful dry fly fishing in rivers requires a combination of 3 elements:- river craft, fly presentation, and the fly itself. The first skill includes knowing the likely places where fish may lie, and to read the major and local micro-currents in the water flow.

Magnet-ique Launch

Over the past 12 months we have been working on a secret project which has just come to fruition this month. We have formed a sister company in partnership with a talented fly angler and designer (Darrell Upton).

Tackling up for Carp on the Fly

Expert "Carp Champions" Fly angler Jamie Sandford, give us a quick run down of what gear we will need when we want to target Carp on the fly.

The Scottish Fly Fair 2018 Roundup

This year was the first year of The Scottish Fly Fair and here at Barbless Flies, we got the chance to take part as one of the Exhibitors at the event. The fly fishing fair had a fantastic atmosphere and it boasted some of the best tackle producers, fly tying brands, and fishing outfitters out there. There were some great casting demonstrations as well, all that and all under one roof. Did you have chance to catch us and have a chat about our barbless fishing flies?

BFFI (British Fly Fair International) 2018 Roundup

Did you attend this year’s BFFI (British Fly Fair International) exhibition? Thinking about attending next year’s show already? Whether you’re a business within the fly fishing and fly tying industry or you’re passionate about fly fishing in your spare time, you’re probably already aware of the BFFI fly fair. Barbless Flies were at this year’s show and we absolutely loved it! So we thought we’d create a roundup of what all the other exhibitors thought of the show as well.

Grayling Fishing - The Basics

The Grayling - the most wonderful of game fish, well that's my thoughts on them. I love fishing for Grayling and really look forward to the close season for Brown Trout and the anticipation of hunting for Grayling in the colder weather. So where do we start with this?

Mini Tungsten Nymphs

Mini Tungsten Nymphs Sometimes when you are grayling fishing, you need to present a small fly at depth, that's where these mini tungsten nymphs come into their own. With their small size (only 7mm long) and slim profiles, these nymphs will sink quickly. Our Mini Tungsten nymphs are tied on size 20 barbless hooks (even though these are size 20 hooks, 6x tippet - 0.13mm will still go through the eye quite easily). At this time of year, when the grayling are still fairly spread out and are not nailed to the river bed, these flies are deadly, even on pressured water. Try suspending one of these as a part of a Duo setup, French Nymphing on a long leader or short line Czech Nymphing on a dropper. We have put this selection together specifically with this time of year and grayling in mind, we present a selection of 8 Mini Tungsten Nymphs, four different patterns, two each of size 20 for £16. We are not offering these as individual flies as we only have 15 selections in stock (they are so fiddly and time-consuming to tie) so you will have to be quick!

Czech Nymphing for Grayling

Czech Nymphing for Grayling Czech Nymph fishing is a style of nymph fishing practised by keeping in close contact with the flies at close range, generally in faster riffles (so you can get closer to the fish) just under the rod tip. In most cases there is no fly line outside of the reel and a Czech Indicator/8m Leader is used. This gives you an enhanced feel for the flies as they are drifting along the river bed. Czech Nymphs are weighted flies tied on grub hooks to imitate fresh water shrimps/scuds. Typical characteristics of a Czech nymph fly are the slim profile (to allow it to sink quickly), a back covered with latex and a mono rib. As luck would have it - we've got you covered where Czech Nymphing for Grayling is concerned, with our NEW Czech Nymph Selection. We have put together a selection of 24 Czech Nymphs, eight different patterns in two different styles. We are offering these selections for £30 and only have 25 in stock - so you will have to be quick! Our Czech Nymph selection is made up of 2 distinct type of flies Heavy Ceramics: Use these on the point of a 2 fly setup, to get your rig down quickly. Czech Nymphs: Use on a 6" dropper (about 12" above the point fly). How to fish our Czech Nymph Selection Using a specialist Czech Leader (or a short indicator) tie a length of tippet roughly equivalent to the depth of the water you will be fishing. To this add a short section (about 12" long) tied with a 3-turn water knot, use this to create a 6" dropper (shorter droppers don't tangle as much). To the point, tie in one of the heavy ceramic flies, and to the dropper use one of the Czech Nymphs. Cast/Lob the flies upstream and track them back to you, keeping the rod tip just ahead of the flies. Stop the rod tip just in front of you and let the flies drift downstream, feeling for takes all the time. Using this method, Grayling are know to take the fly as it rises through the water column (known as the "induced take").

Mini Streamers - Bigger Fish?

Mini Streamers A streamer is a lure which usually represents a minnow/fry, which are present in both rivers and stillwaters from July/August onward. They particularly come into their own for rivers in September, and for stillwaters from September to December. To a trout, these patterns seem very much alive when any action is imparted to them - therefore these are fished quite actively (try twitching them down and across through any deep holes!). These Streamers are tied to represent small fry. They are tied sparsely and measure only 3.5 cm in length, so accurately mimic the size and form of minnows/fry. Another advantage to these streamers (with their small profile and light weight) is that they can be fished on lighter rods (2# to 4#) - no need to take 2 rods to the river when fishing light. How to fish them High Water - When the rivers are running higher than normal or coloured, try running a streamer through the back eddies. Keep out of the main flow, and think like a minnow! Also try dead drifting the streamer downstream, then retrieve it back (across the flow) with the odd twitch. Low Light Conditions - With trout feeding more confidently in low light conditions, try a streamer after the evening rise has finished. You will be surprised and what you can catch (even in just a few inches of water). Concentrate on fishing the tails of pools and shallower riffles. It's also worthwhile pulling a streamer through any flat water just as nightfall starts, again, trout feed more confidently after dusk. These flies are only available individually in sizes 10 & 12 (at £2.50 each). Click on the buttons below to view more details on our Mini Streamers. Link to both streamers are below: Mini Streamer - Pink Mini Streamer - Silver Go on you know you want to!

Innovative Scuds

The Bacchus Bug Selection

Barbless. Clothing