2wheels1rod

Foam Klinks & Micro Dries - It's time for the Summer flies

As I'm sure you are well aware, it's forecast to be been pretty warm over the next week or so. For this reason, it's best to time your visits to the water appropriately. When you do venture out, it will increase your success massively if you time it right - either fish very early in the morning (using caddis imitations), or late in the evening - one hour either side of dusk (to catch any evening rise). The smaller, more imitative, flies are much more successful throughout late July and August, of course, you also need the right approach and a little bit of watercraft to make the most of your time on the water - take a look at the end of this email for some great summer river and stillwater watercraft tips. Small flies are king throughout late July and August, but you also need the best flies for the conditions - small & imitative - but crucially, ones you can also see. In this email we are releasing our NEW Foam Post Klinkhamers: We've all been there - you're fishing on an evening in low light and you need something which you can see, but more importantly, will still catch! One of the great difficulties in fishing smaller dry flies is the ability to quickly spot where your fly actually is, with our NEW Foam Post Klinkhamer Selection of flies you will have no problem seeing them (the white foam posts show up extremely well against virtually any background). You will not miss a take with these - The new Foam Post Klinkhamer Selection saves your eyesight! All of these flies have been chosen for both their blank saving and high visibility. You will not miss a take with these - A selection of 16 flies to save your eyesight! All of these flies have been chosen for both their blank saving and high visibility in all conditions. We've all been there; you're fishing on an evening in low light and you need something which will still catch, but importantly - you need to be able to see it! One of the great difficulties in fishing smaller flies is the ability to quickly spot where your fly actually is, with this selection you will have no problem seeing them (even though they are only small). The klinkhammer fly was invented by Hans van Klinken - a Dutch angler and fly tyer. The klinkhamer is celebrating its 40 year anniversary this year. It was devised as a solution to imitating either an emerging fly or one trapped in the meniscus and are a great general imitation of the smaller flies which appear on the water in summer. They are especially good because of the profile they exhibit when on the water, with the hackle suspending the fly at the perfect angle. The foam posts are also good for keeping the fly afloat in the more turbulent water - and enabling you to quickly see where the fly actually is! Here's a rundown of the flies included in our NEW Foam Post Klinkhamer Selection: Adams Foam Post Klink - An Adams version of the popular klinkhamer style fly. These have been tied with a white high-density foam post that has exceptional buoyancy and is highly visible - even in the smallest sizes. Our selection contains 2 each of sizes 14 & 18. Black Foam Post Klink - A Black version of the popular klinkhamer style fly. These have been tied with a white high-density foam post that has exceptional buoyancy and is highly visible - even in the smallest sizes. Our selection contains 2 each of sizes 14 & 18. Hares Ear Foam Post Klink - A Hares Ear bodied version of the popular klinkhamer style fly. These have been tied with a white high-density foam post that has exceptional buoyancy and is highly visible - even in the smallest sizes. Our selection contains 2 each of sizes 14 & 18. Olive Foam Post Klink - An Olive version of the popular klinkhamer style fly. These have been tied with a white high-density foam post that has exceptional buoyancy and is highly visible - even in the smallest sizes. Our selection contains 2 each of sizes 14 & 18. Ok, you've sold me on them, "What's the price?" I hear you ask - we are making our NEW Foam Post Klinkhamer Selection of flies available to you for only £20, including free delivery to anywhere within the UK. (for more detailed images please visit our website by clicking on any images or buttons above) Go on ... you know you want to! As always, all of our fly selections are delivered free of charge, anywhere within the UK. Fishing in the summertime heat can be very challenging. Here are a few tips to help you get the most from your warm weather fly fishing trips Arrive Early - Arriving at the water as early as possible is a great way to avoid high water temperatures. The ideal water temperatures that trout thrive in are anywhere from 45 to 65 degrees Fahrenheit. Temperatures above 65 degrees result in stressed fish. Getting on the water early also increases your chances of having the water to yourself. Look for cover. - During the day fish will always head for cover, this means you will need to fish tight to the banks and under any overhanging vegetation. This is where the "Bow and Arrow" and "Under The Tip" casts come to the fore. Always Have a Plan B - Think about streamers. Should you arrive at the water and it looks devoid of fish, try running a small streamer (or Stalking Bug) through any of the deeper pools or drop-offs. Listen For Fast Water - When we become warm we turn on a fan to cool down. When fish sense warmer water temperatures they head for fast-moving currents, the faster more oxygenated water running through their gills effectively cools them down. I always head for water that I can hear running - try it, you will not be disappointed. In Stillwaters, Go Deep - Fish look for cooler waters in the deep when the top waters start to warm up. Use deep-diving nymphs and worm patterns to scour ledges or drop-offs in the lake. Water temperatures can change by as much as 10 degrees for every 10 feet of depth. Finally, Take Care Of Yourself - When you're fishing in hot weather, you need to make sure you stay hydrated. If possible, avoid caffeinated or alcoholic drinks - these can dehydrate you very quickly. Stick to water or a drink with added electrolytes to stay in good shape. If you do fish in the warmest part of the day remember to protect your head and neck from the sun with suncream and use proper fishing clothing that blocks UV rays. Tight lines & keep cool.

Successful Summer Flies - Inspired By Our Friends Across The Pond

With the weather starting to be a little more settled across the country, fishing both in Rivers and on Stillwaters will start to really pick up. In today's email i'm going to concentrate on some staple patterns which all fly anglers should at least consider - It just so happen that all of the patterns have their origins in the U S of A. To help you get the most from fishing in the coming week(s), we've split this email into three separate sections: Section 1 - River Flies - Adams & Wulffs Section 2 - Stillwater Flies - Muddlers & Montanas Section 3 - Summer Dry Fly Fishing Tips for Rivers & Stillwaters there's a great chance that the dry fly action will really start in earnest later this week. Especially with the Iron Blue hatch just on the horizon - but more about those at the weekend. TL;DR - Too Long; Didn't Read I know that some of you are pressed for time and save our emails to read later in the day, by this time our selections are sometimes sold out (I get lots of emails from customers pointing this out to me). I've put this section at the beginning, so you can grab your flies now - and save reading my musings for later, safe in the knowledge that you have already secured your fly selections. This email is all about patterns which should be every fly anglers boxes - all have their origins from the USA. USA Inspired River Fly Selections: At the very end of this email we've also got some great tips to enhance your Dry Fly game this summer. Section 1 River Flies - The Adams The Adams - Originally tied, in 1922, by Leonard Halladay and named after his good friend Charles Adams. The image below is taken from a fantastic book called, Tying Catskill-Style Dry Flies by Mike Valla, where there is a whole chapter dedicated to the Adams - if you are into rolling your own flies, this book is a worthy investment - here at Barbless Flies we take lots of inspiration from it. No one is really sure which insects the Adams imitate - a good guess would be an olive, but they really do work well, as such, the Adams is a fly which should be in all angler fly box. Generally tied in two different styles, original and parachute versions: Original - With a hackle running a third of the way down the hook shank. Parachute - With the hackle tied horizontally around a sighting post The way in which both of these variants are tied ensures the fly floats high on the surface - and stays there with only a little floatant added! *** The Adams fly is one that should be in all river anglers fly boxes *** River Flies - The Wulff The UPDATED Barbless Wulff Selection, during the tail end of the Mayfly hatch and the start of the summer hatches, the Wulff series of flies are the first thing I tie on, they are great searching patterns and are good representations of the major up-winged flies found on the river at these times. Here we have a selection of 16 Wulffs four different patterns (to cover the major river types/colours in the UK) in two different sizes (12 & 16). The Wulff dry fly was first tied by Lee Wulff, and with its bushy hackle is a great fly for those riffles which would sink a more delicate fly. Fish these flies as a standard dry, but don't be afraid to also fish these when they are wet - they are surprisingly successful when fished in the surface film! The Wulff flies come into their own in an afternoon through to late evenings. When searching the river with a Wulff, try this technique: From the bank, section the river into lanes about 3ft wide. Cast upstream and make 3 or 4 drifts in the nearest lane, repeat for each lane, working away from you. Step upstream and repeat the process. More details (and close-up images of each fly) can be found on the product page - just click on any image or button above to view the selection details. Our Adams and Wulff selections is available again, each as a selection of 16 flies (4 different patterns - see above, 2 each of each size). We are supplying each of these selections for only £20 - which includes FREE delivery to anywhere within the UK. All are supplied in our eco-friendly packaging. Just click on any image or button in this email to view the flies in more detail. Adams Selection £20.00 Wulff Selection £20.00 *** Just a gentle reminder that all our products are shipped FREE OF CHARGE to anywhere within the UK *** Section 2 Stillwater Flies - The Mini Muddler The Muddler Minnow was invented by Don Gapen of Minnesota, in 1937, to imitate the sculpin. The Muddler, as it is informally known by anglers, was popularised by Montana fisherman and fly tier Dan Bailey. It is now a popular pattern worldwide with the flies distinguished by their clipped deer hair heads. Effective retrieval tactics for the Mini Muddler include stripping the floating Muddler across the water surface rhythmically, imparting a "wake", or allowing the Muddler to sink and twitching or pulsating it against or across any current. An unweighted Muddler will float and appears as a moth or struggling crane fly. With a tiny piece of split shot in front of it (or an intermediate flyline) the Muddler can be made to swim slowly over weedbeds and shallow gravel bars. With more weight, the Muddler can be stripped wildly in the shallows to imitate a small fish or fry. Stillwater Flies - The Montana The original Montana fly variant was tied by Lew Oatman from New York. It was tied to give a general impression of a range of large stonefly nymphs. We have a selection of barbless Montanas, especially tied for year-round Stillwater fishing, ideally targeting rainbow trout, but fished deep in the summer months and you are equally as likely to pick up the odd brown trout. Fishing Muddler and Montana style patterns is all about the retrieve, effective retrieval tactics include: An unweighted Muddler or Montana will float and appears as a Hopper/Daddy Long Legs. Stripping the floating Muddler across the water surface rhythmically, imparting a "wake" will induce a take Allowing the Muddler or Montana to sink just under the surface and twitching or pulsating it against or across any current - especially near any water aerators or inlets. With a tiny piece of weight added in front of the fly (or an intermediate fly line or sinking tapered leader) the Muddler and Montana can be made to swim slowly over weed beds and shallow gravel bars With more weight, the Muddler or Montana can be stripped quickly in the shallows to imitate and alarmed fry Allowed to settle in deeper water the Muddler or Montana may be fished right on the bottom. When fishing on the bottom they must be fished slowly, with occasional fast strips of maybe a foot or two, as if trying to escape a predator. More details (and close-up images of each fly) can be found on the product page - just click on any image or button above to view the selection details. Our Mini-Muddler and Montana Selections are available again, each as a selection of 16 flies (4 different patterns - see above, 2 each of each size). We are supplying each of these selections for only £20 - which includes FREE delivery to anywhere within the UK. All are supplied in our eco-friendly packaging. Just click on any image or button in this email to view the flies in more detail. Mini Muddler Selection £20.00 Montana Selection £20.00 *** Just a gentle reminder that all our products are shipped FREE OF CHARGE to anywhere within the UK *** Section 3 - Top Dry Fly Tips When thinking about dry fly leaders, material choice is a subject in itself, here are a few pointers to get you started: Nylon/Copolymer: Generally more cost effective and slightly thicker than Fluorocarbon. Fluorocarbon: Denser than water so will sink, great when covering very spooky fish. Use whichever material you have confidence in, this is the weak point in any setup, confidence in knot strength is everything! Leader Material Sizes: The X system marked on spools of tippet determines the diameter of the tippet (the bigger the X number, the thinner the tippet): Leader Length If the water is small or rough, use a leader which is roughly the length of the rod. If the water is calm, extend the leader to between 11' and 15', then add 2' to 4' of tippet. Just remember: "the calmer the water, the spookier the fish,the smaller the fly, the longer and finer tippet you need.” To enable your dry fly to turn over correctly (which is our main aim), your tippet should always be balanced to the size of your fly: Leader Recipes In this section, I will give you some leader designs for different length leaders. Using all of the above information you can define which length leader you need, use these designs as a starting point. All of these leader designs end with 6X and are designed for rods from 2 weight to 5 weight - happy tying: Tight lines.

Something Very French & Very Caddisy

Les Trois Caddis Colorés Here at Barbless Flies, May, June & July are by far and away our busiest months, you will often find both Jack and I burning the midnight oil at least 6 days a week: getting all of your orders out in a timely fashion, working on new fly patterns whilst also continuing to write books/articles and emails. I often find that by the end of the day, I am completely exhausted (both mentally and physically), so I don't often fish in the evenings - I prefer to sit quietly with a good fishing book and a glass of something Scottish! During these three months, I try to plan my fishing trips accordingly, and fish very early in the morning - I have to drive alongside the river on my way into Barbless Flies HQ, so it would be rude not to stop for a cast or two (or three) while the mornings are still so light. At this time of the day, one of the most popular dry fly imitations I use (outside of the Mayfly hatch) is the humble Caddis/Sedge pattern - these are nocturnal insects that return to the water to lay their eggs, just as I'm arriving on the river. The Tri-Colour Caddis There are many different variations of Caddis/Sedge fly, but today I have one of the very best all-purpose Caddis/Sedge patterns available. It was originally devised in France to fish on the faster more riffly water - it floats high on virtually all types of water and will fool fish throughout the UK, no matter which river (or stillwater) you are on! It's called the Tri-Colour (Tricolores) Caddis ... The Tricolores is a French palmered fly pattern used to entice both Trout and Grayling. A palmered hackle is one which starts at the bend of the hook and runs the full length of the hook shank, finishing at the eye. This style of tying is most commonly found in the Griffith's Gnat and makes the fly ride high on the water and less prone to sinking. The original fly pattern recipe suggests it is a 'bug' with a graduated dark hackle (which is extremely difficult to find). However, more modern interpretations of the pattern usually use the three colours (White, Brown & Black). It's not unusual, in the more rural parts of France, for this pattern to be tied in White, Olive & Lime to imitate the vivid green upwinged flies they see during the summer months. We've only got 40 of these Tri-Colour Caddis Selections available - I'm keeping a few back for myself, to use over the next 6 weeks or so! Our Tri-Colour Caddis Selection contains 3 each of sizes 12, 14 & 16. That's nine flies in total, for only £12.00 delivered free of charge to anywhere in the UK. Keep reading for more info on the Caddis/Sedge - you'll be glad you did ... Please Remember: We've only 40 of these selections available, so if you want a set, you will need to be quick - These flies can also be bought individually here if you would like to top up your selection! Go on, treat yourself - you know you want to - at only £12 for the selection, these will not hang around for long! Want to know a little more about the Caddis/Sedge? What is it? There are around 30 distinct Caddis/Sedge species found throughout the UK, Europe and Russia. These Caddis flies are known as "humpless case-maker Caddis flies". These flies are easily identified as they will generally be the only fly on the water flying as if it is drunk (i.e. very haphazardly). Please Note: You will often see these flies referred to as either Caddis or Sedge; they are both the same and are interchangeable as far as the fly angler is concerned. Location(s) They are found in every part of the British Isles. They can be especially prolific in Central, Southern and South West England; in Wales and Northern England (Ribble and Eden), and in parts of Scotland. Most Caddis flies are only found in running water, they prefer gently running water, so you do not usually find them hatching in very high and fast-flowing rivers. The various caddis flies usually start hatching at the beginning of April and will continue through right until the end of September. When do trout take them? Trout will take Caddis in any one of its three stages (nymph, emerger and dry). Caddis will generally hatch during the warmest part of the day (anytime between 11am and 3pm), so this is when to try an emerger pattern. Caddis usually hatch from shallower water and don't give the trout much of a chance to intercept them on their way to the surface. The best time to use a caddis imitation is either in the evening or in the early mornings when the adult females return to the water to deposit their eggs - time to give your new Tri-Colour Caddis flies a try. These flies should be fished as you would any other dry fly, and they should be used as soon as you start to see the insects on the water; this can be anytime from about 18:00 until after dark and very early in the morning. Caddis - Top Tips Caddis (or Sedge) flies are best used in either the early or late part of the day, as this is when the flies are at their most active. These Caddis flies are deadly in the smaller sizes just at twilight! When fishing with a Caddis fly, it's always worth giving it a little twitch every now and then if you are not getting attention from the fish. When you watch the naturals, their flight is very haphazard and they always land on the water with quite a commotion - they are not the daintiest of movers! Keep this in mind when covering rising fish. Tight lines & have a great weekend.

The 'little devils' of the Stillwater Scene

Diawl Bachs & Crunchers July is not usually one of the prime months for fishing stillwaters, due to the lower oxygen levels within the water - however, with the recent (and forecast) weather it is looking like it's going to be the perfect month for fishing! Usually at this time of year the best tactic to use is the imitative approach - that's why both Diawl Bachs and Crunchers are some of the most popular flies to try in July and we've finally got two of our most popular Stillwater selections back in stock again. Both our Diawl Bach & Cruncher Selections are tied on size 12 and 16 barbless hooks with slender bodies. These are favourites on the stillwaters, fished as part of a team of flies drawn slowly on a floating line with a long leader. A very effective method to fish these is to let the wind push the fly line around and look for a twitch in the line as an indication that a fish has taken the fly. They can also be very effective during a midge (chironomid) hatch, and the holo versions are worth using to imitate pin fry. We've also included a really nice piece on how to effectively fish Diawl Bachs and Crunchers towards the end of this email - and we've added a Stillwater Hatch Card for July - aren't we good to you! Now to the offer: Buy 2 of either the Diawl Bach or Cruncher Selections (1 of each or 2 of either), and these will automatically be given a 15% discount in your cart (no discount codes required), this offer is only open until midnight on Sunday (7th July) - that brings the price for each of these down to only £15.30 for 16 flies. Diawl Bachs - Here we have a selection of 16 diawl bach's four different patterns in two different sizes (12 & 16). These are a favourite on the stillwaters, fished as one of a team of three flies drawn slowly on a floating line with a long leader. Crunchers - A generic all-around pattern for use with Stillwater trout. This fly can represent Olive nymphs or Corixa and can be used at any position on your leader (both as a dropper or the point fly). They can also be deadly fished under/behind a blob or booby pattern. Use the holographic versions for rainbows, the darker colours have also proved good brown trout catchers. Remember, all you have to do is buy 2 of either the Diawl Bach Selection or Cruncher Selection (1 of each or 2 of either), and these will automatically be given a 15% discount in your cart (no discount codes are required), this offer is open until midnight on Sunday (7th July). Go on, you know you want to! Love Fishing Stillwaters? You're Going To Need One Of These ... WOW, thank you so much to all of you who grabbed one our our 'fresh off the press' Stillwater Anglers Almanacs - we've just had to re-order them! We've only 45 left of the first editions - with more due with us early next week. Grab yours now from only £5.99 for the digital edition and £12.99 for the paperback. Please Note: Leather editions will be with us again in around 4 weeks, they all sold within minutes! If you would like to reserve one, just reply to this email and I will set one aside for you and be in contact when they arrive with us. Even though we only published them last week, they're already getting some great reviews ... How To Fish Diawl Bachs & Crunchers Diawl Bachs (welsh for 'little devil') and Crunchers are very similar styles of fly patterns and are fished in exactly the same way. They imitate a host of underwater nymphs/pupa but are most commonly used as buzzer imitations. Where To Fish Them? This style of slim, imitative fly is most successful in the late Spring when fished in the top third of the water column (usually only a couple of feet below the surface). These flies can be fished on a variety of methods: Part of a team of nymphs - straight line nymphing is a great technique to use on stillwaters The Washing Line technique - close to the surface Behind a lure on a deep sinking line - the fish are attracted by the lure on the top dropper but offering them a more natural imitation close by usually takes the fish. How To Fish Them? Just like you would a buzzer: When it's Still - Use a floating line, long leader and a team of three. Cast out, and before the flies start to sink, pull the line to straighten out the leader. Then pause (keeping in touch with the flies) and wait for the flies to drop, takes usually come with the flies on the drop. You should spot a take before you feel it, keep an eye on the fly line and leader for any abnormal movement. If the flies hit the bottom, just a few pulls on the fly line should bring them back to the surface, and you can start again by letting them sink. When it's Windy - Still use a floating line, but this time use a shorted leader. Check the direction of the wind and cast out across the wind (i.e. the wind is side-on to you) - always make sure the wind is to your left shoulder if you are right-handed (and the right shoulder if you are left-handed). Again, using a team of three, cast out and allow the flies to drift with the wind. You should not need to retrieve your line, just keep in touch with it, as the wind will make sure your leader straightens up. Again, you will usually see the take before you feel it - just remember to strike in the opposite direction to the direction your flies are moving. Once the flies have drifted as far as you think possible, lift the flies slowly from the water, it's surprising how many fish take your nymphs as you're about to re-cast!. Here's a quick reminder of what you should expect to find hatching this month on your Stillwater: Tight lines & have fun

Fly fishing is food for your soul - feed it with glass

I don't know about you, but my time on the water is precious - what with running Barbless Flies and family commitments I find it all too difficult to get any 'me time' on the water, especially at this time of year when we are at our busiest. This is why I want to have the best experience when I do find the time to get out. During the recent D-Day commemorations, I saw the following quote, which struck a chord with me on a recent trip to the water: Our local rivers are starting to get very overgrown at the minute - it must be all this recent wet weather - but it is creating perfect hiding places for our local wild trout population! My rod of choice at this time of year (and all through the summer) is something Glass, a good friend describes them as being: "Made from rolled soul" If I want to have a couple of hours on the water I want to use something which gives me joy just to cast it - Glass rods really are the essence and soul of fly fishing for me. If you have been a member of our email community for any length of time, you will be well aware of the high regard in which I hold Glass rods - especially when fishing in the summer, with its associated low water levels, flows and ultra-cautious fish. Whilst at the British Fly Fair earlier this year, I struck up a conversation with one of the guys on the Orvis stand (James), which eventually saw me being the owner of one of their new Helios rods, the discussion eventually led to the subject of Glass rods - specifically their Superfine Glass range which they had on display. After a quick look and waggle (as you do), in the hand it felt just like a regular carbon rod but had the action and associated presentation delicacy of Glass - something which I've not found in any other Glass rods which I own - something very difficult to achieve. On further discussion with James, it transpires that it is one of the only rods still made in their rod shop in Vermont, USA. I was intrigued by this rod, as it seemed to occupy that sweet spot of a rod which is easy to cast for anyone who is used to swinging some carbon, but has the feel and presentation of a high-end Glass rod! It was a comment which James made towards the end of our discussion which really stuck in my mind: "Orvis don't make Glass rods because they have to, they make them because they should!" For me, that is the attitude and outlook I love to hear and one which we try to adhere to here at Barbless Flies - we do things because we should do them. I do realise that as far as fly fishing goes, I am in a very privileged position - being a (very minor) part of the industry - I know that large manufacturers have rods available for demonstration purposes, so I chanced my arm and called James last month to see if there was any chance I could get hold of a Superfine Glass to have a play with on my local river Derwent this summer. A couple of weeks later a rod-shaped parcel arrived which had Orvis emblazoned on the side - it was like Christmas morning all over again. The rod hardly had a chance to touch the ground before it was in the back of the truck and all strung up - with my usual Cortland Sylk Double Taper fly line - on the banks of the Derwent. Safe to say, it was as good as I was hoping it would be - I just love the way it casts, you can feel the rod loading, even on very short casts, making the timing easy and a delight to fish with. It was at this moment when the quote above came to mind - it was the day I realised why I go fishing, I'd just fed my soul! Please Note: I didn't catch anything, the river was too high and coloured, so I cannot attest to its fish-playing feel. I did catch a few overhanging branches though which put up a bit of a struggle! Don't tell Orvis, but I'm not sending this back to them until the summer is over! To be 100% honest, there is one thing which I didn't like about the rod - it doesn't have a hook keeper ring, what is it with rod manufacturers not using them anymore? I already knew that fibreglass was the perfect material to build fly rods from - especially if you are looking for one which gives you immense pleasure just when casting it. This Superfine Glass is perfectly suited for long lazy casting strokes, presenting dry flies like thistledown for any unsuspecting fish to intercept on a summer's evening rise. Don't just take my word for it though, the guys over at Trident Fly Fishing in the USA have recorded a video review of the Superfine Glass, you can take a look here: I spoke with James again last week in the hope of putting something together to show off the best of both Orvis and ourselves - to my delight, both he and the powers that be at Orvis agreed. So, we have a really special deal available for you today (and until midnight tomorrow - 28th June). SPECIAL OFFER - ENDS AT MIDNIGHT TOMORROW Use any of the buttons or links below to buy a Superfine Glass rod through Orvis's website, enter the code BARBLESSFLIES at the checkout, and you will also receive a special "Delicate Presentation Pack" which we have specifically selected to compliment your new rod. Our Delicate Presentation Pack includes: A Luke Bannister Ultralight Silk Furled Leader - worth £9.00 A spool of Orvis Superstrong Plus 6X tippet - ideal for those smaller flies and delicate presentations - worth £6.25 A tin of our Rubber Duck floatant gel - worth £5.99 24 of our Artisan Olive Imitations, specifically selected for matching the full hatch lifecycle in the summer months (sizes 14 to 18) - worth £46.80 - see below; and A pin-on fly patch to handily store all your flies - worth £8.99 A total value of £77.03 Remember, these rods are perfectly set up for fishing with light tippets and small flies. The design of the rods taper protects really delicate tippets, it's easy to land bigger fish on incredibly light tippet! I believe these Superfine Glass rods are the very best you can buy on the market today, as such, they are not at the cheaper end of the scale! They cost £579 and are available in the perfect weights for our rivers here in the UK, 2wt to 4wt and above. *** These rods are in high demand, so you may need to be quick as I do know they are in short supply within the UK *** Please Note: If you have any difficulty when ordering your Glass rod, please contact Orvis directly (Email: customerservice@orvis.co.uk or Tel: 0333 400 4188) and they will be able to help you out - they're good like that! The full Orvis Superfine Glass range of fly rods can be found by clicking the button below: Whether you’re fishing small streams for wild browns, throwing big dries for stocked rainbows, or chasing stillwater monsters at your local - the Orvis Superfine Glass will feed your soul. Tight lines, and remember to feed your soul every so often this summer!

Summer Fly Fishing Fun - How To Tackle It

Small Fly Strategies (and a box designed to hold them) Now that the summer seems to be finally arriving, I wanted to try and get us ready for the more challenging part of the season. This part of the season usually sees the fish quite languid. In this missive, I'm going to give you what is, hopefully, a good grounding on how to approach these conditions, and that is by using - smaller flies. Also, we have a superb selection and fly box, ideal for smaller flies. P.S. This email is going to be quite long, so you might want to grab a brew before you start reading! I've no doubt that we've all seen swarms of midges above the surface of the water - especially when there are sunlit pools. Low water levels and spooky fish means utilising the smaller flies in our boxes. Some rivers are not as full of nutrients as others, it’s these rivers which tend to fish better using smaller flies, due in part to the fact the river cannot sustain the production of the larger species. In these rivers trout can still flourish, they just alter the way they feed. Instead of selectively taking insects as and when they please (as insects are in abundance on the more nutrient-rich rivers), the trout in less rich rivers are opportunistic feeders. This is where the small, imitative fly is king. In essence: small flies = light tippet = longer leaders = softer rods The remainder of this email will take the above and hopefully shed a little light on each. Small Flies When you encounter low water it's time to turn to the smaller flies in your box - when I say small, I am referring to flies which are size 18 and smaller. It is the one piece of tackle that the fish sees and makes their decision on to eat or not. The most important part of a fly is without doubt the hook, even more so when we are using very small hooks. It is important when choosing small flies to look at the gape of the hook (i.e., the distance between the hook point and the body of the hook), make sure that the tied fly still has plenty of room between the body and the hook point, if there is hardly any room between the body of the fly and the point it will make it very difficult to hook a fish. Generally, the hooks which are sized at 18 and smaller all are ‘wide gape’. Often, the reason small flies are dismissed by anglers is that they have trouble seeing them, there are a few remedies for this: Pre-Tie Your Flies: Tie up some short leader lengths at home with the small flies already attached. This way it's easy to attach them when on the water, rather than fiddling around trying to tie them on in dwindling light. Make An Educated Guess: For most dry fly angling it is not a necessity to actually see the fly, generally you will have a rough idea of where the fly is, if you see a rise, just lift into it – 9 times out of 10 it will be to your fly! Use An Indicator: If you do want to know where your fly is, either use a small fly with a hi-vis sighter post, or use the ‘Double Dry’ technique, where you use a visible dry fly and then tie a smaller dry fly from the eye of the hook on a long dropper – just like the klink n dink method, but using 2 dry flies. Having a selection of small flies (both nymphs and dries) is essential when fishing through August and into early September. It just so happens that we have you covered with something new to us - a fly box which is ideal for storing small flies and a selection of small (but perfectly formed) flies for you to fill it with: Our Pescador Small Fly Selection includes the stunning Tacky Pescador MagPad fly box - ideally suited for fishing small & micro flies as it contains a separate magnetic pad to store all those micro flies where they are easy to access. As well as the Pescador Magpad box, we've also plundered our smallest flies and put them together in a set, specifically designed for fishing on those more challenging summer days. Our Selection includes the Tacky Pescador Magnetic fly box and 20 small flies, perfect for summer fishing: The "No See Um": Sizes 18 and 24 - 4 of each Agapetus: Sizes 20 and 24 - 2 of each Driffield Dun: Size 18 - 2 of each CdC March Brown: Size 18 - 3 of each March Brown Dry: Size 18 - 3 of each In total we're supplying 20 small and micro flies with the Tacky Pescador Magpad (small) fly box for only £48.99 which includes FREE delivery - that's roughly a 25% discount on buying them all individually. Alternatively, if you would just like just the set of flies on their own - we've got you covered, as we are making these available to you for only £24.00 for the selection of 20 small and micro patterns: Or, if you just like the look of the box, we have them in stock, they are available for £29.99 - click here to view the Tacky Pescador Magpad (small) fly box. The King of Small Flies The "No See Um" This pattern comes to you directly from the USA (originally devised by Phil Bair), where they are the 'go-to' fly when you need something 'small and black'. These stunning Micro Dry Flies are exquisite and so nicely tied they are amazing. Try drifting one under a swarm of midges! To give you an idea of their size, here are five of the size 24's - on a 5p piece for reference: We've included the "No See Um" patterns in the above Pescador Small Fly Selection, if you like the look of them you can also buy them individually (in either size 18 or 24) for only £1.75 each, as a pack of 6 for £8.75 or as a pack of 12 for only £15.00. Ok, so you've got the flies and the box, but what next ... Longer Leaders If you have already downloaded our copy of the Small Fly Manifesto, then you will have seen the leader recipes for various long & light setups to tie yourself. Here's the best one for fishing really small flies: To the 6X at the end of the above, just add in a few feet of the 7X or 8X tippet and you're good to go. However you decide to create your leader, the one thing above anything else which will increase your catch rate is the length! When fishing small flies, on low rivers you need to make your leader as long as you can possibly get away with. This is what has given rise to the new style Front-Heavy Tapered leaders in the longer lengths – 11ft to 16ft. It is not uncommon for hardly any fly line to be outside of the rod tip and just the leader is cast. TOP TIP: When trying to thread your tippet to a small fly, try cutting the tippet at a 45-degree angle, it makes it much easier to get the tippet through the eye of the hook. Softer Actioned Rods When fishing with light tippet, you need a rod which has a much softer action than your regular carbon rod, this is how you can land much bigger fish on really light tippet. You need to ensure that your whole system - fly, tippet, line & rod - work in harmony. Just try landing a small fish on a fast-actioned carbon rod with a thin tippet (anything smaller than 7X) and you will appreciate the finesse of a softer actioned rod. You need a rod which will cushion every movement of the fish and protect your light tippet. This is where glass rods come into their own, especially on the small to medium-sized rivers where you are not casting to the horizon. Get out there and have some fun with small flies.

Launching Today - NEW for ALL Stillwater Fly Anglers in the UK

If you're into fishing Stillwaters - you're going to love this! Building on our previous Stillwater Almanac we are proud to release our new & updated version. We've taken on board feedback from previous issues of our Almamancs - the main negative being that the book was too big to carry around with you. One other issue we found was that we were essentially writing a variation on the same theme each year - as weather conditions and insect hatches don't alter much from year to year. So, for this year we have made two very important changes: We've made it physically smaller - it is A6 (4.1" x 5.8") rather than A5. We've kept the font sizes the same and doubled the number of pages! It now fits nicely in your pocket or glovebox. We've made the Diary/Catch Return portion a separate book in itself (which is supplied FREE with The Stillwater Almanac). This means that next year, you only need to replace the Diary/Catch Return (at £2.99) to keep a record of your adventures. Doing all of the above has allowed us to cut our production costs, meaning we can pass these savings on to you. This year we've also added a Leather Edition to keep both your Almanac and Diary/Catch Return nice and tidy - and best of all it's only £18.99 (that's £1 cheaper than the paperback edition from last year)! The leather covers have a soft feel and are very hard-wearing. When you buy either of the physical versions of our Stillwater Almanac (Leather for only £18.99 or Paperback for only £12.99) you also receive the Diary/Catch Return Book free of charge. And, we are bringing this to you, our loyal community, first. This is a journal to accompany you throughout your fly fishing year. Something you can annotate and make notes in, allowing you to refer back to in years to come - helping you ‘crack the code’ on those difficult days. We’ve called it an Almanac as it takes its inspiration from a few different sources, think of it as a cross-over between: Old Moore’s Almanac - An annual publication that prophecies what will happen throughout the year - only this one is fly fishing related. The Fly Fishers Entomology - A seminal publication from 1836 by Alfred Ronalds, the first to detail fly life from the angler's point of view. A Moleskine Diary - As used by Van Gogh, Picasso & Ernest Hemingway Our Stillwater Almanac follows the stillwater fly anglers year - starting in March and ending in February - detailing the hatches and flies to use for each month. Here's an excerpt from July: I'm a firm believer that each stillwater 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 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 - and owning The Stillwater Fly Anglers Almanac is one of them! We are today launching The Stillwater Fly Anglers Almanac. It's 140 pages long and we have three different editions for you to choose from: Leather Edition - only £18.99 Paperback Edition - only £12.99; and Digital Edition - only £5.99 You can see more sample pages by clicking on any image or button contained in this email. Not convinced yet? Here's what some of our customers said about our previous edition (and this one is even better) ... Tight lines, happy reading & have fun.

Back In Stock - You've Been Waiting For These 🎣

We've finally got these back in stock - after a few months of waiting! There was a shortage of materials, so when I got a call to say our guys had sourced them I was keen to get these flies back in again, they are our best selling lines, so for all of you who have been waiting, here they are: Our Barbless Dry Fly Selection is a selection of 4 styles of dry flies, which are selected for their fish-catching ability all season long - in any UK river or Stillwater. Indicator Caddis - A very versatile pattern, great fished as a single dry fly on a dead drift or as the dry in a duo/New Zealand set up, which has exceptional buoyancy and will suspend even the heaviest of nymphs. Selection contains two each of sizes 14, 16 and 18. Elk Hair Caddis - A sedge (or caddis) imitation. I have found this pattern to bring up even the most timid of fish when dead drifted through a pool. This selection contains two of each sizes 16 and18. Kite's Imperial - First devised in 1962 by the late Oliver Kite to imitate the Large Dark Olives which were hatching on the River Teifi. He used this pattern all season long whenever any olives were hatching, it didn't matter if they were large, small, light, dark, Pale Wateries or Iron Blues. Rather than changing the pattern, Oliver only changed the size of the fly. Selection contains two each of sizes 14 & 16. CDC Olive Emerger - An excellent emerger pattern, with a CDC wing. This pattern is ideal to imitate the change from nymph to dun. Selection contains two each of sizes 16 & 18. Our Dry Fly Selection contains 4 different styles of 'dry flies. In total there are 18 flies supplied in our eco-friendly packaging. These flies are great all-year-round flies, and work especially well for those picky summer trout and for taking grayling in September/October. We are supplying all of these for only £20. All are supplied in our eco-friendly packaging and delivered to you free of charge anywhere within the UK. Just click on any image or button button above to view the flies in more detail. Go on, what are you waiting for, they're perfect for summer! You've Seen The Dries - How About Some Nymphs? Generally, when targeting trout in the early summer, keep in mind the following: The faster and deeper the river, the heavier the nymph - especially after a summer downpour! Target the area behind any type of structure in the water (think boulders, bridge supports & weed beds) Where allowed, it’s usually better to fish a team of flies if there's nothing rising, remember to place the heaviest fly on the point. I've put the first point above in bold, as it's the most important part. So, which nymph patterns should be your first choice? The most successful Tungsten Nymphs ever! We've just received a delivery of our most popular (and successful) tungsten nymphs in all sizes - ideal for any conditions you will face this summer. The selections below all contain patterns from our most popular tungsten nymph selection, in sizes ranging from 10 (Jumbo) to 18 (Micro) - click on any image or button below to see the full details of each selection: Micro Tungsten Nymph Selection £16.00 Tungsten Nymph Selection £30.00 Jumbo Tungsten Nymph Selection £20.00 hese are the first nymphs I reach for when fish are not rising. Each of the above Tungsten Nymph Selections contains the following patterns in various sizes: Red-Neck Pheasant Tail Nymph Copper Pheasant Tail Mary Olive Quill Nymph Orange-Head Pheasant Tail Mary Hare's Ear Nymph The various configurations of selections are: Micro Tungsten Nymph Selection - contains 15 nymphs - 3 of each pattern in size 18 for only £16. Tungsten Nymph Selection - contains 30 nymphs - 3 of each size 14, 16 & 18, for each of the five patterns below for only £30. Jumbo Tungsten Nymph Selection - contains 20 nymphs - 2 of each size 10 & 12, for each of the five patterns above for only £20. *** Stock up on these while you can, they always sell out fast! *** Tight lines & have fun this weekend.

The 'Hot-Head' Midge Pattern Causing A Storm On Both Rivers & Stillwaters

As the main Mayfly season is now drawing to a close, attention turns to the flies to use when the weather gets a little warmer - we can all dream! Fishing for trout can be very tricky in the summer months, you will often visit the water and find that it looks devoid of any signs of life - this is when, if you are to have any sport at all, you will need to dig out those long forgotten nymphs. And, don't even think of searching on Google for "summer nymph river", because the image below, and some which are much worse, will appear: So, as Google is not going to help us out - as far as summer nymphing for trout is concerned - I thought that maybe I should write a few words on the type of nymphs and techniques which will work well - based on feedback/reviews from the thousands of nymphs our customers fished with last summer. Let's concentrate on the two main water types, Rivers & Stillwaters: When using nymphs on rivers, most anglers tend to choose the heavily beaded ones - favouring bouncing a nymph across the riverbed - I believe you need to do the opposite, i.e. use a very light nymph and fish mid-way in the water column. During the summer months with low water levels and even lower flows, it is wise to head for the unweighted nymphs. These will sink much slower and can be manipulated whilst falling through the water. This is especially successful if you can keep as much line as possible off the water, including yourself (if at all possible, don't wade), it is essential if you are fishing very flat-calm runs. It is also worth mentioning that where possible, I always use fluorocarbon when fishing any fly under the water surface - this is especially important when fishing in slower runs and very clear water - the fish usually have lots of time to inspect any offering you will swing past them! Use a long-light rod (I prefer a 10' 2wt), cast the nymph upstream and follow the nymph back with your rod tip, try manipulating the nymph by raising and lowering your rod, in an attempt to imitate the nymph ascending through the water column. Let the nymph swing past you and lower your rod until the line tightens and the nymph is directly downstream of you - this will often induce a take as the nymph will naturally rise up the water column. A good technique to use on any stillwater (large or small) in the Summer months is teaming up a nymph with another style of fly - a deadly technique used in the USA during colder weather in both Stillwaters and Rivers ... It seems that the trick to the technique is to use a heavier nymph or lure as an attractor, but then trail a smaller, lighter and more imitative nymph behind it - the theory being that the fish initially shows interest in the 'attractor' nymph/lure but ends up taking the smaller more imitative nymph: For this method to work, the trailing nymph needs to have the following properties: Fairly imitative Lightweight Have a uniform weight distribution - so they don't sink head-first; and Incorporate some form of trigger point By now you are probably one step ahead of me, and have guessed what's coming! We put our thinking caps on and had a genius fly tyer (thanks Niklas you're a star) design some nymphs which exactly fit the bill - they're called Mercury 'Hot Head' Midges (they are perfect for both Rivers and Stillwaters at this time of year) and we're making them available to you today. Here's an example of just one of the colour variations included in our selection: These Mercury 'Hot Head' Midges we originally devised by Pat Dorsey, a fly fishing guide, writer and co-owner of The Blue Quill Angler in Colorado, USA. We've taken his original design and added a vivid red 'hot head' under the small glass bead. As you will see from the nymphs above, these are stunning creations. Being a part of our Artisan range of flies. all of these Mercury 'Hot Head' Midges are tied on strong Ahrex FW451 barbless hooks in sizes 14 and 16, topped off with a vivid red hot-head under a 2.4mm glass 'seed' bead. Our Mercury 'Hot-Head' Midge Selection includes 4 different colour variations (Black, Pink, White & Purple), we are supplying 2 of each nymph in sizes 14 and 16 (16 nymphs in total), shipped free of charge to anywhere in the UK, all for only £24, these nymphs usually sell for £1.75 each, giving you a 15% discount when buying the full selection. We know these are not cheap flies, but you will be astounded at the quality - we can guarantee you will be climbing those trees to retrieve them! To view or buy our Mercury 'Hot Head' Midge Selection, click on any image or button in this email. *** We've stocked up on these for the Summer - as we know they will be popular *** Something A Little Different Today ... As we are on the subject of nymphing, why not learn tips from one of the masters in the art - Domenick Swentosky. Domenick is based in the USA and runs a fantastic blog called TroutBitten - A life on the water: Domenick has written a whole series of articles and produced podcasts on 'Critical Nymphing Concepts' - in fact there are literally hundreds of pages available on his blog. you can find them all here: If you really want to get the low-down on nymphing it's worth searching the available articles, he covers lots of diverse fly fishing related subjects - I'm sure you will find something of interest. Please Note: We have no affiliation with Dominic or the Troutbitten blog, we just think he's one of the good guys and boy can he fish! Tight lines & have a great day. P.S. The size 14 Mercury 'Hot Head' Midge in White bears more than a passing resemblance to a maggot!

Don't Be A Tosser - Use A Line Saver

I have a confession to make - I'm a bit of a hoarder! I like collecting things, especially fishing books - but outside of fishing, my other passion is collecting ideas - I know it's a bit geeky. I'm always on the lookout for ideas which either make me think or make me smile, like this one: I have a special bit of software I use to store all these ideas so I can recall them easily whenever the need arises (I have hundreds of them, gathered together over the last 30 years). Back in May 2023 - that need arose ... and the above image was recalled from the system! It was an image & strapline which has been used by various Local Authorities since 2018, in conjunction with the Keep Britain Tidy campaign. So, what happened back in May last year to prompt me to search for "Don't Be A Tosser"? I received a phone call from a guy called Nicholas Fitton (a well-respected angling writer), he had an idea for a fishing-related product which would also help to keep Britain tidy and wondered if I would be interested in developing it further with him. Too right I would ... So, after quite a few discussions/brain-storming sessions, we had some prototypes made ... field-tested them on the rivers of Yorkshire and Devon ... refined the design quite a few times, and we just had the finished product delivered to us last Friday - I must say a very big "Thank You" to Litchfield Leather for getting these made to such a high standard and delivered to us so quickly. It's been over a year in the making, we're launching it today, it's only £9.99 and it's called a Line Saver: So, Don't Be A Tosser, Use A ... Essentially, the Line Saver is a small, thoughtfully-designed leather wallet to hold all of your waste fishing line securely - ready to recycle when you are away from the water. The Line Saver is very easy to use - click on the image below to watch a 'how to' video - just give the Line Saver a squeeze, stuff your line in it (the material inside the wallet holds your line securely) and keep it in your pocket/pack/vest. And, best of all it is only £9.99: "Fishing line can take up to 600 years to degrade" Canal & Rivers Trust Recycling your fishing line benefits rivers and lakes by preventing pollution and safeguarding aquatic life. Discarded lines can entangle fish, birds, and other wildlife, leading to injury or death. These lines also degrade water quality, harming ecosystems and reducing biodiversity. Recycling keeps fishing line out of waterways, minimising environmental damage and preserving natural habitats. Additionally, recycling reduces the demand for new plastic production, conserves resources and lowers greenhouse gas emissions. By participating in fishing line recycling programs, anglers contribute to cleaner, healthier rivers and lakes, promoting sustainable recreational fishing and protecting local ecosystems for future generations. It really is easy to use: Squeeze - In one hand, Squeeze your Line Save together to open up the central compartment. Stuff - Stuff your line into the Line Saver, the material inside will keep the line in place. Snip - When you are ready to remove the line, open up the Line Saver and either run a pair of scissors down the gap in the material to Snip your line into manageable pieces or just pull all the line from the wallet in one piece. Recycle - Recycle your waste line by following the instructions on the included card or visit a local tackle shop with an ANLRS Recycling Bin. To make the process of recycling your waste fishing line as easy as possible, we've joined forces with the Anglers National Line Recycling Service. Collect all of your waste fishing line together, then either deposit it in your local ANLRS Recycling Bin (click here to view bin locations) or securely package it (in the addressed envelope we supply with every Line Saver) and at the end of the season post your waste line to: ANLRS, PO Box 96, Petworth GU28 8BU Please Note: We've kept the price of the Line Saver as low as we possibly can, both Nicholas and I wanted to make the product as easy to access, use and keep as possible - there are other competing products which do a similar job, but ours is longer-lasting and half the price of the others - and we think it's much better! The Line Saver is launching today and is now available to order through Barbless Flies, for only £9.99 which includes FREE delivery to anywhere in the UK. For All Trade Enquiries: The Line Saver also has its own website (www.line-saver.com), we are looking to get these out to as wide an audience as possible - if you are reading this and would like to stock them either online or in a physical shop, please get in touch, we can offer these at very competitive prices as we would love to get all anglers using one! You can find out much more here - www.line-saver.com As anglers, we all need to do our bit to 'leave no trace' - using a Line Saver makes it very easy to store your waste tippet and leaders, ready for recycling when away from the water. I hope you will help to keep your local environment free of fishing line. Tight lines.

Happy Twanging ...

Happy Twanging ... I wanted to take a minute today to talk about fly care when fishing, more specifically how to care for your dry flies and present them correctly. The relevance of the above image will become clear at the very end of this email! All of the flies I've been emailing about for the last month or so have all been dry flies - getting you ready for the dry fly season to start in earnest - so, I thought it was about time to give you a few tips on how to keep them floating. This email is not at all prescriptive, it's more of a 'this is what works for me' - why not give the tips a try and let me know if works for you? But first, I want to cover the basics - why we need flies to float in the first place. When 'dry fly' fishing the premise is that we are trying to imitate an insect that the fish would expect to see on the surface of the water. These insects appear on the water surface during one of four stages: When first emerging from their shucks When sat on the surface waiting for their wings to dry When returning to the water to lay their eggs; and When they have died and are floating away on the surface Each of the above stages can be replicated by the use of potions and powders to allow the fly to sit correctly in the water - for example, an emerging fly needs to sit in the water, rather than on it. When fishing with dry flies, there are three inexpensive items you use to take care of them and keep them floating: Something to dry them with A liquid/gel floatant; and A powder-based floatant I'm going to take each one in turn and explain how, and more importantly, why you use them. We will start with: Something To Dry Them With OK, I know, a piece of paper towel or Amadou does just as good a job as virtually anything else, but there is one specific type of paper towel which does the best job ever! It's made from Bamboo (see above), it is so absorbent, doesn't disintegrate and can be machine washed. The only problem is has very recently been difficult to find! I've been using the one pictured above for the last three or four years and there's nothing which comes close to it - so we bought all the stock we could and have made our own small (roughly 4" x 3") towels with a handy carabiner clip, making them ideal for attaching to your pack/vest. We don't sell them individually as they are very 'Heath Robinson' (whoever he was), but we do include them in our Dry Fly Care Kit - which is what this email is all about! View Our Dry Fly Care Kit - only £17.50 Next, we will move on to: Liquid/Gel Floatants A liquid/gel floatant should the the first thing you reach for when the fly comes straight out of your fly box. Liquid/gel floatants are great at covering the fly quickly - just rub a small amount in your fingers and then apply to the fly on the areas which you want to float (usually only the hackle). Only ever apply a gel/paste/liquid floatant to a fly that is 100% dry - i.e. it's straight out of your fly box and not seen the water that day. Applying this type of floatant to a damp fly will lock in the moisture and not allow it to float. As you've probably already gathered we are including one of our Rubber Duck Gel floatants in our Dry Fly Care Kit. View Our Dry Fly Care Kit - only £17.50 Next, we will move on to: Powdered Floatants Once you've had a fish, or your fly starts to sink, give it a squeeze between your drying towel or a piece of kitchen roll. Once you've removed the water and the fly is dry you can then freshen up the fly using one of the powder-style floatants. Just brush the powder deep into the feathers and give it a blow to remove any excess. As you've probably already gathered we are including one of our Weatherby's Powdered floatants in our Dry Fly Care Kit. View Our Dry Fly Care Kit - only £17.50 *** Keep reading to the end of this email for the best 'Fly Drying' tip I have ever been told - you will be glad you did! *** View Our Dry Fly Care Kit - only £17.50 As we are about to get into the 'dry fly' season, we thought we would put together a 'Dry Fly Care Kit' that includes all you need to keep your dry flies floating. Our kit contains: Handmade Drying Towel - made by us from the most absorbent material available (bamboo), these are fantastic at absorbing moisture. Rubber Duck Gel Floatant - Only apply this to your fly when it's straight out of the box and 100% dry - otherwise it will lock moisture in (not keep it out)! Weatherby's Dry Fly Powder - Use this to refresh your fly once it's been dried with your towel. Brush the powder into the feathers to keep your fly afloat. How to Use Your Kit: Take your fly from your box. Apply a little of the Rubber Duck floatant to the fly - you only need a very small amount. Rub the floatant between your fingers and then into the feathers of the fly. Catch a fish (or if your fly starts to get waterlogged) Use the Drying Towel to squeeze any water and moisture out of the fly Brush the Dry Fly Powder into all the feathers of the fly and give it a blow to remove any excess powder Catch another fish and repeat from step 4. View Our Dry Fly Care Kit - only £17.50 We've stocked up on all these, so have plenty to go around, our Dry Fly Care Kits are available now for only £17.50 - including FREE delivery. Grab one while you can. *** Just a gentle reminder that all our products are now shipped FREE OF CHARGE to anywhere *** Dry Fly Boxes If you're looking for somewhere to store your nice new dry flies, then look no further, as we have just received some stunning boxes from those fly box masters at Tacky Fly Fishing: View the Tacky River Mag Fly Box While we’d all love to have a full complement of flies at our disposal at all times, carrying every pattern in the arsenal doesn’t always make sense. For those quick trips to the river after work or just a prospecting mission at your local pond, the Tacky River Mag offers plenty of storage. The workhorse of the Tacky line, the Original River Mag Fly Box features automatic storage when time is of the essence. Ten compartments provide specialized organization for each type, size, or colour of fly, while silicone walls prevent mixing between distinct patterns. A strong, magnetic base and clear lid mean you'll spend less time fumbling with your fly box and more time on the water. 100% recycled plastic box 10 magnetic storage compartments Original patented silicone anchoring technology Withstands an extreme temperature range Latchless waterproof closure Durable and tested for long-lasting strength Dimensions: 7" x 3.75" x 0.75" 100% Recycled Plastic Box Patented design Go on, what are you waiting for, buy one and fill it up with our flies! View the Tacky River Mag Fly Box We've only a few of these (as they are pretty hard to come by) available now for only £34.99 - including FREE delivery. Grab one while you can. When fishing with dry flies there is one key aspect that the fly angler needs to concentrate on - keeping them afloat! Keeping your dry flies floating on the water - not in it - is one of the main skills for effective dry fly fishing. Why not give this Top Tip a go and use the 'Elastic Band' method to remove water from your fly: Attach an elastic band to your vest/pack. Hook your fly around the elastic band. Holding the tippet, pull the fly to stretch the elastic band. Channel your best Eric Clapton/Jimi Hendrix/[insert favourite guitarist here] and twang the elastic band a few times with your free hand. This will shed all of the excess water from your fly! As a special treat, this weekend only, for each Dry Fly Care Kit ordered we will include a Special 'Fly Fishing' Elastic Band for FREE - they're not really that special they only cost us £1 for 50 and you can use them for purposes other than fly fishing! Tight lines & happy twanging.

It's Dynamite Harry - A NEW Feathersmith Kit Launch

We have a NEW fly for you today - it's Swedish, and you make it yourself - there's an obvious parallel with a very well-known furniture company that has a blue and yellow logo - however, we've resisted the urge to call it the 'IKEA fly'. Today we are launching a NEW Feathersmith Kit ... and this is a special one, with a Nordic twist ... it's one of your 'Summer season essentials' and it's really easy to tie! But first ... I would just like to say a big THANK YOU to all of you who have taken the time to leave us a review of our fly-tying kits, we especially liked this one from Kevin: Following along the line of "flies which are successful and work almost everywhere", this month we're releasing one which is gaining notoriety on both Rivers and Stillwaters - especially in the summer as the weather gets warmer. You may never have heard about it - most anglers who use it want to keep it a secret! This is a simple but deadly pattern - I believe this pattern is so successful because of the way it's tied - very sparse. This pattern has its origins in Sweden and was a staple in my own fly box last summer - someone has the test the flies out! It's available in 'kit form' and comes from Sweden and we're still resisting the urge to make a joke about IKEA. "What's the fly called?" - It's a Dynamite Harry: If you keep on reading you can find out much more about the new Dynamite Harry Feathersmith kit, but first ... Just as a quick reminder, here's what's included when you purchase one of our Feathersmith pattern-specific kits: A kit full of world-class materials (Semperfli, Ahrex, etc.) - more than enough to tie all 30 flies in the kit A 'here's one I made earlier' sample pre-tied fly - for this kit you get one of each variant sample tied flies A tutorial detailing the history of the fly you are tying A video tutorial of how to tie each variant of the fly - presented by a professional fly tyer A video tutorial of how to get the best when fishing your finished fly Contained inside each kit is a leaflet which will direct you to a secret page on our website where all the videos (and more information on the pattern) can be accessed. One quote you will hear time and again when fly tying is: "It's more expensive to tie your own flies than it is to buy them." Not anymore it isn't, our Feathersmith kits allow you to tie a stunning pattern with the very best materials available - all for less than £1 per fly - now that is great value. Introducing ... The Dynamite Harry This eigth in our series of kits focuses on the Dynamite Harry - a very versatile pattern you should have in your fly box because it's one pattern that can be fished all Summer long and is a great 'general impression' of a whole host of up-winged insects found on the water in June, July & August. This little gem of a fly has its origins in the dark forests of Dalarna in Sweden. The fly is kind of an all-round fly, depending on size, volume and colour it can mimic most winged critters from small midges to mayflies, emergers and duns. The key to this pattern is to get a very light fly with a delicate footprint. The fly has gone from being a secret in the originator, Jörgen Danielsson´s flybox to a fly which adorns many fly anglers boxes in Sweden and beyond. This version of the Barbless Dynamite Harry has been tied with instructions from Mr Danielsson himself - and he has even given the finished fly his seal of approval. As well as being a great fly to use throughout the summer months, It also has the added bonus of being pretty easy to tie. * No, the Cottarelli vice and tools are not included in the kit! Our Dynamite Harry kit includes: AHREX FW525 hooks (10 each of sizes 14, 16 & 18) Semperfli White Nano Silk Superfine Olive Dubbing Z-Lon Grey Post Material Coachman Brown Hackle Pre-Tied Sample Dynamite Harry All of the above high-quality materials combined make a quality fly which is straightforward to tie. Contained inside each kit is also a leaflet which will direct you to a secret page on our website where all the videos (including Kenan's Beginners Fly tying series) can be accessed. Our Feathersmith Dynamite Harry kit is now available for only £30. At less than £1/fly, that's great value for money. *** Go on, you know you want to. Our Feathersmith kits are perfect to while away the hours when the rivers are unfishable and at less than £1/fly they offer great value *** Try Our Other Feathersmith Kits - Perfect Summer Ties! We've now built up quite a range of Feathersmith kits. We have you covered for the most successful flies no matter what month you are fishing. Take a look at these two kits below. The Griffith's Gnat is perfect for those post-mayfly sessions, whilst The Jingler is perfect for warm afternoons on the water, picking off hatching Olives. Click either of the images below to view the kits in more detail: *** Go on, you know you want to. Our Feathersmith kits are perfect to while away the hours when the rivers are unfishable and at less than £1/fly they offer great value *** More Nice Words About Our Kits! But, I've Never Tied A Fly Before! Don't worry, we've got you covered ... We know that our Feathersmith kits appeal to both the beginner and more experienced fly tyers, and since launching our first kits we've had quite a few enquiries asking if we could provide a 'basic set of skills' course to help those of you just starting out on this fantastic hobby. Kenan Haseta is a professional fly tyer and keen fly angler, he's a regular visitor to the Ribnik to test out his creations, he's also 'our man in Bosnia' and has been tying stunning 'one-off' creations for us for the last few years, his tying skills are second to none. We've asked Kenan a few times if he would share his experience and skills in video format - he's pretty shy and always wanted to be behind, rather than in front, of the camera. So we twisted his arm a little and he's agreed: Kenan has created a set of 'basic skills' videos for us, with detailed explanations of all the tools, vices, hooks, materials and how to dress a hook. Kenan's 'Fly Tying for Beginners' video series is available for FREE to everyone. Just Getting Started, Or Fancy A New Vice? If you are looking to get started on your fly-tying odyssey, or just want to upgrade to something really nice, we have a few different options for you. We know nobody actually needs a new vice, but they are things of beauty. We only offer vices, tools and materials which we use ourselves, know and trust - that's why we contacted two of the most respected brands in the vice world - Renzetti & Stonfo. The majority of you will have come across Stonfo before - they are an Italian brand and are very well known for producing high-quality, well-engineered products at very reasonable prices. For example, we have one of their pedestal vices available (below) for only £119.99, which includes a free toolkit - everything you need to get you started on your fly-tying odyssey: Please Note: Due to dealership restrictions, we can only deliver our vices to UK addresses. If you would like to see all of the vices we have available, please click on the button below - there are some stunning vices! In the meantime, tight threads and have fun at the vice.

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