April Review
April was an interesting month, starting out with lovely conditions but water levels continuing to drop to summertime lows by mid month. The skies opened and we had a 1.2m rise on the 16th, followed by another 60cm on the 19th, with some colder nights setting in. We ended the month with 136 brown trout being returned and a few missed opportunities at sea trout. You can see a full report for the month in our April Fishing Report.
As far as the competition went, we both caught fish predominantly on our chosen April flies, the exceptions being the fish caught swinging salmon flies. In the first half of the month, prior to the rain, we both had several double digit days and 80% of the fish caught in this period were on pheasant tail nymphs. Tom was fishing a bead head version, while Matt was fishing an unweighted very simple Sawyer style.
The remainder of the fish for the first two weeks were caught on either Gold Ribbed Hares Ears, and in Matt’s case, his Partridge & Hare Spider pattern worked well, especially in the first week.
Following the spate, things changed dramatically. The rainfall caused a significant drop in the water temperature, while the outside temperature also fell considerably, particularly night time temperatures. We picked up a few fish while looking for any salmon that might have come up, but didn’t really fish for browns again until the 22nd.
Tom wasn’t able to fish much up to the end of the month, but started picking up the odd fish on his Mega May right at the end. For Matt, it was the Olive GRHE that accounted for most of the fish in the second half of the month, with the odd fishing taking the natural GRHE and even fewer, the PTN that had earlier performed so well.
By the end of the month, Tom had added 32 fish using his chosen flies for a competition total of 56, and Matt had 71 for a total of 105, but in fairness, Matt was able to spend twice the number of days enjoying the river!
Fly Selection for May
It has to be said that conditions really couldn’t be much better as we head into the start of May. Perhaps the river could drop by a few centimetres, clear a touch more and warm up by a few degrees, but the forecast is promising all of that is on its way.
For May, our fly selection gets more interesting and a bit more polarised as we each bet on when the dries are really going to come into their own. Last year we saw this really kick in around mid-May, but with the warm start to the month, it could be noticeable much earlier.
Our rules are that we each choose 5 flies and only those flies count towards the competition. A distinct fly includes its pattern (including colour, Tom), size and weight; so for the competition, a size 14 is a different fly to a 16 and a bead head is different to unweighted. We can carry across a maximum of two flies from the previous month.
Tom’s 5 Brown Trout Flies for May on Devon Rivers
So after Matt had to write my last one I thought I best write a little bit this time so I don’t get fired. Last month was hard but I think I chose well going for a bit of both wet and dry fly.
May is going to be different, I’ve gone full on dry fly mode which I absolutly love and there’s no doubt in my mind im going to catch fish. I’ve carried over my two flies the ‘mega may’ and the elk hair sedge, I ‘may’ regret this but we will see at the end of the month.
Hawthorn Fly Black Gnat (14)
The Hawthorn fly is one I haven’t really fished a lot but over the last few years have seen a lot of activity when there is a hatch. Hawthorn flies are not strong flyers, and as such, are easily blown onto rivers where they get trapped in the surface of the water and are ready for the trout to feed on.
In the past I have fished this right in tight under the treeline and have had enquiries from sea trout along with a lot from large wild brown trout.
Pheasant Tail Klinkhammer (14)
Usually, I would have a Klinkhammer with a Nymph hanging around a foot underneath, however this time of year I’m looking for that rising fish so going with the ‘solo’ approach rather than the ‘Klink and Dink’ option.
I usually have these tied in a variety of different colours which are easy for me to see and fish them as slow as possible along the bubble line of a run. In the past they have been extremely productive but again looking for the right conditions and hatches is a must.
Blue Winged Olive (16)
The Blue Winged Olive is a popular pattern in the area and a good imitation for several of our local mayfly.
You will notice that I am switching completely to my dry fly box for May, as much as Matt slates me for it, I know this is the best way to fish personally, everyone has their own preference and for me this is a more gentlemanly way to fish and I just enjoy casting to a rising fish and seeing it come and ‘smash’ my fly.
May Fly Emerger (Mega May) (12)
This fly will forever be my ‘go to’ for the early and late may period, I was introduced to this fly by Pete Tyjas editor in chief of the Fly Culture Magazine and his good friend and fly tier extraordinaire Duncan Raynor, who is also well know for the pristine flies he ties.
I always have a variety of colours and different patterns lying in wait in my dry fly box. Listen to the Fly culture Podcast to learn more about Duncan and his fishing life.
Elk Hair Caddis (14)
The Elk Hair Caddis is again another fly I cannot be without this time of year, I usually fish this early or late evening depending a large amount on the river clarity and weather, if there’s a good hatch I’ll switch to this immediately, the fish seem to hit this fly really hard which just adds to the excitement when it comes to fishing with the dry fly.
Matt’s 5 Brown Trout Flies for April on Devon Rivers
I realise that I am likely to get absolutely schooled this month. Not only am I away for a week during what could be some of the best fishing of the year, but even in these past few days, we’ve seen a huge increase in the number of rising fish and surface takes. That said, I’m doubling down on my nymph selection. All of my flies performed reasonably well last month with the notable exception of the black nymph. This was especially surprising to me given the number of midges around and how well it did last year.
Just so that Tom doesn’t think me a total cad, I’ve included a single dry in my selection. Since I can’t decide which way to go with it, I’ve plumped for the Infallible, and hope it lives up to it’s name! See, Tom? I can be a gentleman too, if I have to be. 😄
The other thing I’m doing is upping the the size of some of my flies to 12’s. The two nymphs in the image below are eyeing my size 14 like it might make a tasty hors d’oeuvre. I might even tie up a few 10’s as we’ve found a few nymphs under the rocks pushing 3 cm.
Infallible Variant (14)
Right, so we may as well get the dry fly out of the way. I came across this fly mentioned over on the Devon Rivers Forum last year. There seem to be a number of flies called Infallible and since the poster mentions it’s a wet fly, I probably ended up with something else. The version I tie is based on the Fulling Mills Infallible which is a Klickhammer style, but I tie it with the hackle around the hook, rather than the post.
Whatever the origins, it often works for me when nothing else does. I think I just like the name and the little red tag.
Bead Head Olive GRHE (12)
This was going to be one of my carry across flies from last month. Through the last week of April it did very well but with a lot of bigger dark green Mayfly nymphs under the rocks, I’m tying it in a 12.
While they won’t count in the competition, I’ll also be carrying these in 14’s and a few 10’s, as well as some unweighted versions in my box.
Bead Head GRHE (12)
Last month I had the GRHE in a 14 and without the bead head, so in the eyes of the competition, this is a different fly than the one I had last month. Honestly nothing has ‘turned onto’ this colour yet but it’s been regularly catching the odd fish here and there when the fish aren’t being so targeted.
Most people will have this workhorse in their boxes, but a variety of sizes and weights will help ensure you can fish it through all the situations you find on the river.
Bead Head PTN (14)
I wanted this fly last month but Tom had it, so I went with the a version close to the original Sawyer style. I was pleasantly surprised at how well the fly did – at least until the river flow picked up after the rains.
This is another pattern worth carrying in a range of sizes and weights to match the conditions being fished.
Bead Head Black Nymph (14)
Despite not yet having caught a fish on a black fly other than the first couple of days of the season, I’m convinced it’s time is coming. As mentioned before, black nymphs accounted for about half the fish I caught last year. I’ve filled out the body but to all intents, its the same as the Zebra Nymph from last month.
I’m also adding a touch grey and green into the dubbing for some of the flies, so they’re not pure black, but don’t tell Tom!
In conclusion
This month we’ve learned that Matt needs to learn how to focus his camera; even badly tied flies will catch fish; spending more days fishing results in more fish; and apparently gentlemen (gentleanglers?) should fish with dry flies. Where else on the internet can you find these amazing insights?
Oh, also Matt takes nicer picture’s of Tom when he fishes than the other way around. Yes, that’s Tom looking chilled by the bridge. And that’s Matt somewhere behind a large hatch!
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