To UV/Fluoro or not to UV/Fluoro?

[smallstreams.co.za]

My opinion is that people including myself take great relish in figuring trout out. The good news is, they change their minds often, for whatever reason, and this keeps it interesting. I would hate it if I knew that on a specific day on a specific stream that a specific fly would catch fish. Its much more rewarding going out there and figuring it out for me.

Exactly! For a moment I thought I stumbled onto the ultimate smallmouth fly when for 4 trips in a row the fish would eat my little purple and pink jobby as if there was no other food on earth. I was pretty stoked, until on the last trip they ignored it flat - all day - not ONE fish on the P&P!! Did have some other flies that they did eat though, but ja, your point as above proven.

[Andre]

I think that if conditions remained identical from day to day, then the fishing would also, and it would become more predictable, but things change regularly, water temperature of a fraction of a degree can have an effect. Water levels, cloud cover, and many other things can have so much effect, even a bird flying overhead can spook a fish. There are literally hundreds of factors that could make a trout "change it mind"..The better we become at reading the conditions, the more successful we will become at fly fishing.

My opinion is that people including myself take great relish in figuring trout out. The good news is, they change their minds often, for whatever reason, and this keeps it interesting. I would hate it if I knew that on a specific day on a specific stream that a specific fly would catch fish. Its much more rewarding going out there and figuring it out for me.

[JadeDsantos]

Reading the conditions, as you say Andre, is what I think, one of the most important things on the water. Its like trouble shooting: Its mid summer, the weather is hot, there are no insects hatching, the fish are super spooky, there is a bit of wind on the water and the fish are hiding. Hypothesis: I have to bring these fish to me if I cant find them. its windy, and terrestrials will probably be blown into the water, its hot and there are plenty of hoppers around, and nothing brings fish out like a big fat protein snack they cant resist, and considering its mid summer and the water is skinny, I cant get away with some hard presentations using terrestrials. So today, its a beetles and hoppers day. The essential thing about this, is that is cant be learnt from books, you have to spend time on the water to understand how all these variables interact with each other.

[JadeDsantos]

Exactly! For a moment I thought I stumbled onto the ultimate smallmouth fly when for 4 trips in a row the fish would eat my little purple and pink jobby as if there was no other food on earth. I was pretty stoked, until on the last trip they ignored it flat - all day - not ONE fish on the P&P!! Did have some other flies that they did eat though, but ja, your point as above proven.

Post a pic! It might become the new hot fly for the vaal this year!

[smallstreams.co.za]

Post a pic! It might become the new hot fly for the vaal this year!

I was on a "clear" section of the Vaal over the weekend Jade - how fish can even see a fly in those waters are beyond me There is a pic on the forgotten FOTM thread somewhere

[JadeDsantos]

Its amazing what fish can see in dirty water. Use size 16 nymphs on the Vaal and no problem, the yellows find them. I also saw this happen on really dirty trout streams. Its amazing how fish find them!

[saml]

It was said with tongue in cheek.

Hehe, fair enough

[smallstreams.co.za]

Its amazing what fish can see in dirty water. Use size 16 nymphs on the Vaal and no problem, the yellows find them. I also saw this happen on really dirty trout streams. Its amazing how fish find them!

I know, I just wanted to get that off my chest

[JadeDsantos]

Ha ha ha I thought so! :tongue: