active dry flies for yellows

[dollar]

hey gents
for a few years now i have spent more time fishing dries for small mouth yellows. all my success has come off dries drifting downstream or static. i have tried to mimic adult caddis skating and bouncing on the surface and never have i had a strike. my downfall could be the clarity of water or sm yellows just dont chase skating or bouncing caddis.
has anyone had success replicating the active caddis on the water surface?

[Korrie]

Your best time to fish caddis is the last 45 minutes or so of light at the end of the day.
Once the sun has set, then put on the caddis.
A pattern that I have had lots of success with is the Awesom Possum Tabanas. http://www.flytalk.co.za/forum/showt...Possum-Tabanas
The evening hatch is very seldom fished in SA, as we have long distances to travel and we want to do it in the light, so we tend to leave the water a bit too early.
Some of my most memorable fishing ever was for SM Yellows sipping or rather gulping down caddis patterns in the last 40 minutes of light.
Watch for the slower water and big slow bays.
Swinging caddis across and down will also produce massive takes

[Korrie]

Another aspect to watch for is the rises.
SM Yellows rise during the day a lot "softer" or more subtle than trout.
The rise is more like a take that is just sub surface. I think it has to do with the placing of the mouth.

[DJR]

I agree on the best time being at last light.

I have often found swallows hunting insects above the stream a good indicator that the yellows are most likely active below. The activity often keeps going until dark, with the bats coming out to replace the swallows. In the dusk, the yellows also seem more willing to come into extremely shallow water, sometimes feeding in between the rocky flat bits with their dorsal fins sticking out. Then it doesn't matter whether you cast a dry or a nymph, they will take it and they will run like bonefish for the nearest deeper water, sometimes cutting spectacular bow waves and almost swimming right out of the skinny water.

For me, that doesn't happen too often, but when it does, I have a cigar and an extra whiskey to celebrate afterwards!

[dollar]

thanks guys,
have to agree the best time is in late afternoon. during the day i have had good success fishing a dry with a short dropper. also fishing a drowned caddis (when it has lost it floating capabilities) during the day below the rapids.
funny thing is when you tempting dry fly for yellows is how much time you spend staring into a promising lay for both fish and insect activity. insects are the easiest to spot except for those just under the film of water, the fish however, either just nick the surface or busting the surface in a hurry like barble to gulp air without any visions of kind/size/colour/shape to indentify the species. most times i beleive this gulping to be muddies or baby barble playing because it becomes difficult to entice a strike from your dry fly, i think yellows would commit to dry in a hurry. at the same time i see caddis and other insects bouncing on the surface or the famous caddis skate or insects running/walking on the surface like some new guy tempting ice skating and wheel spins his skates.
never have i seen a yellow nail a active insect on the water like a trout or bass do. replicating the actions of a bouncing or skating caddis is very easy, near perfect, so it wouldnt be the rig/technique putting the fish off or it is just that they dont target active insects or do they

[Niel_Botha]

Usually if I use dry flies for yellow small mouth is when I actually see teen feeding on the surface.

Sent from my C6603 using Tapatalk

[dollar]

The evening hatch is very seldom fished in SA, as we have long distances to travel and we want to do it in the light, so we tend to leave the water a bit too early

that's no lie, wished i was 25+ years younger

[Korrie]

that's no lie, wished i was 25+ years younger

How old will you be then? 5 years????

[Korrie]

so it wouldnt be the rig/technique putting the fish off or it is just that they dont target active insects or do they

Ek het al gesien en hoor hoe SM caddis van die oppervlak suig en dan klink dit soos 'n bulldog wat pap en melk uit 'n vlak bak eet.

[dollar]

How old will you be then? 5 years????

bwahahaha, i wished, but in this case it's like a joke i know:"how far can you walk into a jungle?" (answer: halfway, the other half you'd be walking out)
i'd be 22 years of age.