Equipment Outfitters

Because the spinners fall to the water’s surface and become trapped there with wings outstretched, trout have ample time in which to ingest them,feeding in a leisurely fashion while cruising in long rise paths. The mostprolonged sequence of rises to thesespinners that I have seen was a series offifteen at Hopewell, a large lake in EastGriqualand. Other anglers I have spokento have had similar experiences duringhatches of these mayflies. It is easy to understand why American anglers call these fish `gulpers’, since they often gulp down several spinners in one mouthful. Trout do not inspect each insect during these gluttonous feeding sprees, since their window of vision is extremely small at such shallow depths. However, any dry fly that does not resemble the adult in size and shape will usually be rejected outright, particularly if the pattern is a high-floating one.

I am constantly amazed that fish take an artificial despite the competition from hundreds of naturals lying only inches from the fly. Fishing imitations of these mayfly spinners demands skill, light tippets and rods with limber tips. The techniques involved in deceiving trout during a spinner fall are similar to those needed to fish midge pupae suspended in the surface film. Naturals generally fall into the #18 to #22 bracket, and tippets in the 5X to 7X class are required to fish, the appropriate spinner imitations effectively. Trout often cruise alongside or over weedbeds where they are able to consume hundreds of naturals in a single feeding session. This poses significant problems for the angler once a sizeable fish is hooked, as they usually bolt straight for the protection of weed. Two- to four-weight rods with limber tips will aid anglers unaccustomed to hooking and playing large fish on light tackle, while fifteen-feet leaders will provide a degree of shock absorption when a trout bolts away. Note that when trout are hooked at the surface they are far more skittish and wary than those feeding at greater depths, and bolting is the rule rather than the exception.

Trout will often feed along a fixed path when gulping spinners in the surface film, testing the angler’s casting skills to the limit, since casts must be both quick and accurate. There is little margin for error, and failure to place the imitation in the path of the trout will mean that the fly will be missed. When a trout is feeding along a beat, it can gulp several naturals in a single mouthful and it is uncommon for it to deviate from its rise path to intercept an imitation.

During sparse spinner falls trout are forced to cruise around in search of them, which means that they cannot be intercepted in the same way you would catch trout feeding along a beat. If this is the case it is pointless to attempt to intercept a particular fish, and the most effective method is then to cast the pattern out and allow the trout to find the fly in its own time. In these situations, I have found that the number of takes is significantly increased by fishing an imitation that is one size larger than the natural.

Since spinners fall to the surface and become trapped by surface tension, they are unable to escape and, as a result, the fly should not be retrieved at all. However, an occasional twitch will often attract the attention of trout in the vicinity.

Several years ago, when I first began using spinner imitations, the only serviceable and certainly the most popular material for Trico spinner wings was polypropylene yarn which, although effective, was not the best material for the application. Today, however, there are several materials from which to choose, ranging from synthetics like Z-Lon and Antron fibres to natural materials like Cul de Canard feathers and turkey ‘flats’ feathers. Trico spinner wings, like almost all mayfly spinner wings, are hyaline and there are several modern synthetics to choose from that effectively duplicate this feature. One that is available locally, manufactured by Orvis, is a material called Sparkle Wing. This excellent material closely imitates the spinner’s wings. Whichever material you choose, ensure that it reflects light and, unlike polypropylene yarn, does not absorb water. These wing materials should be tied in as sparsely as possible because, like most flies used for trout, patterns tied sparsely usually outperform those that are overdressed.

How to make your own TRICO SPINNER?

HOOK: Tiemco 101 or 100, #18 — #22.

THREAD: 8/0 prewaxed, brown.

WING: Clear or white Antron yarn, Sparkle Wing material, Z-Lon, Cul de Canard feathers, or similar synthetic or natural winging material.

TAIL: Micro Fibetts or cream hackle fibres.

ABDOMEN: Natural or synthetic dubbing, cream.

THORAX: Natural or synthetic dubbing, medium to dark brown

1. Tie in a section of winging material with figure-of-eight wraps at a position approximately one-quarter of the hook shank from the hook, eye. Take the thread to a position above the barbof the hook.
2. Tie in three tailing fibers above the barb of the hook. The tails should be one-and-a-half to twice the length of the hook shank.
3. Divide the tails by taking one turn of thread under the tail and add a drop of head cement to hold them permanently in this position.
4. Spin a thin noodle of dubbing onto the thread and form a thin, neatly tapering abdomen over two-thirds of the hook shank.
5. Spin a short, thin noodle of dubbing onto the thread and form the thorax by taking figure-of-eight wraps around the wings.
6. Form a small, neat thread head, half-hitch and trim the thread. Apply head cement to the thread wraps. Trim the wings so that they are the same length as the hook shank.

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