What's Catching You Fish?

[Tom Butler]

Heard an ear worm tune on the way out.

Sing it with me, jiggy craw ......... jiggy craw, jiggy craw.

Turned out to be the perfect strip rhythm after the drift and swing.

Seems to be a similar platform to what @Kfish had posted some of lately, and it works well for these trout.
55 degrees and sunny after 2 weeks of dismal gray. Great way to start Christmas break.

 

[rattlesnake]

This old fly caught me this fella. Been too long since I’ve gotten a good one, was pumped.

 

[Aleforme]

The muddlers I posted didn't do squat, I don't know if it was the flies, or just cold. I found the fish by going slow and deep with a nymph and jiggy craw combo.
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The little sz. 14 lt. hares ear has become a reliable cold weather patten. I've caught this one before.
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And I was glad to have the Battenkill II disk I just got from @Aleforme for this jiggy craw eater. It has a really smooth drag and a nice sound, great reel. This one thought it was a steelhead, just acting really annoyed and pulling hard until it saw me, then it made an angry b-line down and across to the other side of the stream. Got it back up and thought I could get it's head up, just to have it dive down deep in the middle and bulldog me before finally surrendering.
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Beautiful fish and glad to see the Battenkill is getting put to some good use!

 

[Tom Butler]

Beautiful fish and glad to see the Battenkill is getting put to some good use!

Great transaction and a nice piece of kit. Thx. I fished jiggy craws with it today on my 9' 5wt Clearwater loaded with a Clearwater line.

And I got to fish with my son. We just fished shoulder to shoulder and bullshitted for several hours. I did practice casting over my left shoulder quite a bit and some left handed also.

Many doubles were had. Small nymph under an indicator, or streamer? I am teachable.

 

[Tom Butler]

Papa got some me time today so I grabbed some cd's and went for a drive. The fresh new leader was perfect. Saw some mayflies and other bugs about but I don't carry little dries like a lot of you, however I always have a box of soft hackles so I put a diving caddis on the top dropper 20" below the ring.


fished a silver hares ear 3' below that


and fished a jiggy craw 20" below that.


Ran in to a few other fisher folk, mostly fishing stuff under indicators, who weren't having much luck at all. I'd much rather run a tight line, even at distance.

 

[Zak]

Papa got some me time today so I grabbed some cd's and went for a drive. The fresh new leader was perfect. Saw some mayflies and other bugs about but I don't carry little dries like a lot of you, however I always have a box of soft hackles so I put a diving caddis on the top dropper 20" below the ring.
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fished a silver hares ear 3' below that
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and fished a jiggy craw 20" below that.
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Ran in to a few other fisher folk, mostly fishing stuff under indicators, who weren't having much luck at all. I'd much rather run a tight line, even at distance.

Put some Frogs Fanny on an unweighted soft hackle and, Presto Chango, you have a dry fly

 

[RichS]

First fish of 2025 for me yesterday on the basic black leech.

 

[Brute]

Put some Frogs Fanny on an unweighted soft hackle and, Presto Chango, you have a dry fly

I was fishing the Green from shore halfway between the dam and the takeout after A section…it was an hour before sunset, and the big browns were moving close to the bank slurping a selection of insects. I had left my dry fly box at the cabin, but had a bunch of soft hackles with me…I did just that, dressed one with floatant…worked like a charm

 

[Zak]

I was fishing the Green from shore halfway between the dam and the takeout after A section…it was an hour before sunset, and the big browns were moving close to the bank slurping a selection of insects. I had left my dry fly box at the cabin, but had a bunch of soft hackles with me…I did just that, dressed one with floatant…worked like a charm

I started fishing a pale watery wingless dry with frogs fanny after reading this Steve Culton post:

Tying the Magic Fly (Pale Watery wingless wet variant)

The Magic Fly (Pale Watery wingless wet variant) Hook: 1x fine, size 16-20 Thread: Pearsall’s Gossamer silk, primrose yellow Hackle: Light ginger hen Tail: Light ginger hen hackle fibers Body: Rabb…

currentseams.com

Works great, sometimes!