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Squirmy wormy flies hit the market in 2014 with gusto. They were described as the new wonder fly. For my part I have to say that despite their emerging reputation I thought it just a fad and didn't embrace them. Over time they have endured and their reputation of, on the day, being an exceptional…

A wet fly is a fly designed to be fished below the water's surface of the water or a dry fly that has been drowned and is being fish below the surface of the water. Basically there are two main types of wet fly: The type is representational flies which are flies tied to represent food that trout…

Squirmy wormy flies hit the market in 2014 with gusto. They were described as the new wonder fly. For my part I have to say that despite their emerging reputation I thought it just a fad and didn't embrace them. Over time they have endured and their reputation of, on the day, being an exceptional…

My first fish on fly fell to the magic of a Woolly Bugger and many have gone the same way since then. My understanding is that the Woolly Bugger has its origins in America where it appears to be tied, as a leach imitation. having said that there is also an English fly with bead chin eyes called a…

==Perhaps the most iconic lake in Tasmania and for many the most iconic lake in Australia. Arthurs is a hydro lake that was created by the damming of the Upper Lake River in the early 1960's and the flooding of the areas that contained Blue Lake, Sand Lake and the Morass Marsh. From a fly fishers…

Food source [months] Fly suggestions Adult yabbies [30] [30] [30] [20] [20] [20] [10] [10] [20] [30] [40] [30] Yabby Woolly bugger Floating yabby Shrimp shell yabby Small yabbies [00] [00] [60] [60] [50] [50] [30] [20] [10] [10] [00] [00] Mini woolly bugger Woolly bugger Worms (as vegetation is…

Food source [months] Fly suggestions Adult yabbies [30] [30] [30] [20] [20] [20] [10] [10] [20] [30] [40] [30] Woolly bugger Floating yabby Shrimp shell yabby Small yabbies [00] [00] [60] [60] [50] [50] [30] [20] [10] [10] [00] [00] Mini woolly bugger Woolly bugger Worms (as vegetation is drowned)…

Food source [months] Fly suggestions Gudgeon and galaxia [50] [50] [50] [50] [10] [10] [10] [10] [10] [10] [10] [50] Bead head nymphs Magoo Shrek Mrs Simpson Murdoch Adult yabbies [30] [30] [30] [20] [20] [20] [10] [10] [20] [30] [40] [30] Yabby Woolly bugger Floating yabby Shrimp shell yabby Small…

Hackles are added to woolly buggers and woolly bugger variants for a couple of reasons. Firstly they add what may well be representative of legs on what ever the woolly bugger is tied to represent. The second reason to add movement to the fly. In most cases it's varying degrees of both … what…

This is an old pattern and whilst it can be dressed in many different ways I prefer it dressed as described below which is similar to the original form with the exception of the tail which I prefer to be much finer than the original. I guess that makes it like a small Woolly Bugger. This fly works…

Whilst the woolly bugger was evolving in Pennsylvania USA from a fly designed by Russell Blessing to represent the local hellgrammite or dobsonfly nymphs, probably from the woolly worm pattern, at the same time in England a similar fly that became known as a dog nobbler was also evolving. Dog…

Because of their high protein count and high nutritional return trout will eat most small fish and tadpoles including their own young if given half a chance. Listed below as some of the small fish like creatures that trout eat as well as just a few suggested imitations.

Published: Dec 31, 2016 Revised Mar 07, 2021 This is a list of flies that I know all work well for both Lakes Tantangara, Eucumbene and Jindabyne. For the sake of convenience I have set them out in my "go to" lock style teams and also some "matching the hatch" options and finally some alternative…

Food source Seasonality (Jan–Dec) Fly suggestions Adult yabbies Woolly bugger Floating yabby Shrimp shell yabby Booby Small yabbies Woolly bugger Floating yabby Shrimp shell yabby Booby Ants & termites Foam flying ant / termite Foam flying ant / termite 2 Ant Midge Midge Beetles Red tag…

This is a list of flies that I know all work well for the lakes around Miena and Bronte in Central Tasmania. For the sake of convenience I have broken the list below up into 4 distinct sections: The first table deals with "Matching the hatch" and is best read in conjunction with an article I first…

This fly is somewhat of a fusion of a traditional caddis pupa emerger and a squirmy wormy and it has earned a place in my fly box as a great middle or top dropper fly for both a loch style team and a river team. It is certainly worth tying on in the early stages of a caddis hatch as the pupas are…

In recent years I have found that other than the traditional woolly bugger of around 50 mm in length there is also a demand for very small woolly buggers. In fact I would go as far as to say that in most of the fisheries that I haunt 'mini woolly buggers' of from 25 mm to 30 mm in length are often…

My first fish on fly fell to the magic of a Woolly Bugger and many have gone the same way since then. With its origins in America where it appears to be tied, as a Leach imitation there is also an English version with bead chain eyes called a Dog Nobler. Whatever the name it's a very good fly. It's…

My first fish on fly fell to the magic of a Woolly Bugger and many have gone the same way since then. With its origins in America where it appears to be tied, as a Leach imitation there is also an English version with bead chin eyes called a Dog Nobler. Whatever the name it's a very good fly. It's…

My first fish on fly fell to the magic of a Woolly Bugger and many have gone the same way since then. With its origins in America where it appears to be tied, as a Leach imitation there is also an English version with bead chin eyes called a Dog Nobler. Whatever the name it's a very good fly. The…

I developed this fly to fill a place in my fly box for a fly that can be fished in all those areas where scroungers including: Flathead, Mangrove Jack, Fingermark, Grunter and Salmon and other predators scrounge are targeting small fish that are being flushed out of mangroves, rocky shores, drowned…

We are lucky enough to have two of the Lutjanus family of fish endemic to Central Queensland, Fingermark (L.johnii) and Mangrove Jack (L.argentimaculatus). Mangrove jack Fingermark   They are both very solid fish that have powerful teeth (hence the Jack is often referred to as 'dog' or 'dog…

When Chironomids move from the detritus matter in which they hatch and live for a substantial part of their pupal life they are often blood red and consequently are known as blood worms. As they move toward emergence the blood red colour gives way to brown, olive and even almost black coloration….

My first fish on fly fell to the magic of a Woolly Bugger and many have gone the same way since then. With its origins in America where it appears to be tied, as a Leach imitation there is also an English version with bead chin eyes called a Dog Nobler. Whatever the name it's a very good fly. The…

=NSW=Completed in 1967 Lake Jindabyne is part of the iconic Snow Mountains Hydro Electric Scheme. Its an iconic lake has a reputation as a brown and rainbow trout fishery. It also produces reasonable numbers in the coldest of months. Jindabyne is the gateway for the NSW snow resorts and as you can…

My first fish on fly fell to the magic of a Woolly Bugger and many have gone the same way since then. The woolly bugger has its origins in America where it appears to be tied, as a leach imitation but there is also an English version with bead chin eyes called a Dog Nobler. Whatever the name it's a…

My articulated scrounger minnow works very well in those areas where flathead, jacks, grunter, bream and other predators target small fish that on the falling tide are being flushed out of mangroves, rocky shores, drowned timber and weed beds. This is the third in my series of scrounger flies and…

I was introduced to the non bead head Tassi variation of a woolly bugger in the lead up to the 2002 Tasmanian One Fly which by chance I won. Whilst I was not comfortable enough to use the Tassi Bugger then I have used it and this bead head version many times since to great effect. Like most woolly…

My first fish on fly fell to the magic of a Woolly Bugger and many have gone the same way since then. My understanding is that the Woolly Bugger has its origins in America where it appears to be tied, as a leach imitation. having said that there is also an English fly with bead chin eyes called a…

Published: Mar 14, 2011 Midges are part of the Chironomidae family of true flies. They are very small as the name implies and their cycle is similar to the mayfly or the Caddisfly. When fish are taking midges the midges are generally available in large numbers. The Lava is between 6 & 12 mm in…

Flathead are definitely one of the easier species of estuary fish to catch on fly. They will respond to a wide range of traditional and specialist flies and you will catch them as a by catch when your fishing small flies (from a flathead's perspective) to species such as bream and whiting and…

Fantastic event that was well organised and mostly equally well executed. My rotation for the competition was: DENNETT RIVER On day one my departure time for my Dennett session was 7am. Competitors were supposed to be dropped of at their beats with at least 1 hour of time available to set rods up…

OF FLY TYING AND FLY FISHING TERMS   See also: A TO Z OF FLY TYING SKILLS ABDOMEN. Rear most of the three body divisions of an insect. ADIPOSE EYELID: an immovable transparent outer covering or partial covering of the eye of some groups of bony fishes, such as mullets and trevallies. AMADO. A…

=NSW=Located in that part of New South Wales that is still referred to by some as “old town country”. By virtue of how it is accessed the lake is virtually split into three areas of public access. The only access point I have used, and consequently the focus of this post is via Burrendong State…

I have been keeping a data base record of my fishing outings now for around 15years. When you do a search say on November, December and January for Lake Jindabyne its interesting to see the similarities for that period of time over the years. There is obviously some skewing of the results because…

I reckon that the Woolly Bugger is the quintessential streamer or stripping fly. Fly fisher folk must agree with this statement because the Woolly Bugger seems to be the origin of more variations than any other, or at least almost any other, streamer or stripping fly. This fly is a variation on the…

My first fish on fly fell to the magic of a Woolly Bugger and many have gone the same way since then. With its origins in America where it appears to be tied, as a Leach imitation there is also an English version with bead chin eyes called a Dog Nobler. Whatever the name it’s a very good fly. Its…

Round 1 of the NSW fly fishing championships was held over the weekend of 15th to 16th September 2012. For full details follow this link: www.flyfishaustralia.com.au/cms/ffa-nsw-act-201112-3 There was a lot of interest in this competition and a strong filed of competitors including 2 from Tasmania…

Large populations of dark olive Yabbies of the Cherax Genus have developed in both Lake Jindabyne and Lake Eucumbene. Many anglers suggest that the Yabby has been responsible for changing the feeding habits of trout in the lakes as the populations of Yabbies have increased. In fact in both Lake…

Please read this article in conjunction with the companion article fly fishing tips. Loch style fly fishing is fly fishing over the lee side of a boat with the wind at your back with the boat side onto the wind, using a system incorporating one or a number of flies. It is a technique that is well…

Over the years I have identified three flies that have elements of their ties that are similar. Depending on who ties them they can be almost the same or can be diverse as two Woolly Buggers tied by two different fly tiers. The three flies I refer to are of course the Flash Harry, the Dirty Harry…

The 'Fiona' (Shrek's lady) as I have called this fly is a counter balance for the increasingly popular fly called a Shrek. It is in fact the same tie as the Shrek except that it incorporates different coloured materials. Both are basically Woolly Buggers by design and just as the emerald green is a…

=NSW=Lake Eucumbene is one of 16 lakes in the iconic Snow Mountains Hydro Electric Scheme and was completed as the second dam in the scheme in 1958. The full water level is 1030 meters putting the lake around 100 meters higher than Lake Jindabyne. The dam was created by damming the Eucumbene river…

Keep an eye for swallows dipping on the water feeding on midge. That's a sure sign that there will also be damsel nymphs around and then of course further up the food chain there are likely to be trout feeding on both the midge and the damsel nymphs. This is the time to start thinking about fishing…

At different times of the year you will start to see swallows dipping on the water feeding on midge. This is the time to start thinking about fishing either damsel buggers or olive woolly buggers because unfortunately for the midge it's not only swallows that have them on their menu it's also…

For the sake of convenience I have broken my fly suggestions up into 5 distinct sections. I have put those sections in the order in which I methodically go through as I determine what fly or flies to tie on. MATCHING THE HATCH WITH DRY FLIES It's hard to beat the exhilaration that comes with…

==Lake Maroon is one of South East Queensland's best freshwater fly and surface fishing destinations It lays close to the base of the Great Dividing Range on Burnett Creek, a tributary of the Logan River. It is a relatively small impoundment with a surface area of 350 ha and an average depth of 9.6…

Hi Kerry, Thanks about your email looking for information on Lake Maroon. I love Maroon and have had a couple of podium finishes there in Fly Fish Australia competitions. I am not aware of any guides that fish the Lake Maroon area so I cant help you there but I have set out a little information on…

==Lake Maroon is one of South East Queensland's best freshwater fly and surface fishing destinations It lays close to the base of the Great Dividing Range on Burnett Creek, a tributary of the Logan River. It is a relatively small impoundment with a surface area of 350 ha and an average depth of 9.6…

Chironomids are also sometimes known Buzzers and Midges at various parts of their life cycle. They are part of the Chironomidae family of the order Diptera – True Flies. They are very small and have a similar life cycle to Mayflies,  Caddisflies, Dragonflies and Damselflies and go through four…

Before we go too far I just want to put it out there that this post is just a reflection of part of my fly fishing journey. Don't take it as gospel but do feel free to use it as a foundation in developing your own abilities to catch a fish on fly … in this case grunter. The original of this post…

Loch style fly fishing is fly fishing over the lee side of a boat with the wind at your back with the boat side onto the wind, using a system incorporating one or a number of flies. It is a technique that is well suited to individual or teams of flies and has applications for both surface…

This is the first in the series of three versions of the same fly and is representative of the original bloodworm colour of the pupa as it emerges from the slime on the lake bottom. The second fly in the series is black with flashes of red representing the pupa as changes to a dark colour with…

We are lucky enough to have two of the Lutjanus family of fish endemic to Central Queensland, Fingermark (L.johnii) and Mangrove Jack (L.argentimaculatus). Mangrove jack Fingermark   They are both very solid fish that have powerful teeth (hence the Jack is often referred to as 'dog' or 'dog…

Jelly prawns are one of the critical building blocks at the lower end of the food chain in our tropical and sub-tropical estuaries. They are also a favourite food item for many species of iconic tropical sport fish such as barramundi, king threadfin salmon and blue threadfin salmon and tarpon to…

Classification Animalia (animals) > Actinopterygii (ray-finned fishes) > Sparidae (porgies) > Acanthopagrus In the Acanthopagrus family we have quite a few members in Australian waters. From both a commercial and recreational fishing point of view the main members of the Acanthopagrus…

The number of fly boxes you carry is obviously one of personal choice. One difficulty you may encounter when you are setting up your fly boxes is which flies you should include, and how many flies you should carry in your fly box or boxes. The last thing you want to be doing is standing on the bank…

Whilst the tips I have set out below evolved from fishing in the Snowy Mountains of NSW, in general terms they are equally appropriate to a whole range of fisheries. These tips are all designed to help you locate trout to encourage their cooperation.   Location, location, location Location is…

At the 1999 world fly fishing championships held at Jindabyne in 1999 fishing buzzers was the buzz (excuse the pun) and as soon as I got home I tied some up according to the patterns I had seen. I fished those flies many times , without conviction or confidence, and with the inevitable poor…

This is definitely my preferred popper for targeting Australian native bass in their natural river and lake habitat. Bass strike for 3 reasons. The fist and most obvious is when they are actively feeding. At those times bass can have an appetite for everything from nymphs, yabbies, small fish,…

==Located near Imbil south of Gympie Borumba Dam is unique in that it offers both great Bass and Saratoga fly fishing. The layout of the lake is interesting in itself and basically forms a cross. On the north east axis you have the dam wall and main lake and opposite that you have the Yabba Creek…

Vern Barby's Magoo is a very special fly and a great variation of a woolly bugger. Vern designed this woolly bugger variation specifically for use in 'smelt' rich Lake Purumbeet in western Victoria. It's worth a swim in any water where 'smelt' whether they be Galixia, Gambesia or other small fish…

This fly was out of left field as far as I was concerned and when I was first introduced to it I had no great expectation of it finding its way into my fly box. I was wrong. The bright tinsel body certainly stands out and rather than spooking fish as I expected it seems to trigger a response from…

One of my favour early season still water flies this fly is dressed with a skit around a marabou tail. It is very adaptable and is a great way of tying tails of two colours of marabou or just adding a hot spot at the base of the tail which fish find very attractive. The skirt can be made of several…

At different times of the year you will start to see swallows dipping on the water feeding on midge. This is the time to start thinking about fishing either damsel buggers or olive woolly buggers. Unfortunately for the midge it's not only swallows that have them on their menu it's also carnivorous…

Large populations of dark olive Yabbies of the Cherax Genus have developed in both Lake Jindabyne and Lake Eucumbene and many other places. Many anglers suggest that the Yabby has been responsible for changing the feeding habits of trout in the lakes as the populations of Yabbies have increased. In…

As the name implies this fly has been designed specifically for fishing into mangroves and other tropical structure such as gravel and rock bars. It has several attributes that make it the ideal fly to entice fish like Barramundi, Mangrove Jacks and Fingermark out of structure and to take the fly….

This is a Peter Morse fly and is a great variation of a Woolly Bugger and is making its mark. It's dressed on a wide gape hook that creates an effective "keel" effect and sports a relatively long marabou tail and a dense collar which together create plenty of currents around the fly that really get…

==This is an popular recreational lake located in the heart of Ballarat. It dried out in the drought but filled again in 2010 and is now a top fishery once again and is shared by fishers, sailing boats, sculls and other users. Even with all this activity the lake fishes well throughout the season….

This is a variation of a bead head woolly bugger that has worked very well for me in Lake Eucumbene and Tantangara Reservoir on brown trout and on Lake Maroon for bass. Materials   Hook Bead/weight Thread Tail Rib Body Hackle Collar Knapek S #6 to #10 Metallic/anodised TBH pink bead 6/0 brown…

Whilst a lot of the things we seek to imitate with flies don't in fact have tails we still tie what are commonly referred to as tails into most of our flies. I am a firm believer that in some flies realistic eyes are a trigger that elicits a response from fish. There are many ways of adding eyes to…

Only some of the things that trout eat have tails and often the tail is very small. Despite that many of the wet flies that we tie have a tail. In most cases tails are tied into dry flies as an extension of the body and are generally incorporated in the fly design to give the fly some additional…

AKA: Dahlberg diver type tails. Only some of the things that bass eat have tails on often the tail is very small. Despite that many of the flies that we tie have a tail. In most cases tails are tied into dry flies as an extension of the body and are generally incorporated in the fly design to give…

In the last few years I have identified three flies that have elements of their ties that are similar. Depending on who ties them they can be almost the same or can be diverse as two Woolly Buggers tied by two different fly tiers. The three flies I refer to are of course the Flash Harry, the Dirty…

For me polaroiding is one of the most rewarding forms of fly fishing. It involves the process of sighting fish with the aid of polaroid sunglasses and then working out and executing a when, where, what and how equation with the aim of enticing the sighted fish to take the fly. I like it because it…

There are a few flies that I have absolute confidence in and consequently have no hesitation in tying them on if I am in unknown territory and am up for a bit of prospecting. This fly is really a merging of two of them and it is so consistent that its has earned its own place amongst my top 10 or…

A similar fly to a Shrek or Bloody Mary this fly is distinguished by the bands of fuzelled seals fur and holographic tinsel along the full length of the body. This is a particularly good point fly early and late in the season when the browns and bows are getting ready to make their spawn run. Brown…

I was ripping the black tailed version of this fly through the chop with some success when my boat partner asked what fly is that 'silver surfer'. I explained to him that it was just a woolly bugger variant tied with a black tail and silver UV straggle fritz. I tried to give it a real name such as…

Large populations of dark olive Yabbies of the Cherax Genus have developed in both Lake Jindabyne and Lake Eucumbene and many other places. Many anglers suggest that the Yabby has been responsible for changing the feeding habits of trout in the lakes as the populations of Yabbies have increased. In…

There are a few flies that I have absolute confidence in and consequently have no hesitation in tying them on if I am in unknown territory and am up for a bit of prospecting. This fly is really a merging of two of them and it is so consistent that its has earned its own place amongst my top 10 or…

My first fish on fly fell to the magic of a Woolly Bugger and many have gone the same way since then. Some say that what we call a woolly bugger had its origins in America where it appears to have been tied, as a leach imitation. Others say it had its origins in English where evolving at roughly…

I was ripping the black tailed version of this fly through the chop with some success when my boat partner asked what fly is that 'silver surfer'. I explained to him that it was just a woolly bugger variant tied with a black tail and silver UV straggle fritz. I tried to give it a real name such as…

a.k.a. Shuggie This 'frog or dog nobler' type pattern by David Downey is a fusion of two flies. The first was 'frog or dog nobler' variant tied by Loch Leaven anglers Jock Hodge and Dusty Miller. That fly had small bead chain eyes on top, a black body palmered with an olive hackle and a tail of…

I have lumped these diverse types of insects together as much for convenience as because in may cases they can be fished in similar ways. All of them respond to being fished relatively static except for current and without any drag. Having said that for midge in particular remember that if you are…

When browns and rainbows are feeding on hatching midges at the exclusion of all else this buzzer chironomid pattern and when a little lead is added for weight in the tie I find is a good choice for point fly in a team of three flies. This buzzer is basically the same as many that are in common use….

Leeches are invertebrates and belong to the family Annelida which is the same as worms. There are some 20 different genera of leeches distributed around Australia and many are available as food for trout and other fish. The general form is similar they have bodies that are not segmented and are…

This crossover Medium Mud Prawn works well in temperate and more tropical waters and is my goto size when targeting bigger bream and flathead in and around mangroves and drowned timber, rock walls and rock bars. I generally fish the Medium Mud Prawn on one of my #8 weight fly outfits matched to an…

The Black Prince cicada can be found along the full eastern coast and hinterland of Australia. It is prolific in many forested areas in the wormer months and when it inadvertently falls or flies into the water more often than not provides a big protein rich snack for a range of fish species…

Bonefish are an amphidromous species which means they migrate from fresh to salt water or from salt to fresh water at some stage of the life cycle other than the breeding period. They live in inshore tropical waters and moves onto shallow mudflats and sand flats to feed with the incoming tide….

Work in progress This 2/0 9cm fly is a barra variant of my mud prawn that I am testing. It is different to the original mud prawn in that: Bib added to impart movement I have swapped the flash over to gold as this is a favourite colour for barra lures. I have swapped over from epoxy to UV cured…

We are very lucky around Gladstone in that we have a healthy population of different species of fish that spend much of their time scrounging for food. These species include Mangrove Jacks, Fingermark, Barred and Silver Grunter, Flathead and of course rock cod in our local waters and all these…

At the end of the backing tie in a small swivel using a uni knot. Take 1.5meters of tippet material. My preference for bream and whiting is Riverge Grand Max fluorocarbon which is 0.210 mm diameter and 9.5lb breaking strain. Tie that in on the business end of the swivel using a uni knot. If you…

THIS IS HOW I SET UP MY ESTUARY AND RIVER SPIN COMBOS FOR VARIOUS SPECIES. Roughly once a month I attend estuary or river fishing competitions with other WRFC members. BREAM My bream combo is a Miller – 6'6" rod with a line weight of 2.4kg or 5.29lb. I can remember buying this rod probably 40 years…

Just thought you may find these soft plastic presentations mounted on specialized hook systems and including Y-Thing stinger hooks that I recently came across as interesting.   Bigger softies such as 4 inch ZMan Finesse worms set up on Demon Series Jig Heads sporting the likes of 3/8 weight…

Z MAN SOFTIES  When fishing locations such as estuaries and other relatively slower running saltwater fisheries my most common goto combo is my Shimano Autoglass 6.5 feet long fiberglass rod with 20lb power pro yellow braid connected to1.0 meters of  9.5lb Grand Max fluorocarbon leader with an…

AKA "All depth booby". Boobies have been generally fished as a wet fly to target trout and other species This version is relatively neutral in buoyancy but can be fished at a a range of depths with the depth being determined by the speed of the retrieve and the fly line it's fished on. With a…

When bass are feeding on big insects like Cicadas and Hoppers that crash onto the water they also become susceptible to large noisy and obvious flies like Dahlberg Divers cast around their structure or twitched across the surface. At other times they just have a whack at these big flies because…

AKA: Legs – palmered hackle If my memory of things I have read about Palmering flies is right then the term Palmering a fly has its origins around 1300 AD, that's right about 700 years ago. Whilst a fly can be palmered in either direction along the hook shank and doesn't necessarily require wire or…

Hackles and hackle fibres are used in various ways in the construction of wet flies. Whilst poorer dry fly hackle capes have traditionally been used in wet flies, over recent years, specific wet fly capes and saddles have evolved by the selective breeding of various birds. Preferred characteristics…

One of the best search flies in slow moving or still deeper water using a sinking line. If fishing from a fixed position cast it out, let the line sink to the desired depth, and then retrieve the line using a constant stripping motion, a pumping retrieve or a combination of both. The stripping…