Posts Tagged ‘tropical’

Articulated slow roller

Tied in either Qantas or brown bomber colours this is a great fly when targeting barra in Lake Awoonga and other barra impoundments on those quiet days when the barramundi are sulking and you need a fly that is going to be in their face for a relatively long time but still active.

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Fusion – soft plastic lures as flies

These soft plastic / flies are best fished in the same way as fishing a soft plastic on spin gear. I generally fish them using a #8 to #10 weight fly rod depending on the weight of the head and on a fast sinking fly line so that I can get them a little deeper.

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Gartside gurgler

Fishing with a gurgler can be very exciting because you often see the fish behind the fly just before it strikes. With fairly subtle changes you can vary this fly to fit a wide range of surface fishing situations.

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Bass jig

My bass jig has been designed to be fished on a variety of lines with the determining factor for the choice of line being determined by the depth the target bass are holding at. With a 4mm for weight it sinks well and when retrieved with a stripping action with a few protracted pauses provides plenty of movement to get the bass interested.

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Gusto

This is a Peter Morse fly and a great variation on a Wooly Bugger that is making its mark in fresh water fly fishing. 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 the marabou moving. It is adaptable for a range of species and situations.

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Chatto’s Mangrove fly

I like to fish it on either a floating line or an intermediate line with the depth of water just outside the target area being the determining factor. Fishes best if cast deep into the target area and just let it sit for up to 10 seconds. After that wiggly your rod tip so that the fly just shudders in the water activating the rattle. You can then retrieve the fly using a medium stripping action punctuated with plenty of stops and even let the fly float back to the surface and rattle the rod tip again.

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Bendback

The bendback is very effective fly in locations that contain a lot of structural hazards such as oyster racks, mangroves, tree stumps and rock bars. The design of the fly reduces the propensity of the fly to snag. Choose the colours of your materials so that your version mimics local bait fish.

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Bass foam hopper

When I converted my trout foam hopper for use as a bass and tropical fly fishing I added a sparkle chenille under-body and grossed it up dramatically so that it would withstand the aggressive nature of fish like Australian bass and tropical species such as mangrove jack.

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Pregnant prawn – size #1/0 7 cm long

An ideal fly for targeting bottom feeders such as bream, flathead, flounder, whiting, bonefish or tropical trigger fish. Because of the lead shot it sinks quickly, swims hook point up, resisting snagging up on detritus matter or bottom structure such as shells or small stones, and as it is retrieved, has the added benefit on soft bottoms of kicking up a little sand or mud in much the same way as the natural.

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Wiggle minnow

By varying the materials used, the colours and size I have accounted for trout, bream, flathead, mangrove jack and even barramundi on wiggle minnows. The recipe I have set out below is just one version of this very adaptable fly and I would encourage you to individualize the fly to your own requirements.

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