GENERAL DIRECTIONS FOR FLY FISHING.

New Zealand Illustrated Magazine, Volume 01, Issue 9, 1 June 1900, Page 42

GENERAL DIRECTIONS FOR FLY FISHING.

Fish at an angle of forty-five degrees down stream with fly, keeping away from bank as

far as you can conveniently cast, making three casts on this space, the last one as close to the bank as possible. Deep, sluggish waters aro bad for fly fishing, rather chose the light, rapid streams from three to four feet deep ; this only applies to day fishing. In the warm months of December and January you may fish deep pools at night time, say from eight to eleven o'clock, also the hour before dawn, which is often the best. Remember yon must suit your fly to the depth of the water, for instance, a light stream requires a small fly by day and a larger one at night ; but a large

river requires large day flies, and larger still at night. Never choose the windy side of a river to fish from for ease of casting, rather fish against the wind from the opposite bank with a short line, as all the trout food is blown to that bank, and you can observe more tront rising there than at the sheltered side. Let your line be about the length of your rod, allowing the length of cast. It is always best to fish with two flies, tail or stretcher, and drop fly about two feet from

stretcher; this drop fly helps to float the tail fly, aud should be kept constantly dropping on the water by a gentle twitching from the top of rod. More trout are killed in this way by the drop fly than by the stretcher. Over hand casting is in every way preferable. Drop your link lightly on the water, letting your tail fly touch it first, lift the top of your rod quickly to let your link stretch, then keep a gentle twitching from the top of the rod to keep the flies alive. Keep the drop fly hopping on the water, and allow no more of your cast to

touch the water than possible. Avoid drifting your flies. When you see a trout rise, drop into the rise suddenly, but lightly, as he is more likely to take the fly when dropped to him than drifted, when he has more time to examine it. In fly fishing down stream don't strike your fish, merely lift the top of your rod and walk down a few paces ; don't take him to the surface for a little time, but when once up, try to keep him there till you net him. Never give your fish a long run from you ; challenge him early, and you have a far

better chance than if you let him run. You can't strike a fish, with a long line, he has all the advantage when he gets a long run from you. If your fish is lai'ge, hold your line with your left hand, keep it in coils and let it out only sparingly to him. Keep him near you, he yields to the pressure of the rod sooner. This method of fishing down stream is objected to by some anglers on the plea of spoiling the stream below, but if you have not enough water below you to

continue your fishing, bo cautious and uso it sparingly. Some New Zealand anglors say trout won't take the fly freely hero, whore they havo suoh an abundance of white bait, sraolt, bally, otc, also, that it is seldom you got a trout above live or six pounds. Well wo had a ton pounder killed the other day by a local angler with the fly. I got a thirteen pounder uml a nine on the Heathcoto with a fly. It is perfectly true these large trout will not iako a fly by day, but at night, when they are

gorged with smelt and the fly scorns to be a dainty morsel for thorn, if you try them with a full-sized whito fly in tho warm nights of December and January, between the hours of nine and eleven o'clock, you will be surprised at tho greed they have for it. It is only when you observe those fish rising steadily in tho one place, not rushing, that yon can tempt them with tho fly. It is agreed by all prominent and experienced anglers that trout flies go on tho ■water from the fourteenth of one month to

the fourteenth of the ensuing, varying in colour and size for each month. In the British Isles trout fishing commences on February Ist on small tributaries, and on March Ist on larger rivers. Salmon fishing generally March 14bh on most Irish riversThe opening of the season is never so good for the fly, as trout are then weak, and generally keep near the bottom, feeding on shells, worms, etc. From the 14th March to 14th May, day fishing is in all its glory, after that time you can only make a good basket from sundown to eleven o'clock with largo night flies, those tied from the rail or corncrake getting the preference. From some experience I see the same rule holds good for New Zealand. The March brown comes on

New Zealand waters about September 10th, and totally disappears before October 14th. It is by no means a good fly at Home or abroad, it is rather too numerous on the water. The same may be said of the black midge, or black gnat by some. When these flies swarm on British rivers, we choose opposite colours, that is, a small, dark orange spider which we call the black nosed tawny, tied with a dark red hackle from the dark red game cockrel. This hackle is folded on a dark orange body, not winged, taking care to choose the hackles with a black end, giving the fly the appearance of a dark head. It is a good general fly for March. It is a good evening fly here in November, and large trout are frequently taken with it.