Early this fall I was ‘flying’ in one of my usual spots on the Muskoka River. I had been using a white winged dry fly (with some red in it) and to haul in a bunch of bass. The weather turned cooler near the end of September and my usual spots were not producing with this particular fly. The water was noticeably cooler. On a whim, I grabbed a fluffy purple leech imitation fly and tied it on to my line. Within seconds I was catching fish again. I even caught a small speckled trout.
I had not thought much about that until last week. My cousin told me of a small lake that was nearby and stocked full of rainbows. I won’t name the lake yet until I have proven it not to be a ‘dud’. I asked him if he thought that the rainbows would still be biting this late into the fall. We recently had our first couple of snow falls. My cousin indicated that they should be ‘biting’ hard!
So…Here I am wondering which day to find this lake and what flies to use for the trip. It so happens I found this great Flyfishing website featuring purple flies for cold water (fall) trout. Naturally, I thought I would share with you guys the secrets they ‘bestowed’ on me.
The guys at FlyAngler.ca tell us about the Steelhead Hammer.
The Steelhead Hammer has had notable success targeting steelhead in British Columbia, as well as the Great Lakes tributaries. It is an effective pattern that can easily be changed with the season by varying the colour choices. Purple and blue seem to be better colours for winter use while pinks and reds tend to dominate in the spring and summer.
Now if the rain would stop for a day or two I could lay the hammer down on some of these Muskoka rainbows!
Bill Anderson
Muskoka Outdoors
