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Show THE PARK CITY Wednesday, August 7, 1974 FISHING cornu Page 18 WHICH FLY? by Dave Mueller It is August and the trout waters have become low and Daytime temperatures are high and pull water temperatures with them. Anglers are apt to assume that the heat makes trout too sluggish to feed during the day, and concentrate their efforts during morning and evening hours. High daytime temps do put some trout under the banks, but when the same hot air contributes to formation of thunderclouds, an entirely different condition ensues: the trout overcast. Between 11 AM and 3 PM clouds build up, piling over the Uintas, making Don Stoll and his troop a little soggy. The angler at lower elevations is usually spared from getting wet until 4 oclock. What makes this cloud cover especially beneficial is that large trout, normally seclusive and hesitant about moving from their shaded lies, become quite bold when the skies are t. darkened, and they feed actively in When trout overcast is coupled with a good hatch of aquatic insects, the flyfisherman is in for some banner trouting. Such was the case this past week with 4 consecutive days of trout overcast and the emergence of great numbers of small caddis flies. This hatch, usually lasting from 10 days to a week, is one of the heaviest aquatic hatches on Utah waters. What makes the caddis fly additionally more tempting to the trout is that the hatch lasts most of the day, instead of 1 or 2 hours like the mayfly hatches. Thus, the fish become more and more frenzied in their feeding as the insects continue to float to them. After 3 hours of feeding, trout are taking the caddis every 4 or 5 seconds, and turn their noses up at anything which doesnt appear to resemble the insect. Recently, good numbers of the caddis began to appear on the water around 9 or 10 in the morning, with peak hatching occurring 2 hours later. The hatch tapered off during the afternoon (cloud cover seems to prolong hatching) and ended around 4 oclock. Cooler evening temperatures brought sporadic insect activity when the sun finally dropgin-clea- r. mid-curren- ped behind the hills. But the midday, when the insects start coming off the water, and the swifts and swallows dart close to the ground, and the trout begin slurping from everywhere in the current, is the time you want to catch this hatch. It took me 2 days to design and tie the proper pattern to fool the trout. The fly I had previously tied with this hatch in mind turned out to be too large to accurately imitate the insect. I finally put together the fly seen deer hair winged, dark brown in the drawing, a number polypropylene-bodie- d jewel which the fish took eagerly. A number 16 So fly of the exact same pattern produced nothing but did a size 18 ant pattern tied out of materials of similar colors. But when the fish are flopping and sipping and slurping incessantly, the incentive is there to develop the proper pattern . The tie that worked is simply the Letort Hopper pattern wound on a smaller hook. The polypropylene yarn body helps buoy the fly, compensating for only 2 strands of deer hair on the small hook. One big Brown trout on a certain stream had been tempting me with g his tendencies all season, but was wise to the ways of On the day that I came up with the correct caddis pattern, hit the absolute peak of the hatch, had the wind and the sun in my favor (the overcast was on and the wind was to my back), I spotted the fish sipping away about 6 inches out of his lie against the bank in the dead spot of the pool. On previous days I had attempted to cast directly across the current, dropping the fly into the dead spot on a slack leader so that the drift would hold for a few seconds before it was affected by the pull of the d current spilling out of the pool. But the fish had developed a in its feeding pattern, and my previous attempts had been affected by the drag before the fish decided to take. What produced was a dap presentation from the same side of the stream as the fish. After, a several-minut- e approach on my belly, I drew close enough to the fish to drop my fly over the bank without being seen. Caution paid off, as did the development of the caddis pattern, and the fish sucked in the fly on the first offering. This kind of figuring out is the heart of fly fishing for trout. The hatch on trout streams changes week to week, sometimes day by day, and often hour to hour. I consider myself lucky to hit one out of three hatches correctly. It helps to be able to tie your own flies, but many times you will make several attempts to correctly imitate a certain insect, and by that time the bug is gone from the stream for another year. But when you hit it right, all the false starts, all the frustration, all the puzzling is forgotten, and trout fishing becomes very sweet, indeed. 18-1- X, chain-refusal- s. 10-1- free-risin- oft-observ- self-preservati- ed wait-perio- Upcoming Mucker Fixtures By Corky Foster Park City Muckers meet Sun Valley Rugby Football Club on August 10th in Sun Valley, Idaho, in an attempt to even this years series. Park City travels to the oldest ski area in the United States to avenge a 10--6 defeat in Park City. Sun Valley sent a good team to Park City and should be even stronger on their home pitch. On August 17th, Telluride Rugby Football Club from Telluride, Colorado, one of the newest ski areas in the United States, will meet the Muckers in Park City. This will be the first fixture between these two clubs, this year being Tellurides first in competition. Telluride R.F.C. managed the tired team award for last place in the First Annual Ski Town Tournament in Aspen, Colorado, last month. Following the game, there will be a Chicken Barbecue. Price, time, and place will be announced soon. During the Arts Festival weekend, the Muckers will solicit donations for transportation to Lethbridge, Canada, so they may participate in the Social Tournament of Alberta. The Club needs $2,300 for transportation costs. This tournament will begin August 31st and will continue through Labor Day. Park City is a strong favorite to win its first Main Street 649-805- 1 International tournament. y X' HOTEL BOOKS BOUTIQUE RESTAURANT SALOON poR the finest in Steak, LobsteR CRab Legs. . And an end less Salad Bor J Dinner served IftqHBODfflX 6-- 1 0 pm -- - 6-- 1 1 pm weekends on. |