Soft Hackles, Heavy Beads and the Biggest Changes in Fishing & Tying Techniques - Darryl Mooney - Fishing In Focus

I started out on my fly fishing and fly tying journey as far back as 1977 and since that time I have asked on more than one occasion what I thought was the biggest change that had influenced my fishing. It's never required much thought to answer that question; it's the Tungsten Bead. The ability to use an appropriate weighted bead to get my ‘’nymph’’ to the correct depth quickly pushed my catch rate forward on the days of no obvious surface activity. In recent years, social media has been awash with more and more superbly tied and photographed tungsten beaded nymphs, no doubt due to the popularity of the competition-inspired fishing technique of tight line nymphing and its various nuances.

In 1977 I'd never seen a tungsten bead and it would be quite a few years until I would. Back then in the absence of surface activity the fishing technique of choice was "three wet flies down and across". We were taught to tie the flies required at our local fly tying class by men who took the time to pass on what they knew. As I'm writing this wee piece, memories are flooding back. Patterns we learned to tie included the Black Pennell, Greenwell Spider, Snipe & Purple, Partridge & Orange and what would become one of my favorites still to this day, the Waterhen Bloa.

Kelly Galloup the well-known American angler and author, recently remarked that a lot of modern nymphs lacked soul. I think in particular he was referring to Perdigones it's a very bold statement but I sort of get where he might have been coming from.

You could never say that about the Waterhen Bloa.

Traditional Waterhen Bloa

As the opening of this season fast approaches I've been stacking up on Waterhen Bloa’s and reading again all the soft hackle fly resources in my library, connecting with history you could say.

Yellow silk, water rat or mole fur and the inside covert feather of a waterhen’s wing combine in perfect harmony to represent a number of stages of the life cycle of various mayfly species such as large dark olives, olive uprights, medium olives and small dark olives. For me I see it very much as a drowned dun or an ascending nymph.

I like the look of this fly, I love the history of it and I always feel confident using it. There’s just such a special satisfaction when you catch a fish on it. Its simplicity is surpassed only by its effectiveness at fooling fish.

A few seasons back my fishing partner Brian and I carried out a wee experiment as we walked on to a nice hatch of LDO’s in early Spring, to which the trout were rising well. Up to that point, we had both been fishing with tungsten beaded nymphs. I switched to a well proven dry pattern and Brian decided he would give a team of two Waterhen Bloas a go. We both caught fish but he was catching at a faster rate than me and few fish were refusing the dry. As part of the experiment, I let him have a go with the fish that were being picky on the dry. He caught each of them on the Waterhen Bloa and we both agreed it proved the effectiveness of this magical little pattern in a hatch situation.

Paul Proctor Style Waterhen Bloa Variant

Whilst I mostly fish the traditional tying of the pattern, I've also made room in my box for a variant popularized by that trout guru Paul Proctor, where he has introduced a pearly butt to the tying. If Paul does something with a classic, it's worth paying attention to!

Darryl and Tim Wood on Fly Tyer's Row at our Autumn Show

Like all things fly tying there are a number hacks and tricks to keeping this fly sparse (which I believe is the real secret to its effectiveness) and neat and I will be on hand at the forthcoming Glasgow Angling Open weekend to share those with you, so please do ask if you're interested to learn.

As regards my set up to actually fish the Waterhen Bloa, or any North Country spiders in fact, would definitely require another article to cover  all the effective ways covering a variety of conditions and circumstances.

Darryl dressed for early season rises

One of my favourite ways will be in a hatch situation, combining it with a dry pattern "New Zealand Style". With opening day in Northern Ireland just round the corner that's how I'll approach those early season hatches, armed with a time-tested pattern & technique to pick up fussy fish.

Success on an LDO Imitation

Darryl will be on Fly-Tyers Row at our Spring Open Weekend representing Partridge of Redditch & Sprite. 

All of the guest fly dressers are at the very top of their game and will gladly go out of their way to show you how to perform the latest techniques and how to tie any style of fly you can think of. They will even take the time to guide you round our massive fly tying department during their scheduled 'floor time', helping you to choose the right equipment and best fly tying materials and fly tying tools from our extensive range.  You can also take advantage of some great deals on hooks and materials as well as a few new product launches over the weekend.

There really is something for everyone at these events, that's why they are the biggest in Scotland - and this one promises to be the biggest ever! With FREE parking and FREE entry, there will be loads of things to see and do on the Open Weekend as well as some amazing bargains on all types of fishing tackle. Keep an eye out on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and instore for more info on what's going on at this event! Plus don't forget to register for your FREE GIFT on the day! Click HERE for details!