If you have a set of Hawthorn patterns in your fly box, now is the time of year to get them fished. As Spring foliage really starts to bloom in late April and early May the Hawthorn bushes begin to flower, attracting Hawthorn flies. These shiny black flies are known as St Mark's fly (Bibio Marci) as they emerge around St Mark's day on the 24th April each year. If your local Reservoir or River has any hawthorn growing on the bankside, you can be sure that the flies are there and the fish are actively feeding on them.
Steve takes us through the best practices of fishing these patterns. Ideally you want the Hawthorn bushes around you, with the wind at your back where the naturals will be blown onto the water. This makes it easy to place your fly in amongst feeding trout as they pick up flies cast from the bushes to the water.
Steve's outfit consists of two rods: One soft rod for fishing single dry patterns and another stiffer action rod for casting a team of flies featuring his Foam Hawthorn pattern which you can learn to tie here. His team of flies consist of a Foam Hawthorn, a Seals Fur Hawthorn and a Black Humpy Fly.
Kit seen in this video:
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