What does a soft hackle fly imitate?

Spider style soft hackles imitate any kind of active nymph, and are an effective attractor fly to fish when there is little (or no) bug activity. I have found flymphs to be extremely effective patterns when used to imitate mayfly nymphs and emergers, but flymphs can also imitate caddis and midges just as effectively.

What fly does Yvon Chouinard use?

Yvon used Tenkara on Whitewood Creek and out-fished the three of us combined. Yvon also spent one entire year fishing all around the world using only soft hackled patterned flies. Yvon ties his soft hackle flies a little differently than some traditional soft hackles.

Are soft hackle flies wet or dry?

Soft hackles are simple wet flies, consisting at their most basic of only three parts: a wet fly hook, a body of silk floss, and a partridge hackle. A fur thorax is an optional, but helpful part, since it keeps the hackles flared. This is an old approach.

What can I use for soft hackle?

Chickens are still the most common, but other well known soft hackling materials are from gamebirds like grouse, quail and especially partridge, which is widely used on soft hackled flies like spiders and flymphs, but also starling and even pheasant feathers are used as soft hackles, and Guinea fowl is a common soft …

What is a hackle fly?

Put most simply, hackles are feathers that are used to make fly fishing ties. These feathers are used to make flies that either sink under water or float on the surface of it, in order to make fish think that the fly is an insect.

What kind of hook do you use to tie a soft hackle?

The Soft Hackle is best tied on a standard-length straight shank hook. You can play around with the gauge of wire that is used. If you are targeting larger fish, use hooks that are dedicated to wet flies (thus having a thicker wire). If you are mainly tying flies to be used on small fish, a thin dry fly hook can be used.

Can a soft hackle be used as a dropper?

The Soft Hackle fly is very versatile when it comes to fishing techniques. It can be used as a single fly or, even better, fish two or three Soft Hackles at once. It’s also an excellent fly to use behind a dry fly in a dry and dropper rig.

What kind of feathers do you use to tie Soft Hackle flies?

Woodcock wings are good substitutes for bobwhite quail wings, and vice-versa. Many old soft-hackle patterns call for material no longer available. Species such as snipe and plover are protected under US Fish and Wildlife laws. The good news is that these hens offer a wide range of colors and fiber lengh perfect for tying these flies.

What kind of thread do you use for a soft hackle?

The thread that I recommend for the Soft Hackle include: Traditionally, the abdomen of the fly was made with Silk floss. Although this material still makes for an excellent choice, these days there are hundreds of different materials you can use. The most important factor is that it lays flat.