Bloomfield Grub

Hook  size 14 or 16 scud hook
Black 14.0 thread
6 turns of .015 lead free wire
3 strands of peacock herl.

Wrap the wire in the middle of the hook which will make turn upside down in the water.

Lock the wire with thread and move thread back to just behind the eye.

Tie in the three strands of peacock herl at the front.

I have a nor-vise and I spin the herl around the thread to make a tight ribbon.

Wrap the herl to the rear of the fly and then back again to the front and tie it off.

Whip finish.

Fishing the grub

I used a Cutthroat braided leader without dressing it so the leader drags the fly down.

Four feet of size 6 or 8 lb. fluro carbon tippet. (Phillip Weigall said nothing smaller. Glad I listened to him)

Slow figure eight retrieve.

Searching Nymph Patterns for Moving Water

Searching patterns are generic representations of  insects that trout are likely to eat.

According to Dave Hughes in his book  "Nymphs for Streams and Stillwaters" "The best searching nymph patterns -the Gold Ribbed Hare's Ear, Red Fox Squirrel, Herl Nymph, on and on - resemble more that one aquatic food form"

Double click on the key word for pictures of the flies

Dave Whitlock's Red Fox Squirrel Series

Czech Nymphs


Fur Nymphs
    

Herl Nymphs
   

Wire and Tinsel Bodied Nymph
  

Stillwater Patterns

Double click on the key word for pictures of the flies

Bloomfield Grub

Damselflies

Leeches 

Mudeyes

Stillwater Caddisflies 

Stillwater Mayflies   

Wooley Bugger 

Imitative Nymph Patterns for Moving Water

Double click on the key word for pictures of the flies

Mayflies
   

Stoneflies
   

Caddisflies
   

Moving Water Midges
    

Scuds
    

Hellgrammites
    

Nymph/Bugs

WHEN & WHERE TO USE THE NYMPH
“Nymphs are often at their most effective in poor conditions, particularly overly bright light. Equally they are an obvious choice when there are either no trout on the surface or the fish are rising in a swirling motion with their backs barely breaking the surface (typical nymph feeding behaviour).” Lesley Crawford



One of the first books I purchased on fly tying was Dave Hughes' Essential Trout Flies, an outstanding reference book. His introduction to Nymphs:

“Trout spend most of their time on or near the bottom, feeding on natural nymphs, larvae, crustaceans, and whatever else they can get in that rich and restful zone. They spend far less of it up where you can coax them to dry flies. If you like to increase the number of trout you catch, the best move you can make is to tie up an array of nymphs, then learn to present them in approximately the ways that the naturals arrive.”

(From Essential Trout Flies, by Dave Hughes, published by Stackpole Books, p. 49. Used with permission from Stackpole Books.)


I can tie pretty much any nymph you want. There are three categories and flies from each are illustrated.

Some notes
Any pattern can have a bead added to it.

Any pattern can have extra weight added to it. I only use lead free wire.

Tungsten beads will add an additional 50 cents to price of three flies.

Nymphs can be ribbed or un-ribbed

I use a “Nude by Nature” mineral make up brush for almost all the tails on my flies. The iridescent shine of the fibers give an added attraction to the fly. They can be tinted with a “Shinhan Art” textra pen without completely eradicating the shine.

Czech Nymphs (Scud Nymphs)

 The scuds thrive in lake and pond weed beds and in moving waters that are slow enough for aquatic vegetation. (DH)
I tie two types: the buggy looking nymph with a hairs ear body and clear flashback and a clean Czech Style Nymph made with just thread and a rubber band

Czech Nymph

Dark Olive Buggy Scud

Cream Czech

Brown Czech

Orange Czech

Buggy Czech

Copper John

Copper John

"The popularity of the Copper John is not due simply to its good looks but rather its uncanny ability to catch fish. Like other legendary fly patterns this nymph has a few key features that make it appetizing to fish. The large gold bead, slim profile, flash and breathing hackle are just a few of these features; but the real strength for this fly comes from its weight. The compact design and special materials used in construction allow this fly to sink quickly to the level of the fish. The extensive copper body is what adds the significant weight to the fly helping it rapidly descend to where the big fish lay. This unique style of weighting a fly also allows the fly to roll across the river bottom in a natural fashion as compared to a fly weighted down with a split shot attached to the leader.
The Copper John overall is a relatively good imitation for many types of mayfly nymphs, but in general the Copper John can imitate just about any of the aquatic insects you will come across if tied with the appropriate color of wire."

Excerpts of Jason Akl's article about the Copper John was taken from the American Fly Fishing Companies web site http://www.americanflyfishing.com/retail/common/tieit /pattern.asp?store_id=212&id=91

This is the fly of choice when the Eucumbene River is up and "pumping."

Copper John

Blue Copper John

Red Copper John

Soft Hackles Copper John