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Soft hackles!

9K views 23 replies 14 participants last post by  KilgoreT 
#1 ·
Had a couple of big days swinging soft hackles. I can’t think of a more fun way to catch trout. I was using the #4 rio trout Spey. I’ve got to say I’m loving this line! I had two 20+ fish days, though not a lot of big fish, it was a hoot! I also caught some pretty cutthroats.
 

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#3 ·
Softies are so cool! I've been a believer ever since the first Syl Nemes soft hackle book came out in, I think, 1975. We became partridge hackle disciples after finding they just totally fooled trout during the prolific caddis emergences on our home river. They also do a great job imitating swimming mayflies and just look buggy. Swinging 'em on a 2 hander is just added fun. Met Sylvester at the San Mateo Expo show many years ago and he gave me a half dozen tiny soft hackles. Still have them. Thanks Syl.
 
#11 ·
Woody,

This is only the way I typically do things and others may have alternative ideas. No right or wrongs. That said, this is how I often setup. Point fly 18" to 30" from the dropper (mostly about 24" unless I'm dealing with atypical circumstances). I like to keep droppers fairly short, say in the 6" to 8" range as I'll tend to get more tangles with a longer dropper. Often I'll just palomar knot an 18" to 24" tag off the bend of the hook for a trailing fly. Less tangles and setup time that way (read LAZY). Things can get pretty messy in a net with a long dropper. Dave Hughes "Wet Flies" 2nd Ed. is a great resource as is the on-line blog Soft Hackle Journal (SHJ). Just the flies presented in the SHJ is worth the time, and Steve is a wonderful writer. Should be mandatory reading for anyone even remotely interested in the topic.

SOFT~HACKLE JOURNAL
 
#12 ·
Tom,
I have viewed the SHJ and been inspired by some of the flies and I will try and track down "Wet Flies" locally.

I agree it is the easiest method to attach a second fly (trailing) off the bend of the first fly but have experienced slightly less hook sets using this method. Not sure if the tippet on the hook bend pushes the fly out of the fishes mouth when the fish takes the first fly.

I will try the 8" dropper method initially and gauge results v tangles.

Thanks for the reply.
 
#15 ·
Stravic,

Yes on both counts. I tend to use streamers and soft hackles year round on my home river. Both work great. Caught an absolute pig of a rainbow this past Sunday on the brown/orange soft hackle in the picture. Only about 19" long but truly built like a football!

Now if you really want to get high tech try tying on a streamer, big and noticeable, and run a soft hackle off the bend about 18" below. Hmmmmmmm, did I just divulge one of my secrets?
 

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#18 ·
Posted a few of these over on the Summer Trout Spey thread but thought I'd share them here, too. These have been my go-to bugs lately and producing some big fish, too. The soft hackle pheasant tail with various thorax colors is a constant, as is the dubbed hares ear version. I recently turned a popular Missoula dry fly pattern, the Brindlechute into a soft hackle (orange/olive) and I've taken a few good fish on it. The October caddis has been working, too. My favorite now though is the Red Quill Spider in #12 for the mahogany duns we have hatching through the fall.
 

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#20 ·
Beautiful soft hackles, a gorgeous fish taken with wet fly technique on a cool two hander inspire me to keep at this, practicing my casting and tying and reading the water. You show what having the art of trout Spey wet fly fishing at your command looks like! Impressive and gorgeous, the results are spectacular. Thanks for the glimpse at the other end of the learning curve...

Sent from my Pixel 3 using Tapatalk
 
#22 ·
While guiding out of West Yellowstone, swinging soft hackles on the park waters was the go-to method to get newbies into fish with even a rudimentary single hand cast. Even seasoned fisherpersons enjoyed the pleasure of the "the tug". I would use my Meiser S2H10623-4 when I wanted to go swingin'. Landing an 18" Yellowstone Cutt was a challenge! Definitely a lot of fun, and a very relaxed way to fish (gave you time to enjoy the scenery, not to mention the wildlife by the riverside).
Met Syl a few times and got some great hints on designing and tying new bugs. A great guy!
PS- during the off season, I would tie soft hackles for the local shops. Usually PT, hares ear, orange and green silk. Tied a few... the last season I tied 650 dozen. I tried to do 10 doz a day... somedays, skiing got in the way!
 
#24 ·
I too enjoy shredding some pow on 2 planks! No question that West and the Firehole are a special place in soft hackle history.

I've definitely been utilizing a variety of techniques, too, not just straight swinging. Fish like to eat the mahogany (and lots of other mayflies and caddis) as they are rising through the column. Yesterday was slow in bright sun, but I hooked several large fish by casting straight across, or even slightly upstream and then slack/tight lining into the start of the swing. Make a mend if necessary after your cast lands and take a few steps down AFTER your cast instead of before, allowing the bugs to sink just a bit. Your flies don't need to be heavy, just given a chance to settle a bit. I was using a point fly with maybe two or three turns of tin under the thorax and a dropper weighted only with the wire wrap on a Hover poly. Then allow the bugs to start to swing. While not an actual Liesenring lift, the flies will start to rise as they swing. Typically this is where the grab will come. Keep your rod tip up to absorb the grab and let the fish run before turning on them.

Another little tip I picked up from Joe Humphreys back home is to use different thread colors for different weights. I use black thread on my slightly weighted flies and brown on my unweighted. Easy to grab out of the box.
 
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