Match The Hatch For 'Success' This Spring

I chose the above heading very carefully, after all what actually is 'success' - it will mean different things to each of us - for me, success is just getting time away from the office and losing myself on the river for an hour or so! To others, success may be catching a 'personal best' fish or a known fish which eluded you last season.

Generally speaking, the anglers who can adapt to any changing conditions on the water are the ones who are more successful - if you only count catching fish as a success! This is where watercraft & 'Matching the Hatch' come into play.

TL;DR - Too Long; Didn't Read

I know that some of you are pressed for time and save our emails to read later in the day, by this time our selections are sometimes sold out (I get lots of emails from customers pointing this out to me).

I've put this section at the beginning, so you can grab your flies now - and save reading my musings for later, safe in the knowledge that you have already secured your fly selection.

This email is all about the Iron Blue, an insect which will appear on a water near you in the next week or so. In this email, we are launching our Iron Blue Match The Hatch Selection - a boxed selection of 15 flies, 3 of each of the five main stages of the Iron Blue hatch. All the patterns are tied using the very best quality materials on AHREX hooks - the best hooks there are. We also give you access to all the hatch information, pattern information and watercraft, specific to the Iron Blue - all this for only £25.

Grab your Iron Blue 'Match The Hatch' Selection now, so you don't miss out - we only have 50 available and if they are anything like the March Brown set, they will sell quickly.

On the subject of Matching the Hatch, we had some great feedback from our first 'Match The Hatch' Selection of March Browns:

Why is it so important to 'Match The Hatch'?

As you can see from the image below, if we can offer a fish something similar to what it is expecting to see, then we will stand much more chance of catching it than if we use something alien to them:

* This is an image of a Large Dark Olive, kindly supplied by Ben Lupton - with its imitation in the background - size and shape are the most important aspects!

The more successful anglers are the ones who can successfully translate what is happening around them to tactics when on the water (be it Rivers or Stillwaters), a major part of that is deciding which fly to present to the fish.

This is where matching the hatch comes into play - where possible, you should always try to offer up an imitation which closely resembles the insects the fish are actually feeding on at the time - hence 'Matching The Hatch'.

We wanted to be a little different and add much more value ... In each of our Match The Hatch Selections we have included a QR code (which you scan with your phone/tablet), this takes you to a hidden page on our website which is dedicated to the selection of flies you have just bought, for example:

On this page (sample above), you will find lots of information on the insect you are trying to match - how to identify it etc, a list of all the flies contained within the selection - including hints and tips on when, where and how you fish each one of them.

Over the past few months we have worked very closely with our Artisan Fly Designers and produced a full range of 'Match The Hatch' Selections - all tied with the highest quality materials on the best quality hooks available (AHREX). Each of our 'Match The Hatch' selections contains patterns which cover the full lifecycle of the insect in question (Nymph, Emerger, Dun, Spinner etc).

We've also presented them in a really nice box, pretty neat eh ...

The second set of our 'Match The Hatch' selections is launched today and focuses on another early-season favourite in all watercourses across the UK ...

The Iron Blue

The Iron Blue is an insect whic  h hatches throughout the season, but the main hatches are in April/early-May and then again later in the season (September & October).

The Iron Blue is the one insect which you can guarantee will be hatching in virtually all weather conditions - so they (along with Olives) are a necessity in your fly box.

Our Iron Blue Match The Hatch Selection is now in stock and ready for immediate delivery. It contains 15 flies - 3 each of the 5 different lifecycle stages:

• Iron Blue Nymph - tied on an Ahrex FW501 - Size 16
• Iron Blue Emerger - tied on an Ahrex FW511 - Size 16
• Parachute Iron Blue - tied on an Ahrex FW503 - Size 16
• Iron Blue Upright - tied on an Ahrex FW503 - Size 16
• Iron Blue Spinner - tied on an Ahrex FW503 - Size 16

Successful river fishing is all about observation - carefully watching what is happening all around you, and then translating this information into your choice of fly and technique. As always there is no substitute for experience, but there are a few shortcuts you can use to help you gain that experience quicker.

Our Iron Blue Match The Hatch (MTH) Selection will help you in your first forays of the season, these are generally the major upwinged flies on the water in April and into early May, with this selection we have you covered for all of its lifecycle stages.

Here we present to you ...

Our Iron Blue 'Match The Hatch' Patterns:

 

You're probably asking yourself by now:

"That's great Richard, but how much is all this going to cost me?"

Well, we've kept the price to the bare minimum, each of our 'Match The Hatch' Selections are only £25 - yes, you did read that right, just £25 - to save you the maths, that's just £1.66 per fly, ignoring all of the other value you are also receiving!

As a reminder, each of our Match The Hatch Selections contains:

15 Flies - Three flies for each of the five main lifecycle stages we are trying to imitate for the Iron Blue.

Full Insect Information - Access to a hidden webpage which provides information on the Iron Blue, it also outlines in detail each of the patterns supplied, giving information on when and how to use them.

We have other 'Match The Hatch' selections on their way to us - our Artisan fly tyers are hard at work producing them as I type this. We've just received the Mayfly pattern samples and they are stunning - you're going to love them!

Tight lines & fill your boots!