Dry Flies Which Work Everywhere (All Year Round) - The Universal Dry Fly Selection

Firstly, I like to thank all of you who managed to snag one of our Leather River Almanacs, when we launched it earlier this month - I hope you like it! 

They sold out within a few hours and we asked the 'leather guys' if we could have some more - they just landed with us and they are available now - only while stocks last though - we will not have any more this year!

I really look forward to reading your reviews on them - which so far are overwhelmingly positive.

Now, on to more pressing matters ...

Do you fancy treating yourself this Easter to some Dry flies (and nymphs) which are my 'go to' for this time of year - and they've stood the test of time ... 

When we first launched Barbless Flies - all the way back in 2014 - we started with just two selections of flies.

Our initial aim was to put together separate universal selections of dry flies and nymphs which you could take to any water (be it river or stillwater) in the UK, and be confident of catching fish - no matter what time of year.

As the weather starts to (hopefully) warm, within the next few weeks, fly anglers from across the country will be blowing the dust off their dry fly boxes and putting them to use in anger on our rivers and stillwater.

Our Dry Selection has not changed at all since we first launched it all those years ago. Until now ...

We've now given it a slight tweak to make it usable in even more fishing situations you may find when using dry flies, and best of all, it's still the same great value - at only £20.

Our Updated Dry Fly Selection contains four patterns. Three of which you will find in virtually every anglers fly box:

• Elk-Hair CdC Caddis - A very well-known and versatile fly. Can be used all year round in all light conditions. An excellent "go-to" fly.
• Kite's Imperial - First devised in 1962 by the late Oliver Kite to imitate the Large Dark Olives which were hatching on the River Teifi. He used this pattern all season long whenever any olives were hatching, it didn't matter if they were large, small, light, dark, Pale Wateries or Iron Blues. Rather than changing the pattern, Oliver only changed the size of the fly.
• CdC Olive Emerger - A very well-known and versatile generic olive imitation. Can be used all year round in all up-winged fly hatches. An excellent olive imitation.

The fourth pattern in our selection is a very special one - The Indicator Caddis:

This fly is a very versatile pattern, great fished as a single dry fly on a dead drift or as the dry in a Duo/New Zealand set-up, which has exceptional buoyancy and will suspend even the heaviest of nymphs. Whenever I'm fishing a dry fly if I cannot pinpoint the exact insect, this is the fly I will tie on. They really are that deadly!

Our Updated for 2024 Dry Selection is now available as a selection of 16 flies (4 different patterns - see above). We are supplying all of these for still only £20 - alll supplied in our eco-friendly packaging.

Just click on any image or button in this email to view the flies in more detail.

*** Go on, treat yourself for the beginning of the river season ***

Electric 'Early Season' Nymphs 

I've always found the start of the season really challenging, the resident fish of the Derwent don't seem interested in any dry flies which I present to them - no matter how well they are tied! They take a little time to 'warm up' and really switch on to my offerings.

One school of thought - which I personally subscribe to, and has worked really well for me over the years - is to start to use smaller, more imitative nymphs during the early part of the day, especially when the fish seem to be a little sluggish and there's little to no activity on the surface.

One such nymph which I find works really well no matter which river or stillwater you are on, is the famous Copper John, especially in Olive Green:

This pattern, created by John Barr in 1993, has a world-famous reputation for catching fish.

There's an urban myth that the success of this nymph is due to the copper wire being wrapped around a hook, which creates a form of magnetic field which then attracts the fish - I suppose you do have the beginnings of an electromagnet with the materials, I'm still not sold on the idea though - but the nymphs work - so who's to argue!

The Copper John is a nymph which has always caught fish, this nymph is a great fly for both Trout and Grayling. Great in deep or fast water, it can also be used as a part of the Duo setup with great effect. This fly accounts for fish in virtually every river and stillwater, due to its weight and profile, with copper wire twisted around the hook shank this gives the fly a uniform weight distribution throughout the fly, and more importantly, gets the fly to the depth where the fish are. Even in the smaller sizes this fly penetrates the water and sinks.

If you want to give them a go and see their fish-catching abilities for yourself, then we have our updated Copper John Selection available for you to try now:

Our Copper John Selection contains 16 nymphs (4 colour variations - copper, black, olive green and red, 2 of each, in sizes 14 & 18) and is available now for only £20 - delivered in our eco-friendly packaging. That's a massive 15% saving over buying them individually - if you have a discount code from us, you can include that to save even more.

*** Go on, you know you want to! ***

Tight lines & have a great time out on the water this Easter.