Mainely Outdoors: Buggy for trout

Although I truly am crazy about fly fishing for brook trout, the title of this article actually refers to a style of angling rather than a state of mind. While standard dry fly patterns work well during July when the brooks and streams recede and warm, special insect patterns called terrestrials are very effective in August. Certain bug imitations entice trout to take even when the sun is high during the hottest part of the day.
   While many fly casters are squinting and swearing while attempting to thread a leader and tie on size 18 or 20 miniscule dry flies, I dig out size six or eight grasshoppers, crickets, beetles or caterpillars. An abundance of Aroostook farm land surrounds most regional waterways, each field abounding with hoards of bugs. It’s a common occurrence for some of these terrestrials to fall into the rivers and creeks, becoming easy prey to hungry trout, therefore a well presented fake bug will generally stir up some action.
It’s also been my experience that terrestrials attract larger brookies on a regular basis, perhaps giving some credence to the old “big fly-big fish” theory. I can guarantee anglers will be able to pick out and follow their drifting bug imitation on the stream surface far easier than a tiny dry fly pattern. This makes it far simpler to react to a strike and set the hook, in fact, trout often engulf terrestrials with such zeal and assertiveness they actually hook themselves. Casting big bugs is a great way to introduce youngsters and novice adults to dry fly angling.
Without a doubt, grasshopper patterns are the most popular surface flies used locally. There are actually two basic patterns, one uses a pre-formed foam body while the other is tied using wool as the main body material. The foam models float well and need less false casting to dry out. Still, the wool offers a scraggly life-like appearance to the fly that I prefer, and so have many brook trout over the years. Preferable colors in either style include orange, green and yellow, all work equally well when floating, but the yellow, wool-bodied versions have proven just as effective when retrieved half –submerged after a pattern becomes a bit waterlogged.
Casting and floating terrestrials just as you would a normal dry fly will catch fish, but there’s a better tactic. Gently cast a hopper, cricket, spider or bee pattern toward grass on the shoreline of a brook and let it float down onto the vegetation. Then tug it free so it lands with a splash on the water and begin twitching the rod tip to make the fly wiggle and appear to struggle as a real bug might if it fell into the brook by mistake. Trout will pounce on the imitation terrestrial just as they would devour a real bug.
Most terrestrial flys are simple to tie, even for novice fly tiers, and you are always able to get the size, color and style required if you make your own. A fair selection of imitation bugs are also available at local sporting goods stores and fly shops, Ben’s Trading Post in Presque Isle offers a wide variety of locally hand-tied hoppers for example. Wooly worms are great caterpillar imitations and work well on area waters as do several patterns of crickets.
Ant patterns are a bit more difficult to purchase- but not difficult to tie, are a bit tricky to fish also but trout go crazy for them in red or black colors. Other options include beetles, ladybugs, jassids, spiders, June bugs, moths, bees and deer flys, if you can buy them or tie them the trout will eat them.
August is prime time for fishing terrestrial patterns and regardless of water levels, clarity or temperature, and whether it’s rain or shine, the fish will attack what they see as a regular snack. Stock up your fly box and bug some brookies this week, it’s terrestrial time in The County.