Editor’s note: This is another in a series of favorite flies used by members of Schuylkill County Chapter of Trout Unlimited.
Beginning in mid-to-late July what is perhaps the smallest May fly that is fished regularly, tricos, start hatching in large numbers and stay with us at least until the first frost and sometimes even last until the second frost.
When tying these tiny flies, they are usually matched with a size 24 hook, and pains must be taken to present copies for both the male and female duns and spinners. Male duns hatch with the last light of the day into evening, and the first beams of light hitting the water in the morning start the female duns.
These times are important to anglers, who must be aware that the brighter and warmer the day the earlier the female duns come off. By the time the females are hatching, the males from the previous evening will be swarming about 10-15 feet above the stream, and females will join in the swarm to breed before laying eggs on the stream surface.
Female spinners are what most refer to when they say they are fishing the trico hatch, and for a large portion of the first few hours of the day female duns, male and female spinners will be encountered. It is suggested to carry more female spinners than any other trico patterns because these are the most predominant flies seen. Female duns start hatching as early as 6 a.m. and often continue as late as 9 a.m., depending on temperatures and brightness of the day.
When tying the female dun, the pattern is a size 24 hook, cream tails, black-thread abdomen, a black fur thorax of thinly dubbed beaver, white wings and burnt wings of turkey flats or hackle tips. Also effective is the parachute pattern for the female dun, but use a polypro wing post with a white or cream hackle and try a size 22 hook during the first week or two of the hatch.
Male spinners are on a size 24 hook, with size 22 effective early in the hatch, and have three ream tails with a black abdomen made from thread ribbed with white or light olive thread with a black thorax of beaver fur. Wings can be polypro, antron, hackle fibers and crystal flash.
Many times as the hatch progresses, especially in areas that are heavily fished, minor changes can be made to flies to keep the interest of the fish. Often going to the crystal flash if others are not using it will be a definite asset.
Fishing these tiny flies can present a problem in seeing them while they are drifting in the current. Flatter water helps to follow the fly, but broken or riffle water is a real challenge.
Many anglers use other dry flies as a dropper ahead of the trico and striking when seeing a strike near the indicator fly. A beetle is a good indicator when tied with either foam or deer hair because it floats well, and often nearly as many fish are caught on the beetle as on the trico.
One of the benefits of fishing these tiny flies is that fish, especially brown trout, usually go airborne as soon as they are hooked, but a disadvantage hooking fish on these tiny hooks means it must be played a bit before being landed. With the warmer water temperatures this time of the year, it puts stress on the fish, so land them as quickly as possible and return them to the water.
Regionally, heavy hatches of tricos can be found on Tulpehocken Creek, Quittapahilla Creek and the Little Lehigh River. Limestone streams like those in the Cumberland Valley provide lots of trico action, and an excellent destination is where the run coming from Children’s Lake at Boiling Springs enters the Yellow Breeches.
Whatever stream is fished, select a section without much in the way of tree canopy, as tricos seem to prefer open areas to swarm. These pesky little flies will most likely catch a few fish and provide a lot of fun.
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