The Muddler Minnow: Best Fly for Fall Trout
If I had to pick one trout fly for anywhere in the country now, it would be an easy choice: the Muddler Minnow. This pattern (and its cousins) can be fished several ways, and it imitates a wide range of things trout love to eat. Greased up, it floats like a grasshopper. Stripped through deep pools, it looks like a juicy sculpin. Skated at night, it's a mouse. The more creative you are, the more you appreciate this classic.
Anatomy of a flyThe typical Muddler features a spun deer hair head, a turkey feather underwing and tail, and a tinsel-wrapped body.
Top Spin The more densely spun and tightly clipped the deer hair, the more buoyant the Muddler, and the more water it displaces when ripped below the surface as a streamer.
Bald HeadThe original Gapen Muddler, created in 1937 by Don Gapen, has a sparser head section and is ideal for clear sculpin-laden waters.
To continue reading "The Muddler Minnow: Best Fly for Fall Trout," click here.
Report a Typo
