The proficient wet fly angler is not disadvantaged at finding no rising trout at the surface, he will instead use his watercraft and wisdom to fish all the spots where he knows trout will be. Thereby gaining an advantage on the blinkered Dry Fly dogmatist.
Edmonds & Lee – Brook and River Trouting 1916
Winter Brown
The Summer Goose
A Manuscript Of Flies
Fishing The Upstream Wet Fly in Pocket Waters
The Brown Owl
Pearsall’s Gossamer Silk
A Guide to Choosing North Country Hackles
Horsehair Casts
The Pilkington Flies & Flytying Collection
North Country Spiders – A Philosophy
Waterhen Hackles & Spiders
Snipe and Purple
Seven North Country Spiders For A Season
The Lost Flies Of The Yorkshire Dales Part Two
The Lost Flies of the Yorkshire Dales Part One
North Country Spiders are the traditional wet flies which form the foundation of all North Country flyfishing. Read about tying these trout patterns from author and angler Robert L Smith who has written extensively about many aspects of history, dressing and fishing a large range of north country spider and wet fly patterns.
North Country fly patterns such as the famous Waterhen Bloa, Partridge & Orange and the Waterhen Bloa have long been regarded as the “Holy Trinity” of north country spider patterns and have a rich history of being fished by some of the world’s best fly fishermen. These simple wet fly patterns have been used for many centuries and are dressed using simple materials to represent the full range of insects found of the freestone rivers of both northern England and southern Scotland.
These spider wet flies though very relaxing and enjoyable way to fish, nevertheless, often require a high level of fly skill and watercraft to fish effectively. With various presentation methods being used such as the Down & Across, Across & Down and Upstream Presentation.
Read about fishing and dressing many of these wet fly patterns on these Sliding Stream blog pages and also learn about the history of dressing and fishing a range of north country spider patterns on the many of the Yorkshire Dales rivers. Follow in the footsteps in many of the finest and most notable north country anglers such as T.E. Pritt, Francis Max Walbran, Oliver Edwards, Harfield Edmonds and Norman Lee.
Autumn Grayling Black Magic Spider Brook and River Trouting Brown Owl Catskill Dry Flies Crimson Waterhen Dark Needle Dark Snipe & Purple Dry Fly Edmonds & Lee Fishing In Northern Streams Flytying flytying materials Gayle's Heather Fly George Morrel Gold Ribbed Hare's Ear Grayling Flies Hare's Lug & Plover Herbert Palmer Joan Wulff John Atherton March Brown Spider Nicholas Fitton North Country Spiders Pearsall's Silk Preben Torp Jacobsen Quill Gordon Reg Righyni Richard Clapham Romilly Fedden smoke fly Snipe Snipe and Purple Split Cane Rods Spring Olive Sunshine and The Dry Fly Treacle Parkin Upstream Wet Fly vintage flytying Waterhen Bloa Wharfedale Trout Flies William Baigent William Brumfitt Winter Brown Woodcock Hackles