Floating Or Sinking Flies?

Which is best - floating or sinking flies?

Replies:

1. "They reckon that 80% of food a trout eats is sub-surface; nymphs, shrimps, bloodworms etc. leaving the other 20% for stuff that gets trapped in or blown onto the surface. Therefore, odds suggest you go deep.

However, I like fishing on the top, being able to see a fish approach and take the fly, much more than hope you're dragging something past a trout's nose in the hope that it will have a go.

It's a personal thing."

2. "I fish Floaters and sinkers - sinkers tend to be used early season, but floaters will catch with deep nymphs. You may catch the odd fish off the top, but this tends to be a more summer method."

3. "When is a fly a fly and a lure a lure? It’s a good question and there’s no definitive answer I’m afraid. My interpretation is that a ‘fly’ imitates a food item, generally of insect origin, while a ‘lure’ relies on the annoyance factor and the natural aggression of a fish for it to bite.

Saying that, there’s a grey area inbetween such that some ‘lures’ vaguely imitate damsel nymphs, for example, but that same vagueness goes for a lot of ‘flies’ too. ‘Flies’ rely heavily on colour, shape and size to fool the fish on a slow, steady retrieve while ‘lures’ largely depend upon a fast strip to impart action on the materials used in order for them to induce a take. ‘Lures’ also incorporate synthetic materials like flashabou and tinsel to a larger degree to enhance their visual properties, and mechanical devices like tinheads to give a particular action to it as it is retrieved.

As a further generalisation, ‘flies’ tend to be used to tempt wild fish and ‘lures’ for the stockies, though either will catch both.

And yes, ‘flies’ and ‘lures’ come in both surface and sub-surface patterns which all adds to the fascination I have for the sport. Horses for courses, as they say elsewhere, and all part of the learning curve!"