During the Salmon Fly hatch the fish are gorged. The belly of every fish I’ve caught so far (not that many cuz I’ve been busy working on the bunkhouse) has been visually distended. I’ve said before that, with sharp hooks, I’m able to bring to net 1 fish for every 5 solid hookups. I cannot emphasize how important are sharp hooks. especially if you fish barbless.
16″ Brown, 2 May, 2015.
This is especially true during the Salmon Fly hatch. During this period you’ll get a lot more strikes – possibly because the fish aren’t hungry but just striking out of reflex. A sharp hook will minimize some of the frustration.
The fish to the left did not strike reflexively and is the largest I’ve caught this year. For this stretch of the river, anything over 15″ is worth a picture.
