Titchy bits of tackle...

...to complete your dry fly arsenal.

So far in this imaginary migration from still waters to dry fly fishing on rivers and streams we have considered your clothing and how it will help you be successful whilst remaining comfortable on most days.  We have nearly considered all the tackle requirements, some of which can almost certainly come from your still water gear, at least to get you started.  There remains a few small items that are usually carried in the pockets of either your clothes or your fishing bag... 

You will need some dry flies.  Therefore you will need something to keep them in.  There is a lot to be said for boxes that let the flies have a bit of room and not crush their hackles. BUT... there are modern dry flies that don't use spiky cock hack les and these can perhaps be best stored in boxes with slotted foam in them to grip the hooks and keep the flies all in neat rows.  Expensive boxes are not essential.  In fact, for large dry flies, like mayflies, spacious tins like those originally for strong mints are difficult to beat.

To the right of the top picture above you will see some bottles and some brown, raggy looking material.  These are the potions and remedies for keeping your flies afloat and in good presentable condition.  The brown stuff is Amadou and is my favourite material for drying flies out.  You simply squeeze the fly in the Amadou and every bit of water is pulled out of the fly making it like new again.  The alternative is to use one of the dessicant powders and follow the instructions on the container.  Before fishing, you use one of the floatants to "proof" your fly against the water.  This proofing is never permanent, in despite of the claims, so you just have to keep repeating the anointing process throughout the fishing day.  It is something we all get used to.

The forceps and scissors can come from your other fishing tackle.  The function is universal so there is no need to buy fresh ones, unless you really want to. 

Some monofilament may need to be acquired in addition to your regular still water stock.  Simply make sure you have a stock of the gauges described in the earlier post about leaders and tippets.

Well that just about covers the tackle.  There now remains one of the most interesting parts of the migration from still water fly fishing to dry fly fishing in rivers and streams.  That is the Approach and we will start on that next time.

Regular Rod