Building a Simple Three-Fly Team

Pulling wet flies is one of my favourite ways to target trout. There's no sitting around waiting for subtle takes. You're constantly moving, casting and retrieving flies all day. Watching trout chase your flies to the boat only to turn away at the last second, seeing them leap clear of the water and dive on your flies, or simply having the fly line lock up and ripped from your hands as you're stripping the flies back.

Typically, I'll fish a team of three flies. The fly closest to your fly line is called the top dropper, the middle fly is your middle dropper, and the fly at the end is your point fly.

I'll generally have an attractor fly on the point. Something a little more colourful and lightly dressed so it sinks quickly and isn't slowed down by heavy hackles. A big, bushy fly on the point can also affect the turnover of your cast, causing tangles or making the flies land in a heap on the water.

The point fly will usually be the deepest of the three, so I like a bit of colour or flash. Something like a Silver Invicta in a size 10 is a great choice.

For my middle dropper, I tend to pick something a little more subtle. The point fly might have caught the trout's attention, but they may want something less flashy. A size 12 Sooty Olive is a good choice here. It imitates a range of aquatic insects without matching anything in particular.

Why You Should Never Skip the Hang

For the top dropper, you have plenty of options, but in modern fishing you'll often see anglers fishing a booby. This is where you'll want to dibble and then hang your flies, allowing the top dropper to skate across the surface before sitting in or on the surface film for a few seconds, imitating an emerging insect.

I'll never forget the day I was sitting in a boat asking, "Why do we need to do this, and how do I hang my flies?" I was told, "Watch this and I'll show you."

I watched him hang his flies and, out of nowhere, a trout leapt clear of the water for the top dropper.

From that day on, I never forgot to dibble and hang my flies again.

There are endless fly combinations that will catch trout, and every angler has their favourites. For me, the biggest lesson has been not to overcomplicate things. Pick three flies that cover different depths, keep moving, and never skip the hang. You might be surprised how many fish are waiting for those final few seconds before you lift off for the next cast.

The last piece of advice I'll give you is this: the best flies you can pick are the ones that are in the water.

You'll catch nothing staring into your fly box. Pick three flies, start pulling, and let the trout decide.