Dun patterns

Warryn Germon lives very close to the Breakaway on the Goulburn River about halfway between Thornton and Alexandra. He has been retired now for a number of years and basically he fishes just about every day of the week during the season.
Warryn is the sort of flyflicker who likes to sit and wait or go looking for a singular trout to target and target it he will, for if he does not catch it one night he will simply keep on coming back until it’s caught. In saying that, Warryn rarely, if ever, kills a trout.

His preference is fishing with a dry fly or emerger. Being an avid fly tyer, he is also an observer of the bugs that interest old speckles. Combining these interests he has been able to refine the patterns that he uses to suit his requirements. Over the years he developed a number of patterns but the two that are of interest here are his Ginger Dun and its emerger, the Star Attraction. Both were designed to match these little ginger/rusty duns.

The key to these patterns is the body material which is a dyed gold Hare’s mask. The dye that Warren uses is Rit-Dye Gold which he gets from Lincraft in Melbourne but I can assure you it is available from a heap of sources. As you will be aware, there are a number of natural tonings on a hare’s mask and when dyed they take on a hue of their own.

WARRYN'S GINGER DUN- by Mick Hall

warrynsgingerparaduns

FLY TALK #84 Freshwater Fishing magazine May/June 2007

Along the Goulburn River we find two Mayflies that are very similar in colouration to look at but that’s about all. One is a small size 16/14 Baetidae, while the other is a slightly larger species, size 14, which belongs to the Leptophlebiid family.

Both of these little Mayflies can start to emerge around November; the smaller Baetid is around more frequently than the Leptophlebiid and can be found along the river from November right up to the end of March. The fact is that these guys are so close in appearance; you only really need one pattern to cover both species.

During the summer months the little Ginger Baetid tends to come off the river at first light and by mid morning they are starting to emerge as spinners. On the other hand, the larger Leptophlebiidae tends to emerge just on dark and frequently waits in the trees until well after daylight to transform into a spinner.

For Warryn it is the blue grey under-fur that attracts his attention for when that gold dye hits, it throws that gingery/olive colour that Warryn is looking for. At first look when you compare the ginger Hare’s mask to the real thing, you may say that it is lighter in colour than the natural. Being a natural fur it does go a little darker when wet or treated with a floatant and in doing so matches the natural beautifully.

The Ginger Dun as developed by Warryn Germon
Hook: Kamasan B400 or the new Partridge Captain Hamilton Dry Fly
Size: 16-14
Tail: Coq de Leon dyed brown
Body: Dubbed dyed gold Hare’s mask
Ribbing: Four turns of fine copper wire
Post: Rust coloured High Vis or Float Vis
Hackle: Whiting Farms brown cock saddle hackle

Notes: In low light Warryn will often use another material for the post, which is the Enrico Puglisi EP-Silky fibre 3-d in Number 17 Rust (see Pic). This fabulous material is not readily available here in Australia but Hook Up Bait and Tackle in Ferntree Gully do stock it and it can be ordered thought them. Their phone number is 03 9758 4332. You can also check out this range of products on Enrico’s website www.epflies.com.

Ginger Paradun

The Star Attraction as developed by Warryn Germon
Hook: Mustad signature series C49s
Size: 14
Tail: Nil
Body: Dubbing as the Ginger Dun
Ribbing: Four turns of fine copper wire
Post: Rust Hi Vis or Float Vis
Hackle: Brown Whiting Farms cock saddle hackle

Notes: Even during daylight hours this fly will draw fish up. So common is this occurrence that Warryn tells me that is why he named this pattern his Star Attraction.

Warryn fishes with a normal 9’ foot leader and ties on an extra tippet of fluorocarbon around 2’ long (around 60cm). He then greases the fluorocarbon to within 15cm of the fly. This allows that untreated section to sink deep into the surface film. It should be noted that fluorocarbon actually sinks three times faster than normal mono and as a bonus becomes invisible in the water.

When in England last year I picked up some Partridge fluorocarbon; I was told it is a new third generation material and was simply fantastic. Well Warryn and I have been using it now for the last few months and it’s really standing up to its reputation.
If you can get hold of some this new third generation fluorocarbon, you will see what I mean. It is made in Japan and is without question the best I have seen. One great advantage is its diameter; is it so fine that it beats many of the popular monos on the market. An example is that the Partridge fluorocarbon in 6 pound is only 0.165mm or 5x and that is thin stuff. Two brands that I am aware of that now feature this new generation are Partridge and Rio there are probably more but you will have to go looking for it.

Whilst putting this article together I had a chance to watch a DVD on fishing some of the Chalk Streams in England and was intrigued to see a good sized trout around the four pound mark rise to a fly twice, each time rejecting it. The conclusion was that the tippet was sitting up high off the water at the point where it was tied onto the eye of the hook. On the show the Gillie suggested that this knot problem was the most probable reason for the fish rejecting the fly.

Big fish are like this, especially if they have been hooked before. This is something I have seen many times and I too have seen fish reject a well tied fly for the same reason. If you are fishing in daylight and very clear water, I can see this as a real problem but as the light fades on evening, I feel the less it matters. However it is better to wade on the side of caution and tie your fly on in a manner to avoid this situation and fluorocarbon is one of the few materials that can assist in helping to eliminate this problem.

Secondly, back in 2000 I was fishing the Flat Creek in Jackson Hole Wyoming and my friend Mick, who was then working at Jack Dennis’s store, questioned me on why I threaded the tippet down through the eye of the hook rather than up through the eye, as he felt it made the dry fly sit a little better in the water and Mick may have been right; it is worth a little thought.

Now, if you’re thinking that these two flies are just for the Goulburn, then think again. The little rusty Baetids and Leptophlebiids are not endemic to the Goulburn, in fact they are widespread.