In continuing my series here, I now move onto the streamer flies. Streamers are maybe the most versatile of all fly categories & lot has to do with the water you’re fishing as to just how you use them. Also, size plays a really big part in streamer fishing. I’m going to try to keep all of that in mind here.
If I could only fish one streamer fly it would be the woolly bugger. More specifically, it would be a black woolly bugger in size #8 or #6.
When you’re stripping this fly, depth & speed are the key. You’ve got to experiment a little with it to get the movement right. But when you do, & start to pick up strikes (& hopefully fish), that same fly movement should keep working for a while.
Why a black woolly bugger you ask & not some other color? This is because black casts a better profile in the water. In our imaginary scenario here where I can only choose one fly, I'd always pick a darker colored one. Even when the water is high & muddy with poor visibility, a black fly will be noticed more by the fish.
Side note: an old timey piece of fishing wisdom does say that when the water is tea colored, to use a yellow fly of some kind when nothing else is working. I’ll leave it up to you to decide just how true & reliable this very old piece of advice is.
Ultimately, I’d pick this fly because the black woolly bugger works on all fish, in all kinds of water, everywhere.