Swinging flies during a hatch

[Mataura mayfly]

Getting back to the swinging of wee wets through an obvious hatch. I am curious as to how others are doing it, what method of attack and presentation, their findings on strike rate (especially if fishing with a buddy that is fishing dries) and the size ratio between just sub-surface fish and those rising to dries on the surface.

True rises you can set your watch by are not happening here yet, even the traditional November Brown Beetle hatch has not happened yet, so fishing wets through an obvious hatch is not really happening.... yet. I am hoping for much better things come December!
But on past experience, I use a single handed rod of 8 1/2-9', often my go to #6 weight, with a 9' minimum tapering leader that has been knotted from Maxima mono. On the end of this will be two feet of sacrificial tippet of choice and only a single fly. Fly choice is dependant of the natural of the hatch, but more often than not it will be a slender biot wrapped body #16 soft hackle that kind of resembles a hatching Mayfly, Purple & Starling spider style also works well here in this situation. The dark silhouette may be to advantage to a trout looking up?
If presented upstream and allowed to sit in the film this fly will often be taken in a subtle rise by often smaller trout. If it is not taken near immediately after hitting the film (as is often the case here) I can give the line a slight tug to sink the fly a little. This is often where the fun begins.
It has been my findings that on average, if not in the dark of night, the larger more educated trout seem to concentrate on the emerging flies as they leave the relative sanctuary of the stream bed and swim to the surface.
If I can do my part, keeping the drift as natural looking and drag free as possible until the line comes parallel to me and starts to swing, I will often connect with a trout that will have you into the backing before you know what has happened! If the drag free drift does not produce results, the cast is allowed to swing, just like a traditional across and down wet fly cast. Often the fly will be ignored on the swing, but when it reaches the full extent of the downstream run and lifts, you will often get hit...... solidly. If not on the lift, pause the fly and give a couple of twitches on the line. I have found some bigger trout will follow a fly and give it thorough inspection before deciding yes- or no. Most times those couple of twitches will be enough to convince the "food" instinct.
Then and only then do I lift the line and start the procedure again.

That, in a nutshell is pretty much how I do it here, curious as to how others approach the obvious surface hatch with wee wets. Choice of flies and number of flies used at one time.

[Smuggler]

Otto, I completely missed this post when you started it.

I strictly use a hardy Marksman Drifter 11ft 5wt. It can be double handed if necessary and is a fantastic wet fly rod. At first I didn't care for the action but now after forcing myself to use it, I love it. It's a little slower for graphite but, for flicking flies upstream or switch casting into a nice swing, it's really smooth.

The whole Spey/Switch scene has always intrigued me. The kinetics behind the cast are just neat in itself, I'd really like to get a true double-hander one day.

[JohnP]

I had pretty good results swinging a Little Dorothy just below the surface during a pale morning dun hatch on the Lochsa River in mid-October, fwiw.

[Mataura mayfly]

I had pretty good results swinging a Little Dorothy just below the surface during a pale morning dun hatch on the Lochsa River in mid-October, fwiw.

Using what kind of presentation and methods John?
Upstream, across & down on the swing?
Sort or long leader?

[redietz]

Getting back to the swinging of wee wets through an obvious hatch. I am curious as to how others are doing it, what method of attack and presentation, their findings on strike rate (especially if fishing with a buddy that is fishing dries) and the size ratio between just sub-surface fish and those rising to dries on the surface.

Over the last years or so, I almost always use a wet fly during a obvious hatch, although I'm more likely to be presenting them upstream at such a time, but will fish downstream as well.

When fishing a mayfly hatch downstream, I try to keep the fly moving as slowly as possible (via mending, and a lot of line out). If the hatch is of either stoneflies or caddis I'm more likely to use a hard swing (and more likely to be fishing downstream in the first place.) For obviously ovipositing insects of any type, a short line downstream, and try to "bounce" the top dropper on the surface while using the point fly as an anchor. For fish taking spent spinners, if I must present downstream, I try to position myself directly upstream of the rising fish and make "S"s in my line so that there is no cross stream motion at all. (Dead mayflies don't swim very well.)

I'm not sure which you mean by strike rate, number of strikes or percentage of fish hooked per strike? I tend to get more strikes with a wet, and also tend to miss more often when fishing downstream, but the catch is rate is probably higher overall than with dries.

I should mention that I seldom fish dries anymore, except in mid-summer, when the only "hatch" is of terrestrials.

[Mataura mayfly]

That is a really interesting post Bob, thank you.
I have used the same "S" approach cast from directly upstream to present a drag free dry, the line does not fully extend and the fly drifts as naturally as it can until it passes the target. I had never thought to use the same presentation with wets.

With strike rate, I was more aimed at two buddies fishing the same hatch side by side. One fishing wets, the other dries, who was getting more takes and which was getting consistently bigger fish.

Very interesting your differing approaches to different insects. Points to note.

[JohnP]

I had pretty good results swinging a Little Dorothy just below the surface during a pale morning dun hatch on the Lochsa River in mid-October, fwiw.

Using what kind of presentation and methods John?
Upstream, across & down on the swing?
Sort or long leader?

I was fishing across and slightly downstream. Owing to the river's configuration at this hole, it is very difficult to get the fly to the fish from any other spot. The current comes in at a pretty good clip and then goes over some submerged boulders, creating a break in the current where the fish hang out. Downstream from this spot, the river widens and there is a back eddy on my side that is too deep to wade. I have fished this hole a lot and the only spot where I have had any luck is across and slightly upstream from where the fish are rising. It is about a 40-foot cast to the nearest risers; other fish are further out toward the opposite bank, but the longer the cast, the harder it is to mend and get anything like a drag-free float. Most strikes come in the first few feet of the float, and again at the end of the drift as the fly swings directly below. On this particular outing, I did not get any action until the hatch started. Prior to that I tried everything from dry flies to heavily weighted nymphs with no results. Once the hatch began, the fish took a Little Dorothy, size 14, with some regularity. I was using a nine-foot tapered leader with about a two-foot tippet.

[Mataura mayfly]

John, thanks for the further info.
Sounds like it is a real shame you cannot access the other bank!
You mention most takes are in the first few feet of the drift. Is there any slack in your line at this stage, before the current starts to take hold of the line and the arc of the swing commences?
I also find the initial landing and settling of the fly into the film- or the extreme end of the swing as the flies lift to be the most "taken" times. I guess unnatural drag is not so good in a hatching insect drift.

Mid Summer here when the hatches are more regulated (near set your watch by them) I can relate to being skunked by using other methods outside the time of the hatch. I guess maybe the trout are also programmed to come to the dinner table when the gong rings and spend the rest of the day snoozing.