It’s Hendrickson fly time here in the mid-Atlantic states of the US so for the next few weeks we’ll feature Hendrickson fly patterns including nymphs, emergers, soft hackles, duns and spinners. In tonight’s Friday Night Fly Tying Video by Davie McPhail we feature the Hare’s Ear nymph, an all-time classic that makes an excellent Hendrickson nymph imitation.
Active Hendrickson Nymph
Prior to emergence, Hendrickson nymphs become very active and their wing cases become very dark. A size 12 to 14 Hare’s Ear nymph with black thin skin for the thorax can be deadly when fishing the Hendrickson hatch, which may occur anywhere from early April to mid-May in the northeast, mid-Atlantic and mid-western states.
Fishing A Hendrickson Nymph
When fishing the Hendrickson hatch keep in mind the nymphs tend to make several attempts to get to the water surface before emerging as shown in the video above. While doing this they moving up and down through the water column and are very susceptible to a hungry trout. You may start in the morning fishing a Hendrickson nymph deeper in the water column and then as the hatch progresses later in the day fish it higher up or as a dropper off an emerger or soft hackle and impart more motion to the fly.
Next week we’ll take a look at some emerger and soft hackle Hendrickson fly patterns. In the meantime, get out there and enjoy the Hendrickson hatch. It usually only last for 2 to 3 weeks and you don’t want to miss it!