The Barr Emerger and its many variants, is the product of a frustrating
day for Barr on a spring creek in 1975. John Barr, who is one of today's most famous fly tyers, had been watching trout
pick off "yellow specks" all day long, but couldn't find a fly or a
presentation to crack the code. His stream-side observation of "dozens
of partially hatched nymphs still attached to the shuck stuck to the
back of [the trout's] tongue," fueled an intense night of tying that
spawned what today has become one of the most popular emerger patterns
ever created.
Barr's
Trico Emerger is a brilliant imitation of a
Trico
mayfly in its emerger life stage. With a prominent and darkly colored
trailing shuck, a slender grey dubbed body, and a set of bulging black
wing pads, this emerger is downright deadly in the surface film.
Specifications:
- This fly pattern is a Trico variant of a fly that was tied in 1975 by John Barr, one of the world's top modern fly tyers after he noticed a cluster of hung in the shuck nymphs stuck to the back of a trout's tongue
- The fly boasts a long trailing shuck, a slender grey body, and a bulging set of black wing pads
- Trico imitation in the emerger life stage
- Use as either an impressionistic searching fly or as a realistic imitation when matching the hatch
- Fish this fly on a dead drift in slow water; backwater, eddys, and lazy spring creeks are the most productive water types for this fly
- Determine whether trout are eating sub-surface nymphs or gently sipping emergers and cripples in the surface film and match your nymphing depth to the observed feeding depth
- Best results occur throughout the morning when presenting smaller female imitations
- SIZE 20
When and Where to fish Barr's Trico Emerger
This
small mayfly emerger can be fished as either an impressionistic fly
pattern when searching for trout or as a realistic imitation when
matching the hatch. When searching, fish this fly in the still waters
of lakes or the slow backwaters and eddys of rivers and spring creeks. Trico
are reclusive and are typically only active just prior to their quick
hatch to adult duns. Prior to and during emergence, an angler will
often find many of these emergers struggling to shed their nymphal
shucks as they try to make their way from their muddy and weedy cover
to hatch into winged adults. When fishing the Trico hatch, look for darkening wing pads, a sure sign of an impending emergence.
How to fish Barr's Trico Emerger
Fish
this fly in slow water; backwaters, eddys, and spring creeks are prime
real estate for these small emergers. Generally, the slower the water
and the weedier the bottom, the more packed with Trico nymphs and emergers the environment will be, rendering lazy spring creeks excellent Trico
water. Note that these emergent insects do not spend much time
traveling from their homes among the weeds to the water’s surface when
hatching. Trico become quite
vulnerable while actually shedding their nymphal shuck in the surface
film, they spend a lot of time here, so make sure you can determine
whether the feeding rises are for nymphs or crippled emergers.
When fishing a classic Trico
hatch, try to observe at what level in the water column the trout are
actually feeding. If it’s sub-surface, make an upstream cast, throw and
upstream mend, and dead drift a small emerger or cripple right down the
feeding lane. Males generally hatch before the sun comes up, so most
fly anglers miss out on these bugs, but females are active throughout
the morning hours. Due to egg-laying patterns, Tricos
hatches often overlap, ultimately extending the emergence period for
several hours during the morning – these hatches can be prolific and a
good angler will always be prepared with a box of Trico nymphs,
emergers, cripples, duns, and spinners.
Trico
Tricorythodes, or more simply “Trico,”
is a small mayfly that occurs in the famous trout waters of the North
American West as well as in the small spring creeks and rivers of the
northeastern United States. These olive and dark brown mayflies follow
the life stages of a typical mayfly life cycle and are sturdy looking
crawler nymphs with three tails and quite conspicuous triangular gills.
During the larval stage, Trico
spend the balance of their time in the weedy shelter of slow moving
water provided by backwaters, eddys, and spring creeks. The larger
males of the species hatch before sunrise and are often lost upon fly
anglers fishing a Trico hatch. Fly fishers subsequently must focus on the smaller females, which are active throughout the morning hours. Tricos
can be found in western waters from early summer (July) to late fall
(October). In eastern waters, the season is a bit shorter, typically
ending in September.
Trico Emerger Life Stage
During
its nymph life stage, these crawlers are most commonly found in the
slow water environments of backwaters, eddys, and the gentle currents
of vegetation-rich spring creeks. Trico
nymphs thrive among the weedy vegetation of these slow and languid
aquatic environments, and these nymphs are most vulnerable to trout
when they leave their weedy shelter to hatch into winged adult duns,
rendering their emergence prime time for feeding trout. Their swimming
ability is relatively strong and these hatching nymphs expose
themselves by making adventurous trips away from safety just before
emergence and subsequent hatching. They are most exposed, however, upon
their lengthy emergence itself; many of these nymphs are crippled
during emergence, hung in the shuck and remain in the surface film for
long periods, rendering them perfect targets for hungry trout.
About the Tyer: John Barr
John
Barr, a student of California's rich trout waters, was exposed to fly
tying and fly fishing at a very early age, learning to tie flies in his
garage at just six years old. John cut his teeth at the gravel pits
near San Jose, CA. He soon gave up the life of casting flies to
bluegill and crappies and headed to the storied trout water of the
Merced. Today, Barr is known around the world as one of its very best
fly tyers. He's most famous for the Copper John, the Barr Emerger, and
the Meat Whistle, though many more of his patterns have been fished
with great success throughout the United States and elsewhere. John has
published several books on fly tying, has recently worked on a couple
of new fly fishing DVD projects, and serves as a consultant to fly
fishing industry leaders like Sage, Rio Products, and Outcast. Barr is
also a contracted fly designer for Umpqua Feather Merchants.
Leland on Umpqua
In
1972 a man named Dennis Black and his fly tying skills found themselves
in high demand. Mr. Black, then a professional production fly tyer, was
famous in the industry for his unsurpassed skill and speed with
whipping up tremendously beautiful and precisely constructed flies. It
wasn’t long until this young fly tying superstar realized that he ought
to take his consistent approach to quality to the next level. Shortly
after this realization, a small army of fly tyers had banded together
to support Mr. Black’s vision. With the likes of Dave Whitlock, Jack
Dennis, and Andy Puyans, Mr. Black was officially in business.
Dennis
Black’s new company Umpqua Feather Merchants quickly extended its reach
and fly production capabilities with expansion into India, Sri Lanka,
and Thailand, where the world’s first and full blown “fly tying
factories” were built. Since those early days, only the highest
standard of excellence has marked Umpqua and this commitment to quality
and efficiency continues to spur the company forward. Dennis Black’s
innovative vision for “fly production” has truly revolutionized how the
fly industry operates and has ultimately made the majority of
production flies better. From the first “royalty system” for rewarding
the most creative professional fly tyers to streamlining production
systems and offering a range of other products, Umpqua Feather
Merchants just seems to “do it all.”
Today, Umpqua Feather
Merchants is without a doubt the world’s best and most prolific
supplier of hand tied fly fishing flies as well as fly tying hooks and
materials, and they recently got better! Umpqua’s brand new, state of
the art headquarters in Louisville, Colorado marks another paradigm
shift in the way fly tying business is done. From its vast warehouse to
its specially designed inventory management and tracking system, Umpqua
is poised to continue its energetic trajectory and lead the way for the
next generation of flies and fly tyers.
Umpqua on Umpqua
"As you may or may not know, we're the
largest producer of quality hand-tied flies in the world. We also make
available through your local fly shop a wide array of the finest
fly-tying hackle and Tiemco hooks.
At Umpqua we offer
everything the angler needs to a have a first class fishing experience.
(Everything that is, but the water and the fish.)"
Umpqua on Dennis Black and the “Obvious Quest”
“The idea
first took shape in the hands of our founder, Dennis Black, back in
1972. As a fast and facile professional fly tyer, Dennis was known for
his skill and speed at producing hundreds of dozens of flies each year
for the larger mail order houses. But he was also quick to realize how
fast the demand for excellent flies would outstrip the abilities of
cottage industry types like him.
The Obvious Quest: To create
excellent flies in sufficient supply – without sinking his standards.
In response, Dennis developed (with characteristic care) a methodical
plan: First, he enlisted the tying expertise of the likes of Dave
Whitlock, Jack Dennis, Andy Puyans and others, to help him set the
standard of excellence for Umpqua flies.
Next, Dennis
established the first of what would eventually be five separate
fly-tying “factories,” first in India, then in Sri Lanka, and finally
in Thailand. The primary focus at each of these factories was on
producing the very best fishing flies possible, constructed of the very
best materials available. From the beginning, the quantity of flies
produced was secondary to the quality and excellence of each fly
pattern. These high standards were assured by the personal involvement
of the fly designers themselves, and by the ever-increasing skill,
imagination and creativity of the Umpqua production fly tiers. Today,
you will find no flies more skillfully tied than those available from
Umpqua Feather Merchants.
Finally, Dennis created a system of
royalty payments, to reward professional tyers like Whitlock, Lefty
Kreh, Randall Kaufman, Larry Dahlberg, and Bob Popovics for uniquely
good patterns.
The Result: Today, Umpqua produces umpteen
thousand dozen flies, from micro-scopic midge imitations to the huge
patterns favored by marlin and sailfish. And the "Umpquality" – you’ll
see for yourself.”