Creative fly tyer, Mike Mercer, is generally credited with creating the
“Poxyback” style of artificial fly. Mr. Mercer will tell you, however,
that “the Poxyback style came to me from the genius of others.” In
fact, Mercer has credited three other accomplished fly anglers and
tyers, Andy Burk, Rich Henry, and Hal Janssen, with providing the
inspiration to work with epoxy on nymphs.
Regardless
of who
gave the idea its first breath, the use of epoxy in nymphs and wet
flies has become quite popular among the world’s fly tyers in recent
years.
Mercer’s Poxyback
Trico is a
fantastically shaggy imitation of the
Trico in its mature nymph life
stage. Mercer designed this fly with realism and movement in mind; it’s
got ragged marabou gills, and its cleverly epoxied wing pads offer a
striking underwater realism that feeding trout just can’t ignore!
Specifications:
- This fly pattern was developed in the late 1980s by creative fly tyer Mike Mercer
- Part of Mike Mercer’s Poxyback series of fly patterns, inspired by ideas and tying techniques of Andy Burk, Hal Janssen, and Rich Henry
- Trico imitation in the mature nymph 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
- Best results occur throughout the morning when presenting smaller female imitations
- SIZE 20
When and Where to Fish Mercer’s Poxyback Trico
This
small mayfly nymph 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. Even though Trico are technically crawling
nymphs, they possess reasonable swimming ability. Prior to and during
emergence, an angler will find these nymphs making 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 Mercer’s Poxyback Trico
Fish
this fly in slow water; backwaters, eddys, and spring creeks are prime
real estate for these small crawling nymphs. Generally, the slower the
water and the weedier the bottom, the more packed with Trico nymphs the
environment will be, rendering lazy spring creeks excellent Trico
water. Note that these nymphs do not spend much time traveling from
their homes among the weeds to the water’s surface when hatching. This
means, the most likely window a trout will have to snare an active,
pre-emergent Trico is generally quite narrow. Trico, however, 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 nymph or emerger 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 Nymph 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. Their swimming ability is relatively
strong and these 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; many of these
nymphs are hung in the shuck and remain in the surface film for long
periods, rendering them perfect targets for hungry trout.
About the Tyer: Mike Mercer
Mike
Mercer is a self-proclaimed “hopeless fly fishing junkie with an
incurable addiction to the vise.” Such honest and direct words are not
surprising from Mr. Mercer, a fly angler and tyer known for his
innovative uses of fly tying materials and creative fly designs. In
fact, it wouldn’t be off the mark to say his fly patterns actually
reflect both his honesty and directness.
Mercer has been fishing
all his life, but catching his first smallmouth bass on a fly rod blew
open the proverbial gates, sending him deep into the fly fishing world.
With the help of his grandfather’s old pickup truck, Mercer explored
the fantastic trout water of California’s rich wilderness areas. With
his youthful enthusiasm for traveling with a fly rod, he actually
opened a fly shop of his own. At Mike Mercer’s Rod and Fly (doubling as
the basement of his parents’ house) a fly fisher could find a selection
of custom fly rods, fly fishing and fly tying magazines, and Mike
himself, behind the vise, whipping up box loads of custom flies.
As
a fly fishing guide, writer, travel consultant, and creative fly tyer,
Mercer has been able to form a unique perspective on the sport and
share it with other fly anglers across the world. His fly designs have
appeared in magazine, in books, and with the help of Umpqua Feather
Merchants, anglers across the globe have been able to fish a Mike
Mercer creation hard and with great success in waters near and far.
Mercer’s
designs often hinge on an idea that “seems obvious” but from a design
perspective, these are often the very best kinds of ideas. Mercer
continues to create great flies and is a tremendous resource to the fly
fishing and fly tying community.
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.”