Mice

[Zach Bearden]

In January... Does anyone use any topwater patterns (floating Buggers, Mice, Surfboards, etc.). We are coming up January 19th for a day trip with our club and was just wondering what to fish in the C+R section.

[timsfly]

I've never used any of those in the winter, but you never know, give em a try and tell us if they work, I have caught brown trout on mice in the summer, very small #10 mice patterns. I caught a 9lb brown on a mouse pattern about 20 years ago. Try them and let us know if they work.

[Zach Bearden]

Well I know that the use stuff such as Pink Pollywogs for Salmon and Steelhead. Maybe a VERY small Bomber while the trout are rising to midges?

[timsfly]

I have used #10 and smaller bombers here at the park in years gone by, I used to tie one with spun carabou body and brown hackle and a brown hackle tail and it did catch fish in the summer, I always figured they hit it for a hopper.

[Flysmallie]

Mice work.....well sometimes. In my quest to only fish with a pine squirrel I started noticing that sometimes these fish get really aggressive towards anything moving across the top. This happened a lot when I had just started fishing with a unsoaked pine squirrel. Just skating it across the top. Some days they were interested, some days they weren't.

I didn't pay much attention until I ran across a mouse pattern that was made with fur and foam. I made a few out of black pine squirrel and black foam. All I did to a normal pine squirrel was tie a foam back with a gurgler style head over the pine squirrel body. Then I clipped the hair on the belly of the fly and skinned the length of the tail except for a little puff (yeah I said puff) of fur at the end.

Some days they are interested, some days they aren't. But when they are, it sure is fun to watch them attack it.

[Zach Bearden]

Good work! Thanks for that info Ronnie!

[Danoinark]

I have some Jack Plotts foam mice I have got to try....Dano

[Zach Bearden]

Jack Who??? O_o Can't say that I've ever seen or heard of him. What do they look like?

[Danoinark]

Jack is a great friend of mine and is one of the few who developed techniques for turning foam and making flies from it.

Here are his mice patterns:

[Zach Bearden]

Definatley some interesting looking flies.