Friday Fly Day - Brendon Mortimore's picks for the Deep South

It’s been a moody season so far but with summer trying to rear its head our fly selection can be a little up in the air. We’ve asked Brendon from Invercargill Hunting & Fishing on his picks for the months ahead.

“As an all-round, all season dropper it’s hard to go past the Kyles Deletidium16/18 dropper. A very natural colour, a light enough bead to get down but not kill the action, and effective on either backcountry, or local waters.

A favourite early morning searching pattern and effective indicator fly is Humpy Blue Bottle. It’s the first dry I go to when the suns up and things are starting to warm up. If the fish are there and looking up, they’ll move to the blowie! Effective early season when the beetle begin to fall or in summer as a subtle alternative to a cicada it’s hard to go past the good old Humpy.

Stimulator! Black and lime from mid December or for whenever things start to warm. This not only is a go to terrestrial but a great indicator fly for heavier water, or for whenever larger terrestrials abound.”

Brendon’s thoughts on fly selection:

“I’m a fan of following Mother Nature’s cues and feel it’s important for anglers to understand seasonal food sources and adjust your pattern, sizing and methods accordingly. In certain conditions on any given day however natural, ‘non bling’ patterns will be much more successful but on dull days, inclement weather often following a harsh change in weather, hotspot patterns, streamers or more aggressive nymph retrieves may be called for. You need not only be aware of the season but what’s happening on the spot. It’s easy to make a cast, but hard to catch fish if you’re not in tune with what’s happening around you“