by Eric Halloran

Created on: March 21, 2009   Last Updated: March 22, 2009

A muddler minnow was conceived by Don Gapen of Ontario Canada in 1936. The fly was intended as a bait-fish imitation to be fished as a streamer for trout and bass, and is very effective in that regard, but it can be fished successfully in other ways.

Let's first explore the various strategies for fishing the muddler minnow as a streamer - the predominant use. Streamer flies are cast across and downstream of the angler. One popular strategy is to mend line and allow the heavy current to carry and sink the fly for a few seconds and then begin stripping the fly back in. Depending on the force of the current and the angle of the cast, the muddler minnow will appear to maneuver sideways to the current while it is forced downstream until it reaches a corner where there might be slower water. It appears to turn upstream at that point and escape the heavier current. This is often the point at which an aggressive trout will hammer it and the fun begins. Absent that slack-water strike, continue stripping and keep a careful eye out for any fish that might be following. The novice fly fisherman will be inclined to stop stripping if they see a trout following their fly, but this never produces the desired result. On the contrary, a faster strip is what is called for in this case. Don't be afraid that you might strip too fast for the fish to catch up - it can't be done. The fast strip might stimulate the aggressive instinct in the trout. In any case do vary your stripping pattern and rate of speed. Other ways to vary the presentation of the muddler fished as a streamer include adding weight or using sinking line to get the fly down, vary the amount of time you mend and allow the fly to sink, use two flies to simulate pursuit (the closer fly can be a smaller muddler), and by all means, move around. Streamers tend to stimulate a strike out of aggression and surprise in a trout; by the third presentation, the fish is liable to be bored with the whole thing. Casting to the opposite bank or to structure can be a very effective strategy. Trout understand ordinary behavior of bait-fish which often stay in the shallows or near structure for protection, rarely blundering into deeper water.

But the Muddler is a versatile fly that can imitate other prey for the hungry trout. The bushy deer hair head that is so effective in imitating a sculpin (rather than a minnow), can also be made to float in the film with just a little application of floatant. In this mode it can look very convincingly

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