March and April marks the start of the reservoir and stillwater season, and choosing the right trout fly comes down to reading the conditions. Early in the day, cold overnight temperatures mean fish are sluggish — start deep and slow, reaching for highly mobile lures that induce the take, triggering strikes through instinct or aggression rather than active feeding. As temperatures nudge upward through the morning, even a degree or two can be enough to spark a hatch and switch fish on, so be ready to adapt your approach. One method that consistently earns its place in early season is the indicator setup: fish two flies — a smaller dropper pattern around 2ft below the bung, and a larger pattern fishing midwater at 7–10ft. When trout want a fly presented ultra-slowly or held static at a precise depth, nothing beats it.
)
.jpg)
.jpg)
)