Hook Size 12/14
The subvaria nymph is a crawler nymph that is occasionally exposed although they do
their best to stay hidden from the trout. Like most mayfly nymphs, they are much more
susceptible to being eaten just prior to a hatch than at any other time. These nymphs
hatch in the surface skim in smooth to moderately flowing water. Even so, it usually
doesn’t take very long for them to be caught by the faster currents and carried
downstream. The first key to catching trout on Ephemerella subvaria nymph imitations is
finding the areas of the stream where the Hendricksons are present. You will want to look
for smooth water such as the shallow parts of pools, large pockets, the ends of long runs
and other areas of water that is moving along moderately.
These nymphs prefer softer bottoms consisting of sand, soil and/or bottoms made up of
small gravel or cobble. If you have prior knowledge of where the Hendricksons hatch it will
certainly help. These mayflies hatch from the mid to late afternoon depending on the
weather. Sometimes the duns are not completely finished coming off before the spinner
fall starts. If you find the duns or spinners in the late afternoon, you will know that same
area of the stream will most likely have some nymphs ready to hatch the following day
and you can usually do well using a nymph imitation the following day.
Presentation:
In the mornings prior to the hatch, imitations should be presented right on the bottom in
the slow sides of seams bordering faster moving water and along the edges of pockets.
In the mornings, I would first try drifting the nymphs along the bottom of the pools and at
the ends of long runs and riffles.In the early afternoons before the hatch starts, you may
try fishing the current seams using a longer up and across presentation. Allow the fly to
drift downstream of your position, and then stop the rod and allow the fly to rise to the
surface.
Copyright 2003 James Marsh
