SD13. Ally's Shrimp Double Hook Salmon Fly

ALLY'S SHRIMP FLY PATTERN
Alistair Gowans created this pattern to simulate the translucent shrimp like crustaceans he had observed in trawler catches. He created it in 1981 and was first publicised in 1988. It is one of the most popular Atlantic Salmon flies. This little shrimp is one of the great patterns of all time. The long flowing tail produces motion that gives the illusion of life. It is a river fly for all seasons. It is very successful for salmon on large rivers. These crustaceans can be found in most rivers, lakes and reservoirs. They form a large part of the trout's menu of edible fast food. Some natural colored shrimps turn orange-brown during the mid summer mating season. A deep fished, artificial shrimp fly pattern can be a killer, especially when it is fished to imitate the shrimp's darting, stop-start, motion. This type of 'sink and draw' is easy to reproduce when you fish with a weighted shrimp on a floating line. Cast the fly and let it sink until you think it is at, or near, the bed of the river or lake. As you retrieve the line the shrimp fly will rise up towards the surface. Stop and the shrimp will dive back down to the bottom. A shrimp fished with six inch pulls followed by two second pauses can be very tantalizing to a trout. If you should fail to get results try longer pulls at greater intervals. Alistair 'Ally' Gowan is a full time professional flyfishing instructor, author and photographer, he demonstrates fly casting with single and two handed rods in a number of countries and at various fly fishing shows. He has a vast knowledge and experience on the subject of fly fishing for salmon, sea trout and trout from a flyfishing career spanning over 50 years. he is based in Pitlochry, Perthshire in the Highlands of Scotland. He writes articles for a number of different fly fishing magazines. He is an expert Spey caster and instructor. He teaches underhand, roll and overhead Spey casting. He holds many UK fly fishing instructors qualifications but he is also one of the founder holders of the AAPGAI Masters Qualification in both disciplines. He travelled to Seattle and and became the first British instructor to pass all three of the demanding FFF certifications at one event.  The Ally's Shrimp was voted 'Salmon Fly of the Millennium' by EMAP readers and came high up in the listings of the 'Worlds best Flies' by NASF.

Ally's Shrimp was designed after Alistair went out on a Trawler Fishing boat. He was looking at stocking up his freezer with Lobster but it was the semi translucent shrimps that caught his eye. He had not seen them in the Scottish rivers or along the coast before. He realised that these were the creatures that the Atlantic Salmon feast upon to build up their body weight before they come back to their spawning grounds in the freshwater rivers. He reasoned that if he could design a fly that appeared to look similar to the salmon's favourite deep water food they could be tempted to take a bite when they came across it nearer land. He needed to mimic the naturals dark gut so he used black floss and the for the rear section of the hook shank he used red floss to match the body. Alistair need to imitate the the shrimps eyes which are half way down the body. He settled on orange Golden Pheasant tippets and place the black ends in the correct location to give the impression that this shrimp fly had black eyes. The orange collar hackle would cocoon the fly as it was fished through the water and produce a shrimp like outline. The Shrimps feelers were imitated by the incorporation of long strands of dyed bucktail hair. When you see shrimp in the supermarket or cooked and on your plate they are curved. The Ally's Shrimp salmon and steelhead fly mimics the shrimp when they are in fast mode trying to swim away from a potential predator. The shrimp thrust out their powerful tails to provide quick forward propulsion as they straighten their body.

CUSTOMER'S COMMENTS
Whilst fishing on the Kola river in Russia the most successful fly of the whole week was the Ally's Shrimp. It caught fish steadily throughout our week. It seemed to succeed best in all situations. The salmon in these rivers are very active bright-silver summer fish that are fresh off the tide. Many of them were still covered in sea lice. I found they tend to snap at the fly as it comes across their nose. Green Highlanders and Bombers also worked. The barbs of the flies have to be snipped off if you do not want to fall foul of the Russian Fishery Inspectors. 
Gary Church, New York

CUSTOMER'S COMMENTS
The Miracichi, one of New Brunswick's legendary Atlantic Salmon Rivers is my fishing heaven. I had a dream season last year. One morning I released my four fish limit of two salmon weighing 30 pounds and two others of 21 and 18 pounds all caught on your Ally's Shrimp. What a great fly. Stan Quarry. Maine.

SHRIMPS & PRAWNS
There are about thirty species of shrimps (the smaller ones are sometimes referred to as Prawns in Britain) in the North Atlantic Ocean. The most numerous is the Northern or Pink Shrimp (Pandalus borealis). It ranges from the Gulf of Maine, across the Atlantic and into the Barents, Norwegian and North Sea. It is pale scarlet and has a hard outer shell with long antennae and large dark eyes. It can swim rapidly over short distances because of the appendages on its tail that act like paddles. The females migrate to shallower costal areas just prior to spawning. 

These shrimps can live for more than five years. They are one of those strange animals that are both sexes. It is a hermaphrodite. It contains both male and female reproductive organs. The Northern Shrimp is male until it spawns for the first time when it is about three years old and then changes sex into a female. Because females have lived longer than the males they are generally bigger than the males. European salmon anglers have been using shrimp imitations for years. It is only recently that North American salmon fly fishers have started to widely use shrimp flies. A practice that should be encouraged as these flies can give hours of good sport.

Steelheads, Chinooks, Chums, Char, Coho and Sea Trout will feed on shrimp and prawns when available. These fish often retain the search image of these crustaceans long after they leave the Ocean and enter freshwater. These are must have flies for Alaska, Kamchatka, British Columbia and lower 48

WHAT SALMON FLY TO USE
The British salmon fly tying traditions of the 18th and 19th centuries that used exotic materials and complicated patterns were exported to the countries the British explored and occupied. In North America and other parts of the world, gradually these pattern were changed and new ones designed to make use of the more easily obtainable local animal skins and feathers. The were also designed to suit the different natural conditions and local fish. Hairwings were used instead of  brightly colored feathers from tropical birds. They worked as well if not better. Hairwing salmon flies have now become the norm and the traditional feather-winged patterns are now more commonly found as framed works of art that hang in gentlemen's studies and behind bars. 

Choosing the right fly is a problem that occurs for all salmon fly fishers. There is no solid rule that works all the time everywhere. Dark day, dark fly; bright day, bright fly can be a good guide along with high water, big fly; low water, small fly. But sometimes the reverse is true. Some like to chose a fly of a color that matches the overall color of the riverbed. Rivers that flow over bare rock or limestone are often crystal clear. They may have a blue or green/yellow tinge so some choose flies with the same coloring like Yellow Torrish or the Green Highlander. During early spring and late autumn when the rivers are in full flow after a recent storm try some of the brighter flies. Use garish yellow and orange flies for cold days like. On less cold days use more inconspicuous flies. 

Your choice of fly is sometimes down to a local’s or friend’s recommendation, remembering what worked last year, or simply following your own hunch. Others believe that it doesn’t matter what fly you use as it is the presentation of the fly that counts. Some say that a salmon caught on one fly would have been taken on any of several other flies of the same size so long as it was presented to the fish in the same way. Some ‘experts’ will criticize a fly because it has a too full or too sparse a hairwing; the shape of the hook is too curved or not curved enough; the fly should or should not have a yellow, green orange or red butt; the nose should be red or it should be black and the most ridiculous is, that the fly has one too many gold colored ribs or not enough. These arguments have been raging since Victorian times. That is one of the charms of this sport. Everyone has his or her own opinion. It gives you something to talk about around the camp fire or over a bottle of beer.

Generally migratory salmon and steelhead trout cease feeding as they return to freshwater to spawn. Though I have seen them rise to take flies an insects on the surface. They can be tempted or provoked into taking a general brightly colored attractor pattern (some fishermen call them a 'piss-em-off' pattern) like one of the orange Woolly Bugger. They may also eat out of habit something that they were feeding upon in open ocean. Flies that represent shrimp, prawns and bait fish are ideal. Experiment with the speed of the retrieve past a known salmon or steelhead lie. An attack can often be provoked if you stir the hunting instinct of this great tasting, large predatory. A sudden quick retrieve can suggest the rapid escape movement of a startled small fish that has seen it’s biggest nightmare. In North America and in other parts of the world, salmon are commonly caught on dry flies  like hoppers (grasshoppers), daddy-long-legs (craine flies) and the Wulff or Bomber series of dry flies. This is rarely tried in Europe. If you live in Europe, discard tradition and give it a try.

PACIFIC SALMON
Pacific salmon is a general term used to describe the members of a fish species that die after spawning. The Latin term for this family group is Oncorhynchus. There are seven species. The following five occur on both sides of the pacific .
(1) Chum Salmon also known as Dog Salmon (Oncorhynchus keta)
(2) Coho Salmon also known as Silver Salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch)
(3) Pink Salmon also known as Humpbacked Salmon or humpies (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha)
(4) Sockeye Salmon also known as Red Salmom (Oncorhynchus nerka)
(5) Chinook Salmon also known as King Salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha)
The following two are only found on the coasts of Asia
(6) Masu Salmon also known as Yamame (Oncorhynchus masou)
(7) Amago Salmon also known as Biwamasu (Oncorhynchus rhodurus)

There is a landlocked Pacific Salmon called a Kokanee. It is a subspecies of a Sockeye Salmon. It spends it's entire life in freshwater and does not attain the large sizes of its ocean going cousins. They migrate to lakes and can be seen swimming back up streams to their place of hatching to spawn. Atlantic Salmon belong to a different group called 'Salmo'. Atlantic Salmon is in fact a species of fish within this group. (It has the Latin name of Salmo salar). Unlike the Pacific salmon that have complex and varied life histories that vary widely within and between species, the Atlantic Salmon have very similar life histories and are capable of surviving spawning and re-migrate to return again. Pacific salmon migrate from freshwater to the sea at different ages. Pink and Chum Salmon migrate at any time from one week to a month, Chinooks from 12 to 16 months, Coho Salmon from 12 to 24 months and Sockeye from 12 to 36 months.

Pacific Salmon nearly always return to spawn in the freshwater areas they were born in. They overcome very hazardous river conditions and swim great distances to reach their place of hatching. Scientists have documented some going to different locations but that is a very rare occurrence. It is believed that the salmon find their way back by sent. They follow their noses to find their home stream. Scientists have also tagged young salmon to plot where they go when they migrate into the Pacific Ocean from the rivers. Some swim many thousands of miles like the tagged Chinook which was recorded having covered 3,500 miles before being recovered swimming back up Salmon River in Idaho, to spawn. The salmon fatten up in the ocean. The record for the largest Pacific Salmon is 126 pounds caught commercially up in Alaska. 

STEELHEADS
Steelheads are simply migratory rainbow trout. (A Sea Trout is the migratory form of the brown trout). They spawn in freshwater rivers and lakes, remain there for about two years, then migrate to the open sea where they will stay for another two to three years before they begin returning to their native rivers. Steelheads returning to their home rivers, will be fully mature and weigh between seven and ten pounds. Fish that have stayed in the ocean longer can reaching impressive sizes of 12 to 20 pounds or more. Unlike the migratory salmon, not all sea-run steelhead die immediately after spawning. About twenty percent of each steelhead generation that returns to freshwater to spawn make their way back down the rivers and into the sea again. Not many will be strong enough to make a second spawning run. Steelheads in the sea look very much like river trout until they begin their migration when they change to a bright silver, their backs a darker grey. Anglers call these trout "chrome bright," or "chromers." After they have been in freshwater for a time, however, steelhead slowly begin to take on the color patterns of true rainbow trout, with various patterns of black spots sprinkled across their backs, complete with smears of red on the cheeks, with distinctive red stripes marking their flanks. These red stripes can range in color from soft coral pink to a deeper blood-red color. The males fish are more colorful.

Migrations continue throughout the year, although the most active steelhead months are December, January, and March for winter steelhead; and June through August for the summer runs. Most steelhead rivers have only a summer or a winter run; some have both, and some experience no spring or summer steelhead runs at all hosting an autumn/fall and winter-run trout. It is mostly the big rivers, that have steelhead runs year-round. Winter-run steelhead become very single minded. It is the greatest run of trout in terms of numbers. All their energy is devoted to spawning. For the most part, when they do feed, or strike a fly, they seem to do so out of habit and instinct rather than true hunger. It is this instinct - the steelhead's curiosity that can work to the angler's advantage. They will still strike at a well-presented artificial fly. They are also exceptionally wary, nervous, and incredibly difficult to catch. Winter steelhead seem to be, by far, the spookiest of the migratory steelhead. In shallow, clear water. Even the hint of a shadow moving across the water startles them, sending them scurrying.

The spring and summer trout runs produce the highest quality of steelheads, in looks and sport. They are still sexually immature when they enter the rivers. They will spend more time in freshwater before they begin spawning. Most winter-run steelhead will spawn quickly and then return to the ocean, some do linger in the rivers throughout the winter and into the spring. Spring and summer-run trout will often remain in the rivers through the summer months. When these steelheads strike, they do so with a great deal more ferocity than winter-run trout. They fight like big saltwater fish and are one of the great game fish of the world.

FISHING FOR STEELHEADS
The best way to insure good future fishing is to leave the females alone. Any bright fish is probably a hen on her way upriver, and should be left alone, although exceptionally large ones are a tempting target. Watch for female steelheads that turn on their sides and pump their tails, to scoop a hollow where they will drop their eggs. The scent stream of pheromones is like a magnet to the males. Hooking or otherwise spooking the females, is almost a guarantee that any near-by males will depart, and then there are NO fish to target. Accurately casting to the edges of the gathering steelhead male pack will get hits from the males. Cast far enough upstream of the fish to allow the fly to sink to their level before it gets to them. Drift the fly into the fish's face, and lifting and swinging away when it gets within a few inches. This method brings out their predatory instincts. You should see the strike using sun glasses. Set the hook with a downstream sweep of the rod. Play him away from the pack, to avoid spooking the rest of the fish.

Some smaller males will be chased off by larger males, and will drift back. A careful river bed presentation may elicit hard strikes from these fish. Keep the fly deep. Burn that into your brain. The fish are intent on spawning, rarely feed. You must get down to their level. It still makes sense to go by the old "Bright day-bright fly, dark day-dark fly" but don't get locked into it. Experiment with patterns and sizes. After missing a strike, I like to change to a smaller version of the same pattern. If that doesn't bring a hit, I go to a fly that's completely opposite of the original. A huge black egg sucking leech would replace a tiny Polar Shrimp.

AUTUMN / FALL TROUT FISHING
Rainbow trout are at there full potential splendor during the months of September and October in many Salmon run rivers. They are ready to feed heavily to put on weight in an effort to store winter fat that will see them through leaner times to come. This is bad news for the spawning salmon. They are at there most vulnerable. The trout like the steelheads are there to feast on floating salmon eggs and decaying salmon flesh. At this time of the year the trout are no longer looking for juvenile smolt. The sight of mature salmon moving to their spawning beds triggers an instinct to follow them in their upriver migration, in search of a salmon flavored food feast. They will travel many miles like wolves searching for their prey. Egg flies and flesh flies must be in every fly fisherman's fly box at this time of the year.

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