Mullet on the Fly - September 2016

Catching Mullet on a fly rod has been gaining in popularity in recent years. Dr Mike Ladle first popularised the idea some years ago by catching them off the Purbecks in Dorset using a maggot fly. When the weed built up along the shore and started to rot, he was quick to notice the mullet would arrive in numbers when this was occurring. They would gorge on the maggots washed into the water from the decaying weed. He tied a simple 'fly' from a small hook with a wee bit of polystyrene on it, threaded on a few maggots and cast this with a fly rod at the feeding fish......with great success. Fly fishing for mullet was born.

In recent times, a dedicated fly angler by the name of Colin Macleod has worked hard at tying patterns that imitate the natural food items of mullet. He has now created many successful flies (tied in the traditional sense) that have proven their worth time and again. They imitate the small organisms that are the natural diet of the fish and have brought many fine mullet to the net. Well done Colin!

Mullet Maestro Colin Macleod - down in Sussex on my mullet marks

Sight fishing for mullet in the UK with these patterns is about as close to 'Bone fish' angling as we will ever get here. Given the speed and strength that our mullet have, they make a very worthy quarry on light fly tackle.

The selection of flies Colin has created can be seen and purchased by clicking on this link....

Click here to buy Colin's Mullet Fly's

As you can see, the majority seem to imitate small sand or mud shrimps, tiny ragworm, corophium and invertebrates. They have been proven successful by Colin and many others anglers now.

My most successful fly - Red Head Diawl Bach

I purchased a few of these flies a couple of years ago and have tried without any luck to catch a mullet. Eventually, I contacted Colin Macleod himself and got to discussing the finer details of the technique and feeding habits of the mullet.

They are not easy to catch on these flies, but if you're in the right place at the right time Colin assured me it's possible to catch. It's all a question of perseverance and observing the fish. They will switch on to feed at very specific states of the tide in certain locations. He told me that the key was being able to tell when this was happening and making sure you're there with a fly in the water when it does.

'Flashing' mullet on the feed

The give away signs are when the fish are rolling and flashing on their sides and when you can notice little puffs of silt being blown from their gills. These are good indicators that they are feeding. Very often we see mullet and they are just cruising around or on the move. They are said to be almost impossible to catch on a fly when they are behaving like this.

I took on Colin's advice and put in the hours at one of my mullet marks. It holds many thin-lips at this time of year so it seemed a good place to start. I stuck with the red head diawl bach and the red tag fly as I have had mullet follow these before but never take them. 

Through lots of observation, I was able to work out when they were feeding 'properly' and discovered that they ran like clockwork. Always feeding on the same spots, at the same state of the tide. The pieces of the puzzle were beginning to come together.

Eventually, it all came together completely and I got my first take. I was so surprised when the mullet charged down the fly and actually hit it that I struck as if I were trout fishing....and fluffed it. Big mistake, a small strip strike is what was required.

Fortunately, I got another bite at the cherry and didn't make the same mistake twice. The thin lip fought well in the shallow water and I was finally able to beach my first mullet on the fly. It was an amazing feeling I have to say, they really are the most challenging of fish to catch with fly tactics.

I got back in touch with Colin and thanked him for his advice. It had been most helpful. We then decided to get together and I invited him down to Sussex to have a go on my mullet marks. Needless to say he managed to catch a few fish and thoroughly enjoyed it!

It's always good to make new connections in the angling world and I was able to learn a lot from Colin. We plan to go on some more mullet fishing adventures next summer, so I look forward to seeing how that all develops. It's infectious fishing....I like it!