Woolly Buggers and Smaller Trout

[DKStroutfitter]

I like to fish lakes with a sinking line and a woolly bugger. My problem is that when I am in an area that has trout that are 12" or smaller, I miss many more hits than I catch. What do you suggest to help me to get more hookups?
I have tied smaller buggers but the problem still is the same.
What other streamers have a smaller tail than a bugger and work as well on trout?
Any other suggestions will be appreciated. Thanks, Grandpa D.
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[cat_man]

You can still use wooly buggers just tie them with half the tail that you normally would. They still work just as well on those small trout, but you'll get fewer short strikes.

From what I've seen, the most common mistake in tying wooly buggers is tying that tail too long. It might look pretty, but it will cause the majority of your strikes to be short strikes. A shorter tail will have less action, but you can still impart a lot of action to the whole fly itself by using good stripping techniques and pausing between strips to let the fish anticipate the next movement. Often the strikes come when the fly is motionless, and it's possible you'll miss some strikes altogether if you're not paying very close attention while stripping it back.

Hope that helps.
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[Dryrod]

Hi there DKS, yea old Wooley Bugger is ideal for trout and steelhead. Most of these flies are tied with a rather long tail. Small trout generally feast on small insects. Trimming the tail might help but I would be inclined to find a small dry fly which would be more to their liking. Streamers represent small bait fish which is generally not included in the diet of trout under 12". When all else fails I usually pull out my old reliable Royal Wulff.
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[tubeN2]

For the smaller trout, I would generally use something in the Wolfe family or one of my old faithfulls. The Renegade.

It is small enough and trout love them.
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[tomc]

the wooley worm works well in the northeast,it is the same as buggers but without the tail
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[DKStroutfitter]

I can catch trout in the 8" and up sizes all day on a streamer like a wooly bugger or a leach. The size of the trout doesn't seem to matter. They all take a wooly. I don't know what they think they are striking but the same thing happens with a spinner and smaller trout. They will take it most of the time.
I know that larger trout switch from plankton to small bait fish, but I can always get small trout to take a streamer. Go figure![]
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