I've been tying river wet flies for a friend this week, mostly spiders. I really like tying them and was particularly pleased when he asked me to stick some Tummel style flies in with the rest.
I like Tummel style. I like all the traditional river wets, Clyde, Tweed and North Counrty, but I there's something about the Tummel style that just works for me somehow. Now, unless you're from the UK or a student of traditional flies, you may not be that familiar with Tummel style flies. It's not surprising as they rarely seem to be written about. It's not cause they're not good flies though, they're just forgotten. The same could probably be said for Tweed style flies though clyde style patterns seem to be a bit better known. Most of the stuff I see is North Country spiders, mostly from Yorkshiremen, and flymphs.
This probably has something to do with the style itself. Tummel style flies are really for the extremophiles among us, they are incredibly spartan in their dressing and sometimes were even tied on double hooks to make them sink faster. Essentially you're tying a fly a couple of sizes smaller than the hook size, a trick still in use today among competition nymphers or with Bob Barden's anorexic nymphs. It can be hard to have confidence in these patterns but a fish or two overcomes that, the real problem is that they don't lend themselves too well to the lazy down and across style that many people associate with river wets. No, the quick drop makes the Tummel fly far better suited to upstream fishing in steeper faster rivers. Most people who'll do the work probably fish nymphs over wets most of the time and they'll catch more fish most of the time doing so. It's not everyone who's obsessed with catching the most fish possible, and especially if not competing there's something very nice about working upstream with a cast of wets picking off fish as you go, and Tummel flies will let you do that. There's no need to stick to the old patterns either; add hotspots or flash if you like but next time you hit a steep, tumbly freestone or spate burn, have a few tummel flies in your box to try.
The photo fly is E.M. Tod's Tummel No.1, he didn't bother to name them but listed a few in his 1903 work 'Wet-Fly Fishing Treadted Methodically" which is a good read if you like that sort of thing.
The dressing is simple
Hook:14-16 wetfly
Thread: Yellow silk(or whatever)
Body: A short section of tying silk then a couple of turns of peacock herl- the body should end about halfway between the eye and point of the hook.
Hackle: Cock starling neck feather- Keep it sparse!
You can get Tod's book on reprint here https://amzn.to/3ESlTIW
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