Pinch down every barb, no argument
You now have the clinch knot in your fingers, or at least the first half of it, so let us turn to the other end of that line: the actual hook.
Understand this clearly. For me, this is not a suggestion. Every hook that goes on my line has its barb pinched flat, without exception, and I want you doing the same before you ever step into the water.
What a barb actually does
The barb is the small backward kink near the point of the hook. Its function is to prevent the hook from sliding back out of whatever it has entered. That is useful when you want to ensure a fish stays hooked. It is considerably less useful when "whatever it has entered" turns out to be your ear, your finger, your jacket sleeve, or the person beside you.
I am not overstating this. I hooked my own ear on roughly my fifth or sixth outing. The hook was barbless, fortunately, so it came out with barely a flinch, and I still taught my Sunday School class the next morning without anyone noticing. Had it been a barbed hook, I would have been bound for urgent care instead, telling a far less amusing version of the story. I mention it often because it worked. The lesson was learned permanently.
How to pinch one down
You need nothing elaborate. Needle-nose pliers or hemostats, the inexpensive kind from any sporting goods aisle, or frankly a pair of pliers from your garage will do in a pinch (no pun intended, or only slightly).
- Hold the hook by the bend, so your fingers are well clear of the point.
- Locate the barb: a small bump projecting just behind the hook point.
- Clamp the pliers directly on the barb and press it flat against the shank.
- Run a finger along it gently, not hard, simply to check. If it still catches your fingernail, press again.
- That is the whole procedure. Do this to every fly before it enters your box, not the night before you need it.
Some flies sold in stores already have barbless hooks, and that is worth asking about when shopping. But I do not rely on it. I check every one myself, even those marked barbless, because I would rather spend ten seconds confirming than discover otherwise in the middle of the Provo.
Why I do not budge on this
Some people hear "barbless" and assume it is for anglers who are precious about the fish. It is not, or not only. It is for you. A barbless hook comes out of skin, out of clothing, out of a tree branch, and out of a fish's mouth far more easily than a barbed one. Less damage in every case. If you are practicing catch and release, toward which I would gently steer you on the Provo, a barbless hook also means the fish spends less time out of the water while you work the hook loose. Everyone benefits, with the possible exception of your ego, because barbless hooks do allow a fish to shake free somewhat more often. I have made peace with that trade-off.
A brief note on the flies themselves
I should state plainly that I am not skilled at matching exact insects to exact hatches. That is genuine entomology, and some people relish that aspect; more power to them. I mostly rely on a handful of patterns that work most of the time and consult someone at the fly shop when I am stumped. So do not feel behind if you cannot yet distinguish a Blue-Winged Olive from a Pale Morning Dun. Trout are not especially particular on most days.
Which brings something to mind. I once tried tying my own fly at the kitchen table, humming along, convinced I had genuine talent, and what came off the vise looked, in Tricia's exact words, "like a bug that lost a fight." Crude. Uneven. A little sad, in truth. I nearly declined to try it on the water at all. I took it up the canyon anyway simply to see, and a fish ate it on the first cast. I still keep that fly in my box. A useful reminder that trout are not art critics, and neither is the river. It does not care how tidy your knot looks or how professional your fly looks, provided the barb is down and the hook holds.
Before next time
Gather whatever flies you already have, or a few inexpensive ones from the store, and pinch every single barb flat before our next class. Bring your pliers as well, because we will do this together on the ones you are unsure about.