Cooler water, higher flows, autumn mists, and the switch to grayling and stillwater rainbows.
Why October Fishes Differently
- Cooler water, higher flows: Autumn rain lifts levels and oxygen. Fish feed more confidently.
- Shorter bite windows: Productive spells can bunch around late morning and again in the afternoon.
- Autumn menu: Rivers see small olives, late caddis and midges, plus wind-blown terrestrials. Stillwaters see steady buzzer life and a clear uptick in fry interest.
Note: where salmon seasons remain open into early October, back-end fish can be aggressive. But for most anglers the practical October targets are grayling on rivers and rainbows on reservoirs.
Rivers in October: Grayling Time!
Grayling thrive in cool, moving water. They will rise on the right day, but many October fish are taken subsurface with tidy presentations and dependable patterns.
Where to look
- Riffle tails and seams: Lines where pace meets softer water.
- Knee-to-thigh depth: Classic grayling lanes in October.
- Drop-offs below glides: Especially after a lift in levels.
How to fish it
- Tight-line nymphing: Short line, high rod tip, visible sighter. Track the flies at river speed, then a fraction slower to telegraph subtle takes.
- Duo/Klink-and-Dink: A buoyant, sparse dry as a visual anchor with a lightweight nymph 18–24 inches beneath. Great in steadier glides or when fish lift for emergers.
- Upstream spiders: On milder days, a pair of soft-hackles drifted high in the column can light things up.
Best flies for grayling in October
Dries & Emergers
- Klinkhamer or CDC emerger 14–18 in olive, black, or grey
- Small Elk Hair Caddis 16–18 for last-of-season sedge flickers
- CDC Beetle 14–18 for breezy banks and calm pockets
Nymphs & Subsurface
- Tungsten Pheasant Tail 14–18
- Hare’s Ear nymph 14–18
- Perdigon-style nymphs 16–18 with a subtle hot spot
- Pink Shrimp or Killer Bug 12–16 for shrimp-rich gravels
- Peeping/Cased Caddis 12–14 in faster, stonier runs
Spiders
- Partridge & Orange 14–16
- Snipe & Purple 14–16
- Waterhen Bloa 14–16
Rig tip: carry the same nymph in two bead sizes. If you’re bumping bottom too often, drop a size. If you’re never ticking stones in the deeper lanes, size up.
Stillwaters & Reservoirs: Rainbows Switch On
After summer’s heat, rainbows push back into the margins and upper layers. October is often the most consistent month for confident takes near the surface.
Where to look
- Windward banks and inlets: Food washes in and concentrates fish.
- Over weed beds: Natural larders for shrimps, corixa, and fry.
- Subsurface slicks: Wind lanes gather midges, terrestrials, and bits of fry.
How to fish it
- Washing-line: FAB or booby on the point to set depth, two small naturals on droppers. Count down and vary retrieve from static to slow figure-of-eight.
- Buzzer teams: In calmer spells, fish buzzers and Diawl Bachs higher than you think on a floater or midge-tip.
- Fry patrol: Intermediates and slow sinkers with minkies, zonkers or slim baitfish. Focus on edges, cages, jetties and dam walls.
- Don’t bin the dries: Daddies and hoppers still take cruising fish, especially with a decent ripple late morning.
Best flies for reservoirs in October
Top & near-surface
- Daddy Longlegs 10–12
- Hoppers 12–14 in claret, olive, black
- Big Black Shipman’s or Midge Dry 12–14
Naturals on teams
- Diawl Bach 12–14 (original, UV, or red head)
- Buzzers 10–14 in black, claret, or olive
- Corixa 12–14 over weed
Depth control wins: count your flies down, then repeat the successful count. In October many fish are in the top 2–6 feet unless bright sun pushes them deeper.
Simple, dependable set-ups
Grayling (river)
- 10 – 11ft 2-3wt nymph-style rod
- Mono or micro-thin Euro leader with a 20–30 cm high-contrast sighter
- 5x–6x tippet to two nymphs 20–30 cm apart
Rainbows (stillwater)
- 9–10 ft 6–7 wt
- Floating, midge-tip, and intermediate lines cover most days
- 9–15 ft leaders. 8–10 lb fluoro for fry work, 6–8 lb for naturals and dries
October buy-list at a glance
- Klinkhamer or CDC emerger 14–18
- Elk Hair Caddis 16–18
- CDC Beetle 14–18
- Tungsten Pheasant Tail 14–18
- Hare’s Ear nymph 14–18
- Perdigon nymphs 16–18 with subtle hot spots
- Pink Shrimp or Killer Bug 12–16
- Partridge & Orange, Snipe & Purple spiders 14–16
- Daddy Longlegs 10–12
- Hoppers 12–14
- Diawl Bach & Cruncher 12–14
- Black, claret, or olive Buzzers 10–14
- Corixa 12–14
- Minky, Zonker, Humungus 6–10
- FAB/Booby and Cormorant 10–12
