Two days ago, I opened my plastic container full of wiggle worms and what I saw made me laugh! Many of the wiggle worms had melted into a puddle of a plastic glob! I wasn't surprised, mostly annoyed. The wiggle worm materials have evolved a bit and many of the materials are now more durable and heat resistant. Mine are not. I have to get some of the newer material that stretches like crazy and tolerates heat a bit better.
I have posted before not to throw away the hooks and beads. Just peel the old body material off and replace it! Quality hooks are expensive.
Just a thought. I like barbed hooks for this pattern. I still pinch down the barb to make it barbless but the little bump allows me to tie on a second wiggle worm about 18 inches lower down by attaching tippet to the upper fly without slipping off the curve of the hook!
Whether you love'em or hate them, Wiggle worms are fish catchers. Are they actually flies, I have no idea. They have saved the day for me on several lakes. Just fish them right off of the bottom. I attach my forceps to the fly and lower right to the bottom of the lake, then adjust my strike indicator so my fly is about 12-18 inches off of the bottom. Some fly fishers love to get their bloodworm patterns just a few inches off of the bottom. You will have to experiment!
Rocky mountain whitefish love them as do trout on rivers. I have also had a lot of success catching walleye on these flies on the Red Deer River!
Do a little research and find the most durable version of the wiggle worm material. There are a variety of colours. You will be amazed at what colours work on your local waters! I have friends who buy their wiggle worm bodies from a pet shop. They find a dog toy with a bunch of little fingers on them. They cut off the fingers and use them for their wiggle worm bodies.
Wiggle Worms
Hook: Daiichi 1120 size 8-12 or your favourite curved nymph hook
Thread: Red 6/0
Bead: 7/64ths or 1/8th tungsten (I like my bead to be half way along the shank of the hook)
Body Wiggle worm material
The Cola Worm is a simple variation that simply catches fish both on lakes and rivers!
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