Orange and gold
Red and pink

 

I use the same flies whatever time of year. If red flies give you confidence then use them. I really don't think it makes any difference but confidence in what you are doing does.

 

Makes no difference I don’t think. I think the only difference is when you try a very different fly size and speed, such as a cascade versus a fast fished sunray shadow.

 

I dont think they are too fussy at this time of year. I tend to fish something pink and orange so it dosent look like a leaf but i dont think the fish care.
Also, dont be scared to fish small. I get most of my late season fish on size 12 and 14 flies even in big water.
Theres times they will want something big and bright side on but not for the most part.
At least thats what ive found on my local river.

 

I dont think they are too fussy at this time of year. I tend to fish something pink and orange so it dosent look like a leaf but i dont think the fish care.
Also, dont be scared to fish small. I get most of my late season fish on size 12 and 14 flies even in big water.
Theres times they will want something big and bright side on but not for the most part.
At least thats what ive found on my local river.

Leaves are such a pain in the arse! I tend to use a Snaelda and a small single hook, which keeps the leaf hook ups low.

 

It doesn't make any difference.

In the autumn the sun is lower in the sky, so the angle of entry into the water is more shallow, which extends the path length before the light reaches your fly. That causes more of the red portion of the spectrum to be absorbed: in normal spate river water that's about 30% per metre travelled. If your fly is half a metre deep and the salmon 2 metres away from it, only 10% of the red light from your fly that you see in fresh air will reach the salmon's eye. At that level red and orange will look rather grey, which may of course be the secret! But the physics clearly suggests that the colour makes no difference. For what it's worth my own experience suggests the same. I use the same pattern of fly all year round, and have done since 2015, without catching any fewer (and often more) fish than my comparator friends at similar skill levels.

 

That doesn't surprise me Michael - but do you ever try a Sunray or similar, to try something very different?

 

Willie gunn
Cascade
Ally shrimp

Take you're pick but fish it with CONFIDENCE

 

And the Stinchar Stoat, to which, I am told, the MCX bears a close resemblance.
Its key element, in common with many patterns, including some you mention, is the black, which enhances detectability. The orange doesn’t do that: its role is to diffuse the image.

 

Red and black is certainly one of my go to tubes for autumn fishing. Normally more black than red.

But also happy with black and orange, black and yellow.

A lot of anglers think that red stimulates an aggressive reaction from autumn cock fish.

You need to have confidence in whatever fly you are using and fish it about right, if you do then you will catch salmon on it if there are salmon there.

 

That's the theory. Although it does leave the obvious question of what about the hens?!

I think, as you say, confidence is the most important thing. I used to believe all sorts of superstitious nonsense but as no one knows why a salmon takes any lure we need these things to pin our confidence on.

I don't think many of these theories stand up to much actual scrutiny but that isn't really their point. If an angler believes red works better in the Autumn that is enough.

I use an all red fly from March to December and have tatl confidence in it. Sometimes I use a black version just for a change of scene, but I prefer the red.

 

Fished yesterday a good few fish in the pool flung every colour at them if their no interested they'll no touch it

 

While I might not necessarily fish a wholly all red flee, I will fish one with a large proportion of red in it at this time of the year., or certainly with red hot spots or target zones and I'll do that with the utmost confidence too.
Pool tails and other such interesting places have a habit of holding lumps if there's any about and I've always found red flee's a shortcut to tangling with a lump or two providing they're fished well enough.
Thereby stands the rub though, not only does a red flee give me confidence, but it needs to be fished well in the appropriate manner.
One more thing here in that quite often at this time of the season rivers are carrying extra water and often with a bit of colour to it as well, Red's and Pinks too it has to be said show well in coloured water.
One of the best back end spinning baits I know is a Wee Red Devon, an all Red tube flee of a similar size maybe 1" to 2" long with a touch of metallic flash about it has always scored well for me from Aug. onwards.
For the past two seasons my current favourite is a wee Phatagorva tied with Red instead of Orange on a plaggy tube, if the water is carrying peat stain then Pink n Black works well.
I don't think you'd catch less with red flees but if you do your bit right there's every bit of a chance you could tangle with a reet lump with a red flee on the business end.
By having a selection of Red based patterns and fishing each in a totally different manner, opening out your angling with different methods and presentations can only do well for your catches.
Merely chucking 45 deg. swing, steps and then chuck again might well work, but an increased repertoire will stand you in greater stead. Don't ignore a Red Allies for cast steps and swing stuff and a weighted Red Frances for targeting specific lays and shoving your flee right into Salars face.
A red based flee is just the start, the more you put into your fishing the more and hopefully bigger comes from it.
Pedro.

 

The confidence thing is of course a bit of a chicken and egg situation.

Once you have caught salmon on a particular colour or style of fly, you tend to have confidence that it will catch salmon !

 

I find red is ok at this time of year, but a particular time a red fly can be very effective is in summer, mid to late evening as the light begins to fade.
From September onwards, you can have boxes full of flies, but really, you need look no further than a standard Allies, no flash or glitter, fished probably around a foot deep. Most of the water we fish is perhaps 4-6ft deep, pool tails even less, so you want to put it nicely in their window without making them work too hard to take it.
If fish are not pushing up, they will drop back slightly, and as Rennie says, pool tails are where you will find some serious fish.
You will often get a follow, so as the fly slows down as it fishes out, if it's in a couple of feet or more water, always give about three steady draws of about 18in. The second draw is usually the one!

 

I haven't fished in autumn for over 15 years. However, red used to be my go to colour in September. The Red and Gold Irish shrimp used to be absolutely deadly during the run of fresh fish in September that was known locally as "the harvest run".

With the leaves in the river in October, I tended to use very different colours to the norm. Purple would have been my choice for October.

That was back when we were fishing for fresh fish right up to the last day of the season. I've no interest in fishing for stale, July fish these days so am really not sure what colours would be preferable today.