THE FOAM MINNOW
PHIL ROWLEY Translated by CARL WUEBBEN
Predatory trout accustomed to supplementing their diet with minnows, fry or other baitfish often herd and chase their prey into shallow areas or drive them to the surface where they ambush them from below. In order to be successful using minnow or fry patterns it is important to keep your fly high in the water. Line choice helps but having a buoyant pattern is a definite asset. This is very easy and fun to tie – you can get very creative in the colors also
PATTERN
HOOK – mustad R74-9672, #6 - #10
THREAD – GSP, white – 6/0 white works also
TAIL – UV2 grizzly soft hackle, olive or brown. Regular marabou and fur clumps can also be used. The barred markings of a dyed grizzly feather suggest the banded markings common to trout or salmon fry and many small minnows.
UNDERBODY – 2 mm sheet of white foam cut into strips the size of the hook gape
OVERBODY – Mylar piping, pearlescent or pearlescent dyed olive.
EYES – Stick on eyes – bend the eye in half to better form to the body.
GLUE – Gel zap-a-gap or gel superglue and thin UV glue and a curing light for it.
TYING NOTES
HOW TO TIE
*** But remember to practice C.P.R. (CATCH – PICTURE – RELEASE).
SPLIT-TOP EMERGER (OLIVE AND GRAY)
SCOTT SANCHEZ
Translated by CARL WUEBBEN
Multipurpose emerger patterns have a permanent home in my fly box. By multipurpose, I mean patterns that match characteristics common to various species of emergers. These patterns help me combat a variety of difficult situations, including fishing unfamiliar waters of facing multiple hatches that are occurring at the same time. Tying the split-top emerger in olive and gray covers a wide range of insects and the pattern is effective in a variety of ways. It imitates not only more than one species but also an emerger that is vulnerable, and it appeals to a trout’s sense of safety. Some emergers become stuck in the shuck or take too much time escaping the meniscus of the water and air. This is the stage the split-top emerger imitates, and it is bad for the bug, but good for the fish. Most aquatic insects in the state of emergence look more alike than different caddis, mayfly, midge, and small stones all blend together one way or another. Dull orange or pink polypropylene is a good compromise of visibility without being gaudy. Also try using CDC for the indicator.
PATTERN
HOOK – Dai-Riki 125 curved emerger hook, or Tiemco 2488 sizes #12 thru #20
THREAD – Olive 8/0
SHUCK – Olive brown Antron
ABDOMEN – Stripped grizzly hackle stem
WING CASE – Gray 1.5 mm or 2mm foam
HACKLE – 1 ½ gap grizzly
INDICATOR – Orange poly.
THORAX – Callibaetis UV2 dubbing
GLUE – Zap-A-Gap
HOW TO TIE
*** But remember to practice C.P.R. (CATCH – PICTURE – RELEASE).
DOUBLE PARACHUTE MIDGE
JEREMY DAVIS
This parachute style dry sits in the film like a hatching insect. The advantage of a double midge pattern is that adult midges often cluster together in groups of two or more. Midges can be as tiny as size 28 and feeding trout often target these clusters in order to get enough to eat.
PATTERN
HOOK – 2 XL dry fly hook #8 - #12.
THREAD – Black 8/0 uni-thread.
TAIIL – Black antron yarn.
BODY – Natural peacock Arizona dubbing.
POSTS – White antron yarn.
HACKLE – Grizzly.
HOW TO TIE
TIP – Gently pull back the fibers on the parachute to dub and to whip finish the fly.
*** But remember to practice C.P.R. (CATCH – PICTURE – RELEASE).
DRYEMERGER (BLACK)
JAMES FERRIN
The dryemerger is a very unusual pattern. It’s similar to the parasol emerger. It’s a very effective pattern and a lot of people say they’re catching fish with it. The post is just white antron wrapped with thread and a hackle; that rests on the surface of the water. The pupa, which is pretty standard, hangs slightly underneath the surface. The dryemerger is very interesting and shows what you can do with midge patterns.
PATTERN
HOOK – Mustad C49S – Tiemco 2457 – Daiichi 1120 sizes 22 to 16.
THREAD – Black 6/0 (140 denier)
POST – White Antron
HACKLE – Black
BODY- Tying thread
RIB- Small copper Ultra wire
WING BUDS – White Antron yarn
THORAX – Peacock herl
HOW TO TIE
NOTE: If you have trouble tying the post use a piece of 50lb to 80lb monofilament. Place it in the vice and tie the Antron onto the monofilament, making the black post by going from one side outward. Keep tight wraps. If you end up with a few white spots, a black sharpie pen will cover up that problem. Tie on and wrap your hackle. Clip tag end and whip finish. Now remove from vise and clip any extra pieces of monofilament that is not needed and tie in on the hook like in step #2.
Quite an unusual fly to tie, but fairly easy. Tie up a bunch for the closer next month
*** But remember to practice C.P.R. (CATCH – PICTURE – RELEASE).
JR X HOPPER (OLIVE)
SCOTT SANCHEZ
Trout anglers love hopper season. The fishing can be really good, and seeing trout crush big surface patterns is a genuine thrill. Big hoppers, however, are not always the best option. In reality, not all natural grasshoppers are big, and circumstances often prohibit the bigger varieties from reaching maximum size. Further, pressured fish that see a lot of large hopper flies seem to respond better to the abbreviated patterns. Sizes range from minute quarter-inch specimens to enormous three-inchers, and their sizes are the result of multiple factors. Foremost their sizes depend on their species. The length of the growing season is the most important secondary influence. The longer they have to grow, the bigger they become. But adverse spring latitude can contribute to short growing seasons and a preponderance of diminutive hoppers. It pays to keep small hoppers in your fly box, especially in areas of short growing seasons. The JR X HOPPER’s material list is short and readily available, and the technique simple. The pattern floats well and is easy to track.
PATTERN
HOOK – Dai-Riki 320. Standard dry fly, sizes # 10 - # 16.
THREAD – Light olive, 8/0 (or 70 Denier).
UNDER BODY – Light olive antron dubbing.
BODY AND HEAD – Olive 2-millimeter foam.
WING- Dark elk hair.
OVER WING- Chartreuse polypropylene
LEGS – medium black- barred chartreuse rubber legs on sizes # 10 and #12, small on sizes # 14 and # 16. Glue a joint for the hind leg.
NOTE – This hopper can be tied in many colors. Tan, Cream, Brown, Chartreuse, and Rust are all good options as well as a black cricket. To further simplify leave out the rear leg joint.
HOW TO TIE
*Glue a rear rubber leg joint to the rear legs. Cut two small pieces of rubber leg material and use some ZAP-A-GAP to glue it to each end of the rear legs at an angle (down and rearward) on the outer part of the leg. Trim the joint clean when dry.
*** But remember to practice C.P.R. (CATCH – PICTURE – RELEASE).
STRYMPH
Harry W. Murray
Here’s an equation every fly fisher should know:
STReamer + nYMPH = more fish. This fly can be fished both as a streamer and a nymph – hence the name STRYMPH. It will take trout and smallmouth almost anywhere you fish it. To match a broader variety of food forms tie the same pattern in olive or cream in addition to the original black.
Fly | Insect | Bait |
---|---|---|
Black Strymph | Hellgrammite | Sculpin |
- | Dark Stonefly | Mad tom |
- | Dragon fly | Tadpole |
- | leech | |
Olive Strymph | Damselfly | Sculpin |
- | Dragonfly | Shiner |
- | Caddis larva | |
Cream Strymph | Crane fly larva | Chub |
- | Mayfly nymph | Silverside |
- | Caddis larva | Shad |
- | Shiner |
For trout streams tie them in sizes 6 and 10 for smallmouths use sizes 4 through 10. I encourage you to experiment because STRYMPHs are exceptionally versatile. One of them often takes a good fish when other flies let you down.
PATTERN
HOOK - 3x-long nymph or streamer hook, sizes #2 through #10
THREAD - 3/0 prewaxed monocord, color to match body.
WEIGHT - Lead wire (The thickness of the hook shank) wrapped over three fourths of the hook shank.
TAILS - Ostrich herl, color to match body. On a larger Strymph, use up to 20 strands of herl: a smaller fly need fewer strands, select herl that has full, thick side filaments.
BODY - Black, cream, or olive rabbit fur.
COLLAR - Brown speckled Indian hen saddle.
HOW TO TIE
*** But remember to practice C.P.R. (CATCH – PICTURE – RELEASE).