Sierra Bright Dot
UNKNOWN – from website, stevenojai.tropod.com
Translated by Carl Wuebben
The Sierra Bright Dot is a Fore and Aft pattern. The pattern has been used primarily on the eastside of the Southern sierra for many years going back to the 1950’s.It has remained popular as an attractor pattern yet has not extended its popularity beyond the Sierra. The Fore and Aft pattern goes back to the early 1900’s as its origins have been disputed between the French and the English. Jean-Paul Puguegnot’s book, French fishing flies, cites a doctor Juge who created Fore and Aft patterns in 1918. His Taquine pattern consists of a red thread body with grey hackles. Horace Brown of England also laid claim to designing Fore and Aft flies in the 1930’s. Either way, the pattern eventually made its way to the Sierra Nevada and became a major pattern for the region. Trent Pridemore wrote about the Sierra Bright Dot in his article “Trout Flies Unique to California” (California Fly Fisher July/August 2008). He indicates that the “Bright” of Bright Dot is in honor of Dorothy Bright, the wife of a mine owner at Convict Lake, also known as Monte Diablo Lake at the time. The Bright’s owned the mining village while it was attacked by 6 escaped prisoners in 1871. This episode led to the name change of the lake. It is unknown who originated the Sierra Bright Dot pattern but it has been a preferred pattern for high elevation lakes and streams of the Sierra, particularly good with Golden Trout.
PATTERN
THREAD – Danville Black 6/0 (140 denier)
BODY – Red floss
TAIL – Golden Pheasant Tippets
HACKLE – Grizzly
HOW TO TIE
- Start your thread in at about mid shank then attach 10-15 Golden Pheasant Tippets at the bend of the hook for a tail. Even the tippets so that the markings align. The tail length should be equal to the shank length. Wrap the tags of the tippets up to the ¾ position and clip off the rest.
- Tie in a grizzly hackle with the fibers about a gap and a ¼ to 1 ½ long by its butt end but don’t forget to remove the fluff then wrap 4-5 turns forward with close wraps, secure and trim the tag end.
- Clip 2 strands of red floss and position it in at about three eyelets from the eye and wrap the floss back to the hackle and forward again to where you started tying in your floss. Try to maintain an even layer of floss. Secure and clip off the tag end.
- Tie in another grizzly hackle that has about 2 gaps long fibers /remove the fluff and tie in by the butt end right where your thread is now, clip off tag end and your thread and hackle should be a little bit into the floss.
- Bring your thread forward to just behind the eyelet, wrap the hackle forward with close wraps 4 or 5 will do, secure and clip the tag end, whip finish and you’re done. You can put a very small drop of head cement if you want.
TIE UP A DOZEN OR TWO – AND GO FISHING*** But remember to practice C.P.R. (CATCH – PICTURE – RELEASE)
