Hook:Eagle Claw 253 or salt water hook of preference,
sizes #1/0 to #3/0.
Thread:White
flymaster.
Tail:Long gray bucktail, under two pieces of
silver flash, under two white saddles.
Body:Silver mylar tubing.
Throat:White bucktail as a ¾ colar, bottom and both sides one
hair thick.
Collar:White marabou, folded or doubled three turns.
Wing:Long white bucktail under 15 pieces of purple bucktail under twopieces of blue flash under one
natural black saddle
When
Ken Abrames book “Striper Moon” came out back in 1994, it introduced a number
of different and unique fly patterns to a group of fly fishers just discovering
the joys of salt water fly fishing.These
flies were very impressionistic and fluid.They included flies such as the “Razzle Dazzle”, “Eely”, and “Ray’s
Fly”.Back then it seemed everyone was
tying and using these patterns in CT and RI.Although these flies will work anywhere, they represented and brought
focus on the CT-RI region.
According
to Ken this fly imitates finger mullet.Mullet move through RI in the fall.They are also a predominate bait fish along the shores of Cape Cod in August/September.It should be tied “in full silhouette” and
“about as thick around as a man’s index finger”.This is just a great fly any time of year.I always think to myself “Why don’t I use
this fly more”. This year for sure.
If you have any questions about this fly or would like to
submit a pattern of
The month I can be reached at 203 305-3854 or e-mail me at
pdinice@frontier.com .
Eyes
– Chrome or
nickel dumb bell eyes (I epoxy or use UV resin on my thread wraps around the
eyes for extra strength)
Underbody
– Pink
thread, topped with pearl body braid. Pearl body braid is teased out near the
bend of the hook.
Over-body
– Clear
larva lace
Wing - Blond craft fur topped with approximately 6 strands of rainbow crystal flash. (For larger flies
I’ll substitute White Bucktail for theBlond Craft Fur).
I have been doing the Fly of the Month for over 35 years
now. Of all the flies I’ve ever posted
this has to be what I would term as one of my “magic flies”. If you fish the salt in CT you need to have
this fly in your box. I live at the
mouth of the Housatonic River, and love fishing for shad, both the American and
Hickory species. Catching these “baby”
tarpon like fish is a great thrill on a lighter rod. Back in 1998 I really focused on fishing a
great number of shad flies. The
“Gotcha” out fished all other traditional shad patterns. It wasn’t even close.
This fly was originally developed for
bonefish, but has been adapted for New England fishing. An old time friend, Ed Goodwin, introduced me
to it. What really makes this fly
extraordinary is that it is also a cross over pattern for stripers. Stripers will readily hit this fly. At times they take it for a crab, shrimp, or
even a glass minnow. Friend Ben Marouski ties this fly with a White
Bucktail wing and slays stripers with it.
This thing really glows in the water.
This fly is such an amazing producer that I am constantly approached by
fellow fishermen who ask what I’m using.
If you have any questions about this fly or would like
to submit a pattern of the month I can be reached at 203 305-3850 or e-mail me
at pdinice@frontier.com .
This fly originates from the Mossy Creek Fly Shop in Harrisonburg,
VA.It’s a variation of a bugger called
the Golden Retriever, which is tied on a standard streamer hook.(It was a featured Fly of the Month many
years ago)I’ve been tying more and more
streamers on a jig hooks lately.The jerking
action created by the jig hook makes this fly so much more deadly.It also helps to prevent snagging bottom.Some fly guys know that this is one of the
‘secret magic flies’.It catches fish
everywhere and if you fish Grand Lake Stream in ME, this fly is a must in your
box.You can tie these in a variety of
colors, but this fly has made it’s name with gold Estaz and a tan Marabou tail.A great fish catcher that can also be used as
an anchor fly that gets your rig deep.
Normally you can use a thread of your preference for the flies I
feature.In this case I strongly
recommend you use Danville’s Flat Waxed Nylon.
To tie this fly place your tungsten bead on the hook.With the hook in your vice, start
you Lead Wire on the hook shank at approximately the location above the hook
point.Make wraps up to the bead.Break off your lead wire.Next, start your Red Thread behind the Lead
wraps to lock it in place.After you
create a thread dam behind the lead, wrap your thread forward covering your
lead wraps.
Make sure all of the lead is covered.Your ‘underbody’ should be all Red thread.
Advance your thread back to the end of the hook shank.You’re now going to tie in your Marabou
Tail.It should be 1 to 1 ½ hook shank
in length.When you tie it in your
actually filling in the hook shank behind your lead wraps to create an even symmetrical
fly body.Next, tie in your Gold Estaz
at your Marabou tie in point.Make sure
the Estaz fibers are facing ‘down’ when you tie it in so that the fibers end up
pointing rearward on the hook.Now,
palmer the Estaz forward making even wraps that leave some of your Red Thread
underbody exposed.When you wrap it
forward with one hand stroke the fibers rearward with the other hand.End your wraps behind the bead.Tie the Estaz off with your thread.Clip off the butt end.Whip finish the fly with your thread creating
a small red ‘hotspot’ behind the bead.Apply
some head cement.
Mossy Creek Fly
fishing has a great instructional video on how to tie the Jigged Golden
Retriever below:
If you have any questions about this fly or would like to submit a Fly of the Month I can be reached at 203 305-3850 or atpdinice@frontier.com .
Hook: TMC Size # 14 1X Dry Fly Hook or hook of
choice.
Thread:MFC Light Brown 6/0 Thread.
Shuck:Antron Yarn PMD Shuck/Olive.
Rib:Tan Tying Thread.
Body/Thorax:Super Fine Tan Dubbing.
Wing/Hackle:Natural CDC – 4 feathers.
Over
Wing:White Para Post Wing Material.
Collar/Head:Additional dubbing with a dubbing loop of CDC
fibers wrapped over it.
This
is a great caddis imitation.It floats
like a cork and the movement of the CDC fibers mimics that of a living
insect.Give it a try and I guarantee it
will become one of your favorite patterns.
I’ve
tied all of my Corn Fed Caddis on a Size #14 hook.There is a lot of material on this hook shank
so please be aware that proportion is everything to tie this fly
correctly.Also, creating a dubbing loop
of CDC is not an easy matter.With
practice you can master it.
To
tie this fly, begin your thread a couple eye lengths behind the eye.Wrap down to the bend.Next, prepare your Antron Shuck material.Usually, half of strand of material is
enough.Tie it in at the bend of the
hook.Wrap the butt end up the hook
shank.Cut it off and wrap back down to
the bend.Trim the Shuck so that it is ½
the hook shank length beyond the bend.Bring
your thread back up the hook shank.Create a thread loop and bind it down along the hook shank.After it is secured, cut the loop so that the
tag end extends beyond the bend and shuck.This is going to be your rib.
Now
dub the body with Super Fine Dubbing. The body should be approximately 2/3 the
hook shank length.Next, counter wrap
your rib forward creating a segmented body.Tie and cut the rib off.Align
the tips of 4 CDC feathers so that they are relatively even.These feathers will be your wing.Tie them on the top of the hook shank.They should extend to the halfway point of
the shuck.Once the wing is securely
tied down trim the butts.‘Clean them
up’ with your tying thread to create an even base.Next, tie on your Para Post Wing.For a size #14 fly use approximately ½ to 2/3
strand of material.The Para Post makes
your fly more visible in the water.Tie a
3” strand in at it’s midpoint, then fold back the material to lay on top of
your CDC Wing.You then want to trim it
so that it’s slightly shorter than your CDC Wing.Again, use your thread to even out the
remaining ‘head area’ of your fly.Then
apply a small amount of dubbing for the base of your head.On the back side of the head, create a
‘dubbing loop’ to make a ‘brush’ of CDC fibers.You can do this by creating a loop with your thread or by splitting the
thread with a bodkin.Take the fibers of
two CDC feathers and insert them into your loop/thread create your dubbing
brush.Once the CDC brush is
constructed, palmer it through your ‘head’ to create a buggy head/collar.Tie it off behind the eye.Clip off the tag end and whip finish your
fly.
Fly
Fish Food has a great instructional video on how to tie this fly below:
If you have any
questions about this fly or would like to submit a Fly of the Month I can be
reached at 203 305-3850 or at pdinice@frontier.com .
This blog is suppose to be about Fly Fishing, Fly Tying, & Friends. I haven't posted a lot about fishing with my friends lately. So this post is dedicated to them. I'm so fortunate to fish with them. It's what it's all about for me at this stage of my Fly Fishing Journey. One other thing that I'm thankful for is the Fly Fishing here in Connecticut! Few realize how lucky we are here. We can fish for trout, warm water species, and stripers. All in the same day if we desire. So far, it's been an extremely rewarding Spring! (all photos taken Spring of 2021)
Underwing: Two Natural CDC Feathers aligned tip to
tip. Over which is synthetic Wing
Material such as Antron, Trigger Point, or McFlylon.
Over
Wing: Deer or Elk Hair.
Finish: High N Dry Liquid Fly Floatant.
I
don’t know why I don’t fish dry dropper rigs more. I’m going to make an effort to do it a lot
more this coming year. When I was out
to Montana, other fly guys I ran into were all fishing a ‘Hopper & dropper’
set up. While hoppers do catch fish here
in New England, I was looking for a dry fly with enough ‘floatability’ for my
dropper, and also one that mimicked flies on my home waters. Friend Mike Shannon fishes a dry dropper set
up a lot. His lead dry fly is tied with
a large amount of CDC and floats like a cork.
It’s what led me to this fly. Since
I’ve been doing the Fly of the Month. I try to pick patterns where materials
can be substituted or aren’t that difficult to obtain. So it’s somewhat unusual that I strongly
recommend a specific fly finish. High N
Dry Liquid Floatant does a fantastic job adding to the ‘floatability’ of the
fly. If there is another fly treatment
you prefer, then use that.
To
tie this fly begin your thread approximately ¼ hook shank length behind the
eye. You need to leave a long tag end of
the thread that will be used as your rib.
Wrap your thread back to the bend of the hook. You’re now going to dub your body. You can use a dry fly dubbing of your
choice. At times I’ve used a CDC dubbing
or made my body from a CDC dubbing brush.
The choice is yours. After
creating your body that will end at your tie in point, take open wraps with the
tag end of the thread. This will create
a segmented body. After tying and
cutting off the tag end of the thread, you are now ready to tie on your Under wing
& Over wing. There’s a lot of
material that goes into the wing of the fly which is why leaving space behind
the eye is so important. Begin your Underwing by aligning two CDC
feathers at their tips. Tie them in at the top of the hook shank. They should be slightly longer than the body
of the fly. Cut off the but ends of the
CDC feathers and even things out with additional thread wraps & dubbing. Be
careful not to use too much.) Now tie in
your Antron Wing material. You are going
to double the material over your tying thread.
Tie in ½ first, then lay the forward strand back with the first. Leave it long for now. We will trim it at the end. Again, even things out with additional thread
wraps & dubbing. (Be careful not to
use too much. There’s a lot going onto the wing.) Now tie in your Elk or Deer Hair Wing. The technique is exactly the same as tying
any ‘Elk Hair Caddis’. Tie off and cut your thread. Then trim the butt ends of your elk or deer
hair. Now, trim your Antron Wing so that
it is slightly longer than the other wing materials. You’re almost done. A very important component of this fly is to
‘pre-treat’ it with High N Dry Liquid
Fly Floatant or a similar treatment of your choice. I dip my flies and let them dry
overnight. Your now good to go and use
it in your ‘dry dropper rig’.
Trout
Yeah has a great instructional video on how to tie this fly below:
If you have any
questions about this fly or would like to submit a Fly of the Month I can be
reached at 203 305-3850 or at pdinice@frontier.com .
Tying thread: Light
Olive, UTC 70 Denier Ultra Thread.
Rib: Ultra Wire Gold Small Size.
Tail: Dyed Mallard flank fibers dyed wood duck.
Body: Light Olive touching thread wraps.
Wing Case: Butts
of the Dyed Mallard flank fibers dyed wood duck.
Thorax: Olive SLF Prism Dubbing.
Legs: Pearl Krystal Flash.
Finish: UV Resin on the Wing Case.
This is a great
little nymph.Many consider it a baetis
imitation.Others an attractor fly.It’s kind of a cross between a Higa SOS nymph
and the WD-40.
Begin by mashing
down your barb and placing your tungsten bead on the hook.Start and affix your thread behind the eye of
the hook.Make touching wraps back to
the hook point.Now tie in your Wire
Rib.To secure the wire, take wraps deep
into the bend.Next, prepare a clump of
Mallard fibers for your tail.When you
separate them from the feather, make sure the tips are aligned.Tie them in at the thread location.The tail should be approximately a ‘hook gap’
length.Make thread wraps forward binding down the
fibers until your thread is behind the bead.When you do this keep the fibers on top of the hook shank.Do not cut off the butt ends of the
fibers.With your thread create a
tapered nymph body.Bring your thread
back so that it’s any eye length behind the bead.Next, take open spiral wraps up the hook
shank with your rib to create a segmented body.When you reach your tying thread, use it to bind down the wire.‘Helicopter’ or cut the butt end of the
rib.
Bring your thread
down the hook shank so that it hangs at the hook point.Pull back and bind down the butts of your
Mallard fibers.You are going to use
them for your wing case.Next, dub a slim
thorax with your Olive SLF Prism Dubbing.Leave your thread behind the bead.For legs you’re going to use two strands of Krystal Flash.Tie them in at their mid-point behind the
bead with figure eight wraps.Take
additional wraps in front of the and coax them back so that they face
rearward.Now, pull the Mallard butts forward
to create the wing case.You should have
two legs on each side of the wing case.Take
two or three thread wraps behind the bead to bind down the fibers.Pull the Krystal flash rearward and trim them
even with the back of the hook.Now,
pick the Mallard fibers up and snip them off close to the bead.Whip finish your fly and cut off your
thread.To enhance the wing case apply
some UV Resin on top of it.Cure it with
your light, and your done.
Tightlinevideo has
a great instructional video below:
If you have any questions about this fly or would like to submit a Fly
of the Month I can be reached at 203 305-3850 or at pdinice@frontier.com .
