Paul's April 2024 Bonus Fly of the Month

 Holy Grail Caddis Emerger

Hook:  Curved Emerger or Nymph Hook Size #12 - #16.

Thread:  Red Thread.

Bead:  3/32” 2.4 mm Gold Bead.

Rib:  Opal or Pearlescent tinsel or Flash-a-bou. 

Body:  Hare’s Mask Dubbing.

Wingcase:  Pheasant Tail Fibers.

Body:  Gold tinsel Chenille, Large.

Hackle:  Partridge.

This is a great emerger pattern for deeper water.  To tie this fly begin by mashing down the hook barb, place the bead on the hok, and it in your vice.  Start your thread at the hook point. Once secured, cut off the butt end.  Next, secure your Pearl Tinsel/Flash-a-bou onto the hook shank.  You are now going to bring your Tinsel over the mounted Gold Bead, under the hook shank, and back to your tie in point.  That should lock the bead in place.  When you do this make sure you located the bead an ‘eye length’ from the hook eye.  This is critical.  With the bead locked in place, wrap your thread down the hook shank, over the Tinsel.  Your wraps should extend well down the hook shank.  

Next, create a slim dubbing noodle with your Hare’s Mask Dubbing.  With touching wraps, create a tapered body up the hook shank.  The body should end before the bead, leaving enough space to tie in your Wingcase.  Next, with open spiral wraps, rib your body with Tinsel.  Tie it off and cut off the butt end. Now prepare your Wingcase by stripping off 8-10 fibers of Pheasant Tail.  After aligning the tips, trim them off.  Tie them in behind the bead with the fibers extending back towards the rear.  Now dub another noodle with Hare’s Dubbing to cover the body space behind the bead.  Bring your thread over the bead and make some securing wraps.  Next, bring your Pheasant Tail Fibers over the Bead and secure them to create your Wingcase.  After the fibers are anchored, clip off the butt ends.  Now, select a Partridge feather to serve as your hackle.  Strip off all the lower webby fibers.  Pinch the tip of the feather and stroke back all the other fibers on the feather.  Trim off the tip of the feather leaving part of the stem exposed.  Tie the feather in by the exposed stem.  With hackle pliers, take 2 wraps around the hook shank, stroking the feather fibers back as you do so.  Tie the feather off, trim off the excess stem.  Create a small head on the fly, whip finish, and apply head cement. 

Tightlinevideo 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 pdinice@frontier.com .

Paul's April 2024 Fly of the Month

 Jeff's Little Rainbow Trout

Hook:  Mustad  79580 or 4X streamer hook of choice Size #2 - #10.

Thread:  Black Danville Flat Waxed Nylon & UTC 70 Denier.

Belly:  White Bucktail

Body:  Silver Mylar Flat Tinsel. 

Wing:  Cream or White Bucktail over which is Hot Pink Bucktail, topped with 5-6 strands of Peacock Herl.

Throat/Beard:  Red Saddle Hackle Fibers.

Cheeks:  Wood Duck feather tips.

Head:  Black Tying Thread finished with Head Cement or Hard As Nails.

Sometimes there are flies in your box that are great patterns, have produced a lot of fish, but get forgotten over time.  For me this is one of them.  At least 20 years ago I fished the Connetquot River with friend Jeff Purcell.  Jeff landed fish after fish on this fly.  Recently, I used it on the Farmington River and did quite well with it.  It’s tied in the ‘classic’ manor of New England Streamers.  That means dressed sparsely with natural materials.  The most successful way to fish this fly is to dead drift it, mend, and briefly dangle it where you expect fish to be.  If that doesn’t work, try varying strip retrieves.  This is a killer streamer!

To tie this fly crimp the barb and place it securely in your vice.  Start your thread an ‘eyes’ length behind the eye and wrap down to the bend.  Cut off the butt end of your thread.  Tie in your Silver Mylar Tinsel, then advance your thread up to your starting point.  With touching wraps, palmer your tinsel forward and tie it off at your initial thread starting point.  Tie off your Tinsel and cut off the butt end.  Next, tie in your White Bucktail Belly.  If you have a rotary vice, simply turn your fly upside down.  If you don’t have a rotary, remove your fly and reaffix it in your vice.  Do not overdress your fly.  The Belly should extend slightly longer than the hook bend.  Trim the butt ends of your Belly and again rotate your fly.  Now, using the same quantity of Bucktail (Cream or White), tie in your wing.  It should be the same length as your Belly.  On top of that tie in an equal amount of Hot Pink Bucktail.  Again, the same length as your cream or white Bucktail.  Now tie in 5-6 strands of Peacock Herl, Equal length as your wing.

Reverse your fly 1 more time and tie in your Red Saddle Hackle fibers for your Throat/Beard.  It should be approximately a hook gap in length.  Reverse your fly to tie in your Wood Duck Feather Cheeks.  I stroke back these feathers and tie in the tips on each side of the fly.  They should be a hook gap in length on each side of the fly.  Cut off the butt ends and using your thread, build up a substantial black head for your fly.  Painted or 3D eyes are optional if you want to add them to the fly.  Finally, with Head Cement, coat your finished head. 

If you have any questions about this fly or would like to submit a Fly of The Month I can be reached at pdinice@frontier.com .

Paul's March 2024 Fly of the Month

 Marabou Black Ghost

Hook:  Mustad  79580 or 4X streamer hook of choice Size #2 - #10.

Thread:  Black Danville Flat Waxed Nylon & UTC 70 Denier.

Tail:  Yellow Schlappen/Saddle Hackle.

Rib:  Silver Mylar Tinsel. 

Body:  Black Floss.

Throat/Beard:  Yellow Schlappen/Saddle Hackle.

Wing:  White Marabou plume/feather (Optional – topped with 3-5 strands of Peacock Herl).

Head:  Black Tying Thread finished with Head Cement or Hard As Nails.

This fly is a variation of a very traditional streamer pattern.  It’s one of my favorites.  Easy to tie and very productive everywhere it’s fished.  Originally designed in the Rangeley Region for land locked Salmon and Brook Trout. 

To tie this fly place your hook in the vice and start your thread an ‘eye length’ behind the eye of the hook.  With touching wraps, wrap down to the hook point. Cut he tag end of the thread.  Now tie in your tail with approximately 20 Yellow Schlappen/Saddle Hackle fibers.  The tail should be about a ½ hook shank in length.  Don’t cut off the butt end.  

Next tie in your Silver Mylar Tinsel Rib, then your Black Floss.  Although your tie in point is where you’ve tied in your tail, the butt ends of the Tinsel and Floss should extend to where your thread starts behind the eye.  The purpose of this is to create a ‘uniform’ and even body.  You are now going to wrap your thread forward to create that even body.  Now wrap your Floss forward and tie it off behind the eye.  Palmer your Tinsel forward creating spiral wraps down the body.  Tie it off behind the eye and cut off the butt end.

Now tie in your Throat/Beard on your fly.  Again, about 20 fibers should do it.  It should be approximately slightly less than a hook shank in length.  Cut off the butt ends once your Throat is secured.  Next, prepare your White Marabou by stroking it rearward.  You may want to dampen it a little bit.  Measure it against the hook shank so that it extends about ½ way down the tail.  Using the ‘pinch’ method, secure your wing down behind the eye.  Cut off the butt end of the Marabou.  Using your thread, create a uniform head for your fly.  Whip finish and apply head cement or ‘Hard as Nails’ to the head of the fly.  

Dressed Irons 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 pdinice@frontier.com .

 

Paul's February 2024 Bonus Fly of the Month

 Golden Wooly Bugger

Hook:  6X or 4X Long Streamer hook Size #6 & #8.

Thread:  Wood Duck or Gold 6/0 or 140 denier.

Bead:  5/32” 4.0mm Gold Bead.

Weight:  Lead-free round wire .020.

Tail:  Ginger Marabou.

Flash:  Gold Holographic Flashabou.

Body:  Gold tinsel Chenille, Large.

Hackle:  Ginger Hackle.

 

Wooly Buggers are some of the greatest flies known to fly fishers.  They are super effective.  A great fly for both beginner and experienced fly guys.  Many big fish are caught on buggers!

To tie this fly begin by placing your bead on the hook and hook in the vice. Next, take 10-15 wraps of .020 Lead-free wire around the hook shank and seat it up against the back of the bead.  ‘Helicopter’ off the butt end of wire.  Apply some Super Glue to secure it if so desired.  Now, start your thread on the hook shank immediately behind the wire.  After taking some securing wraps, cut off the butt end and take wraps over your Lead-free wire.  Wrap up to the bead and back down to the start of the wire.  Next, prepare 2 Ginger Marabou feathers for your tail.  Match the feathers so that the concave sides of the feather are together, and the tips are aligned.   The tail should be about the length of the hook shank.  You can strip or cut away the excess lower part of the feather.  The tie in point will be at mid hook shank at the start of your Lead-free wire.  Wrap and secure the feather all the way down to the hook bend. 

Take 2 strands of Gold Holographic Flash-a-bou.  Secure them on top of the hook shank at their ‘mid-point’.  Tie and secure 2 strands on each side of the tail.  Trim the Flash-a-bou so that it is even with your marabou tail.  Next, prepare your Gold Tinsel Chenille for your body.  Strip away a few fibers from it’s tip to expose the center core string.  Secure it at the base of the tail with thread wraps.  Bring your tying thread up behind the bead.  Wrap your Chenille forward using touching wraps to create your body.  Tie it off behind the bead and cut off the excess. 

Prepare a Ginger Saddle Hackle feather by snipping off the fuzzy part of the feather off and creating a triangular tip to tie your feather onto the hook shank.  Tie it in behind the bead, on the near side of the hook.  The shiny side of the feather should be facing you.  Bring your thread down to the start of your tail.  Make 2 ‘counter wraps’ of the Saddle Feather behind the bead.  Now, make open spiral wraps of the feather down to the thread/start of the tail.  Anchor the feather there with tight wraps of your thread.  Snip off the excess Feather.  Now take your thread and make open spiral wraps up the body, trying not to trap any body fibers on your way up.   End your tying feather behind the bead and whip finish the fly.  Apply a drop of head cement to your thread wraps and you’re done.  

Tightlinevideo 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 pdinice@frontier.com .

Paul's February 2024 Fly of the Month

 Hogan's Gumball

(Pheasant Tail Variation)

Hook:  Firehole 633 #16 Nymph Hook or hook of choice. 

Bead:   1/8” Pink Tungsten Bead.

Thread:  8/0 Uni-thread Black.

Tail:  Pheasant Tail Fibers.

Rib:  Small Fluorescent Pink Ultra Wire.

Body:  Pheasant Tail.

Collar:  Pink Ice Dub or Spawn Simi Seal Shrimp Belly.

Legs:  Hot Pink Krystal Flash, doubled over to create 2 legs on each side of the nymph.

This is a nice variation of a Pheasant Tail Nymph.  It’s a fly you want to have in your fly box.  This variation is tied with a pink bead, dubbing, & rib, but you can tie this fly in a large variety of colors.

To tie this fly begin by placing your bead on the hook and your hook in the vice.  Next, start your thread behind the bead and make touching wraps along the hook shank to the bend.  Trim off the butt end of your thread.  You are now going to tie in your Pink Ultra Wire Rib.  I tie it in behind the bead on the side of the hook and wrap back to the bend. 

Prepare 5-6 Pheasant tail fibers for your tail and body.  The tail should extend approximately a hook gap length from the bend of the hook.  Once your tail is secure, palmer the butt ends of the Pheasant fibers forward to create your body.  Tie it off just short of the bead, then cut off the butt ends.  Now counter wrap your rib forward to create a segmented body.  Tie it off behind the bead and ‘helicopter’ off the butt end. 

Next, take a very small amount of dubbing and create a thin dubbing noodle for your collar.  Create a sparse collar with 2-3 wraps of your dubbing noodle.  For the legs, take a strand of Krystal Flash and double it over.  You are going to tie it in right behind the bead at it’s ‘mid-way’ point so that there will be 2 legs (strands of Krystal Flash) on both sides of the fly.  Whip finish the fly.  You are now going to trim the legs by sweeping them back along the fly and trimming them so that they equal the length of the body.  Finish the fly with a drop of ‘Hard as Nails’ or UV Resin on your thread wraps.

Loon Outdoors has an excellent 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 pdinice@frontier.com .

 The River Blob

Hook:  Fulling Mill 5125 Jig hook or Hannek H450 Size #12 (or jig hook of choice.)

Thread:  Fluorescent Orange 6/0.  

Bead:  Slotted Tungsten Bead Flourescent Orange -- 3.5 to 4.6mm depending on the sink rate you want.

Body:  Medium Flexi Squishenille UV – Fluorescent Orange #137.

I know this resembles an egg fly, and maybe the fish take it as that, but it was originally meant to represent a cloud of daphnia.  Daphnia are small planktonic crustaceans that trout feed on.  All I know is that it’s a really productive fly, especially in the wintertime.  I’ve had spectacular days with it.

It doesn’t get much simpler than this.  Here’s how you tie this fly.  Place your bead on the hook and hook in the vice.  Secure your thread behind the bead.  With a small noodle of orange dubbing wrap behind the bead to secure and lock it in place.  You don’t need much, and it won’t really be visible on your finished fly.  Tie in your Squishenille behind the bead.  Give it 3 tight wraps around the hook shank, tie it off, whip finish the fly and you’re done.

Fly Fish Food has a great 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 pdinice@frontier.com .

Paul's January 2024 Fly of the Month

 Peterson's Spawning Shrimp

Hook:  Tiemco 811s in size #4 & #6 or hook of choice.

Thread:  Shell Pink UTC 140 denier.

Eyes:  Medium Silver Brass Eyes or bead chain eyes.

Eyes 2:  Black Crab Shrimp Monofilament Eyes. 

Mouth:  Orange McFlylon or Glo Bug Yarn.

Mouth 2:  Cream Antron or Cream EP Fiber.

Flash:  Pearl Krystal Flash

Legs:  Bonefish Tan Barred Speckled Crazy Legs or Loco Legs.

Antennae:  2 Strands of Black Krystal Flash.

Body:  Flad Diamond Braid (I use Bill’s Body Braid).

Body 2:  3 Clumps of Tan Rabbit (from a Zonker Strip), 2 behind the eyes & 1 in front.

Cement:  Brush On Zap a Gap

*I had to think for a bit before posting this fly as the Fly of the Month.  In all the years I’ve been doing it, every fly that has appeared was fished on the upper or lower Housatonic and was very successful.  I’ve used this shrimp pattern on the lower Housatonic and caught a few stripers, but only with limited success.  So why post it?  Well, if you’re a Saltwater Fly Guy and you fish further to the east in RI, or on the sandy flats of the Cape, THIS FLY IS A KILLER!  Also, if you fish Florida, Mexico, or for me Puerto Rico, or other southern destinations, it’s a magic fly.  It catches bones, permit, and tarpon. It’s a top 5 fly for those species.

This is just a great all round saltwater fly that can catch a variety of fish.  It’s a great fly for stripers here in New England, and a magic fly for bonefish, permit, and tarpon. 

To tie this fly place your hook in the vice and secure your silver brass eyes with crossing wrap,s.  Locate them 2 eye lengths behind the eyes.  Apply some UV Resin or head cement.  Make touching wraps with your thread along the hook shank and bring them back up behind the eyes.  Next, affix your Orange McFlylon.  Tie it on top of the shank of the hook and wrap down to the bend.  Tim the McFlylon so that it extends a little less than a hook shank length beyond the bend.  Also trim off the butt end and take wraps along the hook shank to even out the body area.  Mix a few strands of Pearl Krystal flash with Cream Antron/EP Fibers. Take a ‘half pencil’ of this and lash it on top of the shank and Orange Yarn.  It should extend approximately 2 shank lengths beyond the bend.  Trim the tip with tapered cuts, then cut off the butt.

You are now going to add the Black Krystal Flash Antennae to the sides of the hook shank.  Affix 1 strand on each side, tied behind the eyes and wrapped down to the bend.  They should extend beyond the Antron or EP fly top.  Next, tie in your Monofilament eyes.  They should slightly splay outward.  Tie them in along the side of the body.  Tie them in so that they are approximately a little less than a hook shank length beyond the bend.   Apply some UV Resin or cement for durability.  Trim off the tag ends.   

Next, tie in your Crazy or Loco Legs along the sides of the hook shank.  2 legs per side.  Tie them in behind the eyes and wrapping down to the bend.  They should extend approximately the length of the Antron/EP fibers.  The next step is to tie in some Pearl Flat Diamond Braid.  Tie it in behind the eyes and wrap down to the bend.  Bring your thread back up a little more than half the length of the hook shank.  Wrap the diamond braid forward to the thread, tie it off but don’t cut off the butt end.  You want to tie down the butt end so that it is folded back along the body. 

Invert your fly so that the hook point is ‘up’.  Tie in your first small clump of Rabbit.  It should extend to the bend of the hook.  Trim off and clean up the butt end.  Extend your thread behind the eyes and tie in a second Rabbit Clump.  Now bring your thread in front of the eyes and tie in a third Rabbit Clump.  Now take the Flat Diamond Braid that you had folded back and bring it forward over the eye.  Tie it down and cut off the butt end.  Create a tapered fly nose, whip finish, then apply cement to your wraps and Flat Diamond Braid.

Intheriffle has a great 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 pdinice@frontier.com .