Paul's April 2014 Fly of the Month

The Trickster

Hook:  Owner 5311-133 Red Finish 3/0 or Mustad 34007ss 4/0

Thread:  Monofilament, fine.

Eyes:  Chartreuse Bead Chain, Medium.

Body:  Rainbow Flash-a-bou under white super hair, under SF Shrimp Flash Blend, under SF Olive Flash Blend, under 5-6 strands of peacock herl.  (This is also a great pattern tied and fished in Black!)

Head:  X-cut Magnum Bunny, Olive Green.

Glue:  Crazy Glue or Zap-a-Gap

This fly was developed by Captain Skip Montello of North Coast Angler.  It’s used to catch finicky stripers on the Joppa Flats.  The Joppa Flats are part of the Merrimack River Estuary System in Newburyport MA.  North Coast Angler has a great website at  http://northcoastangler.com/ .  This is a big fish fly.  I call it “A Bunny Fly on Steroids”.  

This fly is tied with Steve Farrar Flash Blend material.  It’s a mixture of two great fly tying materials, Slinky       Fiber and Angel Hair.  Begin by laying a base of thread from the eye of the hook to the bend.  Next tie the Rainbow Flash-a-bou.  It should extend approximately 1” to 1 ½” beyond the hook bend.  On top of the Flash-a-bou tie in a clump of white super hair.  It should extend 2-3” beyond the hook bend.  You can now tie in your Chartreuse Bead chain eyes very close to the hook eye.  Use figure eight wraps and apply some glue or zap-a-gap to them.  Next tie in your SF Shrimp Flash Blend.  It should extend 4”-5” beyond the hook bend.  Next tie in your SF Olive Blend a little bit longer than the Shrimp.  Next, top this with 8-10 strands of peacock herl.  Finally, tie in your X-cut bunny near the bend of the hook.  You are going to wrap it forward just like a traditional bunny fly.  Tie it off right behind the eyes.  Tie in a clump of red ultra-hair under the eyes to mimic gill plates.  Tie off the fly at the eye, apply head cement, and your done.  Tie this in black and chartreuse as well.  

This fly can also be viewed at the Housatonic Fly Fishermen’s Association website at  www.hffa.net .  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 e-mail me at pdinice@frontier.com .  Below is an instructional Fly Tying Video on how to tie the Trickster.



Paul's March 2014 Fly of the Month

Irresistible Griffiths Gnat

Flies tied by Friend Will Stone

Hook:  Size #10-#16 Dry Fly hook.

Tying thread:   Black 6/0.

Body:  Spun Black Deerhair.

Hackle:  Grizzly Hackle.

This Fly of the Month was submitted and tied by HFFA member Will Stone.  If you know Will, you know that his passion for the quiet sport is hard to match.  

This particular pattern originates from a fisherman by the name of Kyle Andes.  Kyle is the creator of a great website called “Hammer Creek Fly Fishing”.  It’s based upon his love of fly fishing, fly patterns, and experiences.  It’s also dedicated to a small stream in PA that he grew up fishing on known as ‘Hammer Creek’.  You can check his website out at www.hammercreekflyfishing.com .  Kyle likes to use this fly and drift a nymph below it. 

Begin by laying a base of thread from the eye of the hook to the bend.  Tie in your hackle by the butt end.  Size it just like you would a standard dry fly.  Next begin spinning clumps of fine deer hair on the hook shank.  Spinning deer hair isn’t any more difficult than any other tying technique.  It just takes practice.  Cut a clump of deer hair close to the hide.  Comb out and discard the fuzzy material between the hairs.  Cut off the tips and take two loose wraps around the clump of deer hair and the hook shank.   Torque down on the third wrap and spin the hair around the shank of the hook.  Dislodge any rogue hairs that may have gotten stuck on or near the hook point.  Continue this process until you reach the eye of the hook, compressing the hairs tight together with your finger nails as you go.  You will also be winding your thread through the spun hair to advance it.  Now it’s time to trim the spun deer hair. With a sharp pair of scissors trim the deer hair so that it resembles a cigar shaped cylinder.  Next, palmer your hackle evenly along the hook shank and tie it off at the eye.  Whip finish your fly. 

This fly and Kyle’s instructional video on how to tie it can be viewed at the Housatonic Fly Fishermen’s Association website at  www.hffa.net .  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 e-mail me at pdinice@frontier.com .  Below is Kyle's instructional video on how to tie this fly.



HFFA Fly Fishing Expo

 HFFA FLY FISHING & TYING EXPO

MARCH 1, 2014 TIME 10:00 AM TO 3:30 PM

****** $1 Donation******

Where:  St. Paul’s Episcopal Church

65 N. Main St.,  WALLINGFORD, CT.

(Go to ww.hffa.net  for directions)

FLY FISHING & TYING ACTIVITIES

Salt Water Tying Class 

10:30 a.m. start time.  Learn to tie 2 Salt water flies.  Bear’s Bunker, & Modified Clouser Minnow.  Cost is $1.  All materials and hooks provided.  Seating is limited contact Paul at the # or email below.

 HFFA Members will be on-hand to tie many of the best patterns used on the upper and lower Hous.  Your welcome to bring your vice and tie with them.

 TYING & CASTING DEMONSTRATIONS

CASTING DEMONSTRATIONS & LESSONS! (weather permitting)

FLY TYING DEMONSTRATIONS !

 TYING MATERIALS PROVIDED FREE !

TIE YOUR FIRST SALT OR FRESH WATER FLY !

TIE THAT FLY PATTERN YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO LEARN !

 SOME OF THE BEST TYERS AND FISHERMEN IN THE STATE WILL BE IN ATTENDANCE TO ANSWER ANY ?’S YOU MIGHT HAVE !

For more info call Paul Dinice at 203 305-3850 or email at pdinice@snet.net .

Bring your old gear to sell and swap !

 

VENDORS, GUIDES & HOUSATONIC FLY FISHING EXPERTS   There will be a lot of unique materials offered by vendors at the Expo that aren’t normally available anywhere else !



Paul's February 2014 Fly of the Month

Thin Mint Wooly Bugger

 

Hook:  3x or 4x streamer hook Size #4-#10

Tying thread:   Mono or 6/0 Thread.

Head:  Gold cone to match hook.

Weight:   Medium lead wire.

Tail:  Black marabou over brown marabou over olive marabou. Tail feathers are flanked with two thin pieces of Pearl Flashabou or tinsel.

Body:  Peacock Ice Dub. 

Rib:  Pearl Flashabou or tinsel; and mono thread (fine wire can be substituted for the mono thread-it’s what I prefer making the fly more durable)

Hackle:  Furnace saddle hackle.

Usually every couple of years I choose a Wooly Bugger as a Fly of the Month.  Buggers are a trout killer.  This one is no exception.  It is also very similar to a Bugger pattern that I posted about twenty years ago called “The Multibugger”.  Fellow HFFA member Will Stone turned me on to this fly after catching a nice brown on the Farmington River this past winter. 

Begin by placing your gold cone head on the hook.  Take your lead wire and make 6-8 turns of it on the hook shank.  Slide it right behind the cone head to lock and center it on the hook.  Cover it with thread and cement over the wraps.  Bring your thread down to the bend of the hook and tie in your tail of black marabou over brown marabou over olive marabou.  Place a couple of thin strands of pearl flashabou on each side of the tail.  Leave a long tag end on one of the strands to be used later as a rib.  Also tie in a piece of mono thread or fine wire to also be used as a counter wrap rib.  Next, dub a body of Peacock Ice Dub from the bend of the hook to the cone head.  Rib the body with the tag end strand of Pearl flashabou.  Tie off the rib and tie in your furnace saddle hackle behind the cone head.  Palmer the hackle, first creating a light collar adjacent to the cone head, then wrap it back to the tail.  Your tag thread will still be behind the cone head.  Use the tag end of the mono thread (or fine wire), and counter wrap it forward though the hackle.  Tie it off at the cone head.  Apply some head cement and the fly is finished. 

This fly can also be viewed at the Housatonic Fly Fishermen’s Association website at  www.hffa.net .  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 e-mail me at pdinice@frontier.com .



Paul's January 2014 Fly of the Month

Chuck's Sculpin

 

Hook:  Tiemco 9395 or comparable streamer hook Size #2-10

Tying thread:   A thick thread such as Danville Flymaster Plus or Gudebrod Super G.

Weight:   Medium lead wire.

Body:  Beige or Off White Aunt Lydia’s Antron Rug Yarn. 

Gills:  Chopped red antron spiky dubbing

Underwing:  Krystal Flash to match wing color

Wing:  Olive Rabbit Zonker Strip.  (Also tie these in Black, Brown, and Natrual).

Head:  Olive spun deer hair clipped to shape.

First of all if you fish the Housatonic and you don’t have a sculpin pattern in your fly box your really missing something.  This pattern will catch you a ton of trout.  Smallies just devour them.  There are a lot of other exotic sculpin patterns out there, but this one is so much easier to tie and just as effective.  When your fishing this fly please remember that sculpins tend to live and feed on the bottom of the river.  Unlike trout, they do not have stabilizing air bladders.  I think it’s really important to add weight to this fly.  Make sure that when you lead wrap the hook shank you leave enough room to spin your deer hair head.  You may also want to use a sink tip or full sink line.  Scuplins are darters so a short pulsing retrieve strip is the technique to use.  Also, don’t be afraid to let your fly sit in the current at times.

Begin by laying a base of thread on your hook shank.  Wrap the hook shank with lead, cover with thread wraps and coat with “tough as nails”.  Remember to leave enough room for the spun deer head.  Tie in your body yarn.  Wrap your yarn forward and tie it off even with the lead wraps.  Dub your “red gills” with a few thread wraps.  A spiky antron dubbing is perfect for this.  A red ice dub can also be used.  Next tie in 5-6 strands of Krystal Flash.  They should extend just slightly beyond the bend of the hook.  Next tie in your zonker wing.  You may want to apply some head cement for extra durability.  Begin your deer head by applying a clump of deer hair on each side of the hook shank to form the shoulders of the fly.  You are not going to spin these first two clumps of deer hair.  You are going to torque down on them to make the butt end of the hairs flair up and out.  Next, spin clumps of deer hair around the hook shank.  Tie off your thread and trim the deer hair to shape.  Dab head cement on the deer head hair.  Your fly is now ready to be fished.  One final comment on this fly or any similar patterns where spinning deer hair is required,  don’t be intimidated by it.  It’s no more difficult to master “deer hair spinning” than any other fly tying technique.

This fly can also be viewed at the Housatonic Fly Fishermen’s Association website at  www.hffa.net .  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 e-mail me at pdinice@frontier.com .

HFFA Fly Tying

For more than 20 years I've been teaching Salt Water Fly Tying for the Housatonic Fly Fishermen's Association.  Cost of the course (5 nights) is $5.  That's a Dollar a class, includes all materials and hooks, and you'll go home with 2-3 flies per class.  It's so enjoyable to tie a fly mid-winter, take it out of your box in the spring or summer, then catch a striper on it.  Let's you dream about better fishing days and warmer weather.  I also continue to learn from everyone I tie with, no matter how experienced they are.  Thank you to all those friends who shared their knowledge, laughter, and experiences with me. 

 

Paul's December 2013 Fly of the Month

Angry Jake



Hook:  Standard Nymph, size 10 to 20. 

Thread:  Black (I sometimes use orange).     Weight:  Lead wraps.

Abdomen/Body: Turkey Tail Feathers.

Tail:  Turkey tail feather fibers.         Rib: Fine copper or red wire.

Thorax:  Ice Peacock Dubbing.

Wing Case:  Dark/Black (or holographic) nymph skin coated with epoxy.

Legs:  Partridge.                      Bead: (optional) Gold or Copper.

This is the Farmington River’s version of the Pheasant Tail nymph.  It’s much darker than a PT nymph.  Those that fish the Angry Jake instead of the PT nymph swear by it.   This is my version of it. 

Begin by placing your bead on the hook then insert in vice.  Add a layer of thread from behind the bead to the bend of the hook.  Add wraps of lead approximately 1/3^rd the length of the hook shank behind the bead.  Cover with thread then give it a coat of Hard as Nails.  Tie in 3-5 strands of Turkey Tail feathers at the bend of the hook.  Leave the tag end of the turkey feathers. Tie in additional turkey fibers if needed for the Abdomen.  Tie in red copper ribbing.   Palmer the turkey tail forward to create your abdomen.  Counter wrap the abdomen with red copper wire.  Tie in your nymph case.  Dub your thorax with peacock dubbing.  Tie in your legs on each side of the fly.  Bring your wing case over the thorax and tie it off.  The fly is finished.  I like to epoxy the wing case to give the nymph a little extra flash.

This fly can also be viewed at the Housatonic Fly Fishermen’s Association website at www.hffa.net .  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 e-mail me at pdinice@snet.net.