Well-known angler Charles St. Pierre is a fishing guide, casting instructor, fly tier, and competition fly caster in his home state of Washington. His variation on the Intruder-style flies used for salmon and steelhead is named for two famous rivers of the Olympic Peninsula–the Hoh and the Bogachiel. The pattern can be tied in a variety of colors and is designed to be swung.
In this great video, Tim Flagler of Tightline Productions walks you through the steps to create this wispy pattern. Even if you’ve never tied this type of fly before, nothing is particularly difficult, and Tim’s instructions are easy to follow.
Hoh Bo Spey
Hook shank: Waddington shank (here, a Partridge V1SS), size 25 mm.
Thread #1: Black, 6/0 or 140-denier.
Connection: Smoke Berkley FireLine, 30-pound test.
Hook: Intruder-style hook (here, a Partridge Z4), size 2.
Butt: Pink Ice Dub UV.
Flash: Gold Krystal Flash.
Body hackle: Dyed pink Guinea hen.
Body: Purple Ice Dub UV.
Collar: Black strung marabou.
Flash: Fuchsia SemperFlash holographic tinsel.
Horns: 6 dyed-pink Lady Amherst fibers.
Head: Tying thread.
Adhesive #2: Head cement, here Sally Hansen Hard-as-Nails.
Tools: Scissors for braid, pencil eraser, dubbing whirl, toothbrush, plunger-style hackle pliers, whip finisher, small fan.
Note: Tie the pattern in different complementary-color combinations.
I have been using Hoh Bo spey fly on the San Juan here in New Mexico. I have been a customer with Orvis for over a half a century. I would like to see a book by Orvis for tying this fly. I like the Hoh Bo fly with eyes. The rainbow trout in the middle of the afternoon take these flies in July. I purchase my spey flies from Ashland Fly shop out of Oregon. They always work no matter what the climate is like. I grew weary of bouncing size 23 flies off the bottom with weight and bobbers. The trout intruder spey flies work very well.