fly-tying videos

Shucked Up Emerger from Richard Strolis on Vimeo.

We have featured many patterns from Connecticut-based guide Rich Strolis—such as his verion of a Blue-winged Olive Thorax pattern—and here’s a great emerger pattern to go with it. Blue-winged olives are among the most important insects in early spring out West, often hatching on overcast days or even during snow squalls. In the video, Rich says the fly is so effective he’s even a little hesitant to share his recipe, but I guess he can’t help himself…which helps us.

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One of the oldest modern nymphs, the Pheasant Tail was created by English River Keeper Frank Sawyer, who wrote about it in his 1958 book Nymphs and the Trout. Ever since then, it has been one of the most popular nymphs for fly fishermen around the world. The fly is so successful because it seems to imitate a. . .

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Rich’s Winter Stone from Richard Strolis on Vimeo.

Here’s a good, simple winter-stonefly pattern from Connecticut-based guide Rich Strolis. Winter stoneflies are common across the country, so this pattern should work almost anywhere. Rich says he primarily fishes this fly deep under an indicator in the winter, usually as a dropper. . .

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Last week, we featured a simple, diminutive midge pattern, so I figured we’d with go with something a little more garish this week. The Pumpkin Head Midge combines a dark body with a fluorescent-orange head—hardly mimicking the natural—to create something that’s both eye-catching and “buggy.” I know first-hand the power of fluorescent orange. When my friend Joe Phillips introduced me to. . .

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The Serendipity is a variation on the British Buzzer midge patterns that have been around forever. This modern American version is credited to the late Madison River guide Russ Marigold, who showed the fly to Craig Mathews—owner of Blue Ribbon Flies in West Yellowstone, Montana—in 1988. Marifold’s original had a smooth floss body of brown or olive, wrapped with a gold wire rib. He later. . .

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I grew up fishing the traditional Hornberg Special pattern, which is a New England favorite—although it was first tied by a Wisconsin game warden named Frank Hornberg in the 1920s. In fact, it’s possible that the very first trout I ever caught on a fly was a brookie that fell for a Hornberg trolled behind a canoe paddled by my older brother and me on New Hampshire’s. . .

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As Tim Flagler notes at the beginning of this video, some anglers think that egg patterns aren’t “proper” flies and are effectively bait. Of course, at other times, similar arguments have been made about beadhead nymphs, so don’t think there’s any kind of agreement on this subject. I can tell you that, when I was a fly-fishing guide on Alaska’s Copper River, egg flies were the only patterns the big rainbow trout would eat once. . .

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Blue-winged olives are the last great hatch of the year in many parts of the country, though the autumn versions of these bugs are considerably smaller than their springtime counterparts. These diminutive bugs often have difficulty breaking through the surface tension of the water, so you want a fly pattern that sits low. Flies with CDC wings are a great choice this time of year for that very reason. Fish these flies in slow-water sections and eddies, where trout will often slurp up lots of mayflies in an attempt to fatten up before colder. . .

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Here’s a great, bulky fall streamer pattern that pushes a lot of water to attract big trout, especially if you fish after sunset. Even better, it’s a snap to tie—even easier than a Woolly Bugger.

Tim Flagler ties his Pine Squirrel Streamer without weight, but you can add a lead-wire underbody, a set of dumbbell eyes, or a heavy cone to the front of the fly. Although Tim refers to the little foam “nubbin” at the back as “optional,” it will. . .

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Matt Grobert, fly tier extraordinaire and host of Caddis Chronicles, has this to say about his October Caddis:

The October caddis is the “Isonychia of caddis hatches” in that it is a large insect that hatches sporadically, and the trout become accustomed to their presence for about two, autumn-colored months of the year.

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