MICHIGAN HOPPER - FOTW - Oct 8, 2012

MICHIGAN HOPPER


I love hopper fishing. Just recently I had an opportunity to fish the one of Michigan's most beautiful rivers of the Upper Peninsula --- the Escanaba. I arrived during the peak of hopper season and a local stirred me toward a secret spot just south of the city of Gwinn. I really nailed them! I stopped counting after twenty fish in just over three hours. I came prepared with about six different hopper patterns (three of each). This was a pattern I had never tried before. This pattern was easy --- three hoppers --- three cast --- three fish, all of which were in the 14" range. This pattern will now find a permanent place in my fly box.

This "Michigan Hopper" is different from the "Michigan Hopper in Readers Cast "HoppingThrough Those Dog Days of Summer" - August 27th 2012...

They are very similar to each other, yet are dress in completely different from each other, yet both "Michigan Hopper Patterns" will be very successful on any stream or stillwater.

~Parnelli ;)



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That is an interesting pattern incorporating materials that make a fly tend to sink (chenille) and materials that tend to make a fly float (deer hair.) Does it tend to hang below the film?

Another general hopper pattern question; Why the red tail? I have never seen a red tail on a hopper.

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Originally Posted by Uncle Jesse

Another general hopper pattern question; Why the red tail? I have never seen a red tail on a hopper.

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I second that question!

I have come across in more than 1 book by Michigan writers that a hopper pattern should always have some red in it. I don't know if this got started in Michigan but many of the most famous hopper patterns do have red in them like the Dave's Hopper or Joe's Hopper.

If you catch a hopper or two you will find that many species have some red or orange on the upper rear legs.

A little on line research says you are correct, not that I really doubted you, that many species of grasshoppers may have some orange or red on them. When I tied up a couple of this pattern last night I did start off with a red tail. Thanks to spoof85, I had some very high quality deer hair for the wing. Pennsylvania deer have a heck of a lot more hair per square inch than their southern cousins, it's that surviving the winter thing I would think.