Youngers Night Fly

[Donald Nicolson]

This dressing is taken from W.H. Lawries comments on John Younger
and was originally published in Younger's book of 1840.
Younger did not claim to have originated this fly, it was a common
local pattern of many years standing, certainly well back into the 18th century
Younger knew Stoddart, Professor Wilson etc. of the Edinburgh gentry who
fished the Tweed even before the coming of the railway, making great use of the
local fishermen for advice and guidance.
Not much credit was given to the locals until authors like W. C. Stewart and E. M. Tod
later in the century and at the beginning of the 20th.
For Night Fishing

Night Fly.

Wing. - Yellow buff part of a song-thrush or mavis wing, or buff-coloured hen.

Body. - Deepest yellow (not exactly orange) floss silk to make a long body.

Hackle. - Very short red hackle.

Hook. - Nos. 6 & 7. - All hook sizes are Adlington?s of Kendal, round bend.

Younger regarded the ?Professor? as a ?vulgar imitation? of this fly.


The following modern versiom will probaly be the one I shall attempt.

Hook : 6 - 12.
Body : Dark yellow (gold) silk wound on to give a long body,
thick at the shoulder.
Hackle : Natural red hen (brown) at throat.
Wing : Any brown/buff slips from the wing quills of any legal bird.

Note : A fairly simple fly.
I shall try to find a suitable s/e, longish shank hook.

[JeffHamm]

Hi Donald,

Looking forward to seeing the end result. I take it that by "a long body" means form the body to the bend since the usual practice was for the body to end at the point (or even shorter for Tummel style)?

I think this would do quite well as a day time pattern as well. I fish a number of streams where a good strong yellow for the body does really well.

- Jeff