EXPERIMENTAL DAY
I had tied some flies for a couple of swaps. There was still some of the material from those flies on the desk. That sort of thing gets me into difficulty all of the time. There is a deep need to know how those materials would go together and how the fly might work.
The upshot of it all was that I had three colors of one pattern tied. I tied up another pattern, or maybe two, with some other materials. I changed one material so it becomes the question if it is another fly, or just a variation.
That is one question that each tier must answer for themself.
I decided to put some materials away and ran onto some pieces of other materials that had been used on other flies. The mind began to spin off, better than saying working, in odd directions. That meant that another hook went in the vice and the materials were attached to the hook.
Father's Day came on the calendar. My nice wife said that I need to spend a little time on the water. It is beyond my understanding why she says that it makes me easier to live with. I thought I was always a problem.
I put all of these flies in a hook box, grabbed two rods and the fish basket. I headed to a pond to try these flies. Left a black furl tailed leech on one rod, and I tied one of the other flies on the other rod. If the new fly did not work then I tried the black furl tailed leech. If the black tailed leech did not catch fish then I could not say the other fly did not work. If the black fur tailed leech did catch fish then the other fly just might not be that good.
I really did not get a chance to test that wonderful theory. Each of the flies I used caught some fish. The fish were scattered, so the fishing was not fast. After catching two fish on a fly, another was tied on. So I changed the fly after two fish each time.
I used seven flies, when my thirst meter said it was time to head home. It was a warm sunny afternoon to be out. Not the best time to be fishing, but it was nice to see that the flies worked.
I had a hidden agenda in this fly tying stuff. I am going to send a few of each of my new patterns to some other folks to try in their part of the country. If they work well for them they will go in as a Fly of the Week. Isn't anticipation a great thing?
Hope you can get out on the water.
Rick