Welcome to Just Old Flies

Welcome to 'just old flies,' a section of methods and flies that used-to-be. These flies were tied with the only materials available. Long before the advent of 'modern' tying materials, they were created and improved upon at a far slower pace than todays modern counterparts; limited by materials available and the tiers imagination.

Once long gone, there existed a 'fraternity' of anglers who felt an obligation to use only the 'standard' patterns of the day. We hope to bring a bit of nostalgia to these pages and to you. And sometimes what you find here will not always be about fishing. Perhaps you will enjoy them. Perhaps you will fish the flies. Perhaps?

Bergman Fontinalis

Compiled by Eric Austin
Fly tied by Eric Austin
Surprisingly enough, the Bergman Fontinalis was not invented by Ray Bergman. It was instead named for him by his friend Phil Armstrong. The "Fontinalis" part of course, references the Brook Trout, or Salvelinus Fontinalis. The fly is meant to imitate the fin of the Brookie, and can be grouped with flies such as the Parmacheene Belle, Fontinalis Fin, and Trout Fin.

Here's what Ray Bergman has to say in his book Trout, with reference to the Parmacheene Belle:

"This fancy pattern is primarily best for brook trout in Northern waters, and for sea-run steelhead on the West Coast. In my opinion it is the popular fly substituting for the colorful paired fins of the brook trout, which have always been a killing bit of bait. Other imitations of this natural lure are Fontinalis Fin and Bergman Fontinalis. (I didn't name the last one. It was named for me by the friend who designed it, Phil Armstrong, of Michigan and Pennsylvania.) Of course natural fins vary in color, so that any fly made along these lines should be satisfactory as a basic."

Here is the pattern for the The Bergman Fontinalis:

    Hook: Wet fly, #6-#10.

    Thread: Black.

    Tail: Married, from 6 pairs of feather strands on each side, in the following order from bottom to top: orange, black, white, orange, black, white.

    Body: Alternating gray and orange wool.

    Hackle: Dark dun.

    Wing: Orange, topped with 2 strands of black and 2 of white above the black.

~ Eric Austin

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