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?

Romeyn

Compiled by Eric Austin
Fly tied by Eric Austin
I have a soft spot in my heart for this fly, as it was created just a few miles from the home where I grew up in Plattsburgh, N.Y. There is a bit of North Country philosophy in this excerpt from Mary Orvis Marbury:

"The Romeyn was made by Dr. Ely, and named after Dr. J. R. Romeyn, of Keeseville, N.Y. Originally the fly had no red tip, but this improvement is a suggestion of Dr. Romeyn's that adds much to the beauty of the fly. Dr. Romeyn has fished in the Adirondacks for over thirty years, and is noted as a lover of the woods and a generous friend to all who, as Walton described them, "hate contentions, and love quietnesse and virtue and Angling!""

The Romeyn Recipe:

    Thread:   Black.

    Tip:   Red Floss.

    Tail:   Barred Wood Duck.

    Body:   Green floss.

    Ribbing:   Gold Tinsel.

    Hackle:   Grizzly.

    Wing:   Barred Wood Duck.

~ EA

Credits: Text from Favorite Flies and Their Histories by Mary Orvis Marbury. Fly tied by Eric Austin. Color photo by James Birkholm.

Archive of Old Flies