I’ve only come up with a handful of original patterns in the five plus years I’ve been fly tying. '09 proved to be a real success for me in that regard, with a couple really good new flies, and one that will be my go to terrestrial for a long time - the FEB Hopper.
Shown here with the only good sized grayling I’ve ever caught, and maybe the only one I will ever catch.
Follow the link for a thread posted shortly after the pattern was tied and tested. Within that thread is a link to a slideshow ( post #16 ) showing the tying sequence, using pics taken to be included in a Fly Of The Week submission.
Sooooo … how about posting up with your favorite new fly from '09, whether of your own design or one that you happened across that really worked for you ??
I was virtually certain that you would chime in with something along these lines. And there is much truth to your observation, and Sully’s, about old flies. BUT all those old ones you guys like were new at some point, and when they were new, were likely better than the ones that preceded them.
This wasn’t a matter of fixing something that wasn’t broke. It was an idea that worked. It isn’t the “latest and greatest”, it’s just a fly that caught me a bunch of fish, and one that others tied or experimented with with good results.
Don’t mean to sound defensive, if I do. Don’t have to defend a fly that has proved itself for a bunch of folks around the country.
Hopefully others will share a fly, or two, that they came up with in '09 that worked, or came across somewhere and had good results with.
For sure. I had some really good fishing with that fly. I can’t tie it nearly as well as you do, but even mine caught a few fishies. Thanks for bringing it back today.
I tried DG’s “Trout Chow” fly in a few different colors and did really well with it. Also caught a good number of bluegills on a dragonfly-looking nymph/streamer I came up with.
My number one fly wasn’t a “new” one for me though. Can’t beat the orange bead head leech.
Tried a new pattern (to me), e/c cutters caddis (with red), while in the golden trout wilderness, couldnt keep the Golden’s off of them that weekend, worked awesome in my “home” waters as well!
Got any pics of and a recipe for Dennis’ “Trout Chow” ??? If it’s one of his, it’s got to be old, but is undoubtedly a good fly to know about. Might be a favorite new fly to some of us for '10 !!
Also would like to see pics of your dragonfly pattern, if you have some.
I ran out of ideas about ten years ago, and at the rate my brain cells are fading, won’t have any more.
I never tried to design “gee whiz” flies. I tie flies that look like bugs, and are easy to tie, not out of some desire to make the world a better place or be famous, but because I am a lazy SOB who would rather catch fish than not and tries to spend as little time as possible working to make that happen.
Not really new, but I started tying renegades with ice dub instead of real peacock, and took gobs of fish with it. Also put a little red tag on the back.
Garb, I have done well with the e/c caddis in brown/green, what do you do with the red?
While helping with the Fly Fishing Merit Badge program up at Scout camp, I was watching a presentation on matching the hatch. Another instructor was in the little outlet stream from the lake and was picking up rocks and showing the scouts what bugs were on the bottom. He pointed out one particular scud and I thought, “I got the stuff to tie something like that with me!” I went in the 15-20 ft to my vice and threw together a bug. Back out and tied it on my tippet, another 15-20 ft to the lake and flipped it out. Had a brookie on it almost right away. It’s been a go-to fly for me since.
I don’t know when this was a “new” fly, but I found it in July '09 and fished it until the cold weather hit. All I can say is tie a couple of these and carry them with you. If you see SM busting minnows, usually later in the season, tie it on as fast as you can. I barely fished another fly from the beginning of September to the end. Sunrise to ten and the last few hours of light seem to be the best time. One morning in September, it was just one of those perfect overcast days where it stays dawn-like all day. I worked about 1/4 mile of river back and forth until my arm fell off catching fish after fish with this fly.
I cast it across the current and it floats when it lands and for the first few strips. Then it goes just subsurface for the remainder of the retrieve. I give it continuous short strips and it sort of “walks the dog” like a Spook.
The size 10 hook is great, but I have even gone to a 1/0 Gamagatszu B10S and tied a fly 6" long and the fish keep hitting it. Even the big ones cast well on my 6wt. I tie them in all white, the gray over white version, and an all chartreuse version. I use EP fibers instead of the White Ice Fur, because I had it laying around. The eyes fell off after a few fish and it didn’t seem to matter. I just leave them off now.
I want to try them on LM this year, but I will never go to a river without a few of these.
Someone here had posted their success on panfish using very small Clousers. So, I tied a size 10 with small bead-chain eyes, white craft fur and some red krystal flash. Worked better than I expected. Not really a new fly, but it was a new size and application of it (for me). I didn’t use it until late Fall, when the fish were deeper and further from shore. Worked great for this, and the fish hit it aggressively.
Also…Rick Z’s Boa Yarn Leech pattern was THE fly of the '09 for me. Probably caught over 1,000 fish on those this year, and 7 species. So easy to tie, and incredibly effective.
](javascript:ShowNewWindow(800, 700, getAction($(‘productViewsForm’)))) Orvis sells them.