What flies are you tying this winter?

[Salar]

Hi Everyone,

I was looking through my fly boxes and making a list of what I need to tie over the winter. In the past I haven't tied much over the winter. Too often I just tie what I need before every trip. What flies are you tying?

My initial list is below.

Cheers,

Salar.

Streamers:
Woolly Bugger (Black, Olive, Brown)
JJ Special
Marabou Black Ghost

Nymphs:
Rubber Legged Copper John (Blue, Chartreuse)
Rubber Legged Pheasant Tail Nymph
Rubber Legged Hare's Ear
Czech Nymphs

Wets:
Doc Spratley (Olive, Black)
Carey Special
Dark Montreal

Dries:
Stimulator (Yellow)
Elk Hair Caddis
Fat Albert (Tan/Brown, Red/Black)

[MattSymons]

It's been a couple of years now since I've threaded the fat line through the long rod, but during my stint as a British Columbian, I learned from some awesome multi-species fly anglers. Guys like Scott Baker-Mcgarva (the legend) and 'Tattoo Dave' Allen (who, by the way is the Don of fish tattooists, in my humble opinion).

These guys put me on to a fly pattern that kicks the stink out of bass, and no one out here even seems to know what I mean when I say 'rolled muddler' (including some four or five fly-specific shops I've visited). It's a sparse Muddler, deer hair clipped very close at the head (much smaller head than you're average muddler), but left full length at the rear of the collar, with a rolled wing and a mylar body. If I was a fly tyer, I'd make a ga-gillion of these in every size from trout to muskie, but I'm not.

I came back with two, and in one day had them both attacked until they were threadbare. Some 50 LMBS and SMBS and about 200 rock bass that day. Outfished buggers, bunny strips, zonkers and anything else I tried by a large margin.

So there's a little tip that's worth my two cents. And I wound't have let it slip except that my steeze is lunker bass, pike and muskies and i find sifting through a million fish under 10" to get one three-pounder an inefficient way to trophy fish. So my 7 wt. gathers dust. Maybe I'll break it out for a fun day...but not until I find some rolled muddlers.

Matt

[Salar]

Hi MattSymons,

Thanks for the tip. I used the rolled muddler extensively for trout when I was living in BC (caught some of my largest trout on it) but I haven't used it at all since I moved back to Ontario. It's a great baitfish / minnow imitation. I'll have to give it a try around here for bass next season. I can tie a few up for you if you want.

Salar.

[MattSymons]

Wow Salar,

I expected responses with a lot of question marks and head scratching. A rolled Muddler fan...here in Ontario? Too cool.

I'm not an expert on fly-hook sizes and styles, the ones i was using were originally recommended for trout. The total length of the fly was about 1-3/4 -to- 2 inches. I was thinking that these streamers in a 3-1/2 -to- 5 inch sizes would weed out some rockies and smaller bass. That's my advice if you're going for warm water species...only problem is that these flies don't hold up very well, especially where the wolves lurk.

Might have to take you up on that offer someday. Thanks

[Salar]

Yes, a rolled muddler fan here on fish-hawk

I caught this 18" bulltrout pictured below on a rolled muddler:



The rolled muddler is definitely a western pattern. The ones I used out there were tied on a size 6 & 8 streamer hooks (1-1.5"). They're a perfect match to the salmon fry that are in the rivers. You're right, they don't hold up well especially with toothy critters. Tying them with a wire rib over the tinsel body helps.

I find that the pattern doesn't scale up to a larger size very well. Instead I used to tie up a Kiwi-Muddler with a white rabbit strip wing in a size 2 or 4 to match the larger baitfish. It was a killer pattern for the large bull trout and cutthroat in the Whistler area. It matched the stickleback that were in the lakes.

Cheers,

Salar.

[beachburger]

As a newbie to fly tying, I will be spending much of the winter learning various techniques so I am expecting to end up with lots of onesies and twosies but there are a few flies I will "mass produce" for my fly box(es)

1) Big streamers (4" - 5") along the lines of a deceiver for those big spring pike and big fall largies/smallies. I will tie up lots of these as I am still not sure I like wire leaders (I don't think I do) and there are 6 weeks of power pike fishing to get through.

2) Muddler minnows. I found it to be very productive for smallies and this fly was responsible for 2 of the 3 largest smallies I caught this past season on the fly rod.

3) Woolly Buggers in olive, black, various sizes, various weights.

4) Poppers and sliders.

Salar, you will find an honest attempt at a Doc Spratley in the fly swap. I would like to see what it is supposed to look like someday.....

[Salar]

I'm looking forward to seeing your Doc Spratley. I've only tied a couple myself with varying results. I'm hoping to fish it more next season. The best reference picture for a Doc Spratley that i've found is at http://www.wetfly.net/2260.html

Cheers,

Salar.

[Todd B.]

I hear ya, I've been the type that ties prior to a trip as well, though I'm definitely going to try to avoid that pitfall this season. My initial generic list would be:

Streamers:
Woolly Buggers (Olive-Dun, Black, Brown)
Hamil's Killer
Zonkers
Outcast crayfish

Nymphs:
Caddis
Stonefly
PTNs
Scuds

Emergers:
Caddis
Chironomids

Wets:
soft hackle Spiders

Dries:
Stimulators
Foam Stoneflies

[northernfly]

I'll vouch for the rolled muddler too. I tied a few last year and they were a big hit with the smallmouth bass.

[Bow River Bugger]

Streamers

Wooly buggers (white, black, olive, chartruese, Krystal)
Bow River Buggers (same as Woolys)
clousers (black/white, green/white, brown/white, red/white)
Muddlers (Same as woolys)
Zonkers (white, Natural)
Egg Sucking Leech
Outcast Cray fish

Nymphs

San Juan Worms (various colours)
Bead Head Princes Nymph
Bitch creek
Copperjohn (red green black)
Hare ear (w/wo bead head)
Kaufmans stone
Pheasant Tail (w/wo bead head)
Mater boatman
Humpy

emergers

Caddis
Chironomids

Dries

Elk hair caddis
Adams
Humpy
royal coachman
royal wulff
Parachute
PMD
Adams
Baetis
Hares ear
Stimulator
Sparkle dun

Terrestrials

Chernobyl Ant
Club sandwich
Chernobyl Hopper
Turks tarrantula
Madam X
Dave Hopper
Foam Beetle

Bass poppers
Any suggestions for a trip to the Rideau/Ottawa and Grand river


Now that I have said it just need to get the time to tie them up Probably over 1000 flies tied over the winter for next season

[Woolly Bugger]

Hi Salar,

That's a good question. There are so many patterns I would like to tie up this winter that I find it hard to decide where to start. Here's a few I would like tackle....

Streamers:
Various Woolly Bugger patterns (probably the most useful and versatile fly pattern out there)
Baby Brook Trout
Rolled Muddler (looks like a winner)

Nymphs:
Pheasant Tail with/without beadheads
Hellgrammites
Twin Buttes damsel
Prince Nymph (rubber hackle version)

Wets:
Traditional Wet Flies (Brookie Fin Fly, others)
Dark Montreal
Soft Hackle flies

Chironomids
Bow Tie Buzzer
Acetate Midges
Thread Midge
Suspender Midges
Beadhead midges

Dries:
Elk Hair Caddis
Adams
Mosquito
Mayflies, various

Warmwater Surface Flies
Gartside Gurglers (various bass, pike, muskie sized)
Poppers
STP Foam Frog
Sliders
Clousers
Floating Minnow, Clouser
Clouser

Spey Flies
Don't Know yet

Saltwater Flies
Crease Fly
Gartside Gurglers (big ones)
Gummy Baitfish
Crab Patterns

Full Dress Salmon
Green Highlander

I may need to tie into the spring and summer

Woolly Bugger

[Mike Lennox]

Wayyy too many to list

I have phases throughout the winter: Streamers, dry flies, nymph, bass flies, crappie flies.
Right now I have been tying lots of heavily weighted mayfly and caddis nymphs for czech nymphing.

[Salar]

What kind of flies do you use for crappie? I've never tried going after them with a fly rod.

Cheers,

Salar.

[northernfly]

I have had good success with this fly called a Misfit

http://www.flytyingforum.com/index.php? ... showid=663


A small Madame X also works well. They seem to like the legs.

[beachburger]

Since small plastic grubs work well for crappie and other sunnies, I'd wager a small (size 10-14) woolly bugger, the aforementioned misfit or anything else with a wiggly tail would work well. My first choice in color would be white followed by chartreuse and purple.