On The Fly

      "Fly tying is a school from which we never graduate"

TYING NEWS

   We have lost two more great fly tiers in the last couple months. Al Brunnel and Don Joslyn have died, and they will surely be missed by friends and students.
   The RFF will again be offering fly tying classes for beginners, intermediate, and advanced levels. All three levels will start on Monday, January 14th at the Medford Library and run for six consecutive Monday nights. There is no charge for the lessons and the materials are furnished by RFF. Each student will provide their own vise and tools. This is a great time to encourage kids and grandkids to get started. You can contact me on-line. We can accommodate only 12 students in each class, so let me know ASAP.
   The Southern Oregon Fly Tiers met Tuesday, January 8th at the Madrone Hill community building near Gold Hill. We encourage novice and experienced tiers alike to drop by the second Tuesday of each month for a fun evening. We have plenty of room for everyone. We cancelled Bob Quigley's apperance at our meeting due to bad weather. He has been rescheduled to our March 11 meeting. If you are interested in this educational experience, contact me and we will add you to our e-mail list. We can let you know who, when, and what materials to bring.

PATTERN OF THE MONTH - Midnight Sun

Hook:     Standard salmon/steelhead, size 4-8.
Thread:   Fluorescent Red.
Tag:        Flat silver tinsel.
Tail:        Orange hackle barbs.
Body:     Fluorescent orange floss over flat silver tinsel.
Rib:        Flat silver tinsel.
Wing:     White marabou over a shorter bunch of white marabou, over a shorter bunch of mixed orange and yellow marabou.
Throat:   Mixed orange and yellow marabou.
Collar:    Rose-red hackle.
Head:     Fluorescent red.

Tying Instructions:
1) Start the thread behind the eye. Tie in the tinsel on top of the shank and lay down a thread base over the tinsel to just above the hook point.
2) Reverse the direction of the tinsel and form a 1/8-inch tag. Let the tinsel hang.
3) Select a small bunch of orange hackle barbs and tie them in at the front of the tag. The tips should reach to the end of the bend. Trim the butts.
4) Tie on the orange floss and wind it forward in flat turns to the tie-in point behind the eye. Tie off and trim.
5) Wind the tinsel forward in 5 evenly spaced wraps to the tie-in point behind the eye. Tie off and trim.
6) Select a small bunch of white marabou and tie in the marabou on top of the shank so that the marabou tips extend to the end of the hook. Select another bunch of white marabou and tie it in so that the marabou tips extend to the mid-shank position. Select a small bunch of orange marabou and white marabou and tie it in so that the marabou tips extend to the end of the hook.
7) Select a small bunch or orange marabou and white marabou and tie it in at the bottom of the hook shank to form the throat such that the tips of the marabou extend to the point of the hook. Trim the butts of all marabou.
8) Select a rose-red hackle feather with barbs long enough to almost reach the hook point. Tie it in and wind it forward 3 turns to form the collar. Tie off and trim.
9) Form a neat tapered head. Whip-finish the thread and apply cement.

TYING TIPS

   Vary the hook size and fullness of materials to match water conditions throughout the season: more marabou for high water and sparse for low water conditions. Body, tail and wing colors can be changed to reds or purples. Give this fly a test flight and let me know how you do.

Tie One On,
Dan Kellogg (you can contact me at FLYGUY@EZNORTHWEST.COM)