On The Fly
October 2011

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

   The Southern Oregon Fly Tyers invite you to attend their meetings the second Tuesday of each month. The next meeting is October 11, 2011. The meetings start at 6:00 PM, at the Madrone Hill Mobile Home Park community building near Gold Hill. Bring a friend, come early so you don't miss anything, and stay late. Tyers need not be experienced, and those with all levels of skill are welcome. Each meeting a member is encouraged to demonstrate a new or different skill, from simple to difficult. For more information, call Dan Kellogg at 773-4724.

   Steve Ostrander is back from Alaska with some fur. If you asked him to purchase fur for you, be at the meeting with the cash.

   Jim Ulm will be welding fly lines. Bring some lines you want to put a loop on.

   DIRECTIONS: Take Gold Hill Exit #40, off of I-5 and go west, toward Jacksonville, 1.3 miles, until you reach the brick entrance way to the Madrone Hill Mobile Home Park on the right. You’ll pass a golf course parking lot on your left shortly after leaving the freeway. After you turn right into the mobile home park, proceed to the community building which is located about 100 yards ahead on the left. The address is 8401 Old Stage Rd. Please park your vehicle on the bare dirt in the parking lot to avoid the wooden septic covers in the grass

PATTERN OF THE MONTH -The Steelhead Caddis

Hook:            Daiichi 2050, Curved Salmon/ Steelhead, size 5-7.
Bead:             Black
Thread:          6-0 black.
Weight:          Lead wire
Rib:                Med oval silver tinsel.
Body:             Peacock herl, 7-8 strands.
Hackle:          Wood Duck flank feather.
Front Hackle: Black and White Guinea.
Collar:            Black Ostrich herl.
Antennae:       Pheasant Tail Fibers.

Tying Instructions:

Step 1 Mash the barb, slide the bead over the hook point and up to the front of the hook, and mount the hook in the vise.
Step 2: Wrap some lead onto the hook covering the middle 1/2 of the hook shank.
Step 3: Start the thread one eye width behind the bead, secure the lead wraps, and lay down an even thread base to a position just above the hook point.
Step 4: Tie down a section of oval tinsel on top of and the length of the hook shank back to the bead.
Step 5: Select 7-8 peacock herls and bind them down with spiral wraps on top of the hook shank to the point just above the hook point.
Step 6: Grab the herl strands and make one wrap over the shank and then counter clockwise around the tying thread. Grasp the herl and thread together and wind the rope forward in touching turns covering the body. Leave a little over 1/8 inch between the front of the body and the back of the bead. Tie off the herl and trim the excess.
Step 7: Now take the ribbing and wrap it over the herl body in 5 evenly spaced turns. Tie off and trim.
Step 8: Select a Wood Duck flank feather with barbs the length of the hook, strip the fuzz from the base, prepare the feather, and tie it in by the tip just in front of the body. Take two turns only stroking the fibers back each 1/2 turn. Tie off and trim excess.
Step 9: Select a Guinea feather with barbs slightly shorter than the Wood Duck, prepare the feather in the same way, tie in by the tip and wind 2 turns only. Tie off and trim.
Step 10: Select 2 pheasant tail fibers and tie in behind the bead.
Step 11: Select two ostrich herls, tie them in the gap between the hackle and bead, and make 6 or more turns to create a full collar. Tie off and trim.
Step 12: Coat about one inch of tying thread with head cement, whip finish just behind the bead.

   I am convinced that Steelhead fly fishermen and fly tiers are the most obsessed bunch of anglers on earth. At any one time they are convinced that their latest pattern or technique is the answer everyone is searching for. I am as guilty as anyone. I have studied their writings, the history, and am a sucker for any new magic material that comes along. Bottom line is it's all about results and it seems that there are 3 factors which contribute to the most success. Get your line in the water, get the fly in front of the fish, and fish your favorite patterns with confidence. That seems simple enough, except for the part about your favorite pattern. How do you decide? There are thousands to choose from. Wet, dry, nymph, skater, light, dark, fluorescent, flash, natural, synthetic, etc. Do we use logic or emotion? Lately I have more often listened to the voice of experience, since other reasoning has failed me.
   So I search out that success and experience in the obsessed people I am acquainted with. Recently I have been listening closely to the voice of Lee Wedberg. Now we know that he consistently takes more than his share of steelhead. He credits this success to years of trial and error and finally the development of a now-famous wool bodied, weighted stonefly nymph. The fly tiers have had the privilege of watching him demo his creation and he swears that the raw wool is the real secret. His theory is that since there seem to an abundance of these nymphs in various stages of a three year development, that those big juicy morsels are readily available to an aggressive steely. I think it's because he only knows how to tie one fly, he always has one on, and he fishes a lot.
   I have finally come to my point. Using that same reasoning and logic, I have surmised that the second most abundant food source in our Southern Oregon rivers is the caddis. It seems very likely that any number of species would be rolling around the bottom at any one time. Which brings me to this month's pattern, The Steelhead Caddis. First let me make it clear that there are no real caddis nymphs the same size as this pattern. This type of pattern does not directly resemble one specific type of organism but rather a grouping of bugs. Caddis and stonefly nymphs are all found in our rivers year round and are at times more attractive to big fish. The Steelhead Caddis in general resembles a large cased or free living caddis or a stonefly nymph. Sounds good to me!
   This pattern can either be fished dead drift, under an indicator, or actively stripped in against the current. It can be more heavily weighted for a faster decent or swift current speeds. The fly uses common materials and is a fairly easy tie. With a peacock body and the realistic movement of the hackle fibers, I am convinced it is a winner, I hope.

Tie One On,

Dan Kellogg
(you can contact me at FLYGUY@EZNORTHWEST.COM)
www.tyerstoolshop.com