Fly tying | Page 23

Blue-winged Olives might be the fly fisher's best friend in the mayfly world. No, they're not big. They're not terribly enticing to tie a the vise. But, damn, on any blustery day, they could show up and quickly move up the menu for feeding trout. I love to fish the South Fork of the Snake…

'Tis the season for emergers. Cold-weather flies like midges and even Blue-winged Olives are popping on warmer winter days in rivers all over America, and trout are always looking for them. In the video below, Tim Flagler ties a popular fly with a couple of little variations—his WD 40 Plus is just a slightly fancier…

For a lot of fly tiers (or a lot of fly tiers like me, anyway), there's always a bit of guess work when it comes to measuring materials before they are tied to the hook. Often, for me, it's a "Well, I guess that looks about right" sort of endeavor. Video of How to Accurately…

Quill-body flies are some of the most beautiful creations tiers can craft at the vise, but stripping feather quills can be kind of a pain. Video of How to Strip a QuillHere, the process is somewhat demystified by Tim Flagler, who shows us the best ways to strip both hackle quills and peacock quills, and,…

With a good 80 percent of the country feeling like a deep freeze these days, it's a good time to be talking about winter fly fishing. And winter flies, of course. Video of JC's Electric Caddis LarvaAbove, Tim Flagler walks through the process of tying John Collins' Electric Caddis Larva, a great wintertime searching pattern…

I've been tying (well, some would call it that, anyway) for a good 20 years, and while I tie generally for necessity and a bit of the pleasure that keeps me connected to fly fishing on days like today, when it's all of 9 degrees outside, I'm not terribly accomplished at the vise. But I…