Fly Tying

Below is the scud fly tying instructions/recipe by Jeff Goff who was legendary for bringing gallon jars of scuds to a local Denver fly shop that I used to frequent, which he brought in his vehicle all the way down from Grey's Reef, Wyoming, just to show how many were in the river during a few minute seining session he had done. It was a gallon jar and it looked like there were a million grayish scuds in it. To date, Jeff Goff's Scud is still the most realistic scud pattern I have ever seen, for when the fly was thrown in that jar of scuds, you couldn't find it (a trick he liked to perform at the shop after tying one of his flies). Many more realistic plastic looking patterns have developed over the years, but they don't look the same in that jar with the naturals, as Jeff threw a few others in the jar from the fly shop's bins. It's been over 25 years since those days, and I was sad to see that Jeff had passed away as I attempted to research what he was up to these days for this article, as I am grateful for this fly which has served me well throughout the Western states. I often fish it as the upper fly with the RS2 as the lower fly. He also devised a very cute little lady bug, which I never caught any fish on, but it was a fun little pattern to give away to friends. Jeff Goff's Wyoming Scud  Hook: Dia- Riki 135 scud  Size 12Tail mallard flank fibers at 1/8” or so, yellow thread light CahillScud back light grayLead weight, tie in at eye

My fishing buddy Ferenc has been on a 20+ year long succession of playing around with attractor type flies, in addition to being one of Rim's students in the nymphing methods of the RS2. His obsession for Desparado flies started with his Desparado fly. Ferenc's new favorite attractor fly for spring high water conditions is the Finlayson's Dirty Politician, which has been deadly for Euro Style nymph fishing across the pond and here in the West, especially in Montana. I recently jumped on the bandwagon and started tying the Dirty Politician in pink and orange. We have had days where it is hugely successful and other days where it didn't work at all. But it is definitely a keeper for the upper fly in my two fly system with an RS2 as the dropper. Ferenc has played around a lot with Lance Egan's flies and the whole "tactical fishing" arsenals. Some are effective, others not so much. We like to use the Dirty Politician as an attractor fly at the river below one of our mountain reservoirs when the flow is very high, fishing near the bank. It might be taken for a sow bug or scud, by the lake trout, browns, rainbows and salmon that anglers come to take in the spring high runoff period, where the fish are seeking refuge along the banks. Whatever the fish take it for, it’s deadly when the water flow is high. Dirty Politician Fly Here's Ferenc’s recipe: - Firehole 516 Jig Hook, size 14 (or similar jig hook such as Umpqua U-Series U555 Jig Hook which I prefer as it is not barbless. I have also used TMC 3769 which has a straight shank and I actually

My first favorite fly on the South Platte was The Brassie. Then, Pat Dorsey's Miracle Midge and Mercury Black Beauty. Then, I fell in love with Greg Garcia's Rojo Midge. This was followed by a step back in history, when I went back to Sawyer's Pheasant Tail and his Grey Goose, as my favorites. And, by favorite, I mean the fly that has caught the most fish over time (which is always my upper fly fished with an RS2 as the point fly (in about 6 different sizes and 6 different colors, as Rim Chung has done for 30 years, as it is still my most productive fly ever when you have those colors and sizes available to select from, which also changes throughout the day). Then, I became enamoured with Andy Kim's Yong Specials, his Yong Blood and recently Rim Chung's Plebby. Then, back to Andy's Improved Yong Specials and YKnot, as my most recent favorites. But, now I have finally had an ephiphany after some 40 years of fishing and I have combined them all into the single best pattern that I have used in recent times, which I call The Calgon Fly or Ancient Chinese Secret. It's killing it in local Western waters. But they are all great midge patterns and have been extremely productive for me throughout the years, and they are all quite similar when you look closely at them. Do the trout know, or do they just like something a little different once in a while on our heavily pressured tailwaters?

Yong OJ is Andy Kim's orange mini-scud or micro-egg pattern using San Juan worm chenille or vernille material tied in for the length of the shank then doubled over and ribbed with matching thread on a curved scud hook.  Also favorite colors of Andy's in this patter are pink and yellow. This is my daughter's favorite fly to tie or to fish, so I'll put the recipe here on our family recipes and sporting pages, so that she doesn't forget it, nor Andy's comments about this extremely effective fly. To buy the flies from Andy or book a trip visit his site at: http://www.fly-fish.com/ You won't be disappointed, as he catches a tremendous amount of fish on the San Juan and he can teach you his methods, which are quite unique and extremely effective. Tying My Daughter’s Favorite Fly Yong OJ is Andy Kim’s orange mini-scud or micro-egg pattern using San Juan worm chenille or vernille material tied in for the length of the shank then doubled over and ribbed with matching thread on a curved scud hook.  Besides just tithe OJ color, as Andy says the color spectrum changes throughout the day, his other colors of in this patter are pink and yellow. This is my daughter’s favorite fly to tie or to fish, so I’ll put the recipe here on our family recipes and sporting pages, so that she doesn’t forget it, nor Andy’s comments about this extremely effective fly. Hook: Tiemco 2457 in size 20 (or similar types in fairly micro sizes compared to the much larger usual egg patterns sold in shops) Thread: Uni-thread light cahill (for all colors, as it turns relatively transparent when wet) Body: Wapsi Ultra Chenille–Micro Fluorescent

Photo Courtesy of Andy Kim This chronomid only hatches during the spring and fall, according to legendary guide and fish magnet, Andy Kim. But it doesn't have to be the prevalent insect in the water for trout to take your fly resembling it, as "sometimes big fish look for big meals," says Andy. The fly is killing it on our local waters and has become my daughter's favorite fly, not only to tie but to fish. You can buy the fibers from Andy to tie yourself, or better yet, just buy the flies from Andy at http://www.fly-fish.com/ because for only $3 each, you can't go wrong. And, take a lesson while you at it with Andy, because there is lot more to his success than simply copying his fly recipes. His method and skills are worth the costs of going back to him again and again, as you always pick up a little more each time, even for this seasoned angler. Tiemco 200R, size 18 and 20. Use red 8/0 thread and make about 4-5 wraps at the eye of the hook, after twisting bobbin counterclockwise about 20 times to make it lie flat on the hook. Tie in a Blondie AK Fiber on the near side of the hook and wrap to the bend. Wrap thread forward in ribs, spacing one wrap for every two thread wraps on the way back, so as to not make the fly body too thick. Stop at halfway point of fly and half hitch the thread. Wrap Blondie AK Fiber forward to halfway point and tie off with 2-3 wraps and cut off fiber. Twist red thread clockwise to make it a little thicker rope and wrap forward

The Hooker is a pheasant tail based nymph pattern devised by Rim Chung about 20 years ago. He ties it in brown with copper wire and black with silver wire, and used it extensively for many years, coupled in a two fly rig, with the RS2 as the point fly. While it was one of his most effective flies and even though he still uses it occasionally, he currently has mostly gone to his Avatar and Plebby as his more common upper fly. I created a similar fly made from DMC metallic embroidery thread 272 Blanc (which has been discontinued), that Rim dubbed the Royal Hooker. It works very well on the South Platte River, the Arkansas, and many other Colorado rivers, especially where cased caddis are present. Rim's brown and black ones work everywhere that there are mayfly nymphs, for as Frank Sawyer note, the nymphs tuck in their legs when swimming through the water and the midge nymphs do not have tails, so they may be taken for those as well as the mayfly nymphs.