Post by Uplander on Jan 26, 2006 14:03:55 GMT -5
Here’s a dry fly pattern I dreamed up myself. Now, like drink mixology, most combinations have been tried before by someone, somewhere, sometime. You can probably find this pattern in some book somewhere, and maybe even already tie it already yourself….
But, I started tying it a few years ago out of partridge (ruffed grouse) and grey squirrel materials I had “collected” for myself in the forests of the Berkshires. Hence, the “Berkshire Bug” moniker.
Hook: Standard dry fly hook (12 to 18)
Thread: 6/0 black
Tail: Grey squirrel tail
Body: Red floss
Wing: Partridge (ruffed grouse)
Hackle: Grizzly
Tying instructions are the standard for tying any dry fly. Personally, I tend to go a little larger on the wings, tail length, and hackle length than standard fly tying edicts of proportionality mandate – I like the way it makes the “Bug” look a wee bit outlandish…. A dab of “cement” on the trimmed end of the squirrel tail applied before you tie it onto the hook will help greatly in keeping the hair together. I’ve experimented with various partridge feathers, and pretty much any feather stiff enough to hold together and stand alone will suffice to make a wing. Avoid the soft underbelly and black ruff feathers from the partridge and you should be all set. Best feathers are wing, tail, and back feathers.
Here’s a photo of a beat up “Bug” that I used almost every outing of Summer 2004. It’s not that good a picture, but it’s a really small fly, I had a hard time getting the digital camera to focus on something so small, and I didn’t have Joe’s Fly Studio to help me get a good picture. I bet the pictured fly brought at least 50 brook trout to hand over the course of the Summer. In this picture you can see that the wings have been crushed back and the red floss is frayed and streaming, but it was still catching fish when I retired it because the strand of hackle broke.
Berkshire Bug
But, I started tying it a few years ago out of partridge (ruffed grouse) and grey squirrel materials I had “collected” for myself in the forests of the Berkshires. Hence, the “Berkshire Bug” moniker.
Hook: Standard dry fly hook (12 to 18)
Thread: 6/0 black
Tail: Grey squirrel tail
Body: Red floss
Wing: Partridge (ruffed grouse)
Hackle: Grizzly
Tying instructions are the standard for tying any dry fly. Personally, I tend to go a little larger on the wings, tail length, and hackle length than standard fly tying edicts of proportionality mandate – I like the way it makes the “Bug” look a wee bit outlandish…. A dab of “cement” on the trimmed end of the squirrel tail applied before you tie it onto the hook will help greatly in keeping the hair together. I’ve experimented with various partridge feathers, and pretty much any feather stiff enough to hold together and stand alone will suffice to make a wing. Avoid the soft underbelly and black ruff feathers from the partridge and you should be all set. Best feathers are wing, tail, and back feathers.
Here’s a photo of a beat up “Bug” that I used almost every outing of Summer 2004. It’s not that good a picture, but it’s a really small fly, I had a hard time getting the digital camera to focus on something so small, and I didn’t have Joe’s Fly Studio to help me get a good picture. I bet the pictured fly brought at least 50 brook trout to hand over the course of the Summer. In this picture you can see that the wings have been crushed back and the red floss is frayed and streaming, but it was still catching fish when I retired it because the strand of hackle broke.
Berkshire Bug
