One of the things that attracts people to fly fishing is the creative aspect of it. This is seen in fly presentation, line modification, rod building and more, but the most common sign of creativity shows up in someone’s flies – or sometimes lack of flies.
One of our long time friends here at Alaska West showed us a trick for a simple but very effective popper pattern. Hopefully he doesn’t get upset that we shared this little trick, but it he made it clear that it was no secret. Thanks Bryan Whiting!!!
Materials
- Pink Squid Skirt, or Hoochie
- Pink Wooden Golf Tee
- Your Favorite Tube Fly Hook for Silvers (Size 1 Owner Octopus SSWs work great)
‘Tying’ Instructions
- If you’re using a Hoochie, cut the tip off. Start small – you can always make the hole larger. Slide this or the Squid Skirt up the line.
- Tie your hook onto your line.
- Slide the Hoochie/Skirt down towards the hook until it is a good distance from the hook.
- Trim the golf tee so it’s about a inch and a half to two inches long, and slide this into the skirt point first, with the wide part in the front of the “fly”. The wide part of the tee will wedge into the front of the skirt/Hoochie, pinching your line so it will not slide down onto your hook. With each strip it pushes the tee deeper into the skirt/Hoochie. If you cut your hole too big, or it is still sliding down, a ‘stop knot’ behind the skirt or over the nose of the Hoochie will help keep it in place.
That’s it!
Don’t be afraid to experiment with it. Try using the Hoochie backwards to get legs that are more flared. Try different colors and sizes of skirts/Hoochies, and different colors of tees, and have fun out there.
Please find additional ways to re-purpose golf equipment for fly-fishing. It will save a lot of suffering, at least for me.
It’s getting to be chomper blue season at Cape Lookout, NC. This is a blue or white might be a way to avoid shredded Clousers and crease flies. Thanks.