We’re in the heat of our king salmon season at Alaska West, which means we’re tying on a lot of intruder-style flies these days. Why? Because by its very nature, the intruder was designed to incorporate minimal materials (for ease of casting) while still presenting a large profile in the water (something that tends to drive king salmon crazy).
Today, our pal Stuart Foxall pays homage to former Alaska West head guide, Ed Ward, with step by step tying instructions on how to tie a classic style intruder that crushes just as hard today as when it was first developed.
‘Ed Ward Style’ Hackle Bodied Intruder – Tying Instructions
The ongoing development of skagit lines and intruder-style flies has undoubtedly opened up more possibilities for us to catch more king salmon on the swung fly. Although many have been credited with this development, it would be fair to say that the man most associated with this development is former Alaska West head, Ed Ward.
Below is an intruder that is tied in Ed’s ‘style, using minimal materials for maximum effect. The hackled body helps with this effect.
I’ve tied it here on a metal tube although originally shanks were used. I feel that tubes are easier to tie on, fish better in most applications and are more fish friendly in the long run. Plus, as we mentioned before, the development of this style of fishing is still ongoing!
Buggier is an anomalous term when referring to a large profile baitfish-like pattern – mixed alien species overlap??