Kelly Galloup's Zoo Cougar

I watched Kelly's streamer fishing DVD at Dave's shop during my last trip to Canada & USA. I rarely fish with a streamer during my fishing because I think using a streamer will ruin a stretch of the river which I prefer to fish with a nymph or a dry fly. But there are parts of a river that a streamer might be the best approach, like a very deep pool. Again, streamer fishing means you have to re-rig your rod and often as not I'll just pass and move to the next part of the river where I can continue fishing with my nymph.

I ran into this tying video of Kelly Galloup's favorite streamer, the Zoo Cougar. The nice thing is, it's tied by the man himself! Kelly Galloup is a fishing guide and a lodge & fly shop owner, but he became well known because of his streamer fishing methods (jerk strip retrieve) which are on DVD nowadays. The videos on YouTube aren't ideal for fast moving videos. For slower moving shots it's just watchable.

Here's Kelly showing us how to tie his Zoo Cougar:

Here's a podcast interview with Kelly Galloup which contains many excellent tips on fishing with a streamer.


Back to the streamers:
I don't have a favorite streamer yet. Mostly I'll carry a bunch of Wooly buggers and a few muddler-type streamers. Since I don't fish a streamer that often, I haven't developed a certain preference for a pattern. I think I should fish more often (where possible) with a streamer this season. Maybe I'll tie half a dozen Zoo Cougars and fish with them exclusively to improve my knowledge about streamer fishing.

Update:
I just found the video where Kelly shows us how he fishes his streamers. The shots aren't worth a dime, but the info on the rig is the main issue.

Update April 24, 2016:
Here's a Zoo Cougar tied by Kelly in a superb high resolution: