Parachute TMG

This is the parachute version of the regular Catskill style dry fly TMG (Teal Macaw & Ginger)

Harry G. McClelland

This book is probably the most unusual book I own. And it’s not just the minute size of the book. 

Under the pseudonym 'Athenian' Harry G. McClelland, basically a teenager, wrote many articles on fly tying in the Fishing Gazette. After passing at just 21 years of age, his articles were bundled in this book with the very unusual title 'The Trout Fly Dresser's Cabinet of Sevices or How to Tie Flies for Trout and Grayling fishing'.

This book (first published in 1898!) was highly regarded by Theodore Gordon, Dettes and Harry Darbee. It's quite remarkable how much knowledge he had on fly tying. Many ideas, which got common many years later, that was considered new back then was already covered by McClelland: using stripped quill for segmented bodies, using rooster hackle for wrapping hackle and various wings. 

Art Flick who is credited with the Red Quill using a stripped Rhode Island rooster hackle feather, but Harry already wrote (page 38):

“Another kind of quill is that obtained by stripping a long hackle or saddle feather

of its plume on either side. It makes a very natural looking body, which, so to speak, tapers

itself automatically in the forming; the quill used being tapered, and so the joints of the body

becoming wider and thicker as the winding proceeds from tail to shoulder. A friend, to

whom my first acquaintance with this material was due, makes a very beautiful red spinner

of the shaft of the saddle feather of a dark red game cock.”

Due to the age of the book it seems to be free of copyright. This book can be downloaded here.

Betsy Cross

Betsy Cross, named as one of the ‘effective patterns’ by Reuben Cross in his book.

Making of the Dette fly frame (III)

Getting my Catskill dry flies tied by the Dette's framed is finally done!

André did a fabulous job. Thanks André!

Part I of the story

Part II of the story

Colors

Loving the colors of this March Brown!

Nordic Fly Fair 2022

Four years have past since my last visit to the Nordic Fly Fair. The whole pandemic seems to have played tricks with time. A while ago, bamboo rod maker Marc Aroner wrote these striking words in one of his newsletter: “It's amazing that we're almost to August. I'm not quite sure how living under quarantine can make the time go by fast and slow simultaneously, but it has.”

For many years the venue of the Nordic Fly Fair has been the wonderful Norwegian Forestry museum in Elverum. Just like in 2018, before the show started I took a look in the museum again. It's great to have the whole museum for yourself! 😀

The list of invited tiers again consist of tiers from Scandinavia, and me being the only non-Scandinavian tier. During the two days we were taken care of as well as one might hope with nice lunches and dinner (moose BBQ!) after the first day.

It was so nice to see my Scandinavian friends again and meet new friends. This time, the new cats at Roger's home and my cat allergie, I decided to stay at a cabin along the banks of the river Glomma at the local camp ground practically next to the museum with three other tiers. Waking up with the sun rising above the Glomma is priceless...

Here are a few impressions of the Nordic Fly Fair 2022 this past weekend.

Thanks all, it was amazing. Hope to be back in the near future again.

After the show I stayed a night at Roger's house because my flight back home was on monday afternoon. After a nice dinner we did some lawn casting with several vintage rods at the back yard. What a nice way to end a wonderful weekend!

Off to Norway

I'm away this weekend to attend the Nordic Fly Fair in Elverum, Norway. I was there back in 2018. Due to the pandemic it was cancelled the past two years. I'm glad it's back. The Nordic Fly Fair is a great fly fishing show with a very 'homey atmosphere'. I'll report back when I'm back.

Swamp fishing in Patagonia

Another great video by the Jensens on their recent trip to Patagonia. This time they fished a swampy tiny spring creek they have been seeing while driving. You'll need a good shower after such a day...

Jack Dennis

Jack Dennis shipped the Humpy's he tied for me in June 2021. I followed the tracking information and I saw the shipment arriving in The Netherlands but somehow it was returned back to Jack in North Carolina!..

This week the Humpy's and some add ons by Jack finally arrived. Jack also included the book Western Trout Fly Tying Manual, a bunch of DVDs and prints of tying the Royal Humpy with hand written notes. Thank you Jack!

Update April 19, 2022:

Jack wrote me back today:

"it sure took a while to get to you that I'm happy that you now have some originals, like many flies they have a sordid history especially if the fly is successful like the humpy. I could fill a book with all the people who thought they invented the fly but I give Jack Horner the nod for creating the Horner deer fly probably one of the first humpy style patterns.

The Goofus Bug name and style came from Montana and was actually tied quite differently in the early days. near as I can tell the humpy name came from Wyoming to many different anglers including a local Jackson hole fishing guide boots Allen who had signs on his building the home of the humpy. 

My contribution to the humpy was to add the Moose tail which I learned from Dan Bailey has a great tailing material. I believe the Royal humpy which I gave the name to the creation offer a more modern use of the humpy because of its visibility. it was a favorite of Lee Wulff's the marrying of two great flies. Originally the fly was tied with different colors such as badger Creek and others some with a mixture of grisly and Brown the true pattern was tied with grizzly saddles which were tough to get what it didn't do was a demand was so high for the fly it pushed hackle entrepreneurs's such as Henry Hoffman to develop strains of roosters that would produce incredible saddle hackle fly needed hackle to float properly. 

Hopefully this adds more to the legend. Jay humpy's for some of the best I've ever same kind is a true modern-day master. At 75 my skills are starting to leave me and am in awe of the newer tyers"

Fiddling with Humpy's

It has been a while I've fiddled with some Humpy's. Felt a bit rusty...

Salmon Fly Tying workshop

A lengthy (3 hours!) recording of a classic Salmon Fly Tying workshop that was held by a group of enthusiasts in the small town of Montagu, South Africa in 2017.

The video quality isn't great but the information shown is probably very interesting for anyone interested in tying full dressed salmon flies.

Adams Irresistible

I forgot what a pain in the behind tying an Adams Irresistible aka Rat Faced McDougall is 😆

PMD Last Chance Cripple

This emerger style fly has sparse hackle wraps as it should submerge half under the surface rather than float on top. I see so many with way too heavily wrapped hackles!

It's still March, right? 😄

March Brown

Del Mazza

Upside down Catskill

A sort of an upside down Catskill dry fly. Tied on a Partridge 15BN size 16.

We might need a name for this fly 🤔 😁

Sparse Grey Hackle

A nice video about Alfred W. Miller, better known as 'Sparse Grey Hackle'. He was a columnist for the Wall Street Journal and an author of several novels.

A brief history of the Catskills

Last week I gave a Zoom presentation about the history of the Catskills, the tiers and how much of fly fishing and tying as we know now originated in the Catskill region.

Watch the Youtube presentation below

Easy framing your flies

Here's a short video on how to frame your flies. Especially with flies with hackle collars the frame needs some depth to avoid the hackle getting crushed.

CDC Henryville Special

This fly was inspired by the Henryville Special.

The Henryville Special is supposed to originated from the 1930's!

I replaced the underbody and the palmer wraps with a single CDC feather wrapped forward with the straggly CDC fibers emulating the legs of the caddis. The CDC both adds floatation as well as movement to the fly.

Henryville Special tied by Winnie Dette

Here's a video how to tie the original Henryville Special