Eventually the cold sets in and chases even the most headstrong fly fisherman inside for the year. When the trout streams ice over you have no choice but to hang up the vest for the year.
For an avid fisherman, winter can be something of a curse. That is, unless you spend your time tying flies for the next season. Fly tying is the art of wrapping feathers and fur onto hooks to create something that a fish just cannot resist.
Let’s look at what it takes to start tying flies this winter. What hardware and materials do you need to start cranking out flies that will catch fish in the springtime?
Hardware
The hardware for tying flies is essential. The most important piece is the vice which holds the hook in place. Look for second-hand stuff if you are looking to start on the cheap.
The Vice
A sturdy vice that can be attached to a table is what you are looking for. Some vices come with a lot of additions but in truth all you need your vice to do is adjust and clamp down on the size hook you are using.
The Bobbin
The bobbin is essential because it is designed to hold your thread and allows you to turn it over and over again on the hook and materials to create your fly.
Scissors
A pair of small fly-tying scissors are perfect for trimming small feathers and trimming materials for your flies.
Bodkin
A bodkin is a large needle that can be used for a variety of things. It can be used to place certain materials, control your thread, or tie knots to finish your flies.
Materials
There are tons of fly-tying materials these days. You could have shoeboxes full of different colored materials to create a variety of flies. Everything from colored thread to foam heads that make popping flies.
We are going to look at a basic list of material so you can get started tying your own flies.
Hooks
Various hooks in at least these three sizes are a great place to start: 16/12/12/8/6. The smaller the number the larger the hook. Buy hooks that fit the size of fish you are going after.
Lead Weight
Lead weight is very important as it helps weigh your nymphs and your streamers down so they can get under the water. Streamers and nymphs are flies that imitate minnows and underwater bugs. Lead weight comes on bobbins like thread.
Head Cement
Head cement is basically the glue that will hold your fly together.
Chenille
These thick strands of soft material are used to create the body of your fly. We are going to use this material for one fly in particular so I would recommend getting olive, black, or brown chenille.
Marabou
Marabou sounds like caribou, but it is actually plumy feathers that make the perfect tails for streamers. Get a pack of marabou that matches your chenille.
Hackles
Hackles are chicken feathers that are spun on a hook to give the fly movement. Hackles range in price so get a medium-priced hackle that matches your other two materials.
The Wooly Bugger
It’s a crazy name but the Wooly Bugger is one of the most effective and dynamic flies you will put in your tackle box. It is also very easy to tie. Here are the steps to producing your own.
STEP 1.) Secure the hook in the vice. Give it a wiggle to be sure it is tight.
STEP 2.) Start by wrapping some black thread from your bobbin from just behind the eye of the hook to right before the hook bends.
STEP 3.) Take a few wraps of lead wire and turn it up and down your hook.
STEP 4.) Cut a piece of marabou that is about the length of your hook. Then use your bobbin to wrap thread around one end of the marabou bunch to create a tail.
STEP 5.) Cut a piece of Chenille that is a few inches long and pull off one medium-sized hackle. Using the bobbin wrap the thread over the chenille and hackle at the back end of the hook along with the marabou.
STEP 6.) Wrap your bobbin back to the front of the hook, just behind the eye. Then wrap the chenille up the hook on the same path and tie it down with a few wraps of the bobbin. Do the same with the hackle.
STEP 7.) Wrap about 10 more wraps just behind the eye of the hook and use your bodkin to drip a few drops of head cement onto the wraps of thread. This will keep the fly together.
This is your first Wooly Bugger. Tie them in numerous sizes and colors.
Great Books for the Fly Tyer
If you are going to start tying, then you will want some references. Fly Tyer magazine is a great resource for this but there are some books I would recommend, too.
- Tying Dry Flies: The Complete Dry Fly Instruction and Pattern Manual by Randall Kaufmann
- The Fly-Tying Bible by Peter Gathercole
- The Art of Fly Tying by John van Vliet
- Murray’s Fly Shop: Fly Tying Guide by Harry Murray
- Lefty Kreh’s Basic Fly Tying: Tips and Techniques for Tying Popular Patterns by Lefty Kreh
Conclusion
This an art as much as anything else. You are venturing into a means of more self-sufficient angling, but you are also becoming an artist. Tying is a great hobby, and it is perfect for getting through the winter with fishing on your mind.
Learn the basics but never forget to add a bit of yourself. If caddis in your area are a darker shade of brown than those in the book you are reading, match your hatch. Make the caddis look like what you are seeing. You are in control.
In time you will have tackleboxes full of flies tied by your own hand and this takes fly fishing to another level entirely.
