W.O.H. Sparkle Dun

Hook: Tiemco 100 Dry Fly Hook #18-22

Thread: Dark Grey Ultra 70

Shuck – Black Ice Dub

Body – Adams Grey Dubbing

Wing – Deer Hair

 

Now that the water on the S. Platte is consistently producing Blue Wing hatches that the trout are noticing, it’s time to break out the 3wt and start moving fish with the new dry patterns you have been working on through the winter doldrums

One of the most productive patterns this time of year is a BWO sparkle dun, now these can be purchased at most fly shops including Minturn Angler shops (provided they’re not sold out…it’s a popular fly) in a wide variety of color and sizes to fit most waters. However, if you really want to get frustrated, and break a few things in the process, I recommend tying them yourself in sizes 18­ – 22. Its not that its a difficult tie, in fact it’s a very simple pattern, but like the famous RS2, getting the proportions right can be a maddening process. Making deer hair stand up properly in a semi-circle on a size 22 hook can strain even the most proficient fly tiers patience, or at least that’s what I tell myself while I’m cursing incoherently at my vise.

That being said, it is well worth the headache when a big finicky trout finally submits to the delicious morsel you’ve laid out. Anytime you can catch fish on your own flies, regardless of whether the fly’s of your own design, it heightens the experience, for me, this truth, goes doubly for dry fly fishing. Maybe its the interaction you get when observing a trout sipping down a combination of feather, hair, and dubbing you concocted while drinking beer and watching cartoons….who knows, the point is, its’ a lot of fun and the experience is made more enjoyable when you can impart more of yourself into the process by tying your own bugs.

Check out the video tutorial link above for a (W.O.H. Sparkle Dun) !

Levi Lambert

Minturn Anglers Guide

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

P.S. A few more shots for the road…