Chris_in_Louisiana

Took advantage of a rainy day off yesterday, and started putting together a Clouser box. All were tied on Size 2 Gamakatsu B10S Stingers

Hey guys, Thought I'd share a link to another SBS I put together recently as I don't believe anyone has posted this or similar rabbit strip patterns before (at least recently). The SBS is in the classic Red and White combo (tied on a 1/0 Gamakatsu B10S Stinger), but I've tied a few smaller versions as well. I love the combination of the motion imparted by the rabbit strip combined with the way this pattern almost suspends below the surface. Hoping the Chartreuse versions (#4) will appeal to Smallmouth as well as the toothy critters when I head north later this spring. Let me know what you think. Chris https://fatfingeredflytyer.com/pike-bunny-streamer-step-by-step/

I'll second the baby leech pattern. It has continued to be my go to for sunfish as spring has progressed. Chris

I've heard a few say this before, but this quote from Skip Morris' "Fly Tying Made Clear and Simple" seems to suggest Wulff was flexible with regards to material selection: "Lee is quite open-minded regarding materials for his Wulff series - calf tail or even elk hair could be used for the wings and tail, and yarn could be used for the body." Personally, I have no problem using bucktail, calf tail or poly when tying a Royal Wulff. Chris

Tied up a few Pike Bunny streamers yesterday in preparation for a trip to upstate NY in the coming months Hook: Gamakatsu B10S Stinger (1/0) Thread: 140 Denier (Red) Tail: Zonker Strip (White) Collar: Crosscut Rabbit Strip (Red) Flash: Flashabou Holo Flash Eyes: 4mm Stick-on (Silver) Finish: Gulff UV Resin

Don't think I've contributed to the March thread yet. I've tied a fair bit, but haven't paused to take pictures very often. Here are a couple of Lefty's Deceivers I put together last week in hopes of chasing Chain Pickerel. Hook: Gamakatsu B10S Stingers (#6-1/0) Thread: 70 Denier (White) Tail: Saddle Hackle (4x; White) Flash: Crystal Flash (Pearl) Body/Collar: Bucktail (Chartreuse over White & Red over White) Throat: FTD Northern Lights (Red) Eyes: 4mm Stick-On Eyes

Halfway through my Half-drowned crickets. Should have an Orchestra (yes, I looked up the term for a group of crickets) headed your way tomorrow morning. Chris

Here you go! The Warmouth, Redspotted Sunfish and Redear Sunfish were all firsts for the year bringing me to 11 total species since January 1. It has given me a solid lead in the local club's Mixed Bag CPR tournament, but I'm quickly running out of common species to target close to home.

Finally received my flies at the beginning of March. Really nice set of ties. I brought them with me while targeting panfish at a little roadside spot I've been frequenting lately. Ended up tying on Kim's baby leech after striking out with my go-to patterns. I never swapped flies again as I proceeded to catch a string of Warmouth, Redear sunfish, Red-spotted sunfish and largemouth bass for the next hour. Next time I'll start with one of the others and see how they fare. edit: Reviewing my pictures, there's actually a small bluegill in the mix as well.

Hmmm...I just tested on a co-workers iPad, and it seemed to work fine. Wonder what is causing that? Thanks for bringing it to my attention. Chris

The one shown turned out well, but I assure you there are a whole stack of "gone wrongs" lying in a pile on my tying desk. Teacher always said I couldn't cut along the lines. Still seems to hold true. As for the blog, I appreciate the heads up. It works on desktop and iPhone, but I don't have a tablet to test it on. What's the specific issue you're running into? Chris

I spent some time during the recent freeze working on my EP Minnow patterns. Most are still fairly ugly, but a few have turned out alright. With temperatures warming up the past week, I've taken them out a few times for a trial run. Last Tuesday I headed for a roadside drainage a few miles from home in hopes of catching a few largemouth. No largemouth, but the shallow (<18" deep), clear water produced a number of black crappie. A more than pleasant lunchbreak surprise. Following a morning of redfish in the marsh the next day, I detoured to the same spot along my way home. No crappie this time, but I did manage my first largemouth of the year. He was fairly small compared to the one I spooked as I approached the water, but a pretty fish nonetheless. Wanting to keep my streak going, I ventured to the same drainage for one more lunch break trip this afternoon. It was fairly windy and still lightly raining, but I figured it beat sitting around the house. Working my way along the bank, I started off the session with a pair of nice bluegill and a few missed hook sets. Moving to a stretch of water largely shielded by vegetation on two sides, I immediately missed a decent strike and followed this up by pulling the fly from a sizeable bass's mouth. Two casts later, a large wake appeared behind my fly. The fish swiped once and missed, but kept coming and I was able to drive the hook home after the second strike. While I momentarily thought I was hooked into a massive largemouth, it quickly became apparent I was dealing with a different beast. Fifteen harrowing minutes later (the last five spent coaxing it through the above vegetation), the fish lay at my feet. The bowfin, a lifer, measured a little over 20" and was by far the strongest fish I've battled on my little Echo Base 3wt. Needless to say I was a little frazzled by the time it was over as these are the best two pictures I managed before sending the dinosaur on its way. I'm really starting to like this little roadside spot!

Appreciate the kind words, feathers5. I added a Fly Pattern Index recently to make it easier to skim through everything. There's a link at the bottom of the Fly Tying Tutorial drop down menu if you want to check it out. Chris

Hey guys, In anticipation of spring, I've begun to restock my warmwater boxes and, in the process, put together a few more Step-by-Step tutorials for my blog. Most are seen commonly enough to not warrant sharing here, but I did want to share this little crease fly tutorial. Not 100% true to Joe Blado's original design, it is still close enough to warrant the name Crease Fly. And more importantly, it works wonders with the bass and sunfish that inhabit my local streams and rivers. Here's a link: Crease Fly

The UV resin is on a size 16 jig hook. The parachute is a #18, though I tie them on a #16 and #20 as well. Admittedly haven't caught much beyond bluegill on them. Possibly a few brook trout on the parachute over the years in memory serves, but I just don't seem to use them all that frequently.