At first glance it may look like one of Jim Henson's Muppets gone amok, but Keith's Black and Blue is a fantastic all-purpose steelhead fly that cleans house when swung through the rich watersheds of British Columbia and the Pacific Northwest.
The inspiration for this cutting edge fly pattern came from a visit to Leland's San Francisco shop by Paul Miller, a professional fly tyer, fly fishing consultant, and steelhead fanatic. Over the years, Paul has mastered the art of traditional steelhead fly tying. More recently, he's become one of the world's more innovative modern steelhead fly designers, employing carefully selected materials and design principles in his flies.
The Black and Blue's success is primarily dependent on its architecture, a spun and trimmed anvil head and a whack of long, wispy tail fibers. According to Paul, the secret is in this design. He says, "You've gotta have a hard head, soft tail construction to push the water and attract that big holding steelhead. Get the fish out of its lie."
Well, pushing water and attracting big steelhead is the Black and Blue's specialty.
From Drawing Board to the River
To achieve the "hard head, soft tail" action that makes the Black and Blue such a bomber fly pattern, you've got to examine at the components of the design separately. The fly is designed to be hard and heavy up front and long and wispy in the back, so why not start from the ground up?
The Hook
The Black and Blue is constructed on a large 1/0 Tiemco TMC 7999 salmon and steelhead hook. It is a stinger-style fly, so a looped length of 50-pound Fire Wire, Power Pro, or monofilament line (in a pinch) is secured at the hook bend to accept a short Gamakatsu Octopus stinger hook. Upon completion of the fly's construction, the TMC 7999 is clipped at the hook bend, leaving just the "backbone" and trailing Octopus. Stinger flies are useful because they allow quick, pure hook sets. The added ability to quickly change out a stinger hook can also increase the life of the fly significantly, while allowing an angler to dial in the proper hook size on the river.
The Tail
So how does the Black and Blue's tail seem to explode behind with long, incredibly active fibers? Such a dramatic flowing tail is developed by tying two stacked sets of rhea feathers 360-degrees around the hook shank. Rhea fibers are quite similar to those found on ostrich plumes, but they are much more durable and typically display slightly longer fibers.
Paul Miller has teamed with Kate Davidson of Siskiyou Aviary to market a line of the very best rhea: the Paul Miller Super Spey series. The entire line is available at LelandFlyTying.com, but if rhea feathers are unobtainable, long ostrich feathers will do the trick.
The Head
The Black and Blue's water-pushing noggin is constructed by stacking and spinning hollow deer hair around a set of dumbbell or bead-chain eyes. This triangular mass at the front of the fly creates attractive disturbances in the water column that many steelhead can't resist. It also helps the fly look tough, which always satisfies a hard-working fly tyer's modern aesthetic.
Hard Head, Soft Tail, Heavy Action
Paul Miller has found great success with this fly design, especially in British Columbia, because of its ability to move lots of water and create lots of attractive motion. When swung or stripped below the surface, this fly's ability to disturb the water column and follow with tremendous undulation steals the show. Fish are attracted to this design's double-threat and will often leave their holding positions, follow the fly through the length of the swing, and slam it at the end of the run.
Evan LeBon is a regular contributor to beyondthebug.com
photo courtesy of www.flyfishingoutfitters.com and www.lelandflytying.com
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