Dave's Hopper


Tied by Ben Benoit, flyfish@pebblecreektrading.com


This fly is credited to Dave Whitlock and is taken from Bass Flies by Dick Stewart.

PATTERN:

Hook: Dry, Down eye, 2X or 3X long, Sizes #8-#12

Tail: Red hackle barbs over which is a loop of yellow poly yarn (or whatever body material you choose)

Hackle: Tie in a brown cape hackle with no web. Leave this alone until after yellow body is wrapped and then palmer forward and trim short (gap width).

Body: Yellow poly yarn, acrylic or foam. This fly was made using Umpqua yellow foam separated and cut in 3/16" strips. Tie in at just before bend and wrap to 1/4" before the eye.

Underwing: Stack, even tips, clip butts even, and lay a thin underwing of Red Calf Tail.

Wing: Mottled turkey wing quill, coated with Dave's Flexament, tied tent style.

Legs: 2 ring neck pheasant quill fibers (treated with Flexament) tied in a double knot to form joints. Tie in one at a time along sides of body.

Head and Collar: Natural gray or gray dyed yellow deer body hair, spun and clipped square. (The first bunch spun has the natural tips left on , and when the head is trimmed, the tips are left extending back over the wing.) Tie off and trim. Deer hair is dyed using Rit Golden Yellow dye. Trim head in a square shape to imitate the head of a hopper looking down body from the head back. Make rough cuts with sharp razor blade to form head and trim with serrated scissors. Apply head cement to front of head.


TIPS ON HOW TO FISH:

This hopper is effective on Fall days when the wind blows hoppers and other terrestrials from stream side vegetation. Make your cast to announce the hopper with a "pop" on the water. This alerts the hungry feeders there is something up on the dinner platter. A little twitch of the rod tip will cause to fly to struggle a little in the film imitating a distressed stream side terrestrial in fear of its life!!


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