Description

Hogan came up with this fly when he really began paying attention to what Baetis nymphs actually looked like, not what most commercially tied flies in the fly bins told him they looked like. When he started turning over rocks on his local tail water he realized that most of the small baetis nymphs were no thicker then a hook shank and that they were definitely not cylindrical in shape. Furthermore they had color patterns that made them darker on top then underneath which was very different from the standard flashback pattern he was fishing. Utilizing wire and thread where the wire is pinned to the side of the hook shank allowed him to create a trim baetis nymph that is wider than it is tall and NOT cylindrical in nature. The wing case on ALL color schemes is darker than the thorax underneath as this is how the naturals look. While slim flashbacks can imitate the emergence of lighter color wings he knew fish on his tricky tailwaters get hip to that as a dead giveaway of a non natural food source.

DESIGN STORY
This fly is simple in nature and a true guide fly but like most guide flies…details matter. Many companies and people have tried to tie this fly but most fail on the details. I use only 3 pheasant tails as tail fibers NO MORE as it adds to the thickness of the fly. I also use these fibers to create a thin taper to the Abdomen of the nymph and tack the wire to the side of the hook to create a wider then tall profile… both of these details that are missed by many tiers. The color of the case and dubbing work together as the wing case MUST be darker than the dubbing in EVERY case. Also many tiers use straight Krystal Flash NOT Midge Flash for legs. This is key as Krystal Flash cut short does not move in this small of fly like "legs" – Midge Flash does.

FLY RECIPE:

HOOK:  TFS 3769 or TMC 3769, sizes 16-18
THREAD:  Ultra Tying Thread, 8/0 - color to match fly color
BEAD:  Bead Head, copper - fit to hook size
TAIL:  Pheasant Tail
BODY:  Ultra Tying Thread, 8/0 - color to match fly color
RIB:  Ultra Wire, Small - Olive
WINGCASE:  Turkey Biot, prince nymph brown
ABDOMEN:  Antron Dubbing, dark olive
LEGS:  Midge Flash, olive

FEATURES

• Trim baetis nymph LIKE the naturals
• Dark Wing case to signify a darken ing top as these nymphs approach emergence. AND what nymph is not darker on the dop then underneath
• Midge flash legs to add just a bit of movement and flash.