A Proven Classic Tweaked and Supersized to Attract the Big Boys
I can’t think of a better way to start the morning than with a walk on the beach with my fly rod in hand, searching for trophy-sized striped bass on the coast of Northern California. Any striper is a trophy when taken in the surf, because these fish do not come readily to hand. You have to work for them, put in the time, and eventually you will be rewarded. In my experience, the old adage “big flies for big fish” is true, and throwing big flies increases your odds for landing trophy-sized stripers. That is why I tweaked a classic fly to attract the really big fish in the surf and in other environments, as well.
The Beginning
I remember, years back, tying flies with Grant Hartman, the owner and operator of Baja Anglers, preparing for our next day’s roosterfish adventure. We were talking about fly fishing in the surf, and Grant said he likes big flies in the surf because they push water and are visible to the fish. Grant has had great success with a variety of species using big flies. Ever since then I have been looking for ways to create a big fly that could be cast effortlessly, get to the desired depth quickly, and have the length and profile to be visible in the surf-zone environment. These three factors would help increase my odds while chasing stripers in the surf.
The Challenge
Getting a nine-inch fly to cast like a four-inch fly on a 400-grain line, push water, and sink quickly was the challenge I had at hand. I always start to design a fly with the materials and then, if I want it to sink quickly, add weight to it.
Some fly materials hold water, while others shed water, float, sink, reflect, swim — you name it. Over the years, using just about every material known, I’ve found that the ability of Slinky Fibres to shed water as soon as a fly leaves the water, making it easier to cast, would be my best option for creating the long streamer trying to develop. I especially like the blends of Slinky Fibre, Slinky Blend, and fine Mylar flash offered as Steve Farrar Blends. By layering this material during the tying process, I knew I could build up the material to achieve the profile I wanted so it would push water. Layering the material during the tying process would also streamline the fly and increase its ability to shed water. But I still needed to figure out how to get this fly to sink, yet remain easy to cast with a fly rod.
The first thing that came to mind was the Clouser Minnow, designed by Bob Clouser. Adding dumbbell eyes and using a jig hook makes this a deadly pattern. Jay Murakoshi, my fly-tying mentor, taught me how to tie his version of the Clouser Minnow, which is pretty much what you will see here, but constructed with different materials and with some tweaks here and there.
By no means is this fly meant solely for the use in the Northern California surf. It has proven itself over and over again in Baja on jacks, roosters, sierras, snappers, black skipjacks, and yellowfin tuna and in California on albacore tuna, white seabass, salmon, stripers, blue sharks, rockfish, lingcod, largemouth bass, spotted bass, white bass, and surfperch. In British Columbia, it has taken lake trout and rainbow trout, and on Lake Powell, it has taken stripers, walleyes, and smallmouth bass. After all, this is still basically the proven classic developed by Bob Clouser. It can be tied in lengths from 2 to 12 inches long, so be creative and have fun.
Hook: The Fly Shop TFS 5444 or similar, 3/0
Thread: Light blue Danville FlyMaster Plus, waxed
Eyes: Silver Real Eyes
Tail and Wing: 80 percent gray Steve Farrar Blend, 20 percent chartreuse Steve Farrar Blend and Blue Ice Angel Hair, blended together
Flash: Electra Scale Krinkle Mirror Flash, or equivalent
Belly: White Steve Farrar Blend
Body: Light blue braid and small-diameter silver braid
Cheeks: Pearl Polar Flash
Body and Head Finish: Clear Cure Goo, clear nail polish, or head cement
Step 1. Using figure-eight wraps, tie in the dumbbell eyes approximately halfway between the hook point and the bend of the jig hook. This locates the rest of the material farther back to prevent fouling.
Step 2. Cut a bunch of the blend of Steve Farrar Blends and Angel Hair that you made, eight to nine inches long and as thick as a pencil. Hold it firmly and pull out the center fibers from the end to create a taper, then tie it on top of the hook shank all the way to the bend of the hook. Now cut some Electra Scale of the same length and tie in on top of the tail you just tied in. Next cut a bunch of White Steve Farrar Blend five to six inches long and half the thickness of a pencil, taper it just as you did with the first bunch, and tie it on top of the Electra Scale. This creates the tail portion of the fly and determines the overall length. It also creates length and girth by adding more material than on a classic Clouser. You should see a nice taper developing.
Step 3. On top of where you tied in the White Steve Farrar Blend, tie in some light blue braid and a short length of small-diameter silver braid. Work the thread forward to just behind the dumbbell eyes, then wrap the light blue braid forward to just behind the eyes and tie it off. Now go back and wrap the small-diameter silver braid forward and tie it off. Coat the body with Clear Cure Goo, clear nail polish, or head cement.
Step 4. Next tie in a bunch of white Steve Farrar Blend half the thickness of a pencil for the belly of the fly. I start in front of the dumbbell eyes, making sure that the taper is shorter than the earlier white tail section, creating yet more of a taper, and tie in with three to five wraps, making sure the material does not spin around the shank, but stays on top. Moving behind the eyes, make five to seven wraps around the fibers. To create cheeks on the fly, use 10 to 15 strands of Pearl Polar Flash. Fold it in half around the thread, grab the two sides of the Polar Flash, and slide them down the thread into position right behind the eyes on one side of the fly, then tie them in with five or so wraps. Now pull at the flash to create a flare and cut to size. Repeat on the other side. The Polar Flash should veil the fly’s body.
Step 5. Rotate the fly in the vise so that it is riding hook up. Behind the bend beneath the eye of the jig hook, tie in another tapered pencil-sized bunch of the gray, chartreuse, and blue ice blend that you made. It should be shorter than the whitetail you already have tied in. Secure it with five to seven wraps, making sure the material does not spin. Now put your scissors as parallel as possible to the shank of the hook and trim the end of the fibers. This will create a taper for the nose of the fly. Vary the wraps from firm to lose to shape the nose of the fly. Once the nose is the desired shape and the wraps are uniform, coat it with Clear Cure Goo, clear nail polish, or head cement. You’re done.
