Tying the Little Brown Trout

Presented by Alan E. Lutz

This is the fly to use when the Brown Trout are spawning. The orange purportedly induces an anger response causing the trout to strike. The version I will be presenting here is based on how John Gierach ties it, with a bit of my own modification. I have added the medium silver wire to the body to add durability to the fly as I have found the mylar braid to be a bit fragile.

We will need the following materials:

Hook: A long streamer hook is used for this fly in sizes 10 to 4 weighted with lead wire about the same diameter as the hook. Thread: Black 6/0 Body: Pearl Mylar Braid with Medium Silver Wire Ribbing Throat: White Bucktail Wing: Orange Bucktail, Pearl Krystal Flash and Red Fox Squirrel Tail Topping: 3-4 Pieces of Peacock Herl

This is how to make the fly:

1. Lay a thread base and wrap on the lead wire. Then wind over with thread to secure. End the thread behind the lead. Overcoat with head cement to secure.

2. Tie in a piece of mylar braid behind the lead wire and on top of hook. Tie in the wire on the bottom of the hook. This helps to make a uniform Body. Wind the mylar forward and tie off. Wind the wire forward in the opposite direction and tie off.

3. Tie in a sparse bunch of stacked white bucktail on the bottom of the fly just to the bend of the hook. Note, you should stack all the hair on this fly.

4. Tie in a sparse bunch of orange bucktail on top of the hook to just beyond the bend followed by several strands of Krystal Flash and then a sparse bunch of Red Fox Squirrel tail a little beyond the orange bucktail. Top off the fly with 3-4 strands of peacock herl tied a bit beyond the squirrel tail. Try to position the herl so it curves downward to the rear of the fly.

5. Finish off the fly by painting on eyes. Use yellow lacquer followed by black pupils, allowing the paint to dry between steps. A small dowel sharpened in a pencil sharpener to the correct size works well for making the eyes.