Bodkin / Patterns

Deer Hair Damsel

Dry Fly · Trout · Intermediate · 1 version

Reference Recipe

  • Hook Standard dry-fly hook, 8-12
  • Thread Blue or olive 8/0

Materials

  • Extended Body Blue (adult) or olive (Deer hair, tied as an extended abdomen)
  • Rib Fine thread (Segmenting wraps over the extended body)
  • Wing Grizzly hackle (2 hackle tips tied spent, or clear synthetic)
  • Hackle Grizzly hackle (1 feather, wound parachute or collar)
  • Thorax Blue or olive material (Deer hair butts / dubbing)
  • Eyes Black ostrich herl (Burnt mono or small bead-chain (optional))

How to tie it

  1. Mount the hook and start thread at the bend.
  2. Take a small clump of deer hair, bind it by the tips, and rib the thread forward over it in open spirals to form a slim, segmented extended abdomen reaching a shank-and-a-half past the bend. Deer hair floats the long tail.
  3. Fold the deer hair back and bind at the bend, leaving the butts to be used at the thorax.
  4. At the thorax, tie in two grizzly hackle tips flat and spent to each side for wings.
  5. Wind a grizzly hackle as a collar or parachute for float and leg suggestion.
  6. Add small burnt-mono eyes at the head if desired, dub or fold the deer hair over a slim thorax, and sweep everything into shape.
  7. Whip finish and cement. Cast the adult to cruising fish along weedbeds and drop it gently, giving it the odd twitch.

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