Bodkin / Patterns

Hellion Caddis

Dry Fly · Emerger · Trout · Intermediate · 1 version

Classic Recipe

  • Hook Standard/wide-gap dry-fly hook, Tiemco 100SP-BL, #14-18
  • Thread Brown 18/0 (or 8/0)

Materials

  • Body Nature's Spirit hare's-mask dubbing, bleached ginger (or gray/olive to match the hatch) (pinch)
  • Underwing Grizzly-barred poly-pro macrame yarn (1 short loop)
  • Overwing Natural deer body hair (small clump)
  • Hot spot Cerise (hot pink) McFlylon or poly yarn (1 short loop)
  • Thorax/head Nature's Spirit hare's-mask dubbing, bleached ginger (pinch)

How to tie it

  1. Start the thread and dub a raggedy, spiky hare's-mask body forward over the rear two-thirds of the shank. Pick it out; the guard hairs are the buggy legs.
  2. Tie in a short length of grizzly-barred poly macrame yarn and fold it into a low loop over the body reaching to the bend. This underwing gives the fly a wide, floating footprint over the water film.
  3. Stack a small clump of deer body hair and tie it in as the overwing, tips pointing back one shank length past the bend; let the butts flare slightly.
  4. Fold a short loop of cerise McFlylon over the wing base as a hi-vis hot spot so you can track the fly in riffles. Keep it under a hook-gap tall.
  5. Dub a hare's-mask thorax and head over the wing butts, whip finish, and pick out a few fibers at the thorax for legs.

Tying videos

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