t.z. | Friday, 9 September 2016

Red. Red flesh, specifically on trout and salmon, indicates that the fish has been feeding on organisms containing carotin. Same red stuff found in carrots (wonder why rabbits do not have red meat than) never mind.

So there is a myriad of patterns for imitating this type of food. They all seem to work. The variations one finds seem to be mainly based on personal preference … and let´s face it. Once you´ve been standing in the cold sea with the wind & rain in your face for hours without success (we are talking about Denmark here) than one does of course believe - given the angler is able to imagine a take - that this version with feathers harvested by virgins at full moon must be the «thing» itself. The math goes like - at least 6 such flies per angler times the amount of anglers = 1 million patterns multiplied by the years fishing = gazillions

Anyway - all these constructions are based on rather similar principles. A long hackle in open turns for the movement, a trigger or hotspot (mostly red or orange) and eyes.

The pattern today is such a fly. The materials needed are easily obtainable and one does not need much. A grizzly hackle feather of larger proportions, bead chain eyes, a saltwater shrimp hook and seals fur dubbing.

Things are bit different here in Noway of course. We catch fish all the time and getting a seatrout on a fly is dead easy ... you just ned a few patterns. One is the so called "Vaskebjørn" (raccoon in english) has it´s name from it´s colors, which resemble a raccoon. No fur of that animal is used in the fly though. I believe name for the fly is also a little wordplay. «vask» means washing and the fly is known to really «clean out» a water ;-) Bjørn means bear.

Anyway - a really good fly, easy to tie and feel free to make your own version so you have something to believe in when feeling really tiny while chucking that even smaller fly towards that big horizon. Believing is catching, you know?

Otherwise just "abide" :-)