Fly of the Month 03.11
Blonde Wulff
This “fly of the month” represents the latest in the Tim Wilhelm/Tom Adams series. For those who
attended the RRTU February Anniversary (Birthday) Party, you may remember what Jim Dean said about this fly. I hate the word organic! I think it has been over used during the last decade. Everything has been organic this or organic that. I just hate hearing it used. So you can imagine how much it pains me to use it now.
When Tom and I first developed the idea to do a Fly of the Month our plan was to loosely mimic a fly tying manual developed by Greenville SC’s Mountain Bridge. Written I think in 1984, I was given a copy by a coworker shortly after it was published. The manual focuses on Southern Appalachian Flies and how to tie them and I had always wanted to do something similar as a fundraiser for Rocky River. So it was fairly easy for me to say yes to the Fly of the Month. Tom and I came up with a list of flies for our project (several lists really) and began. Several weeks after we started, the lists had been discarded and the project became (wait for it) an organic process as illustrated by this month’s fly.
Shortly after our 30 th anniversary I received the following in an email from Tom: “ Spoke with Jonathan yesterday and mentioned I was going to run this by you. Jim Dean must have mentioned a Blonde Wulff as many times as the word trout the other night. We have not tied a Wulff yet. What do you think? In times goneby I used a Wulff variation nearly every time I went out. Don't know why I stopped. Anyway let me know what your thoughts are. I could tie several of the variations also. ”
You know he’s right, at one time I wouldn’t go anywhere without a Wulff in the fly box and often I would fish that buoyant fly in tandem with a dropper. Not just Blonde Wulffs, but Ausable Wulffs and Royal Wulffs too. Man they were good flies, but somehow they just disappeared from my fly box. Why is that? Well maybe it’s because I’m trying too hard to “match the hatch” and now carry all sorts of little flies that represent emergers and midges and other flies. But wait, we don’t have hatches in NC. The trout we find in our streams are opportunistic feeders and what’s more opportunistic than a great big Blonde Wulff? Jim Dean handed out copies of the article he wrote for Outdoor Life in 1982. I’ve included one illustration from that article showing how a second fly can be fished from the Wulff.
Fly of the Month 03.11 Blonde Wulff
Hook: Dry Fly, 1x long, Tiemco 100 or equivalent, Size: 10, 12, 14, 16
Thread: 8/0 Uni or equivalent in Black (plus Tanoption)
Tail: Tan Deer Tail
Body: Tan dry fly dubbing
Wing: Elk hair, fine
Hackle: Ginger Rooster
Note: Black thread is recommended, but I prefer to tie the materials in with tan and change to black for the head only. This is an added step (your choice).
Directions:
1) Wrap thread one third back from eye, starting one to two eye lengths from eye, let bobbin hang.
2) Select elk hair and cut. Clean underfur thoroughly and stack in hair stacker. Tap several times and remove with right hand, pinching the tips
between the index finger and thumb, maintain alignment. Place elk hair on top of the hook allowing the length to be tied in at about the same
length as the hook shank. Wrap softly at the one third back mark and release the grip with the right hand. The wraps should be very close
together working toward the hook bend. This is only to position and judge the height of the wings. Once you are happy with the wings, tie in
firmly and trim the hair making a diagonal cut. Now the elk can be secured by binding the diagonal with firm wraps. Advance the thread
immediately forward of the hair and lifting the bundle of hair on the top of the shank with your left hand, pull the thread against the base of the
tie in, on top of the shank and pull the thread away and toward the hook bend. When you pull the thread in a straight and parallel (to the hook
shank) fashion the hair will stand straight up. Make several turns immediately in front of the hair. Take the thread and divide the upright hair
clump into two fairly even sections. Use a figure eight wrap to divide and shape the wings. Once secure take the thread to behind the diagonal
cut of the hair (the hair on top of the hook should be pretty well covered by thread now) and let the bobbin hang.
3) Select tan deer tail. Selecting from the base and not the tip of the tail will yield thicker hairs. Cut and clean the underfur. Place in stacker and
even the tips. The hair will be very long at this point and can be cut to ease in placement. The tail should be about the same length as the hook
shank. Tie in with soft wraps and trim the length so that the trimmed deer matches up to the diagonal of the elk hair. Once the length is okay,
wrap the thread firmly with tight wraps to the hook bend above the hook barb. Let the bobbin hang.
4) Using tan dry fly dubbing, dub to from the tail to about two eye lengths behind the wings. Let the bobbin hang. The dub can cover and even
out the difference between the deer and elk, though keep the dub tight and use as little as possible.
5) Select a medium ginger rooster hackle and strip about 1/8 th inch to tie in. Tie in with two wraps behind the wing and two wraps in front of
the wings. This is where I change to black thread. Let the bobbin hang.
6) Wrap the hackle three to four wraps behind the wings and three to four in front. Tie off and whip finish the head. Apply head cement. Go catch
fish.
- Tom Adams, Alen Baker
Blonde Wulff
This “fly of the month” represents the latest in the Tim Wilhelm/Tom Adams series. For those who
attended the RRTU February Anniversary (Birthday) Party, you may remember what Jim Dean said about this fly. I hate the word organic! I think it has been over used during the last decade. Everything has been organic this or organic that. I just hate hearing it used. So you can imagine how much it pains me to use it now.
When Tom and I first developed the idea to do a Fly of the Month our plan was to loosely mimic a fly tying manual developed by Greenville SC’s Mountain Bridge. Written I think in 1984, I was given a copy by a coworker shortly after it was published. The manual focuses on Southern Appalachian Flies and how to tie them and I had always wanted to do something similar as a fundraiser for Rocky River. So it was fairly easy for me to say yes to the Fly of the Month. Tom and I came up with a list of flies for our project (several lists really) and began. Several weeks after we started, the lists had been discarded and the project became (wait for it) an organic process as illustrated by this month’s fly.
Shortly after our 30 th anniversary I received the following in an email from Tom: “ Spoke with Jonathan yesterday and mentioned I was going to run this by you. Jim Dean must have mentioned a Blonde Wulff as many times as the word trout the other night. We have not tied a Wulff yet. What do you think? In times goneby I used a Wulff variation nearly every time I went out. Don't know why I stopped. Anyway let me know what your thoughts are. I could tie several of the variations also. ”
You know he’s right, at one time I wouldn’t go anywhere without a Wulff in the fly box and often I would fish that buoyant fly in tandem with a dropper. Not just Blonde Wulffs, but Ausable Wulffs and Royal Wulffs too. Man they were good flies, but somehow they just disappeared from my fly box. Why is that? Well maybe it’s because I’m trying too hard to “match the hatch” and now carry all sorts of little flies that represent emergers and midges and other flies. But wait, we don’t have hatches in NC. The trout we find in our streams are opportunistic feeders and what’s more opportunistic than a great big Blonde Wulff? Jim Dean handed out copies of the article he wrote for Outdoor Life in 1982. I’ve included one illustration from that article showing how a second fly can be fished from the Wulff.
Fly of the Month 03.11 Blonde Wulff
Hook: Dry Fly, 1x long, Tiemco 100 or equivalent, Size: 10, 12, 14, 16
Thread: 8/0 Uni or equivalent in Black (plus Tanoption)
Tail: Tan Deer Tail
Body: Tan dry fly dubbing
Wing: Elk hair, fine
Hackle: Ginger Rooster
Note: Black thread is recommended, but I prefer to tie the materials in with tan and change to black for the head only. This is an added step (your choice).
Directions:
1) Wrap thread one third back from eye, starting one to two eye lengths from eye, let bobbin hang.
2) Select elk hair and cut. Clean underfur thoroughly and stack in hair stacker. Tap several times and remove with right hand, pinching the tips
between the index finger and thumb, maintain alignment. Place elk hair on top of the hook allowing the length to be tied in at about the same
length as the hook shank. Wrap softly at the one third back mark and release the grip with the right hand. The wraps should be very close
together working toward the hook bend. This is only to position and judge the height of the wings. Once you are happy with the wings, tie in
firmly and trim the hair making a diagonal cut. Now the elk can be secured by binding the diagonal with firm wraps. Advance the thread
immediately forward of the hair and lifting the bundle of hair on the top of the shank with your left hand, pull the thread against the base of the
tie in, on top of the shank and pull the thread away and toward the hook bend. When you pull the thread in a straight and parallel (to the hook
shank) fashion the hair will stand straight up. Make several turns immediately in front of the hair. Take the thread and divide the upright hair
clump into two fairly even sections. Use a figure eight wrap to divide and shape the wings. Once secure take the thread to behind the diagonal
cut of the hair (the hair on top of the hook should be pretty well covered by thread now) and let the bobbin hang.
3) Select tan deer tail. Selecting from the base and not the tip of the tail will yield thicker hairs. Cut and clean the underfur. Place in stacker and
even the tips. The hair will be very long at this point and can be cut to ease in placement. The tail should be about the same length as the hook
shank. Tie in with soft wraps and trim the length so that the trimmed deer matches up to the diagonal of the elk hair. Once the length is okay,
wrap the thread firmly with tight wraps to the hook bend above the hook barb. Let the bobbin hang.
4) Using tan dry fly dubbing, dub to from the tail to about two eye lengths behind the wings. Let the bobbin hang. The dub can cover and even
out the difference between the deer and elk, though keep the dub tight and use as little as possible.
5) Select a medium ginger rooster hackle and strip about 1/8 th inch to tie in. Tie in with two wraps behind the wing and two wraps in front of
the wings. This is where I change to black thread. Let the bobbin hang.
6) Wrap the hackle three to four wraps behind the wings and three to four in front. Tie off and whip finish the head. Apply head cement. Go catch
fish.
- Tom Adams, Alen Baker
Fly of the Month 03.11
Blonde Wulff
This “fly of the month” represents the latest in the Tim Wilhelm/Tom Adams series. For those who
attended the RRTU February Anniversary (Birthday) Party, you may remember what Jim Dean said about this fly. I hate the word organic! I think it has been over used during the last decade. Everything has been organic this or organic that. I just hate hearing it used. So you can imagine how much it pains me to use it now.
When Tom and I first developed the idea to do a Fly of the Month our plan was to loosely mimic a fly tying manual developed by Greenville SC’s Mountain Bridge. Written I think in 1984, I was given a copy by a coworker shortly after it was published. The manual focuses on Southern Appalachian Flies and how to tie them and I had always wanted to do something similar as a fundraiser for Rocky River. So it was fairly easy for me to say yes to the Fly of the Month. Tom and I came up with a list of flies for our project (several lists really) and began. Several weeks after we started, the lists had been discarded and the project became (wait for it) an organic process as illustrated by this month’s fly.
Shortly after our 30 th anniversary I received the following in an email from Tom: “ Spoke with Jonathan yesterday and mentioned I was going to run this by you. Jim Dean must have mentioned a Blonde Wulff as many times as the word trout the other night. We have not tied a Wulff yet. What do you think? In times goneby I used a Wulff variation nearly every time I went out. Don't know why I stopped. Anyway let me know what your thoughts are. I could tie several of the variations also. ”
You know he’s right, at one time I wouldn’t go anywhere without a Wulff in the fly box and often I would fish that buoyant fly in tandem with a dropper. Not just Blonde Wulffs, but Ausable Wulffs and Royal Wulffs too. Man they were good flies, but somehow they just disappeared from my fly box. Why is that? Well maybe it’s because I’m trying too hard to “match the hatch” and now carry all sorts of little flies that represent emergers and midges and other flies. But wait, we don’t have hatches in NC. The trout we find in our streams are opportunistic feeders and what’s more opportunistic than a great big Blonde Wulff? Jim Dean handed out copies of the article he wrote for Outdoor Life in 1982. I’ve included one illustration from that article showing how a second fly can be fished from the Wulff.
Fly of the Month 03.11 Blonde Wulff
Hook: Dry Fly, 1x long, Tiemco 100 or equivalent, Size: 10, 12, 14, 16
Thread: 8/0 Uni or equivalent in Black (plus Tanoption)
Tail: Tan Deer Tail
Body: Tan dry fly dubbing
Wing: Elk hair, fine
Hackle: Ginger Rooster
Note: Black thread is recommended, but I prefer to tie the materials in with tan and change to black for the head only. This is an added step (your choice).
Directions:
1) Wrap thread one third back from eye, starting one to two eye lengths from eye, let bobbin hang.
2) Select elk hair and cut. Clean underfur thoroughly and stack in hair stacker. Tap several times and remove with right hand, pinching the tips
between the index finger and thumb, maintain alignment. Place elk hair on top of the hook allowing the length to be tied in at about the same
length as the hook shank. Wrap softly at the one third back mark and release the grip with the right hand. The wraps should be very close
together working toward the hook bend. This is only to position and judge the height of the wings. Once you are happy with the wings, tie in
firmly and trim the hair making a diagonal cut. Now the elk can be secured by binding the diagonal with firm wraps. Advance the thread
immediately forward of the hair and lifting the bundle of hair on the top of the shank with your left hand, pull the thread against the base of the
tie in, on top of the shank and pull the thread away and toward the hook bend. When you pull the thread in a straight and parallel (to the hook
shank) fashion the hair will stand straight up. Make several turns immediately in front of the hair. Take the thread and divide the upright hair
clump into two fairly even sections. Use a figure eight wrap to divide and shape the wings. Once secure take the thread to behind the diagonal
cut of the hair (the hair on top of the hook should be pretty well covered by thread now) and let the bobbin hang.
3) Select tan deer tail. Selecting from the base and not the tip of the tail will yield thicker hairs. Cut and clean the underfur. Place in stacker and
even the tips. The hair will be very long at this point and can be cut to ease in placement. The tail should be about the same length as the hook
shank. Tie in with soft wraps and trim the length so that the trimmed deer matches up to the diagonal of the elk hair. Once the length is okay,
wrap the thread firmly with tight wraps to the hook bend above the hook barb. Let the bobbin hang.
4) Using tan dry fly dubbing, dub to from the tail to about two eye lengths behind the wings. Let the bobbin hang. The dub can cover and even
out the difference between the deer and elk, though keep the dub tight and use as little as possible.
5) Select a medium ginger rooster hackle and strip about 1/8 th inch to tie in. Tie in with two wraps behind the wing and two wraps in front of
the wings. This is where I change to black thread. Let the bobbin hang.
6) Wrap the hackle three to four wraps behind the wings and three to four in front. Tie off and whip finish the head. Apply head cement. Go catch
fish.
- Tom Adams, Alen Baker
Blonde Wulff
This “fly of the month” represents the latest in the Tim Wilhelm/Tom Adams series. For those who
attended the RRTU February Anniversary (Birthday) Party, you may remember what Jim Dean said about this fly. I hate the word organic! I think it has been over used during the last decade. Everything has been organic this or organic that. I just hate hearing it used. So you can imagine how much it pains me to use it now.
When Tom and I first developed the idea to do a Fly of the Month our plan was to loosely mimic a fly tying manual developed by Greenville SC’s Mountain Bridge. Written I think in 1984, I was given a copy by a coworker shortly after it was published. The manual focuses on Southern Appalachian Flies and how to tie them and I had always wanted to do something similar as a fundraiser for Rocky River. So it was fairly easy for me to say yes to the Fly of the Month. Tom and I came up with a list of flies for our project (several lists really) and began. Several weeks after we started, the lists had been discarded and the project became (wait for it) an organic process as illustrated by this month’s fly.
Shortly after our 30 th anniversary I received the following in an email from Tom: “ Spoke with Jonathan yesterday and mentioned I was going to run this by you. Jim Dean must have mentioned a Blonde Wulff as many times as the word trout the other night. We have not tied a Wulff yet. What do you think? In times goneby I used a Wulff variation nearly every time I went out. Don't know why I stopped. Anyway let me know what your thoughts are. I could tie several of the variations also. ”
You know he’s right, at one time I wouldn’t go anywhere without a Wulff in the fly box and often I would fish that buoyant fly in tandem with a dropper. Not just Blonde Wulffs, but Ausable Wulffs and Royal Wulffs too. Man they were good flies, but somehow they just disappeared from my fly box. Why is that? Well maybe it’s because I’m trying too hard to “match the hatch” and now carry all sorts of little flies that represent emergers and midges and other flies. But wait, we don’t have hatches in NC. The trout we find in our streams are opportunistic feeders and what’s more opportunistic than a great big Blonde Wulff? Jim Dean handed out copies of the article he wrote for Outdoor Life in 1982. I’ve included one illustration from that article showing how a second fly can be fished from the Wulff.
Fly of the Month 03.11 Blonde Wulff
Hook: Dry Fly, 1x long, Tiemco 100 or equivalent, Size: 10, 12, 14, 16
Thread: 8/0 Uni or equivalent in Black (plus Tanoption)
Tail: Tan Deer Tail
Body: Tan dry fly dubbing
Wing: Elk hair, fine
Hackle: Ginger Rooster
Note: Black thread is recommended, but I prefer to tie the materials in with tan and change to black for the head only. This is an added step (your choice).
Directions:
1) Wrap thread one third back from eye, starting one to two eye lengths from eye, let bobbin hang.
2) Select elk hair and cut. Clean underfur thoroughly and stack in hair stacker. Tap several times and remove with right hand, pinching the tips
between the index finger and thumb, maintain alignment. Place elk hair on top of the hook allowing the length to be tied in at about the same
length as the hook shank. Wrap softly at the one third back mark and release the grip with the right hand. The wraps should be very close
together working toward the hook bend. This is only to position and judge the height of the wings. Once you are happy with the wings, tie in
firmly and trim the hair making a diagonal cut. Now the elk can be secured by binding the diagonal with firm wraps. Advance the thread
immediately forward of the hair and lifting the bundle of hair on the top of the shank with your left hand, pull the thread against the base of the
tie in, on top of the shank and pull the thread away and toward the hook bend. When you pull the thread in a straight and parallel (to the hook
shank) fashion the hair will stand straight up. Make several turns immediately in front of the hair. Take the thread and divide the upright hair
clump into two fairly even sections. Use a figure eight wrap to divide and shape the wings. Once secure take the thread to behind the diagonal
cut of the hair (the hair on top of the hook should be pretty well covered by thread now) and let the bobbin hang.
3) Select tan deer tail. Selecting from the base and not the tip of the tail will yield thicker hairs. Cut and clean the underfur. Place in stacker and
even the tips. The hair will be very long at this point and can be cut to ease in placement. The tail should be about the same length as the hook
shank. Tie in with soft wraps and trim the length so that the trimmed deer matches up to the diagonal of the elk hair. Once the length is okay,
wrap the thread firmly with tight wraps to the hook bend above the hook barb. Let the bobbin hang.
4) Using tan dry fly dubbing, dub to from the tail to about two eye lengths behind the wings. Let the bobbin hang. The dub can cover and even
out the difference between the deer and elk, though keep the dub tight and use as little as possible.
5) Select a medium ginger rooster hackle and strip about 1/8 th inch to tie in. Tie in with two wraps behind the wing and two wraps in front of
the wings. This is where I change to black thread. Let the bobbin hang.
6) Wrap the hackle three to four wraps behind the wings and three to four in front. Tie off and whip finish the head. Apply head cement. Go catch
fish.
- Tom Adams, Alen Baker