Rocky River Chapter Trout Unlimited
Charlotte, North Carolina
We Conserve, Protect and Sustain our
Coldwater Natural Resources
NOTICE REGARDING START TIME ON FLY TYING NOVEMBER 16 2019 :
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October Chapter meeting with Lorie Stroup
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October 2019 Fly of the Month
H & L Variant
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Baigent's Variant
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Variants
The label of variant associated with a fly pattern means a significant variation of another fly pattern. There are at least two examples that we are aware of. One is the variation of a fly pattern due to a different body. Fly patterns such as the Adams Variant, the CDL Adams Variant, the House & Lot (H&L) Variant and the Whitcraft Variant are all dry fly variation due to a different body. The other is the variation of a fly pattern due to oversized hackle. The Badger Variant, Baigent Black, Black Variant, Brown Variant, Cream Variant, Dun Variant, Gray Fox Variant, Olive Variant and Yellow Variant are all variation due to oversized hackle that provide extraordinary fry fly floating capability. The Coachman Variant and the Pool’s Hackle are also variation due to oversized hackle – in this case the soft, long hackle of wet fly patterns.
The Gray Fox Variant, for example, is the same as the traditional Gray Fox except with oversized stiff, dry fly hackle at 1 ½ times longer. The additional extension of each fiber of the hackle spreads the capillary action over a broader footprint in the surface tension of the water. These variant fly patterns float higher and longer than the traditional fly pattern. And since many of the variant fly patterns are based on standard patterns, the long hackle variant is a style rather than a fly pattern.
Tom Adams and Alen Baker
References:
Smedley, Harold Hinsdill. Fly Patterns and Their Origins, 1944
Tom Adams and Alen Baker
