Lachy is in the lead. Zoom invite sent out via email.

Hook – Hanak 470 size 16 (can use Hanak 450 or 400 and sizes 12-18 as desired). It is a general nymphing jig hook.

Bead – Silver slotted tungsten bead 3.0mm. Also works well in copper and sizes 2.5 – 3.5mm to give you options to match water conditions. 

Thread – Black UTC 70 or Uni Thread 8/0.

Collar – Fluro Orange UTC 70 or Glo-Brite No 7 (fluro orange).

Tail – Coq de Leon in Flora de Escoba (Brown-mottled) colour. You can also use dark or medium pardo.

Body – Hareline Krystal Flash Peacock. Alternate is Hends 233 Krystal Flash Dark Brown (actually has a green shine). Or any green coloured Krystal Flash, Tinsel or even Flashabou (if nothing else).

UV Resin – Solarez Bone-dry or any thin, clear UV resin eg. Loon UV Clear Fly Finish – Flow.

Wing Case Resin – Solarez UV Cure Color Resin (Black) or Loon UV Fly Finish Black. Can be difficult to source locally so black nail polish will also do. Note that I have seen perdigons done with and without a wing case, so this is optional. 

Given the Perdigon Nymph is a very easy and quick pattern to tie, Lachy is happy to do the Blue Collar Worker on the same night

Hook – Dohiku 302 size 14 (can use Hanak 280 and sizes 10-18 as desired).

Bead – Silver countersunk tungsten bead 3.0mm. Plus some thin (0.2-0.3mm) lead wire to wrap behind the bead.

Thread – Brown (or Olive or Tan) 220 Denier 3/0 Uni-Thread to cover lead (optional), Camel (or Brown) Uni-Thread 8/0 for tying the fly, and Glo-Brite No. 14 (fluro blue) for the hot collar.

Tail – Pheasant tail fibres. Natural colour.

Body – Pheasant tail fibres. Natural colour.

Ribbing – Small Tinsel (UTC Pearl Tinsel is ideal) furled with 6X or 7X tippet

Collar – CDC in Dun or mid-dark grey colour. And Fluro blue thread for the hot collar as described above.

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Claude was called away at the last minute and Ryan stood in, admirably leading the team tying the scintilla caddis.  Some really good tips, especially for using the cigarette lighter!

The original link I found now seems to require signing up. Try this one instead. (Thanks Mike for spotting this error)

https://tacklevillage.com/tying-the-scintilla-stick-caddis/

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Ryan has been experimenting with a number of patterns. For July’s flytying he’ll lead us tying a wiggly damsel. A good choice for the Bondi Forest trip?

Hooks- main body- #14-16 wet/nymph hook (Tiemco 3769 for example).

Articulated shank- any hook of the same size with a straight eye will do, as the bend will be cut off it doesn’t need to be a good quality one, but a hook that works well is a Tiemco 101 #14-16.

Tail and body- olive marabou.

Ribbing (optional)- copper wire.

Eyes- black or gold bead chain. Extra small.

And finally some mono line. 3x tippet works well.

Zoom details will be provided closer to the event.

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From Claude:

You may have recently heard about the passing of Shaun Gambrill. Shaun was a super keen fly fisherman and has always been keen to share his knowledge with all – starters to experienced folk – from the casting days to presenting to the club on loch style techniques. One of my earliest memories of Shaun was on a trip to Bondi Forest for some early season fishing. Part of the activity included fly tying where Shaun introduced us to the ‘Gambugger’…which is a Woolly Bugger with Shaun’s secret sauce body dubbing. Not only did he share the tie with us, but he also caught a swag of fish on it.

I will be leading the tie of the Gambugger on Wednesday evening. Please come along to have a chat or do the tying – whether you knew Shaun or not.

If you are interested in participating let me know and we will explore how we can share around enough ‘secret sauce’ to allow you to tie two buggers. The ingredients you will need to get are:

1. Bugger wet fly hook – #14 to 10 (can be any wet fly or jig hook)
2. Bead – 2-3.5, or no bead at all
3. Marabou – black or olive
4. Secret sauce – can be sourced from Claude (substitute – rubber leggy dubbing)
5. Thread to suit your colour – or just black 6/0 to 8/0

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From Lyall. The tickler was a favourite fly of our long time colleague Dr Bryan Pratt. I think as much for the name as for its ability to catch fish.

Unfortunately Nathan can no longer join us on Wednesday evening so I have jumped in and will be demonstrating the Taihape Tickler trout fly.

You may elect to sit back and watch on Zoom but if you are interested in materials here goes:


Hook – any heavy and long hook around size 10. I used a Gamakatsu S11-2L 3xheavy, 2xlong

Thread – black 6/0 or 8/0 Uni

Rib – Uni French gold oval rib

Tail – red wool or substitute

Body – brown dubbing

Hackle – matching brown hen hackle

Wing – pukeko substitute

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I thought it was Peter who spotted this great video but apparently not.  It is a collaboration from Jensen Fly Fishing and Orvis and demonstrates the impressive performance of a particular emerger pattern.  There were comments that the segment showing the fly being tied is way too fast.  I’ve taken the liberty to edit this section and slowing down the critical steps.  Available here.

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Lyall has advised:

In preparation for John’s Saltwater event on 2-4 December we will be tying a version of the Pink Thing saltwater fly.  It is one of the most popular flies for use in our region.  Of course Clousers and Scuds are right up there also depending on what you are targeting. 

Our tie on 23 November from 7:30 on Zoom will be fairly free form – meaning use whatever materials you have which approximate the materials list below.

I will be using:

Hook – Mustad #1 wide gape C47SD.  Any straight eye, wide gape saltwater hook in the size your target fish might take will suffice.

Eye – dumbbell eyes.  Any size or colour you think might work.

Thread – white Uni 6/0 thread.  Go wild and use pink thread, even fluoro if you wish but make it relatively thick and robust.

Body – white Schlappen or any white chicken feather 8 cm or so long.  White Grizzley Hackle as a lateral line.  Pink or pearl flash.

Collar – pink Schlappen

We will talk about the RIO fly line you might like to use to cast a wind resistant fly and the wind-beater casting technique you may wish to use.

Join us to tie or just to watch

Here is Lyall’s production and BJ’s “black shadow” variant. Lots of pro tips from Lyall and his guest Paul.

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Claude is tying up flies ready for a NZ trip and has chanced on this tie. I’m not sure if it will supplant the classic parachute Adams as one comment stated, but for sure much easier to tie.

https://youtu.be/v9lbMit905A

Omitting feathers for wings makes things simpler. Lyall offered some advice “Don’t forget that Mayflys can also be brown and it might be good to have a couple with bright coloured posts.” Different light coloured posts will assist visibility in different lighting conditions.

Most material is easily identified, but the wing/post is poly yarn.

Happy tying.

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Nathan led the class via Zoom. Claude provided this:

Recipe:

Hook: curved hook:  sizes 12 – 18

Thread: black, brown, olive, red or anything you have

Body: thread with either silver or copper wire

Thorax: Dubbing, peacock hearl or just thread. Coloured tinsel for the cheeks if you are keen.

Bead: Small or lead wire

Notes: There are so many variations

Those who are not up with midge fishing techniques are seriously missing out. Some will say midge fishing is just for lakes; how wrong they are. Midge are found everywhere, from fast flowing mountain streams to lowland rivers and lakes and swamps. There are around 200 species of Chironomid in Australia.

Midges can vary from pale olive green to black with every shade in between. A point to note is that in many instances the colour of the adult flying midge will be similar to that of the emerging midge. The key colours to carry in your fly box are pale olive, olive, black and blood red. To find some midge samples check the leaves on overhanging bushes or trees and you will see them there.

When is the best time to try fishing a midge pattern? Midge come off all year round, with late spring and all through summer being the best. But remember, it is the week leading up to a full moon when they prefer to hatch on mass. Midge on lakes can produce some of the most intense fishing that can be found on a stillwater. The best fishing times are from daylight to mid-morning, and again at last light.

After the early morning calm a breeze will normally come up and wind lanes will start to form; that is when the fishing gets really interesting. Wind lanes are like highways for feeding fish. As they form the floating food matter is compacted within these lanes and it is common to find a number of fish feeding at any one time. Keep your eye on the edges of these wind lanes as trout often cruise along the outside, using the rough area as cover and moving into the lane to feed whenever they so choose. On clear sunny days the trout will generally feed along the lane with the sun at their backs, as they have no eyelids so it is difficult for them to look into the sun, especially for fish feeding on the surf

From <https://vffa.com.au/fly-of-the-month-april-2013/>

you can listen to:

Advanced Stillwater Techniques, with Phil Rowley – https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/advanced-stillwater-techniques-with-phil-rowley/id278930814?i=1000447539666
Anchored Podcast Ep. 188: Phil Rowley on Chironomids, Stillwater Fishing and Going Pro – https://play.acast.com/s/anchoredwithaprilvokeyfishingpodcast/3baed2b4-2b64-48ca-b983-b293f8d4a2ce
FLY FISHING WITH CHIRONOMIDS PART 1 WITH PHIL ROWLEY – https://toflyfish.com/fly-fishing-chironomids/

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As we start to see the yellow flowers of the wattle bloom, we know that native fishing around Canberra is just about to start. Please join some of your fellow CAA members, to tie or just chat, on Wednesday 24 August at 7:30 PM on Zoom. Invite sent separately to members.

Our mates at Boss Outdoors/previously known as Compleat Angler (ie Nathan) have assembled material kit. The kits have all the materials required to tie 4 flies in 2 colour variations.

• Purple Head, Olive & Chartreuse Tail
• Red Head, Olive & Chartreuse Tail

The kits are $20 each to purchase for members.

There are 12 kits available, but more can be made on request.

Notes from Claude:

If you love fly fishing for Australian native fish and are looking for a good fly this spring, look no further than the Donnie Brasco Fly. This is a great all-rounder fly for species such as golden perch, bass and the ever prized target Murray Cod (yet to catch one on the fly).

This fly can be tied in a variety of sizes. A good starting point for bass and golden perch would be to tie on a 1/0 hook. Larger hooks up to 4/0 would be ideal for Murray cod when summer rolls around. Both the body and tail of the Donnie Brasco Fly consist of rabbit fur. This material is well known for its fish enticing action. Cast these into the weed pockets, weed facing , rocky points and standing timber. When retrieving the fly with short sharp strips, rabbit fur tends to pulsate in the water, closely resembling the movement of a fishes fins.

Black and purple are proven colours when it comes to attracting Australian native fish. By tying on a purple tail and a black body you have a very versatile fly for both clear and turbid water. The fly can include a weed guard too. By tying a double loop weed guard you can work the fly right in among the structure without snagging up too often. The weed guard shown in the video offers good snag resistance whilst collapsing easily when a fish bites.

(Source: Ozfish)

Recipe:

Hook: 1/0 Gamakatsu O’Shaughnessy hook (or equivalent)

Thread: Veevus 6/0 thread (or equivalent)

Body:

Purple (other colour) rabbit strip
Black (other colour) crosscut rabbit strip
Red (other colour) crystal flash
Craft fur for body (optional)
Eyes: Lead or other of your choice

Weed Guard: 40lb monofilament nylon

Extra Tools (optional): Small hair clip

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